We See You, We Hear You: Using Mixed-Methods Assessment to Observe Student Activity in Informal Learning Spaces

This presentation describes how a mixed-methods assessment program informed the decision-making process to renovate a significant portion of the IUPUI University Library. The presenters led a team of library staff to ensure that newly renovated library environments would support student learning, address campus needs for more informal learning space, and maximize usability for library visitors. Participants will learn about assessment strategies and evaluation methods for informal learning spaces and libraries. The presenters will also describe how input collected from library users influenced design decisions

Qualitative Content Analysis: A Reflection

Like many public services librarians, we spend much of our time focused on improving service quality. We think of excellent service quality as meeting or exceeding customer expectations consistently over time. One approach for fostering consistent service delivery for libraries is to implement standards like those found in a service philosophy statement. A service philosophy statement communicates directly to users what they can—and should—expect from library services. We decided to study service philosophy statements in a formal way using qualitative content analysis to learn how one might benefit our own public services units. This chapter addresses key questions we had about our research project: Where do we begin? What method or approach is most appropriate to answer our research question? How will we learn to use this method? This chapter describes the challenges we faced while simultaneously learning and applying the method of qualitative content analysis to our study of service philosophy statements

Commuter Campus in Transition: Meeting the Changing Needs of Students through Mixed-Methods Assessment

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis is an urban research university with approximately 30,000 commuter and residential students. This chapter discusses the space assessment done at University Library, the main campus library, which attempts to analyze and quantify the needs of both types of students. Two studies will be outlined, which started separately, but have since merged, both informing student use of library space. While both contain quantitative and qualitative elements, their methodologies are different. One used SMS (texting) in combination with one-on-one de-briefs to track student movement over the course of an entire day. The other uses in-library assessments to gauge student space use and preference. One limitation of in-library assessments is they only tell you about students who already use the library, not those who do not come to the library. The combination of these studies allows University Library to better plan library space, not only for current users, but also to target students who are not in the library (non-users)

The quest for the holy: the religious perspective of Sir Thomas Malory's Le morte darthur

This thesis explores the religious content and context of Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Darthur. There has long been a heated critical debate about Malory’s interest in religion, and this thesis demonstrates that Le Morte Darthur engages frequently and seriously with religion in general and with a specific manifestation of religion in particular: that is, fifteenth-century lay chivalric Christianity. This thesis is divided into an introduction, five chapters, and a conclusion. The introduction provides a historical and critical context for the discussion that follows. The first chapter explains the text’s engagement with fifteenth-century lay chivalric Christianity in particular, and demonstrates that Le Morte Darthur gets more religious as it proceeds. Chapter 2 explores the role of holiness in the character development of Lancelot and Galahad, and argues that the father and son represent two alternative models of holiness. The third chapter demonstrates the thematic importance of penance throughout Le Morte Darthur, with particular attention paid to Guinevere, Lancelot, Arthur, and Gawain. The fourth chapter focuses on the Grail Quest, and demonstrates that Malory chose to use a symbolic and religious source for his retelling of the Grail story, despite having other options. Chapter 5 uses sections of Le Morte Darthur with no known source to argue that Malory’s religious preoccupation is his own, and not inadvertently imported from his sources. The conclusion makes a case for the significance of the study. “The Quest for the Holy: The Religious Perspective of Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Darthur” offers a critical analysis of one of late medieval literature’s central text, addressing deeply concerns that have more frequently been merely alluded to. More broadly, it joins critical discussions about conflicting loyalties, individualism and collectivism, ideology, politics, theology, and political theology

Jesus, Plato, Math and Theology: What is Truth?

