As the independent Chartered Institute for the library and information professions, CILIP is committed to promoting the interests of libraries and their users through advocacy, media and political engagement. The new CILIP Action Plan 2016-2020 sets the objective of securing the interests of all libraries in national policy through a series of campaigns beginning in 2015 with My Library By Right.
In delivering this policy objective, CILIP has decided to work in parallel with the Speak Up For Libraries (SUFL) coalition to pursue our respective interests rather than as a partner. This will enable both CILIP and SUFL to work independently, able to harness effectively our differing perspectives and approaches to campaigning to the benefit of users. CILIP acknowledges the great contribution that the other partners in the coalition have and are making to ensuring the future of our public library service.
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In this podcast, Will Allen, head of Jisc north, gives an overview of Tuesday's Connect more event in Liverpool and Emily Jones, media relations manager, talks to speakers, staff and delegates about what the future holds for technology in education.
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The June 2016 issue of Catalogue and Index is now available. This issue features papers that were given at the CIG Scotland hosted international seminar on RDA and Rare Materials that took place on November 6th 2015 in Edinburgh. This seminar was held in conjunction with members of the Association of College & Research Libraries’ Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS), the European RDA Interest Group (EURIG), the CILIP Rare Books and Special Collections Group (RBSCG), the CILIP Cataloguing & Indexing Group (CIG), IFLA and JSC. We also have a review of the Introduction to RDA event that was given to the Association of Pall Mall Libraries earlier this year.
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Victoria Treadway et al report on an NHS/public library partnership project between Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Wirral Council to support the wellbeing of people living with dementia, creating reminiscence boxes which are available in public libraries and in the local acute hospital.
Dementia results in a progressive decline in multiple areas of function, including memory, reasoning, communication and the skills needed to carry out daily activities. With a growing elderly population, it is expected that by 2025 there will be one million people living with dementia in the UK [1]. Dementia is a key priority for Wirral, and one that will continue to grow; it is estimated that by 2020 there will be 5,282 people aged 65 and over living with dementia in the borough [2].
Dementia is a condition that spans health and social care; people living with dementia require support while living at home, while they are in residential care, and also if they are admitted to hospital. Consequently, this is an area in which public libraries and health libraries can work together in supporting the entire journey.
Reminiscence therapy is used extensively in dementia care and can incorporate activities such as handicrafts, looking through old photographs, listening to music, creating memory books and exploring objects and artefacts from times gone by.
It is a way for those living with dementia (and their families and carers) to connect with memories from the past, which may be more accessible than short-term memories. There is a body of literature that demonstrates that reminiscence therapy for people with dementia can improve mood, [3,4] cognitive function, [5] eating behaviours,[6] and reduce carer strain [7] and behavioural symptoms. [8]
Each box in our reminiscence box collection covers a different theme, for example ‘Washday memories’; ‘A man’s world’; ‘School days’; ‘Toys and games’ and ‘Baby times’. We were successful in bidding for funding from Health Education North West (HENW) to enable us to purchase items from online retailers and charity shops. Members of the public have also generously donated personal items to complement our collection.
Items are specially selected to provide a sensory experience for the user, so as well as objects that stimulate the sense of touch (clothes brush, knitted baby clothes, Bakerlite telephone), we also have items to evoke memories from smells (lavender, shoe polish, carbolic soap) and sounds (music CDs, school bell).
Guidance on developing the collection is provided by the Matron for Dementia at WUTH and the Wirral branch of the Alzheimer’s Society. We have also learned from other library services pursuing similar projects.
Local community groups and care homes are eligible to join our Reminiscence Box scheme, and the collection is shared and rotated between two central libraries and the hospital.
The launch of the service was marked with a 1950s afternoon tea event at West Kirby library, with the Deputy Mayor, representatives from other local stakeholders including the Alzheimer’s Society, Older People’s Parliament and local care home residents in attendance.
The local Memories Choir performed songs from times gone by, and local amateur dramatic groups attended in 1950s dress to provide an immersive experience.
The response from the launch event was overwhelming, and feedback indicated a genuine, heartfelt desire for the service from the local community.
‘Superb idea. Seeing five of our ladies faces light up and their mood changing while singing, talking about past memories from things found in the boxes… promotes the feeling of belonging, fun times, family and fond memories. Makes a change that elderly people, especially those with dementia, have a chance to shine.’ – Activities Coordinator from local care home
‘The people of Wirral would benefit greatly from the ready accessibility of these boxes, enabling many families to be able to communicate with their loved ones who, due to dementia, may not otherwise have the ability. It seems to have the effect of bringing people together in memories (even strangers)!’ – hospital member of staff
‘As an aged person I find that nostalgia and reminiscing are a large point of my life…With me a word or song can bring back so many memories and I know it is the same for others of my age and older. Dementia patients can often not recall anything until you trigger a memory with a song or a comment and a whole world can open up for them.’ – Older People’s Parliament member
Our boxes are borrowed by local care homes, in particular by Activities Coordinators, to enable group and individual reminiscence therapy sessions. In February 2016 we coordinated a networking event and invited Activities Coordinators to share ideas on how to utilise the contents of the boxes to enable reminiscence.
Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust was awarded the ‘Patient Champion’ award at the 2015 NHS North West Leadership Recognition Awards, in recognition of the trust’s work in supporting patients with dementia and their families.
Current initiatives include personalised care planning, dementia awareness training for staff, support for carers and reminiscence areas including an old style pub and a 1950s café. The Reminiscence Box service complements these initiatives by enabling staff and befriending volunteers to borrow boxes for reminiscence therapy with dementia patients.
For inpatients with dementia, reminiscence can provide reassurance and comfort during what can be an upsetting time in unfamiliar surroundings.
To promote the collection, we hosted an event for hospital volunteers and staff to explore the reminiscence boxes together and give us feedback on the collection. Staff from the local Alzheimer’s Society branch were on hand to offer advice and tips to the group on how best to utilise the contents.
Through planning, creating, launching and promoting the service we have engaged and consulted with key stakeholder groups and invited feedback; this has been crucial in ensuring the service is customer-driven and responsive. People who have borrowed reminiscence boxes tell us which items are most popular and where we could improve on the contents. As a result we have duplicated some of our most popular themed boxes and items. We are responding to feedback by enhancing the collection and adding labels and descriptions for the items in the boxes.
We have also been gathering testimonials from people who have used the service so that we can demonstrate value and impact:
‘It created discussions about childhood – such as going to the corner shop and looking at all the sweets in the old glass jars… Several residents joined in and talked about their own personal memories.’ – Care Home Activity Coordinator
‘We had a group discussion about the old toys. Residents shared childhood memories… The reminiscence boxes are very good for group talks.’ – Care Home Activity Coordinator
‘Nursing staff… can engage with the patients, offering diversion/distraction to enable the patient’s stay to be more enjoyable, hopefully helping them to feel more secure and comforted.’ – Hospital member of staff
‘The boxes also got residents chatting amongst themselves – usually a lot of them sit in silence.’ – Care Home Activity Coordinator
While working in partnership across local authority and healthcare boundaries has been an exceptional opportunity to directly support our local community, it has also presented a unique set of challenges. Negotiation was required within both organisations to establish processes for the purchase of items from non-standard suppliers. The procurement of items was unexpectedly time-consuming and sometimes difficult to navigate.
We’ve learned a lot of lessons along the way about delivering this kind of partnership service. Promotion is a key priority so that we can demonstrate healthy usage of the collection and collect positive feedback. Tapping in to local community networks has really helped to spread the word and we have made use of the local press to raise our profile.
A small, core steering group that crosses both local authority and health sectors has worked well to ensure that the needs of both organisations are met. Regular communication and meetings have been instrumental in driving the project forwards and sustaining momentum.
Our collection will require ongoing maintenance as items get lost or damaged, therefore it is crucial that we continue to promote the service and encourage donations from the local community.
In response to feedback, we are currently organising events for people with dementia who are living at home, and their carers. We plan to host regular ‘Memories afternoons’ at different libraries around Wirral, with music, refreshments, and reminiscence activities, to enable families to come together in a safe space to share experiences and spend precious time with their relatives.
This article was originally published in CILIP Update Magazine, May 2016.
There are lots of ways for CILIP members to access the full range of articles published in Update, including
Non-CILIP members can subscribe to the digital version of the magazine or join CILIP to get access to the full range of benefits.
[1] Alzheimer’s Society. Dementia 2014 report statistics – Alzheimer’s Society, 2016. http://bit.ly/1S3xmL4
[2] Wirral Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) Summary Report, 2016. http://bit.ly/1TVTfwv
[3] Cotelli, M., Manenti, R. and Zanetti, O. ‘Reminiscence therapy in dementia: a review.’ Maturitas, 2012, 72(3), pp.203-205.
[4] Subramaniam, P. and Woods, B. ‘The impact of individual reminiscence therapy for people with dementia: systematic review.’ Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics, 2012, 12(5), pp.545-555.
[5] Nawate, Y., Kaneko, F., Hanaoka, H. and Okamura, H. ‘Efficacy of Group Reminiscence Therapy for Elderly Dementia Patients Residing at Home: A Preliminary Report.’ Phys. & Occupational Therapy In Geriatrics, 2007, 26(3), pp.57-68.
[6] Cleary, S., Hopper, T. and Van Soest, D. ‘Reminiscence therapy, mealtimes and improving intake in residents with dementia.’ Canadian Nursing Home, 2012, 23(2), pp.8-13.
[7] Woods, B., Spector, A., Jones, C., Orrell, M. and Davies, S. Reminiscence therapy for dementia. 2005. http://bit.ly/1WvGeu1
[8] Tolson, D. and Schofield, I. ‘Football reminiscence for men with dementia: lessons from a realistic evaluation.’ Nursing Inquiry, 2011, 19(1), pp.63-70.
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Every day people rely on Google for answers to their most personal, important or trivial questions. How do you know if the information is reliable? A good place to start is with an information expert. We ask Nancy Graham, Research Support and Academic Liaison Manager at LSE, to investigate if Echinacea works when you have a cold?
