The support of the university library

to students’ learning in the field

of humanities and social sciences

in the digital environment

Snježana Dimzov Faculty of Philosophy

University of Split

• There are

- various types of library users

- they behave differently in interaction with digital resources

• Changes in the information environment have influenced the information behavior of students and the way in which they

- seek

- find

- use

information resources for learning

• Preferences of the new generation of students toward e-sources and new technologies affect the way of their reading and learning.

• Many studies attempted to identify user information behavior by:

- faculty

- researchers

- students

• Most studies refer to the

- western countries

- English-speaking countries

• The results cannot be generalized across different user groups and cultures

• There are no research of information behavior of Croatian students

This thesis will explore the information behavior

of students of social sciences and humanities in

the context of learning and support from the university

library.

Why social sciences and humanities?

What is happening with learning, especially in

humanities that are oriented toward printed

sources?

These questions will be addressed with research

questions which follow.

RELEVANT THEORIES OF LEARNING

• constructivism

- in the basis of this study is constructivist theory

- it is a view of learning based on belief that knowledge is constructed by learners through an active, mental process of development; learners are the builders and creators of meaning and knowledge

INFORMATION LITERACY Constructivism is characterized by:

- individual work

- interaction with the information sources

- individual should acquire certain skills and abilities such as:

- search and retrieval of information sources

- selection and analysis

that are also elements of information literacy

• Connectivism:

- new approach to learning

- students use new technology to form their own information networks, including the learning communities

- students participate in the knowledge creation process, rather than only consuming information

• “Google” generation and communication technologies as an important tool for education-related information

• Implications for learning and role of libraries

• How learning has changed?

• Do the library follows the trend of new generations to learn and read?

• What happens to the reading of printed sources, especially for the humanities?

• Students interaction with information sources

- traditional

- electronic

is of great importance for the development of collections and services of the university library

• The focus of this research:

- the role of university library

- in supporting learning of undergraduate student of humanities and social sciences

- regarding changes in the information environment

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

• Digital text (Reinking, 2001)

might be conceived as a unique configuration of:

- symbol systems

- technologies

- contents

- situations of use

• Reinking (2001) believes that digital text:

- naturally promote an active orientation to reading

- are easier to read for more readers

- fulfill a wide range of social and psychological needs

- and make reading a creative, playful and less serious activity

• Carr (2010) warns that reading digital text calm, focused, linear mind is giving way to new kind of mind that use short and fast information.

• Liu (2006) examines:

- the extent to which graduate students use print and digital resources

- the importance of subject discipline to reading preferences and use of print and digital resources

- circumstances affecting the choice between physical and digital libraries

• Correlation of subject disciplines and preferences for print or digital resource exploring

- Torma and Vakkari (2004)

- Kortlainnen (2004)

- Dilevko and Gottlieb (2002)

• Tenopir (2003)

- report for the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR)

- summarizes and analyzes more than 200 research publications that focus on the use of electronic library resources (1995 – 2003)

• Rowlands (2007)

- overview of the key aspects of changes in journal systems, especially in their use

• Smith (2003)

- reading preferences of science and social science faculty

- both disciplines and all ranks of faculty read a significant portion of journal articles via electronic sources

- slight disciplinary differences in electronic article readership: more science faculty reported reading electronic articles than social science faculty

• Siebenberg et al. (2004)

- comparison of the use of digital and print journals

- in various disciplines at the University of Washington

- showed that e-access increased paper use

• Wang (2010)

- explores the characteristic of information needs of social scientists

- scholarly journals are important information resources

- language and contextual factors might have influence on scholarly journal use

Marcum (2003)

raises three basic issues related to changing expectations and demands to the library and its role in the digital environment:

• How is digital resource users best served?

• What resources will they want?

• How will they want to use them and what services will most enhance use?

• What elements are required for a coherent preservation strategy covering digital and traditional resources?

• What kinds of education will “librarians” of the future need?

Tenopir (2003)

• Are librarians, as intermediaries to the search process, still necessary in the digital age?

• How the differences between separate article and full journal databases affect the way research is done?

• How is the change to digital information sources affecting the scholarly work of college and university students?

Aim of the thesis:

• The aim of this thesis is to explore if the university library, with its resources and services, meets the needs of new generations of students in the field of social sciences and humanities?

• What patterns of learning are created under the influence of digital technology?

• Whether and how digital technology has changed students learning patterns in the field of social sciences and humanities regarding the body of literature which is mostly printed?

It generates specific research questions:

• Do digital media affect the student learning patterns in the field of social sciences and how ?

