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The purpose of this study is to ascertain the usage of TikTok by libraries in enhancing access and visibility of services, facilities and resources.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to ascertain the usage of TikTok by libraries in enhancing access and visibility of services, facilities and resources.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a review paper of literature related to the usage of TikTok in libraries
Findings
The literature revealed that TikTok is being used mostly for library marketing and advocacy. Though there is scant literature on TikTok for information literacy, this platform is being used for teaching and learning purposes.
Originality/value
This is a welcome contribution to the utilization of TikTok for enhancing library services and reaching out to users beyond the library walls.
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Abstract
Purpose
Design/methodology/approach
Information paper
Findings
Provide information
Originality/value
Original review
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Tina T Yang, Peter E Sidorko and Esther M.W. Woo
– The purpose of this paper is to describe a study aimed at assessing the impact of the only recurring Asian library leadership institute on its participants.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe a study aimed at assessing the impact of the only recurring Asian library leadership institute on its participants.
Design/methodology/approach
A review of the literature focussing on similar longitudinal studies was first conducted followed by a survey of past participants aimed at utilizing a self-evaluation approach.
Findings
The study found it difficult to establish a conclusive cause and effect link between institute attendance and the subsequent changes in participants’ professional lives. Nevertheless the study provides compelling evidence that the institute has enhanced participants’ leadership skills, knowledge and insights and thus contributed directly or indirectly to changes in respect of their career progression, involvement in leadership activities and changes at their respective organizations.
Research limitations/implications
Like other similar longitudinal studies on library leadership training, the inconclusive nature of findings suggests that further analysis of participants might be undertaken through a qualitative approach in the form of focus group interviews with the participants and over a time period less than the ten years used in the study.
Practical implications
Survey respondents provided overwhelming support for the institute providing organizers with the motivation to continue to provide this opportunity to librarians in the Asia region.
Originality/value
As the only Asian library leadership training of its kind, this study has delivered a unique set of data that provides perspectives that have not been previously documented.
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Janet Sawaya, Tshepo Maswabi, Resego Taolo, Pablo Andrade, Máximo Moreno Grez, Pilar Pacheco, Kristine Paberza, Sandra Vigante, Agniete Kurutyte, Ugne Rutkauskiene, Jolanta Jeżowska and Maciej Kochanowicz
This paper aims to draw together the evidence‐based advocacy experience of five national programs focused on developing public access information and communications technologies…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to draw together the evidence‐based advocacy experience of five national programs focused on developing public access information and communications technologies (ICT) via public libraries as grantees of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Global Libraries Initiative.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors describe a common approach to strategic advocacy and to impact planning and assessment. They then outline the experience of each program in using a range of evidence to help meet specific advocacy objectives. They give particular attention to how each program is using specific evidence to convince key players of the importance of public access ICT provided by public libraries in meeting the objectives of the key players.
Findings
This collective experience shows that when advocating at the national level, statistical data and empirical evidence can demonstrate that public libraries contribute to stakeholders' goals. Such data can include technology skills that users have gained as well as how users improve their businesses, become better educated, and access government services. Common denominators from the programs include a disproportionate positive impact achieved (or anticipated) in rural communities and on relatively disadvantaged groups such as older workers, old people and unemployed people.
Practical implications
Both the general approach to evidence‐based advocacy described and the specific messages about targeting advocacy efforts on key players and on the service users who are most likely to benefit from public access ICT are of potential value to anyone planning a national, regional or local advocacy program focused on public libraries and their services.
Social implications
As the paper deals with global library advocacy issues, and impact planning, it is hoped it is a step towards more measurable social impact for libraries.
Originality/value
This is the first full public report of the Global Libraries approach to evidence‐based advocacy as conducted in the five countries represented in the paper. It is part of a steadily growing body of knowledge being amassed by Global Libraries about effective provision of public access ICT via public libraries in a range of countries.
