[12236] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
ALA/RUSA Performance Issues Discussion Group
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Dave Tyckoson)
Thu Jun 4 21:00:44 1998
Date: Thu, 04 Jun 1998 12:47:42 -0500
From: Dave Tyckoson <dave_tyckoson@csufresno.edu>
To: PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU
Reply-To: Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU>
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Laser Lights or Dim Bulbs?:
Evaluating Librarian Use of Electronic Reference Sources
RUSA/MOUSS Performance Issues for Reference and
Information Services Librarians Discussion Group
Saturday, June 27, 1998
9:30am - 11:00am
Renaissance Washington Room 7
Reference librarians can no longer survive without electronic
resources. Online catalogs, CD-ROM databases, full-text journals, and
the Internet are just a few of the tools that we search on a daily
basis. But how well are we actually using these tools? To what
degree have we mastered the multitude of different interfaces,
commands, and menus that confront us? And how well should we be
expected to use these databases, especially since the software and
access methods change on a regular basis?
If these are questions that have been bothering you, join some of
your fellow public services librarians for a discussion of reference
librarian competencies with electronic databases. Jeanie Welch
(University of North Carolina at Charlotte) will present a set of core
technical competencies that are used to evaluate librarians in her
department. She will discuss why such a tool was needed, how it was
developed, and how it is being implemented. Open discussion will
follow her presentation. Feel free to bring copies of your own
competencies or evaluation measures that you can share with the group.
What is a Discussion Group?
Discussion groups are unlike other meetings at ALA. They are not
committee meetings in which only the "official" members are allowed to
participate. Nor are they programs in which one or two people talk
and everyone else listens. Discussion groups were formed to give
librarians a forum for talking to each other about current topics.
This particular discussion group covers any issue related to the
measurement or evaluation of the effectiveness of reference
librarians. A steering committee selects the topic and organizes the
discussion, but everyone may participate. Past topics have ranged
from behavioral guidelines to measuring reference collection use to
scheduling. The rules of the discussion group are simple:
If you show up -- you are a discussion group member.
If you have something to say -- say it.
If you have a discussion topic that interests you -- suggest it
to the Steering Committee.
And if you want to be on the Steering Committee -- you will be!
Join us on Saturday morning for this lively discussion.
Submitted by David Tyckoson, Steering Committee Chair
Head of Reference
Henry Madden Library
CSU-Fresno
davety@csufresno.edu