• Do digital media affect the student learning patterns in the field of humanities and how ?

• Do the university library resources and services, meet the needs of new generations of students in the field of social sciences and humanities?

• Do the library services in the digital environment satisfy student needs?

The research methodology • Content analysis of curricula of two courses from

humanities and two courses from social sciences

• Focus groups:

to gather information about

- patterns of learning

- preferences of information sources which students use in social sciences and humanities

- students opinion about library services

- students satisfaction regarding their needs

On the basis of which a questionnaire would be developed.

• The questionnaire explores:

- the patterns of learning

- information behavior in regard of used printed and digital resources

- attitudes and preferences of students related to the resources of university libraries

- students' satisfaction with library services in the digital environment

The sample

• The survey will include

- undergraduate students (250)

- in the field of humanities and social sciences

- at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Split

EXPECTED CONTRIBUTION

• The research results will contribute to the development of new paradigms on a theoretical level.

• The practice will serve to create guidelines for university libraries to make their collections and services based on user needs, not on popular trends and on the research of significantly different user groups.

THANK YOU!

• Carr, Nicholas. Plitko : Što internet čini našem mozgu. Zagreb: Jesenski i Turk, 2011., str. 23.

• Dilevko, Juris; Lisa, Gottlieb. Print sources in an electronic age: a vital part of the research process for undergraduate students. // Journal of Academic Librarianship, 28, 6(2002), 381-392. URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0099133302003415 (6.03.2012.)

• Dunaway, Michelle Kathleen. Connectivism : Learning theory and pedagogical practice for networked information landscapes. // Reference Services Review 39, 4(2011), str. 675-685.

• Information Behaviour of the Researcher of the Future. A British Library / JISC Study. URL: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/programmes/reppres/gg_final_keynote_11012008.pdf (6.03.2012.)

• Kortlainnen, Terttu. An analysis of the use of electronic journals and commercial journal article collections through the FinELib portal. // Information Research, 9(2004). URL: http://informationr.net/ir/9-2/paper168.html (6.03.2012.)

• Liu, Ziming. Print vs. electronic resources : A study of user perceptions, preferences and use. // Information Processing and Management, 42, 2(2006), str. 583-592.

• Marcum, Deanna. Research Questions for the digital era library. // Library Trends, 51,4(2003), str. 636-651. URL: http://cdigital.uv.mx/bitstream/123456789/9734/2/Biblioteca%20digital.pdf (6.03.2012.)

• Reinking, David. Multimedia and engaged reading in a digital world. // Literacy and motivation : Reading engagement in individuals and groups / edited by Ludo Verhoeven and Catherine E. Snow. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2001. Str. 195-221.

• Rowlands, Ian. Electronic journals and user behavior: A review of recent research. // Library & Information Science Research, 29(2007), str. 369-396. URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0740818807000692 (6.03.2012)

• Siebenberg, T.R.; Galbraith, B.; Brady, E.E. Print versus Electronic Journal Use in Three Sci/Tech Disciplines: What’s Going On Here? // College & Research Libraries, 65,5(2004), str. 427-438. URL: http://crl.acrl.org/content/65/5/427.full.pdf+html (6.03.2012)

• Smith, Erin. Changes in faculty reading behaviors: the impact of electronic journals on the University of Georgia. // Journal of Academic Librarianship, 29, 3(2003), 162-168. URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0099133303000181 (6.03.2012.)

• Špiranec, Sonja; Banek Zorica, Mihaela. Informacijska pismenost : Teorijski okvir i polazišta. Zagreb: Zavod za informacijske studije, 2008.

• Tenopir, Carol. Electronic Publishing: Research Issues for Academic Librarians and Users. // Library trends, 51, 4(2003), str. 614-635. URL: http://cdigital.uv.mx/bitstream/123456789/10238/2/Carol%20Tenopir%20-%20Electronic%20publishing.pdf (6.03.2012.)

• Tenopir, Carol. Use and Users of Electronic Library Resources: An Overview and Analysis of Recent Research Studies. Washington, DC: Council on Library and Information Resources, 2003. URL: http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub120/pub120.pdf (6.03.2012.)

• Torma, Sanna; Vakkari, Pertti. Discipline, availability of electronic resources and the use of Finnish NationalElectronic Library – FinELib. // Information Research, 10(2004). URL: http://informationr.net/ir/10-1/paper204.html (6.03.2012.)

• Wang, Mei-Ling. Scholarly journal use and reading behavior of social scientist in Taiwan. // The International Information & Library Review, 42(2010), str. 269-281.