Emily Sartorius, Library Assessment in Student Learning Lab The winter of 2020 was my second semester as a Research Fellow for the IMLS Grant-funded Library as Research Lab. The Library Assessment in Student Learning Lab continued to analyze the data from our survey, while starting a new interview study about evaluating information. Between adapting our previous research to inform our interview … Continue reading Learning How to Adapt & Be Flexible
Learning How to Ask Questions
Emily Sartorius, Assessment in Student Learning Lab The fall of 2020 was my first semester as part of the IMLS Grant-funded Library as Research Lab. As a member of the Library Assessment in Student Learning Lab, my team focused the semester on a survey that asked the question: How do students evaluate information before and after a library instruction session? I … Continue reading Learning How to Ask Questions
Research in an Academic Library
Gina Genova Soon after starting on an academic librarianship track at UMSI, I learned that library science research is a component of many librarian positions in academic libraries. At the time, I was unfamiliar with the breadth of research librarians engage in, but I was interested. However, I hadn’t participated in systematic academic research as an … Continue reading Research in an Academic Library
Learning about Learning Librarians
Regen Le Roy This semester was very informative in terms of learning more about the work academic librarians perform behind the scenes in university settings. Developing a codebook with a group to analyze survey responses was more challenging than I expected. My mentor has been very helpful with connecting me with colleagues who have been … Continue reading Learning about Learning Librarians
Qualitative Research on Qualitative Research
Claire Myers Research was not entirely new to me when I joined the Library as Research Lab. I had previous research experience as a Community College Summer Fellow through University of Michigan’s Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) when I was a student at Washtenaw Community College. The experience that I gained in that program was … Continue reading Qualitative Research on Qualitative Research
Mentorship and Shaping of Career Values
Julia Maxwell When beginning my contribution to the Library as Research Lab project, I had a fair idea of what I wanted my career path to look like: academic librarianship, with focuses on digital scholarship and undergraduate learning. After a semester working on the project, I have found that my career aspirations are now more … Continue reading Mentorship and Shaping of Career Values
Building ongoing relationships
Jackie Freeman Some conversations can be worth having even when you don't have a clear idea of how you will pull value from them or when - if ever - they might become fruitful. I've had conversations that have led to invitations to join project teams, to new careers, and now to a new collaboration … Continue reading Building ongoing relationships
Collaboration in real life
There's a proverb of unknown origin, that paraphrased, offers this advice: to go fast go alone; to go far go together. One may find examples of groups that have honed their ability to go far fast through meticulous and systematic application of their individual expertise. Each member is likely well matched in experience to their … Continue reading Collaboration in real life
The End
Caroline He “The End” is not meant to suggest some apocalyptic landscape of doom ahead-- rather simply, it felt like the right and finite way to declare the end of not only my two very fulfilling and enriching years with my research lab, but also as a graduate student slowly navigating my way to what … Continue reading The End
Deep in the Project
Doreen Bradley Our research path in the Assessment of Student Learning Lab has been exciting, challenging, and very beneficial. Now that we are about ¾ through this academic year, and correspondingly ¾ of the way through our research projects, it is an interesting time to reflect on our progress. When we began early in the … Continue reading Deep in the Project