Bharat Mehra, Kimberly Black, Vandana Singh, Jenna Nolt

1. Mapping the Education of Rural Librarians’ Technology Literacy and Management Training: Use of Mixed Data Collection Methods in the ITRL Program Bharat Mehra, Kimberly Black, Vandana Singh, Jenna Nolt School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee Johnson City Public Library, TN Hancock County Public Library, Sneedville, TN Lake City Public Library, TN Sevier County Public Library, Sevierville, TN

2. Agenda • Research Goal • The ITRL Purpose • Education in the ITRL context • Research Participants • Research Methods • Findings: Mapping the ITRL Student Journey • Conclusions ITRL Planning Meeting 13 November, 2009 IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

3. Research Goal To report the use of mixed data collection methods in the $567,660 grant entitled “Rural Library Professionals as Change Agents in the 21st Century: Integrating Information Technology Competencies in Southern and Central Appalachian Region” (ITRL) recently awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services' Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program to the School of Information Sciences (SIS) at the University of Tennessee (UT). Laurel Jones Public Library, Laurel, MS IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

4. The ITRL Purpose The ITRL purpose is to recruit sixteen paraprofessionals working in rural libraries in the Southern and Central Appalachian (SCA) regions to complete their master’s degree part-time (June 2010 – August 2012) with a focus on IT and rural librarianship in the UT’s SIS program via distance. • ITRL students are receiving: • Part-time degree in a ALA-accredited program • A structured, individually-tailored IT and rural management curriculum • Rural library practices and needs incorporated into the curriculum • IT competencies in developing rural library work applications • Formal/informal professional mentoring by educators and practitioners • Full-tuition scholarship for two years • Allowance for materials • Provision of a laptop computer IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

5. Why the ITRL Program is Important The SCA regions are experiencing: • Information poverty and unemployment • Economic challenges • Low levels of information literacy and educational attainment • A lack of access and use of IT • Other unique environmental challenges Library professionals who are embedded in their communities are in a strong position to help address and develop solutions to these needs. Laurel Jones Public Library, Laurel, MS IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

6. Education in the ITRL Context • Use of cutting-edge synchronous DE technology is allowing real-time online interactions in the virtual classroom via VoIP that make the experience a unique offering in this part of the country. • ITRL students are enrolled part-time, taking six credit hours (two courses) each semester (summer, fall, and spring). • Forty-two credit hours (14 courses) plus a comprehensive examination or thesis are required for graduation. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

7. Education in the ITRL Context IT Outcomes Management Outcomes Service evaluation in rural libraries; Management of a rural library program for adults and children/young adults; Reader’s advisory; Grant writing and development • Technology infrastructure planning and analysis; • Web design, development, and usability; • Database design and implementation; • Building digital library and web portals; • Establishing hardware and software networking; • Creating Library 2.0 tools. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

8. Research Participants: 1. Students IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

9. Research Methods: 1. Students • In-depth narrative essay submitted as part of application • Strategic academic plan • Advising sessions and ongoing communication • Course participation and interactions, SAIS course evaluations, and course grades • Qualitative interviews during odd-numbered semesters • Quantitative surveys delivered pre-and-post course in even-numbered semesters • Sharing during ITRL Annual Summits IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

10. Research Participants: 2. Practitioner-Mentors IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

11. Research Methods: 2. Practitioner-Mentors • Structured information flow and communication exchanges are maintained at least once a semester between faculty advisor , practitioner-mentor, and student individually and/or collectively. • Email surveys provide feedback every semester. • Ongoing interactions address matters as they crop up. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

12. Research Participants: 3. Educators/ Instructors + Administrators There are three ITRL faculty educators who are the advisors of the students in matters of course content and planning, in consultation with the practitioner-mentors. Instructors of ITRL courses include tenured and tenure-leading faculty and adjunct faculty and lecturers (including rural librarians and practitioners) hired by the SIS. Other administrators and staff are helping to implement various grant activities and address challenges that come up owing to administrative bureaucracy, policies and procedures, etc. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

13. Research Methods: 3. Educators/ Instructors and Administrators • Educator advisors meet on a weekly basis; Email survey on a yearly basis. • Course instructors communicate on an ongoing manner as matters crop up; Email surveys distributed every semester. • Other administrators and staff report on an ongoing manner as matters crop up. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

14. Research Participants: 4. Appalachian Rural Librarians + Community Members • Community members include the ITRL partners and others invested in promoting growth and progressive changes in the SCA region while seeking tangible and practical solutions relevant in the 21st century. • Our realization of this group emerged during the ITRL recruitment stage (Oct. 2009) and since when more than 200 individuals have established contact (and continue to do so) regarding their curiosity, support, and possible involvement. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

15. Research Methods: 4. Appalachian Rural Librarians + Community Members • Ongoing information and communication exchanges (via f-t-f, phone, email, and UTSIS-ITRL list) are maintained with this group. • Networking and data collection has been facilitated via: • Presentations and publications at professional conferences and venues; • Press releases, feature stories, and ITRL website development. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