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The purpose of this paper is to review some of the current literature and discuss some ways to advocate for open access (OA) programs adopted by libraries in various institutions…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review some of the current literature and discuss some ways to advocate for open access (OA) programs adopted by libraries in various institutions. It points out that the library and information science/system community's enthusiasm for innovations in OA may have unintended negative financial consequences. This overview provides a list of relevant literature/resources in the area of library advocacy, with regard to the ongoing needs of OA repositories. There is a focus on OA in India.
Design/methodology/approach
The literature review is not comprehensive but selective and fairly recent; it includes published resources from the last ten years and lists organizations advocating for a sustainable OA model.
Findings
The advocacy roles for librarians in promoting the OA movement, and the challenges they are facing in this era are discussed. The author stresses that a proactive approach in information handling and collaboration with information technology staff and academics are essential for OA to be sustainable.
Originality/value
Owing to poor or reduced government funding for libraries, librarians are forced to advocate for OA in new and different ways. Library officers/information managers serving in universities and academic institutions can launch a program to help faculty pay for publishing in OA journals, introducing the concept and securing funding through various means.
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Julia Cottrill, Fernando Letelier, Pablo Andrade Blanco, Henry García, Marcel Chiranov, Yuliya Tkachuk, Tetiana Liubyva, Rachel Crocker, Matthew Vanderwerff, Giedre Cistoviene, Ineta Krauls-Ward, Eugenijus Stratilatovas, Dan Mount, Agniete Kurutyte and Triyono .
The purpose of this paper is to outline the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Global Libraries (GLs) initiative approach to advocacy and how it informs, guides, and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to outline the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Global Libraries (GLs) initiative approach to advocacy and how it informs, guides, and integrates impact data to support sustainability of GL program results.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper defines advocacy in the context of GL, and explores the GL grant planning process, tools, and collaboration between advocacy and impact specialists. Results are demonstrated through grantee examples that illustrate a variety of approaches to library advocacy using impact data at local, country, and regional levels.
Findings
The paper demonstrates the importance of identifying community needs, designing impact measures to demonstrate how libraries help to address those needs, and the variety of ways impact evidence can be used to effectively advocacy for public libraries. This basic formula can be applied to advocacy efforts ranging from a broad national policy to a small incremental change in perceptions of libraries by local decision makers.
Originality/value
This paper reinforces the essential link between library impact measurement data and successful advocacy.
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Purpose – This chapter will utilize the apprenticeship model developed by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching in their Preparation for the Professions series…
Abstract
Purpose – This chapter will utilize the apprenticeship model developed by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching in their Preparation for the Professions series to study how American Library Association (ALA)-accredited Master of Library Science (MLS) programs could be reformed to better integrate the interests of educators with those of the practicing profession and the public they serve.
Design/Methodology/Approach – The Carnegie model uses three “apprenticeships” to distinguish the three areas professional education must address, labeled in this chapter as knowledge, practice, and identity. Each of these three areas is explored as it relates to the education of librarians, with an emphasis on what constitutes the general knowledge, skills, and identity of librarianship. Examples of how these three components could be integrated into an MLS program are given.
Findings – Current ALA-accredited MLS programs differ widely on the number and content of required courses. Applying the model developed in the other Carnegie studies to the field of library education yields a clearer vision for the professional education of librarians and to a reorienting of the educational experience students encounter in their MLS studies.
Originality/Value – Using examples from other professional education programs allows library educators to see the means by which a holistic education is achieved in other professions. The novelty of this approach is in the breakdown of the various components of a professional education program. The tripartite approach to professional education also provides a useful framework around which to build an MLS program.
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Subnum Hariff and Jennifer Rowley
Evidence suggests that misconceptions and negative stereotypes of the image of public libraries still prevail today despite libraries diversifying and offering a range of services…
Abstract
Purpose
Evidence suggests that misconceptions and negative stereotypes of the image of public libraries still prevail today despite libraries diversifying and offering a range of services to their local community and contributing to key local and national priorities. The purpose of this paper is to report on a case study‐based research project that sets out to explore how public libraries in the UK are using branding in order to create a more positive and effective image, as a basis for proposing the key factors that contribute to an effective public library branding strategy.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, three case study organisations were selected for the study, on the basis of their reputation for innovation in branding. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with key staff associated with each of the three public libraries, in order to gather an understanding of the branding processes and strategies that they had adopted, and how they had negotiated some of the challenges in branding in the context of public libraries.