Many of us (around two thirds) will go searching online for remedies for common ailments. There are several treatments discussed as ‘cures’ or preventions of the common cold and Echinacea is one of them. Widely available but unlikely to be prescribed by a doctor, how would you find out if it was worth using?
Does Echinacea work when you have a cold? is a common Google autocomplete question with around 568,000 results.
I spent nearly nine years as a medical subject librarian at the University of Birmingham and in that time I learned a great deal about medical sources, hierarchies of evidence and how medical research makes its way from the lab to the media.
As a medical librarian I supported not only medical students but also medical researchers. Many of these researchers were conducting systematic reviews. This type of research is widely regarded as the highest form of medical evidence as they will literally review medical evidence in a systematic way – focusing on the quality of the research methodology and assessing it as useful evidence of the effectiveness of treatments for a range of illnesses.
If you’re thinking like a medical researcher the first thing to do is refine your question to make it more precice. Do I want to know whether it’s worth me taking Echinacea when I already have a cold or am I asking if I should take it preventatively? It’s worth thinking about as both these aspects may have been researched. Medical research questions are usually incredibly precise (for example - a researcher won’t ask ‘is aspirin effective?’ but ‘Is using Aspirin with or without an antiemetic for acute migraine headaches in adults effective. Be more precise in your questions.
The only way the effectiveness of Echinacea will have been worked out is through clinical research. The more clinical research that has taken place, the better; it will build the body of evidence that something either works or doesn’t. So, what you really want to find out is if there is any ‘clinical evidence’ that Echinacea works. Try typing ‘Echinacea clinical evidence’ and notice the difference in the results.
So the next thing I think is crucial in a librarian’s information literacy skills set, asking these crucial questions - Which result will I click on first? What other resources am I going to use? If you’re using Google it may be the case that you’ll only have access to freely available sources but it’s important to think about where information about medicines/other remedies exists. Echinacea is a herbal remedy and therefore is not likely to be prescribed by a doctor. So, would you find out about it on the NHS website? The NHS and medical researchers will look into many treatments (especially if popular) and don’t just focus on new pharmaceuticals.
The NHS is included in the Google results (but it isn’t the first one!) and it does have information on Echinacea. However, should you stop at the NHS? How many other results should you look at before deciding on which one(s) to trust?
Medical researchers undertaking systematic reviews will be expected to be exhaustive in their searching, finding everything that has been written on a treatment. You may not want (or need) to do this but it’s worth considering how much time you should spare when it’s a question of health.
How reliable is the source that I’m looking at? The NHS is probably the most widely trusted source on health in the UK. The website is accessible, regularly updated and also hosts the excellent Behind the Headlines resource (look at the Health News section on the homepage), reflecting on health news stories and unpicking claims within them. The easily understandable information on the website is based on a wealth of medical research. However, and it’s a big however, the NHS is a government service and in some cases certain treatments, interventions and medicines may be promoted above others depending on government policy (e.g. MMR, breast feeding).
There will be evidence to support the use of these treatments but the promotion of them can be viewed as government led (especially in the case of controversial treatments) so it’s really important to understand the basis and strength of the evidence and, more importantly, the strengths and weaknesses of the underlying medical research.
One of the results for the search ‘Echinacea clinical evidence’ is an NHS site from 2012, taking the reader from a newspaper headline and drilling down through to the underlying medical research. This is an excellent example of transparency and giving readers a clear line to the source of evidence.
In the results for 'does Echinacea work when you have a cold?' there is also a link to the NHS, with an article on Preventing colds and flu.
Understanding the information landscape for the topic you’re studying is another important aspect of information literacy. We’ve already had a look at the NHS site, which is useful, but what are the best sources for medicine and are they in my results?
For medical research there are several excellent resources but most people continue to rely on the NHS site and the BBC. Due to the complex nature of medical information, most people wouldn’t go much further than those site and perhaps Wikipedia or WebMD. However, one site that not many non-medical people know about is the Cochrane Collaboration.
This was an initiative set up in 1993 in response to the work of a Scottish doctor, Archie Cochrane, a specialist in medical evidence and effectiveness. His pioneering work determined that randomised controlled trials (RCTs) were the best way of finding out if a treatment is effective. The subsequent Collaboration has since supported thousands of systematic reviews of RCTs from around the world on a wide range of treatments.
And the best thing about the site? All the reviews are available, full text and with plain language summaries, to anyone in the UK. Which leads to…
The NHS website is a wonderful resource but as librarians we know that there is an unprecedented amount of information kept behind publishing paywalls. In the case of medical publishers, this is a very pricey paywall and therefore access to the latest medical information is often not possible for the general public.
If information does filter out to media outlets we are at the mercy of (in some cases untrained) medical journalists to interpret the research correctly into something that the layperson can understand and, crucially, trust.
The Open Access movement works to make publicly funded research accessible to all and it’s important that we keep on demanding access research that we have effectively paid for. Openness is fundamental to the Cochrane Collaboration and the results are free for us to view.
In both sets of Google results for our questions, the reader is never more than two clicks away from the full text of a Cochrane report on the usefulness of Echinacea, here and here. Medical practitioners will use Cochrane Reviews to help them decide on treatments for their patients and NICE will include them in their clinical guidance.