16. Findings: Mapping the ITRL Student Journey IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

17. 1. Developing Context of the Journey • Content analysis of in-depth narrative essays submitted during application helped evaluate: • STUDENT CAPABILITIES: Writing abilities; Critical and reflective skills; Immediate and long range career plans; Comfort with IT; Description of their strengths in meeting ITRL goals; Impact of the grant in their lives and communities. • LIBRARY CONTEXT: Description of library vision; Interaction with professionals holding a master’s degree; Work in individual and group-managed projects; Important IT management issues; Change in their library over the next ten years. • COMMUNITY CHARACTERISTICS: How their library was important to the community; Who were typical library patrons; What library services they used most. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

18. 2. Laying Out a Road-Map • Attendance during an online and f-t-f program orientation introduced students to expectations, policies, and student life-cycle. • Strategic Academic Plan submitted by the end of 1st semester included: • Career path/choice and the kinds of IT and management outcomes planned in each course. • Personal learning objectives, course recommendations, research projects to enhance IT skills with rural library applications. • Profiles of work/position descriptions and IT expectations. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

19. 2. Laying Out a Road-Map “IS 565 Digital Libraries. Currently: We have done very little digitizing in our library, although numerous materials are being now stored at our center in digital format. So we need plans for both digitizing materials for dissemination and also a records management plan for digital records. This is a big challenge for non-profits. Goals: Develop ideas and plans and carry out a project for developing [name of agency] capacity as a digital library. We are working to organize and develop a digital/on-line finding aid for our library and I would like to connect that project in this class. I also am interested in thinking through an on-line version of our [name of agency] historical timeline, which will serve as a guide for researchers and others interested in more detail about [name of agency] work. We want to connect with other libraries holding [name of agency]-related items. We also need a records management plan for our institution, both for real and virtual files and materials. This class may provide support for that effort.” IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

20. 3. Ongoing Checks and Bounds • Advising sessions are helping to regularly track student experiences. • Provide a structured mechanism to maintain ongoing communication; monitor educational program and studies work experiences to deliver relevant outcomes. • So far, conducted f-t-f or via phone in addition to ad hoc emails to address matters of concern, issues, unforeseen situations, and moments reflecting student needs. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

21. 4. Monitoring Performance Along the Way • Each student shares course experience, point of view, thoughts on performance, and development of course deliverables via multiple channels that have included: • Participation in real-time text-chat and asynchronous blog and/or discussion list contributions, course discussions, contributions in course assignments, and feedback collected via the online SAIS course evaluation system. • Student’s performance has been evaluated as reflected in their course grades. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

22. 5. Assessing Short-Term Milestones The Qualitative Student Experience • Four-eight open-ended questions during narrative interviews in odd-numbered semesters focus on: • Overall experiences of the ITRL program; • Experiences in current courses; • Influence of assignments on work in their rural libraries; • Benefit of course applicability and impact of course content on their library work practices; • Challenges students are experiencing in the process; • Improvements that can be made for future course iterations. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

23. 5. Assessing Short-Term Milestones The Qualitative Student Experience “We are just on the second exercise, so we’re not very far along, but I like them because they give some structure but they don’t dictate all the structure so they’re open enough for me to be able to adapt them to what I want to think about and do. I like that it is structured and systematic and I’ll be able to see as I make my way through, but I do think I may not have time in the semester to do as much in depth as I want, but it sets up a structure where I can follow up. That’s relating to a structure of trying to assess a kind of research training for community groups that we could be doing differently than what we do now or that we haven’t been doing but used to do, so that’s kind of a question I’ve been wanting to think about, I don’t know that I can do enough interviews to help me know the answer to that by the end of the semester, but I’ll have a good basis, and it’s also making me think about how do we document what we do better.” IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

24. 6. Evaluating Short-Term Milestones The Quantitative Measurement of Student Experience • 23-28 questions to be rated 1-5 in surveys for each course during even-numbered semesters to gather feedback pre-and-post course experience. • Questions are based on analysis of course objectives, content and topics, and assignments. • Surveys are hosted on the website, password protected, and analysis using standard software. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

25. 7. Sharing and Disseminating Short-Term Student Outcomes • ITRL students are summarizing IT and rural management deliverables that they developed during their courses every year in the ITRL Annual Summits. • Students record online presentations that will be made available online and circulated amongst professionals and others invested in rural library communities in the SCA region. • This will help disseminate ITRL experiences within the larger body of professional and non-professional population and provide recognition of ITRL students’ efforts over the past year. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

26. Conclusions • Multiple data collection methods and analysis are helping to identify and evaluate expectations and accomplishments of all participants involved in the ITRL program throughout the process and time frame of the grant to provide formative and summative evaluations. • Research limitations • Data collection: Voluntary participation means that not all individuals in a given population are providing feedback. • Small size of the student population gives quantitative results limited value; plus, the number of participating students from pre-to-post class surveys may vary significantly, making comparative analysis somewhat problematic. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

27. Conclusions • Select examples of collected data and glimpses of analysis show the need to integrate the concept of multiplicity in order to complement the strengths and weaknesses that exist in application of isolated and narrow strategies. • Mixed methods in ITRL data collection are providing a holistic understanding of the student’s experiences and integrating an outcome-based, results-oriented approach in the curriculum design to bring progressive changes in the SCA regions. IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt

28. Questions and Comments? Thank you for your attention and participation. Bharat Mehra (bmehra@utk.edu) IFLA 2011: Mehra, Black, Singh, & Nolt