Findings
The three case study organizations bear testimony to the fact that branding can be successfully used to change brand image, and in turn, the perceptions of the library service amongst key stakeholders. The following factors are key to successful branding: clear positioning and identity, advocacy and influence, co‐branding, staff buy‐in, brand communication, evaluation, and national marketing campaigns.
Originality/value
This study offers insights into branding process and strategies in innovative public libraries, and on this basis develops recommendations to support information practitioners to develop a positive image of their service and to engage effectively with stakeholders in what are challenging times for public libraries.
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Kwame Kodua-Ntim and Madeleine C. Fombad
This article suggests strategies for the usage of open access institutional repositories (OAIR) at university libraries in Ghana.
Abstract
Purpose
This article suggests strategies for the usage of open access institutional repositories (OAIR) at university libraries in Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach
Pragmatism paradigm, mixed methods research approach and convergent parallel mixed method design was adopted. Simple random sampling, stratified random sampling, purposive sampling techniques and the sample size converter were the sampling procedures and methods employed. The questionnaire and interview guide were used as research instruments to gather relevant data for the study. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used as statistical tools to analyze quantitative and thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative data.
Findings
Factors such as software, staffing, advocacy, marketing and policies are crucial in the development of OAIR strategy at the University of Ghana.
Research limitations/implications
Information from the National Accreditations Board (NAB) of Ghana (2018) indicates that Ghana has 92 Higher Educational Institutions (HEI). These are categorized into nine national public universities, eight technical universities, ten professional institutions and 65 private universities and university colleges. This article focuses only on five university libraries with the understanding that they were the only universities on the Directory of Open Access Repositories, authoritative international registries of repositories that provide data on the number of registered Institutional Repositories throughout the world.
Practical implications
It is envisaged that the findings will benefit policymakers, academic staff, university library management and librarians. Academic staff will recognize the need to use OAIR. OAIR managers and administrators will be able to determine the factors affecting the usage of OAIR in university libraries and will be able to design strategies on how OAIR can be sustained and managed.
Originality/value
The article suggests strategies for the usage of OAIR that are instrumental for university libraries in Ghana. The strategies consist of an Institutional Guideline that requires adequate marketing, policies, software and staffing. The research also provided an understanding of OAIR through the lenses of technology acceptance model (TAM) an extension of the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) to explain the usage of OAIR in university libraries in Ghana.
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Lisa K. Hussey and Diane L. Velasquez
This chapter provides in-depth case studies of two large urban public libraries in the United States and how communities and libraries respond to reductions mandated by their…
Abstract
This chapter provides in-depth case studies of two large urban public libraries in the United States and how communities and libraries respond to reductions mandated by their funding agencies. Boston Public Library (BPL) and Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) are both in communities that faced, and are still facing, recessionary budget pressures that began in 2007. Each community and library system has responded in different ways. In the recent past, in both Boston and Los Angeles, the Mayors and City Councils have supported libraries that have come to define the great cultural heritage and heart of these cities in the past. In 2010, however, both cities faced unheard of budget pressures. In Boston, there was a budget shortfall of $3.6 million. In Los Angeles, the budget shortfall began in 2007 due to huge increases in pension payments to city workers, particularly in the police and fire departments (City of Los Angeles Web site, 2011). In Boston, the community was told there could be branch closures. In Los Angeles, the budget shortfall created severe personnel, material, and service cuts. How each library and their leaders responded to those challenges differed. The level of support that their communities provided and the manner in which it was provided also differed. The two cases describe what can happen when budget crises occur and how libraries and their communities deal, or do not deal with them. The cases also reflect how the two library systems serve metropolitan areas with very distinct characteristics.
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