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Digital Library Strategies for Distance Learners

Digital Library Strategies for Distance Learners. Being in Their Face and Out of Their Way. Roy Tennant The Library University of California, Berkeley. http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/~manager/Presentations/ICDE/. Outline. Libraries and Distance Learning Barriers to the Future

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Digital Library Strategies for Distance Learners

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  1. Digital Library Strategies for Distance Learners Being in Their Face and Out of Their Way Roy Tennant The Library University of California, Berkeley http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/~manager/Presentations/ICDE/

  2. Outline • Libraries and Distance Learning • Barriers to the Future • Factors Affecting Barriers • The Impact of Network Access • What to Do • Being “In Their Face” • Being “Out of Their Way”

  3. Libraries & Distance Learning • The traditional situation: • telephone reference assistance • requests and books by mail • The future situation: • all of the above, plus... • network access to the library catalog, abstracting and indexing databases, full-text, digital images, multimedia resources, etc. • online, real-time reference assistance without long-distance telephone charges

  4. Barriers to the Future • Lack of access to a personal computer • Poor or missing network infrastructure • Lack of computer skills

  5. Factors Affecting Barriers: Computer Access • Prices are dropping dramatically • In many countries (not all) the economic and educational climate is improving • Regional learning centers can make computers available to students • Awareness grows that higher education and computer skills are necessary for success

  6. Factors Affecting Access: Internet Access • Satellite systems reduce the need for in-country physical infrastructure • Costs are likely to decline • Regional learning centers would reduce the need for personal connections • Those who work will increasingly be connected through their place of employment

  7. Factors Affecting Barriers: Computer Skills • Information skills are likely to become more important and valued • Computers are likely to become more accessible • We can work to make our systems more intuitive and easier to use

  8. The Impact of Network Access The Library: The Good • Has the capability to deliver information to the remote user for no (or less than before) incremental cost • Can provide users with access to a vast array of information resources without coming to the library

  9. The Impact of Network Access The Library: The Bad & Ugly • Must organize access to a vast array of resources • Must increasingly provide filtering services to reduce the choices or guide the user to the appropriate one • Must find ways to serve the needs of those who are remote (not always in distance!) • Must carry on with existing services

  10. The Impact of Network Access The User: The Good • Access to an incredible array of resources, with most just a few clicks away • Easy (and often cheap) communication • 24x7 access (no closed doors)

  11. The Impact of Network Access The User: The Bad & Ugly • Must cope with being faced with a bewildering number of choices, often with very little guidance as to which is most appropriate for a specific need • Must learn new technologies and techniques • Must cope with a lack of visual cues • Must cope with a lack of convenient assistance

  12. The Impact of Network Access Miscellaneous Impacts • Remote online library collections become more accessible than your print collections • You are no longer the solution of first resort • The rules of convenience and “good enough” can leave your users underserved • The improvement of services to network users often improves services for in-house users as well

  13. What To Do: Your Role • Guide users to the best resources (both print and digital) for their need • Use every channel at your disposal (online help, phone reference, online reference...) • Get those resources to them (mail, fax, network) • Be active instead of reactive

  14. What to Do: Specifically • Insert yourselves into your campus’ distance learning planning process • Find out how other libraries support distance education • Establish a robust networking infrastructure • Assign responsibility for managing library participation in distance learning initiatives • Reconfigure your services for the distance learner — be “in their face”

  15. Being “In Their Face”: Why? • Many catalogs and search systems are difficult to understand and use • Users need help at the moment they get stuck — email is inadequate • Unless assistance is obvious and convenient, the user will remain stuck • Other, readily available information sources, can be convenient but inadequate (web search engines, for example)

  16. Being “In Their Face”: How • Put your reference desk phone number in prominent places in your catalog system and web site • Have a method to get assistance on every search results screen in your control • Consult literature/colleagues/conferences for new ideas on providing service • Keep up with new network-based communication technologies

  17. Being “Out of Their Way”: Why? • Our users simply want to get their work done • Anything extraneous gets in their way • Over-complicated search systems hinder access for the majority • 80/20 rule as applied to search systems • It’s time to rethink what we’re doing!

  18. Being “Out of Their Way”: How • Simplify the interface • Complicate the back-end: • Pre-processing the query • Post-processing the results • Filter options • Sort options • Think imaginatively about what makes an effective search system

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