So, even as a Googler, you too can access, understand and trust the highest quality medical evidence on treatments for something as simple as the common cold and in a world of pay-to-view content and paywalls, this is a very powerful thing indeed.
Other blogs in the #AskALibrarian series include:
Image source: "Echinacea" by rnv123, used under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 / original cropped and resized with "Ask a librarian" banner added
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CILIP SWMN are hosting a Mentor Exchange Meeting on Monday 11th July from 1pm-4.00pm at the University of Exeter, Exeter
Mentor Exchange Meeting
This is an opportunity for CILIP mentors to discuss issues, problems and potential solutions arising from mentoring CILIP Certification and Chartership candidates.
Attendees will have the opportunity to raise issues for discussions, this could include issues such as:
• Outline of new regulations for Professional Registration
• Sharing hints and tips/evaluating own performance and that of service
• What are wider professional issues/what should be in the portfolio?
• E-submissions/moving from ACLIP to Chartership
• An update of mentoring issues/mentoring long distance/reasons for failure of submission
This event is free. Attendees can buy refreshments (and lunch if required) Building One, which has a nice café open during the Summer.
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UKeiG has today published the call for nominations for its second major award - the Jason Farradane Award.
Given in recognition of an outstanding contribution to the information profession, the Award honours Jason Farradane who made an impact with a paper on the scientific approach to documentation at a Royal Society Scientific Information Conference in 1948 and was instrumental in establishing the Institute of Information Scientists in 1958 as well as the first academic courses in information science in 1963 at the precursor of City University, where he became Director of the Centre for Information Science in 1966.
The nomination could highlight achievements such as raising the profile of the information profession within an organisation or field of endeavour in a way which has become an exemplar to others or simply raising the awareness of the value of information in the workplace; demonstrating excellence in education and teaching in information science; or making a major contribution to the theory and practice of information science.
Nominations should reach UKeiG no later than Friday September 9th - full details of where to send your nomination and of the information which you should include in the nomination are given in the full call, which call can be found on our web page:
http://www.cilip.org.uk/uk-einformation-group/2016-call-jason-farradane-nominations
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On June 9th IFLA, EBLIDA and LIBER urged all players to work together and apply their efforts to build an open science system, underlining the importance of open access and open science for human progress. They offered their strong support for the ministers' ambition to make all research open access by 2020, and rejected the arguments of those who seek to stall this movement.
The statement began:
On May 27 2016, EU Member States affirmed their commitment to accelerating the advancement of knowledge and boosting innovation and competitiveness in Europe by adopting Council Conclusions on the Transition Towards and Open Science System.
We, the European and international library community, welcome this development and support a rapid transition towards Open Science as a high priority for us and our users, as outlined clearly in the LIBER response to the Amsterdam Call for Action.
Member States should be in no doubt that their commitment to Open Science will result in a healthier and more efficient research ecosystem, a greater impact for research funding, and a better environment for knowledge transfer. This move will not only boost European competitiveness, but will establish Europe as a world leader in data-driven innovation.
However, a note of dismay was sounded over the negative reactions to the Conclusions from stakeholders with an interest in maintaining the status quo: in particular the International Association of STM Publishers. The full statement (PDF) can be found at:
http://www.ifla.org/files/asse...
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You are cordially invited to the AGM of the CILIP Yorkshire & Humberside Member Network, which this year is offered in combination with a presentation from Paul Sturges OBE, and a tour of the Leeds Central Library.
The AGM will include elections for the positions of Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Candidate Support Officer and Mentor Support Officer. In addition, there are vacancies on the committee for a student/new professional member, and ordinary members. Please let us know in advance if you are interested in standing for one of these positions.
Following the AGM, Paul Sturges OBE, Emeritus Professor of Library Studies at Loughborough University and Fellow of CILIP, will draw on the experience of his eclectic international career to give a presentation intriguingly titled “Murder, Sex, and Magic”, about the role of the unexpected in library services.
After this there is a chance to see some of the treasures of the Central Library’s collection, as well as hear about the building’s heritage and visit some of the specialist departments, such as the creative industries production centre (Studio 12), and the Business & IP Centre. Please note that places on the tour are limited – please indicate when registering if you would like to come.
CILIP members and non-members are welcome to attend any combination of the three parts of this event, though only members can vote in the AGM.
Booking
Please book tickets via Eventbrite.
Directions
The library is approximately ten minutes’ walk from Leeds railway station. There is no car park at the library itself, but there are several pay & display car parks around the city centre.
Accessibility
The meeting room and tour are both wheelchair-accessible. Please contact us before the visit if you have any accessibility concerns.
16:00 – AGM
16:30 – Refreshments
16:45 – Presentation by Paul Sturges “Murder, Sex and Magic: Unexpected Encounters in Library Science”
17:45 – Tour of Leeds Central Library
19:00 – Finish
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In addition to a tour of the new buildings including the refurnished library, the team will give a presentation on all the processes involved in carry out a project of this nature – such as liaising with College stakeholders, working with architects, designers and suppliers, visiting other libraries and producing ‘mood’ boards. The presentation will include a selection of before and after photographs to illustrate the transformation.
