An e-portfolio is an organized collection of professional work (artifacts), selected and reflected upon by the author, that represents a person's best efforts. Over time, an e-portfolio will reflect professional changes and growth. This article discusses some of the reasons for a school librarian to create an e-portfolio. Before creating an…

At present, about 20% of the scientific publications worldwide are freely (open-access) available (Bjork, Welling, Laakso, Majlender, Hedlund, & Guonason, 2010) and this percentage is constantly on the rise. In the Netherlands, a similar trend is visible (see Fig. 1). Why is open-access (OA) publishing important, and why will it become even…

This article considers Open Access (OA) training and the supports and structures in place in academic libraries in the United States from the perspective of a new librarian. OA programming is contextualized by the larger project of Scholarly Communication in academic libraries, and the two share a historical focus on journal literature and a…

Beginning in 2004, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) requires institutions seeking accreditation to develop a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) to improve student learning. QEP topics may be focused on a single educational initiative or may combine several efforts in order to enhance and assess student learning. While some plans…

Since their origin in 1925, standards for elementary school library programs have outlined role expectations for the school librarian. As the passage of time introduced new technologies into the world of education, these standards were reviewed and revised. After each revision, the standards, which were later referred to as guidelines, reflected…

Ten years after the publication of its first edition of "Library Media Standards," the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) embarked on the preparation of its second edition. During the 2009-2010 academic year, a Development Committee selected by NPBTS from nominees from across the nation worked with NBPTS staff to…

In a year when a difficult economy presented fewer opportunities for immediate gains, the major industry players have defined their business strategies with fundamentally different concepts of library automation. This is no longer an industry where companies compete on the basis of the best or the most features in similar products but one where…

Books are traditionally set aside at the request of teachers from the main, normal loan collection to be put on reserve temporarily for checking out for a much shorter loan period to ensure that, at the expense of convenient, long-term loans for other users, all the students enrolled in a course have an opportunity to use them. Many studies have…

Campus librarians play a central role in conversations revolving around copyright compliance. The sheer volume of information provided within library physical and virtual spaces affirms the role libraries play in current copyright debates. Regardless of the function of librarians on any particular campus, it is important to confront the myriad of…

People who love books can find entering an Australian library in the so-called "cyber-age" to be an unsettling experience. The first thing you notice is the reduced emphasis on book shelves in favour of empty but architecturally pleasing "public spaces", comfortable cushions, computer terminals, sometimes even new cafes and…

With the change in Ohio's Operating Standards in July of 2002, students across Ohio began losing school library learning opportunities. District after district made financially based decisions to minimize, and in a few cases totally eliminate, school library programs. Across the state, many of Ohio's children lost precious learning opportunities.…

The purpose of this study was to discover what libraries belonging to the Association of Research Libraries are subscribing to in support of multicultural and diversity research. A list of bibliographic and digital collections was created and searched for in the online public access catalogs of academic and research libraries in 2005 and 2008. A…

As the world grows closer, as access to resources worldwide increases, as more students move from country to country, the need to connect with other librarians around the globe increases. Over the past few years, the author's participation in international associations and other professional activities has grown, which has expanded her own…

As cultural institutions begin to share physical and human resources, and as new technologies reshape approaches to access and preservation, educational programs must respond in kind. However, it is important to ask in what ways the current convergence of libraries, archives, and museums marks a return to tradition rather than a departure from it.…

Students in Chemistry 254: Organic Chemistry for Majors were required to write a paper about an organic name reaction. Before turning in this assignment, students had the option of attending a one-hour library instruction session covering SciFinder, sources for spectra, ACS Style, and print resources about organic name reactions. Twenty-five…