Public libraries have embraced the popularity of maker education and makerspaces by integrating maker education in their program offerings, and by developing makerspaces that enable patrons to tinker and create products. But less attention has been paid to supporting librarians and maker educators in assessing the impact of these spaces. To expand…

Purpose: It has been a decade, as the collaboration between the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC) and the Ghana Library Authority (GhLA) to extend information and communication technology (ICT) and library services to rural deprived, unserved and underserved communities in Ghana dubbed the library connectivity project.…

This resource was designed to be used by individuals and groups as an ongoing reflection tool. Inclusion is not a one-size-fits-all concept, nor a complete-and-move-on challenge. The checklist and supporting resources are meant to help individual libraries evaluate current services as well as plan for the future. Ultimately, changes and…

Public libraries throughout the United States are increasingly using technological platforms to provide information resources to students across socioeconomic environments. Advances in technology have affected the way in which we learn with the advent of online learning, e-learning and shared learning experiences that have become ever present in…

Introduction: Our paper describes three examples of how public libraries in at-risk-neighbourhoods have worked with social innovations in order to develop and strengthen their services for minority groups. The libraries were chosen because they are frontrunners in the field of cultural diversity and social inclusion in Denmark. Method: The…

Public libraries in Europe have supported lifelong learning for the past 500 years. Since the Lisbon Strategy emphasized the role of lifelong learning in economic policy, public libraries have been repositioning their services to respond to this new context. In some cases, these roles are undertaken with limited legislative or strategic changes…

Recovery of significant achievements by exemplary individuals and institutions in public education and librarianship informs our present understanding and motivates future efforts. This narrative history recounts some of the struggles and successes of a great city library when the very conception of a free, public library was still being defined.…

Discusses a public library film literacy program offered to adolescents and young adults which incorporates films that are not curriculum-oriented and center around specific themes such as self-identity, creativity, speculations, and lifestyles. Seven films selected for program on social issues and viewers' evaluations are highlighted.…

Describes four successful public library programs for families and gives suggestions for planning programs and measuring their success. (LLS)

The Shared Staffing Program in Illinois began in 1975 under co-operative funding from the Illinois State Library, the public library systems, and local libraries. By 1977 fifteen public libraries in three systems were involved in seven projects, each funded for three years. The original objective was to provide beginning professional librarians…

Provides an overview of "Read on the Wild Side," a summer reading program for young adults established by the Webster (New York) Public Library, and "Read Hard, Play Later," a young adult summer reading program of the Pioneer Library System (New York). Highlights include reading logs, T-shirts, publicity, program evaluation,…

This manual offers guidelines for developing adult programming in Vermont public libraries as a means of bringing many people together to exchange ideas, knowledge, backgrounds, and experiences. Sections cover reasons for providing adult programming; the need for well-chosen and organized book collections; the persons who should be responsible for…

Presented in this report is an extensive evaluation of three library projects located in Chicago, Peoria, and the suburban Chicago area. All the projects reviewed have strong and weak points. Generally, the strong elements are a vigorous commitment to the people served, emphasis on inexpensive paperback books and collections of books stressing…

An experimental program of the master's level to prepare twenty students for public library service to the urban disadvantaged is reported. The institute had two general purposes: (1) to recruit and prepare twenty students to be effective librarians working with the poor in urban public libraries and (2) to test a variety of common assumptions…

Demonstrates the need for objective, quantitative measurements of children's services in the public library, lists objectives for these services, and describes the mode of research best suited to the task. Library schools are urged to work with practitioners in the field to build a body of research for the future. (JVP)