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Your chance to get your views heard and make a difference
Come along to the Focus Group run by Luke Stevens-Burt, Head of Business Development (Member Services), CILIP
7th September 2016
3:00pm – 4:00pm
Kimberlin Library
De Montfort University
Leicester
CILIP has recently announced a new membership model for 2018. As part of the market testing activities, focus groups are being run in various regions (and online) in order to get detailed member feedback. We will be running one at Kimberlin, Library, De Montfort University, Leicester on 7 September 2016 at 1500. It will last between 45-60 minutes.
You can learn more about the campaign at cilip.org.uk/membership-2018 where you can also fill out a survey. The focus groups will examine some of the headline results from the survey and give members the opportunity to discuss some of the finer aspects of the proposed offer.
All members are encouraged to submit a response to the survey, but if you would like to discuss this further, please make use of this opportunity. Places will be limited to 10. To attend, please book your place using the following eventbrite link http://www.eventbrite.com/e/focus-group-on-cilip-new-membership-model-for-2018-tickets-26072140474 any queries please contact please liaise with Kaye Towlson (kbt@dmu.ac.uk ).
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Join the Information Literacy Group and the Multimedia, Information and Technology Group for a day long conference of seminar talks and activities from digital literacy experts from across several different areas of the library and information sector.
Are you currently involved in developing, supporting and delivering digital literacy skills in your library? Are you engaged in developing information literacy frameworks which include digital literacy (and vice-versa)? Do you want to find out more about what others are doing in this area and to what level? Then this conference is for you. Our speakers will enlighten you as to how their services are involved in and support the digital literacy agendas in their respective institutions and sectors.
Programme
09:30 – Registration / refreshments
10:00 – Opening and welcome – Leo Appleton (University of the Arts London and chair of MmIT)
10:05 - Extending Digital Literacy - Luke Burton (Digital Transformation Manager, Newcastle Libraries)
10:45 – Digital literacy in the NHS - Kearan Lamb (Knowledge and Library Service Manager,Stockport NHS Trust)
11: 25 – Coffee break
11:40 – Technology, digital capabilities and the language of change – David Walker (Head of Technology Enhanced Learning, University of Sussex)
12:20 – Building Digital capability - (tbc)
13:00 – Lunch
13:45 – Building a digital nirvana - Moira Wright, (Digital Literacy Officer, University College London)
14:30 – The role public libraries play in supporting digital literacy - Jacqie Widdowson (Blackburn with Darwen Library Service and Chair of the Public and Mobile Libraries Group)
15: 10 – Evaluating the impact of digital literacy programmes: lessons from student ambassadors? -
Jane Secker, (London School of Economics and chair of ILG) and Sonia Gomes (London School of Economics Library)
15: 50 – Closing remarks
16:00 - Close
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In this podcast, Georgie Myers talks to our deputy chief innovation officer Andy McGregor, Glasgow Caledonian University's Lina Petrakieva, and head of Jisc Scotland Jason Miles-Campbell about today's Connect more event and what the future holds for education in Scotland.
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PMLG Teachmeet 2016.
Booking is now open for this year’s biennial PMLG un-conference. Following a ‘teachmeet’ format, the day will combine special guest speakers and facilitators, with open forum workshops for sharing best practice. There will also be partner organisation exhibitors, and lunch and refreshments provided. Sessions will explore topics that include job clubs, business start-ups, and how libraries can support digital literacy helping to combat social divides and unemployment. Confirmed guest speakers and facilitators so far includes, the award winning creator of Wrexham Library’s ‘Businessline’ initiative, Gareth Hatton; the ground-breaking digital support charity Tinder Foundation; and the Chief Executive of CILIP, Nick Poole. And the best bit… this event is completely FREE to PMLG members!
Brought to you in association with the Tinder Foundation.
Places are limited, hurry to avoid disappointment. Email cilippmlg@buckscc.gov.uk to book your place.
Non-PMLG members will be invoiced for £20 + VAT.
United Kingdom
Tel: 02072550500
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Join CILIP Thames Valley on a tour of the Wellcome Collection Library! The Wellcome Collection Library was founded in 1949 on the collection formed by Sir Henry Wellcome, a 19th century pharmaceutical entrepreneur and collector. It is now one of the world’s leading libraries of medical history.
The collection contains over 9000 manuscripts and 800 archives on the history of medicine in the United Kingdom and Europe. The History of Medicine Collection contains books and journals which represent a broad history of medical thought from around the world since the earliest times. The Medical Collection contains rare books and ephemera from the 15th century to the present day. The art collection contains over 250,000 prints, drawings, paintings and photographs from the 14th century to the present. The library also contains a large Asian Collection and a significant Moving Image and Sound Collection as well as a large Biomedical Images Collection.
The tour will include an overview of the history of the library and an opportunity to view items from the collection.
Everyone is welcome to attend this tour. Booking for this event is essential.
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UK wide survey examines the attitudes of practitioners within higher education and cites the growing importance of online libraries to academics.
The 2015 survey of academics, jointly commissioned by Jisc and Research Libraries UK (RLUK) and conducted by research organisation Ithaka S+R, was launched today and has revealed a substantial increase in the way academics use and value online libraries.
