Despite the proliferation of online homework websites and tutoring services, public libraries still have an important role to play when it comes to supporting young people's educational needs. Public libraries that take a proactive approach--by setting up organized homework centers--have the potential to become catalysts for better performance in…

The Ohio State University Libraries has been working on affordability issues related to course materials for some time. This article details some of those efforts, going into detail about moving from reactive methods of dealing with course materials via instructor-initiated reserve requests to more proactive methods of a general education textbook…

In this study, researchers used basic qualitative research to understand the spaces, resources, and services available to K12 students in their school libraries. Using observation and semi-structured interviews with K12 teacher librarians, this research allowed for a comparison of the K12 and post-secondary environments through which the authors…

Governments around the world propose to improve urban life by creating smart cities filled with sensors and other digital technologies that would collect large amounts of data about citizens and their activities. Ideally, smart cities would use the information they gather to enhance the urban environment and improve the quality of life of their…

Providing free access to relevant resources is crucial for prisoners' personal development, well-being and, ultimately, rehabilitation. By offering a variety of reading and learning materials, from easy to expert levels and in various languages, prison libraries provide lifelong learning opportunities, thereby improving inmates' chances of…

Native Americans are underrepresented in higher education; and, while considerable research examines Native student persistence, the role of academic libraries in their experiences has received little attention. This study proposes to investigate Native American undergraduate students' library experiences, needs, and perceptions. Qualitative…

To gather, contribute, connect, be a creative force, defend, and guide are demanding dispositions that make an excellent school library professional. School librarians use these dispositions like poles of support as they glide down the slopes of student learning and curriculum. They leverage their roles of teacher and librarian like skis giving…

Victoria University of Wellington Library's support for research is at a crossroads. The university is implementing an ambitious research strategy. In response, the library is repositioning services and support based on the identified needs of our researchers and contextualized within the research lifecycle. This is paralleled by the changing…

The school librarian at Farragut Middle School in Knoxville, Tennessee, describes how, given the recent surge of fake news, her school was inspired by the new American Association of School Librarians Standards Framework for Learners (2017) to overhaul its website evaluation lessons in the school library program. Concentrating on the Shared…

Discriminations against members of the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender/queer (LGBTQ) community have been reported in every sphere of life, including in libraries. This paper reviewed the literature on transgender studies particularly in relation to the role of libraries. It highlights the problems faced by transgender people in accessing…

The article discusses an artistic event "Emotions Icelandic Awakes" organized by the Reykjavik City Library as part of the national celebrations for Icelandic Language Day. It examines the potential of affording genuine attention to language as a matter of emotional inquiry for the process of intercultural exchange. We reflect on the…

Demonstrating academic library value is crucial in this era of budget cuts and freely available online resources. This article provides a unique complement to existing research on library value. The author uses a qualitative approach known as narrative inquiry to evaluate patron experiences during the temporary closure of an academic branch…

"USC Digital Voltaire," a digital, multimodal critical edition of autograph letters, aims to combine the traditional scope of humanities inquiry with the affordances and methodologies of digital scholarship, and to support scholarly inquiry at all levels, beyond the disciplines associated with Voltaire and the Enlightenment. Digital…

Teaching is a primary responsibility of many academic librarians. However, despite the job duties, many academic librarians do not see themselves as teachers. To determine how participation in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) impacted academic instruction librarians' teacher identity the authors conducted an explanatory sequential…

Distance librarians working with an online doctoral program at Johns Hopkins University are asked by both students and faculty to provide a large amount of library support -- without being embedded into the curriculum or the individual courses. Program administrators and faculty were resistant to allow librarians into the course management system…