This literature review is intended to examine transformative learning within the context of academic libraries and its applications for librarians. Although the main audience is academic librarians who facilitate student learning, it may also be of interest to other practitioners and researchers who are interested in applying transformative…

This issue of "Research Library Issues" ("RLI") highlights the value of professional failure. The idea to explore this theme emerged from conversations with the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Innovation Lab Advisory Group earlier this year. It is the hope this issue highlights the value of failure--both its necessary…

The research examined the use of Information Retrieval Tools (IRTs) by the post graduate students of Mehran University of Engineering and Technology. The research used descriptive survey and was carried out over a period of six months between August 2016 and January, 2017. The sample size comprise of 2,000 postgraduate students which were randomly…

Researchers surveyed academic librarians to determine current software and practices used in synchronous virtual research consultations. The survey findings identified the top software products currently used by respondents for virtual research consultations. Through open-ended comments, it became clear that libraries are not tied to one…

This article addresses the question: How do emotions and emotional labor relate to instruction librarians' motivations to adopt new teaching practices? Twelve information literacy instruction librarians were interviewed about their motivations to adopt new teaching practices. An initial round of coding was completed using grounded theory, to…

This article presents an overview of the popular rankings (US News and World Report, QS World Rankings) of U.S.-based library and information science (LIS) education programs and the shortcomings of each ranking. It calls for a new, more objective ranking of LIS programs that will more accurately assess quality and sustainability of these programs…

Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) programs have been recognized as one of the most effective channels through which theses and dissertations can be made available to academic communities and beyond. ETD program management, however, needs to be aware of the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) throughout the process of design and development of…

The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of short professional development interventions, covering core concepts in teaching and learning, on the self-efficacy of academic librarians in the teaching role. The participants in this study were six academic librarians at a large, research-intensive university in Canada for whom instructional…

Readers' advisors are tasked with suggesting leisure reading materials to library patrons. The current discourse within the field has it that these advisors ought to adhere to (what I am calling) a "pure preference satisfaction model" wherein they aim to satisfy readers' existing preferences without judging or attempting to alter them.…

Copyright has an impact on nearly every aspect of the information professions, from developing collections to creating local policy and educating patrons. Given the apparent importance of copyright to information professionals, it is crucial that librarians and other information professionals be prepared for copyright-related responsibilities…

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobiological disorder that is characterised by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulse control problems. Students with ADHD are entering higher education at an increased rate and although there is some research on this population in higher education, library specific literature on the topic…

In 2010, the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) were adopted by most states in the US. The authors of these standards called for a shift from previous standards by recommending that young children experience a 50-50 balance between informational and literary reading. For this mixed-methods study, researchers examined the contents of 23 first-grade…

To better engage our graduate students, we asked them to describe their research strategy and challenges, helpful research support services, and their preferred venue for learning research skills. We conducted a thematic analysis and found that participants' top reported research strategies included "Research Topic Development" and…

Although teacher librarians play a role as literacy and literature educators in schools, little research attention is given to this role. In addition, the use of book discussion in school libraries to enhance reading engagement is not often closely considered as an educative practice. This paper draws on qualitative research findings from…

As in other academic libraries, LSE (London School of Economics and Political Science) Library does not meet student expectations for access to core readings despite increasing provision. We used user experience research to gather evidence of student experience, behaviours, and preferences for taught course content with the aim of making…