88% of researchers now see their university library’s collections and subscription as a very important source of data and information. Furthermore, 18% use this resource as a starting point in their research - a trend which has seen a 28% increase between 2012 and 2015.
Nearly 7,000 academics responded to the survey, which examines the attitudes of researchers and practitioners working within higher education. The powerful evidence provided will help universities, policy makers, funders, and librarians to successfully plan for the future.
Other key findings of the report include:
Paul Feldman, chief executive of Jisc, commented:
“As online capabilities become an essential part of academic practice, these survey findings confirm that research practice is evolving and academics are embracing this change and using research tools differently.
It’s encouraging to see from the findings that researchers are embracing open access methods such as making versions of their research outputs available online for free, where institutions are giving them the digital support to do so. Jisc is a passionate advocate of open access and we will continue to provide the right guidance, direction and resources academics need to exploit the growth, opportunities and rewards that open access offers.
Ultimately, more access to research means that businesses, the public and fellow researchers can reap the economic and social benefits ensuing from research.”
David Prosser, executive director at RLUK, explained:
“The findings put the spotlight on how the behaviour, habits and expectations of researchers have continued to evolve. It’s clear from the report that researchers continue to see their institution’s libraries – both digital and physical - as a trusted resource that enables them to research, share and store their projects safely.
As representatives of the most significant research libraries in the UK, it’s now our role to adapt to these findings and explore how best we can help our members meet the needs of their key users.”
Roger Schonfeld, director of Ithaka S+R’s libraries and scholarly communication program, added:
“It’s a hugely valuable exercise to examine the research and teaching attitudes and practices of academics in the UK higher education sector. Doing so, we identify how their behaviours and practices are changing.
This in turn, provides the sector with meaningful and detailed insight to make informed decisions on its future.”
via Jisc news
A Rich Tapestry: Diverse Collections and Audiences is the theme for this year's Rare Books and Special Collections Group Conference which takes place in Liverpool between 7-9 September.
CDEG is delighted to announce a full delegate bursaries for its members to the RBSC Conference 2016. This will include accommodation but not travel.
Two bursary places are available. One is open to all members. Also on offer is an additional bursary offered to a CDEG member who is "currently undertaking academic study in a higher education institution in the UK and whose research interests are specifically focused on libraries and social justice/equalities/diversity".
To apply
Please email an expression of interest (max 300 words) to cdeg.cilip@gmail.com by 29 July 2016 detailing why you wish to attend and what you think you will gain from the experience.
DON'T FORGET TO TELL US WHICH BURSARY YOU ARE APPLYING FOR.
Successful applicants will be informed by 13 August and will be expected to write up their experiences in a short report to be published in either Update or CDEG membership bulletins.
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Examine the history, architecture and contemporary uses of Berlin's libraries and the use, suppression and dissemination of information during its modern history.
Culture and arts prevail in Berlin, a place that does not forget its history and is simultaneously forward-looking. Due to its location and its prominent role in modern history, Berlin’s libraries are home to some of the richest, most important and rare collections in the world.
Its libraries are an essential part of the lives of Berlin’s citizens and indeed Berlin's very history is enmeshed in its libraries. They have been subject to fascism, bombing and the effects of the Cold War. Today, they have become symbols of resistance and reunification.
Ian Stringer, Chair of the International Library and Information Group and a Committee Member of CILIP Yorkshire and Humberside Member Network, will lead the tour. He will be accompanied by his son, Paul Stringer, who is a fluent German speaker.
To download a tour brochure and book a place:
6 Oct 2016 (Thurs) Berlin:
7 Oct (Fri) - Berlin:
8 Oct (Sat) - Berlin:
9 Oct (Sun) - Berlin:
This tour group is limited to twenty places. It is open to members and non-members but members will be given priority through reserved places.
To download a tour brochure and book a place:
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‘Teachers hold the key to unlocking enhanced learning experiences through technology’; that is the overriding insight to emerge in our new survey, designed to help higher education (HE), further education (FE) and skills providers understand more about their students’ digital experiences.
The student digital experience tracker, a pilot scheme to provide first-hand insight into learners’ expectations and views on technology in an education setting, showed that 72% of HE and 70% of FE and skills learners believe that when technology is used effectively by teaching staff it enhances their learning experience – giving credence to the argument that practitioners need to develop their own digital skills to deliver learning and teaching.
This is an increasingly important theme within the sectors, with rising demand from employers for digitally-literate staff, and ambitious goals from government to develop the UK digital economy by 2018, setting a new need for greater technology skills. It comes in the week that the Science and Technology Committee released its report, digital skills crisis, which found that:
"Students using technology in the classroom is not enough in itself—they only translate this experience into key digital skills through good teaching and following good role models."
Key to reaching these targets is partnership working between tutors and students to co-develop digital learning environments and fully utilise technology.
Other key findings show how students use digital solutions to support their studies and the support they are receiving from their institutions:
Sarah Knight, our senior co-design manager, said:
“We know the power that technology has to transform learning for all students, and these results gives us a really rich source of data on the current situation which, crucially, show just how important teaching staff are in driving this process.