Mathematical ontology is relevant to Christians because so much of Christian theology has been historically shaped by Platonic mathematics and the ontology that goes with it. The various contributors to Mathematics in a Postmodern Age, edited by Howell and Bradley, seem to assume that Christians are necessarily realists in ontology, and they are not alone. But what is the cause of this Christian connection with mathematical realism in ontology? How much has our idea of God been shaped by Plato and his mathematics

Adult Literacy in Indiana

Mary McLeod Bethune, an African-American educator and adviser to U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt, has been quoted as having said, "The whole world opened to me when I learned to read." Unfortunately for many in Indiana, the "whole world" may be closed to them because of illiteracy. According to the Indiana Adult Literacy Coalition in 1989, 12% to 19% of Hoosiers over age 25 could not read or write at a functional level. As early as 1930, illiteracy was recognized as an issue within the state. An article in the Indinapolis Star dated September 25, 1930, headlined that over 50,000 Hoosiers were illiterate ("52,034 in state," 1939). It is natural to assume that at some point Indiana developed a robust statewide initiative to address the problem of illiteracy amongst its citizens. One might imagine a program that over time slowly but surely reduced the number of Indiana citizens who struggled under the mantle of illiteracy; however, myriad reasons and circumstances have conspired to prevent that from happening. Instead of a forceful statewide program, numerous segmented efforts by local or regional entities with modest support from various federal, state, or non-profit organizations are more apt to be found

Developing a narrative theory of deception for the analysis of mock-Covert Human Intelligence Source (CHIS) accounts

Human source intelligence (HUMINT) practitioners are concerned with detecting informant deception, and previous research indicates that the verbal content of an informant’s narrative can be used to identify potential deceit. The current study extends previous research by analysing the narrative structure and narrative identity of accounts provided by 22 participants undertaking the role of a mock-informant. Results indicate that deception affects the structure of a mock-informant narrative, with deceptive mock-informants employing abstract introductions and evaluative remarks to withhold information and to distract their listeners with emotional content. Additionally, deceptive mock-informants are more likely to express a low potency narrative role, such as a victim or tragic hero. Furthermore, there is tentative evidence to suggest that an analysis of narrative identity can also provide an indication of varying levels of motivation and cooperation among truthful mock-informants. These findings have implications for HUMINT practitioners in the field and add to the wider body of deception detection research

Making Room for Innovation: Using Systematic Random Sampling to Quickly and Efficiently Obtain Shelf Occupancy Data

This poster was peer-reviewed for inclusion at the Association of College and Research Libraries' 2015 Conference in Portland, Oregon. Date of presentation is March 26, 2015.Are you preparing to renovate space currently occupied by the stacks to construct a new cafe? A collaborative learning space? A technology-rich environment? If so, data is needed about the collection. How much shelf space is currently occupied by monographs? By serials? How much is empty? How much space would be available if serials were relocated or withdrawn? Find out how to use systematic random sampling to quickly and efficiently obtain shelf occupancy data

Evidence-Based Renovation: How Libraries Can Engage User Behavior to Inform Space Planning

PowerPoint PresentationIUPUI University Library is planning a renovation project to convert space occupied by book stacks into informal study spaces for individuals and groups. We planned an assessment program to gather data from library users that helped provide insight to staff, architect, and designers on how and why they choose to use the library. What we learned from user feedback was used to intelligently decide the number and variety of seating types and work environments, so that we could enhance an atmosphere conducive to scholarship in the library. In our short presentation, we described our implementation of a mixed method approach to data gathering using three different tools: unobtrusive observation, survey, and open question solicitation. We discussed how our variety of methods served to corroborate the data that we gathered from each, why it was important to garner input from library visitors, and how the information influenced our decisions about seating types and locations. We provided an overview of our observational assessment in which we recorded specific, relevant data such as group size, activities, and type of work surface or seating. We will also describe the adaption of a survey instrument, used to gauge student opinions about services, locations, and furniture available for their study habits and needs. Finally, we detailed how we designed open quantitative and qualitative questions, posted on white boards, for library users to self-report their habits and opinions

Defining the Value of Libraries: Trends in Academic Library Assessment

Just like other academic areas on campus, academic libraries frequently engage in assessment. In this panel, a group of esteemed leaders of library assessment will discuss ways in which libraries are assessing their impact on higher education. Librarians have a long history of evaluating their collections. Yet in the face of seismic change in the technological and educational landscapes, assessment trends in libraries now extend to robust programs of evaluating student learning, assessing the impact of library services and spaces, and demonstrating how libraries are a vital part of achieving institutional goals. Attendees will gain an understanding of assessing beyond direct academic outcomes, learn how library initiatives may be an opportunity to collaborate on common goals, and how libraries demonstrate their value in a campus-wide context