Information Access and Usage Behavior in Today's Academic Environment 

April 15, 2011

The Hub Cira Centre
2929 Arch Street
Suite 200
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Register (virtual participation only)

AGENDA

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Digital technology has dramatically changed information access and usage in higher education. Most college and university campuses are "wired" to facilitate PC usage and Internet access. With the majority of key journals and reference tools being accessible, students no longer need to trek to the library. Social networking tools allow them to collaborate without leaving their home or dorm. With the wide usage of handheld mobile devices, faculty can deliver lectures via podcasts, provide ease-of access to class-specific materials, and deliver their expertise beyond campus borders via a virtual classroom. Even traditional textbooks are taking on a new look and changing study habits with the increased availability and acceptance of digital editions.

What is the impact of today's digital technology on campus? Is information access improved? Are students finding and using credible, reliable information? Has journal usage and reading behavior hanged? Is technology enhancing the classroom experience or is it a distraction? What has been the impact on distance education and global collaboration? And how are digital textbooks really being accepted by faculty and students? This workshop will attempt to answer these questions and more as we take a look at current information access and usage behavior on campus and the new set of user expectations and needs that are emerging.

8:30am - 9:00am: Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00am - 9:15am: Welcome and Opening Remarks

9:15am - 10:00am: Information Discovery on Campus: Serving Today's Users

This session will focus on the results of a study done to determine the vision and requirements for a library's primary discovery environment(s), what framework is required for optimizing the discovery of library resources, and how the library can ensure that its data is ready for access, re-purposing and portability. It is a follow-up to a study that identified what academic users really want as part of the information discovery process.

Cody Hanson, Web Architect and User Experience Analyst, University of Minnesota  [ Slides ]

10:00am - 10:15am: Break and Networking Opportunity

10:15am - 11:00am: Google Scholar Use & Users

This session will look at the results of an exploratory study done on the use of Google Scholar at the University of Mississippi. The analysis is based upon existing data from interlibrary loan transactions through logs and analytics. Questions about user status and discipline as well as behaviors related to use of other library resources will be explored.

Gail Herrera, Assistant Dean for Technical Services & Automation, Associate Professor, University of Mississippi Libraries [ Slides ]

11:00am - 11:45pm: The Reading of Scholarly Articles: Behavior on Today's Campuses

Carol Tenopir, Chancellor's Professor, School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee. [ Slides ]

This session will take a look at the results of recent studies on how digital technology is changing the usage and reading behavior of scholarly journals in today's academic environment. Is the change discipline specific? Can digital technology be leveraged to increase student access to and usage of the literature? Come and get a glimpse at how digital publishing is changing the use of scholarly information.

11:45pm - 12:45pm: Lunch (will be provided)

12:45pm - 1:45pm: The Impact of Technology in the Classroom

This session will provide an overview of the information technologies currently being used on college and university campuses and what new technologies can be expected to emerge in the not-too-distant future. It will then take a look at how faculty are implementing these technologies both in the traditional classroom and in the virtual world of distance education technology to improve the access and use of information.

• Overview of Current and Emerging Technologies on Campus

Shelly McCoy, Associate Librarian and Head, Student Multimedia Design Center, University of Delaware [ Slides ]

• Use of New Technologies in the Classroom

Dr. Timothy Burke, Professor, Swarthmore College [ Slides ]

1:45pm - 2:45pm The Ultimate in Classroom Technology: Online Learning

Dr. Michael E. Scheuermann, Associate VP, Instructional Technology Support, Information Resources and Technology, Drexel University [ Slides ]

2:45pm - 3:00pm: Break and Networking Opportunity

3:00pm - 4:00pm: e-Publishing, e-Books and e-Texbooks on Campus

This session will take a look at how digital technology is being used in academia to create, publish and provide access to information via such innovative projects as digitization, books-on-demand, and innovative scholarly publishing projects. The adoption of e-books and e-textbooks will also be discussed.

Maria Bonn, Director of Scholarly Publishing, University of Michigan [ Slides ]

Mary Gallagher Gordon, RN, MSN, CNE, Director of Undergraduate Clinical Nursing Education, Drexel University, College of Nursing and Health Professions and Faye Meloy, PhD, RN, MSN, MBA, Assistant Clinical Professor & Chair, BSN Co-Op Program Drexel University. [ Slides ]

4:00pm: Adjournment