The good news is that we are on the right course – but in order to maintain this it is incredibly important that practitioners consistently work on their own digital skills, and support the development of their students’, while delivering the very best possible learning experience.
Our work around digital capabilities will allow teaching staff to identify where they have strengths in their digital skills, and what they need to develop further. They will then be provided with personalised ‘playlists’ of resources to help them enhance their digital literacy and build confidence. We think that this can be an important tool in helping individuals and institutions shape a strategic response to this issue.”
The student digital experience tracker pilot – authored by Helen Beetham and Tabetha Newman - surveyed 10,755 students from 12 HE and 12 FE and skills institutions. We are currently working with all 24 pilot institutions to help them analyse and respond to their findings, providing advice and guidance on how to use the data to target resources and have an ongoing dialogue with their learners about embracing new technology. We will be exploring the possibility of rolling out the tracker as a full service.
Visit the report to view the full results.
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The visit includes a brief tour of the Library and an overview of the Library’s work over recent years and their future plans. The Digital Resources Librarian will give an overview of systems and the Research Liaison Librarian will give an overview of cataloguing.
The visit is free and has a maximum of 15 people.
Visitors should sign in at reception, after which they will be guided to the tour.
Please contact David Lass david@malcolm.myzen.co.uk by July 15th to book a place
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The second edition of the 2010 book Copyright and E-learning: a guide for practitioners is now available. The book covers the topic that has fascinated me for over a decade and been central to the job I do at LSE: copyright law and its relationship to e-learning or online learning.
Much of the intentions behind the first edition remain however. The book is designed to be read by practitioners and so it tries to offer pragmatic advice on a range of topics issues from digitising orphan works, to lecture recordings, the use of social media and MOOCs. We tried to write the book in a jargon-free easily digestible way, to hopefully make it a practical guide for learning technologists, but also teachers, lecturers and other learning support staff in higher education, schools, further education and even in a workplace learning setting, where online learning is used extensively.
We’ve taken six key ideas from the book’s conclusion, which we feel are really important to helping you approach any copyright issue:
Realize that everything is about risk and there are ways of mitigating the risk. For example, devising helpful and timely education and training programmes, but also having institutional policies such as notice and takedown policies on the VLE or any online platform where content can be shared. You will need to decide how comfortable you (and your institution) are towards risk if you decide to rely on copyright exceptions, or are not sure whether a licence covers what you wish to do.
Break down any copyright query into its constituent parts – what type of copyright works does it concern, how will they be used, are there any licences that might apply and finally could a copyright exception come into play? This inevitably requires developing your own technical knowledge to tackle these queries and we’ve provided numerous examples of further resources and training that might help you in the book.
Use empathy – in any given situation understanding what someone is actually trying to do when they approach you with a copyright query is helpful. However empathy is important from both sides so try to get the person to think about what the creators and rights holders of a work had in mind too. Ideally this will help you put your copyright support work in context and frame it as a collaborative enterprise.
Understand that there is lots of great ‘stuff’ available for free or under liberal licence terms, such as Creative Commons. Many people are happy to share their work with you provided they are credited, particularly when it’s for educational use, but recognize that there are often good reasons why some content costs money or is not available to you.
Recognize that good manners go a long way – asking nicely, giving credit and building creative networks are a fundamental component of education and research. Over time you can build up your network of contacts, and often knowing the right person to ask will give you access to a wider network of resources which can be used at little or no cost.
Remember, you are not alone. It’s easy, particularly if you are faced with a tricky copyright situation to feel you are expected to know all the answers and this clearly isn’t going to be possible and no one is an island. So build up your support network, both within your organization and externally, and get to know a few copyright experts who can help you out when you get stuck!
If you’d like to find out more about the book you can visit our website where we have made the list of further resources available. You can also find out about some of the copyright education initiatives we’d been involved in recently. If you are interested in hearing more about some of the challenges related to copyright and e-learning, you may also wish to listen to the recent podcast we recorded with James Clay. We also plan to make the sixth chapter from the book, on copyright education, available on open access.
What are the main copyright challenges you face? Let us know in the comments.
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A one day mentoring workshop provided on behalf of the CILIP North West Member Network – FREE to members of CILIP.
The purpose of this course is to provide participants with a background to mentoring, a basic framework for conducting mentoring both long and short term. The focus of the event is to enable participants to develop effectively as mentors in the context of the CILIP professional development scheme.
Mentor Training is a requisite for becoming a CILIP Mentor and this course is suitable for all CILIP members who have recently registered as CILIP mentors or are thinking of registering. Do come along and find out more about the mentoring scheme.
By the end of the day participants will:
• Have an awareness of the function of mentoring in the CILIP CPD process
• Have had the opportunity to explore and experience mentoring
• Be able to make an assessment of their capability as mentors and identify their development needs in this area
The morning session will focus on generic mentoring skills whilst the afternoon will focus on the CILIP regulations.
Members who have previously attended a course on mentoring skills may attend the afternoon only (14.00-16.30) to join in the elements relating to the CILIP scheme.
Facilitator: Linda Ferguson (CILIP NW Mentor Support Officer)
Book here:
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk...
United Kingdom
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The 15 winners of our student ideas competition have been announced, and ideas are as varied as ever.
They range from augmented reality and unique studying tools, to apps that help students find tutors, test each-other, locate spaces to study across campus, and even to inform students when it comes to selecting the right course for them, along with many more new ideas.
The successful entrants have scooped £2,000 of expert support, and are now in the running to win an additional £3,000 along with collaboration and support for developing their ideas. They’ll also from get a real taste of life in the cutting-edge world of technology start-ups, helping to develop employability skills like planning and pitching. On 23 August the winning teams will pitch their designs, and we will select up to five ideas to develop further.
Part of our Summer of Student Innovation, the student ideas competition called for technology ideas that could improve the student experience in higher education (HE), further education (FE) and skills and attracted dozens of entrants whose pitches accumulated 7613 votes in total on the Elevator website.
Paul Bailey, our senior co-design manager said:
“The Summer of Student Innovation competition is now in its fourth year, but the fantastic ideas just keep on coming, proving that students are a great source of invaluable on-the-ground knowledge and innovation when it comes to edtech.
As usual, we received many exciting and innovative ideas and choosing the winners was a difficult task. We chose these entrants because their ideas were innovative and exciting, whilst addressing new opportunities in educational technology. They also offer potential ideas we can develop into products, and have real potential to offer a genuine impact in learning, teaching or research”.
Previous winners include a platform for research participants, a student feedback tool, and apps to help apprentices and tools to support accessibility and inclusion. One winning team from 2015 who are currently benefiting from our support are team SALT (The Students' Academic Literary Tool), for students in FE and HE institutions to improve their academic writing style. Their website to support academic writing has been developed into an app and will be ready to be piloted by universities soon. The team were also runners up in a The Guardian University Awards 2016.
Holly Shaverdi of SALT said:
“I would even go as far as to say it (Summer of Student Innovation) has been life changing where our project is concerned.
Having the opportunity to network with professionals and gain support to develop your idea is such a great thing to be able to have access to (…) there is a lot of competition out there, so it is up to you to bring new ideas, and Jisc will help you with the rest!”
Keep an eye out for this year’s winners’ ideas in the future, and watch their pitches on the Elevator website.
The Summer of Student Innovation is managed by Jisc and is a co-design project with Research Libraries UK (RLUK), Russell Universities' Group of IT Directors (RUGIT), the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL), the Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association (UCISA) and the Association for Learning Technology (ALT).
You can watch a video playlist of all the winning ideas below or view full list of winners on the Summer of Student Innovation project page.
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Our new survey has revealed some surprising predictions for the classroom of the future for schools, universities and colleges alike.
The survey found that in five years’ time 20% of respondents believe that learning will be done through virtual reality, while a quarter think teaching will be delivered remotely by tutors who might be thousands of miles away.
Perhaps more surprisingly is the potential emergence of robots in the role of teacher or lecturer. When asked about whether they expect to see robots delivering lessons, 7% are confident that this will happen in the next five years, rising to 11% for ten years’ time. Almost a fifth (18%) think it will be reality in 20 years.
Other findings show the expectation of how tests will be delivered. 33% think that in five years, test will be taken in an app or virtual environment, with results immediately submitted, logged and ranked. 30% believe that technological advancements will mean that within five years new examination methods will be the norm, with students being allowed to take smart phones/devices into exams, to test their research skills.
With technology playing an increasing role in everyday lives, it follows that many respondents recognise the vital role of digital skills. 20% agree that knowing how to use technology will become just as important as traditional subjects like languages when it comes to getting a job in the next year. A further 34% believe this will happen within five years.
The survey canvassed the opinions of 1,000 people in the UK (aged 18 to over 65, and both in and out of education).
Martin Hamilton, futurist at Jisc, said:
“The power of technology undoubtedly opens up new benefits as it continues to develop and integrate into the classroom. We are already starting to see learners go on virtual field trips with technologies like Google Expeditions and the Open University’s Open Science Laboratory.
History lessons of the future could involve students ‘visiting’ Egypt via augmented reality to see the pyramids being built. The possibilities really are endless”
Age appears to be a determining factor in how likely you are to believe technology will change teaching and learning practices, with younger generations more certain that technology’s role in education is set to grow. For example, when asked about when they expect all learning to be carried out online, 31% of 55 to 64-year-olds and 37% of those aged 65 and over, thought this would never happen.
Conversely, 67% of 18 year olds thought all learning will be carried out online within 20 years, and 40% of 19-20 year olds were certain that a shift to online learning will happen within the next five years.
Martin Hamilton added:
“Today’s primary school pupils have grown up around technology, often using it both at school and in the home. This could be why they are more accepting of technology being used to enhance education.
A key question for us now going forwards is how colleges and universities need to adapt to meet the needs of these Young Digital Makers, as a recent Nesta report described them.”
Representatives from Jisc and other sector experts will be discussing education technology and sharing tips at its series of free Connect more events, which will be taking place in cities across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales this summer.
Delegates will also be able to try out new technology at the Digi Lab, from robotics to virtual reality and mobile technologies.
Visit our Connect more web pages to find out more or book a place.
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