Blended Services Training Programme

Here are some links to previously-posted tips, practice assessments and self-tests:

• from March 23/09: Multiple Choice Review Exercises | Answers
• Technology Checklist
• from April 29/09: Trial Assessment | Trial Assessment Answers
• from May 21/09: Study Tips
• last year’s assessment:
  • without answers: BST IF Assessment 2009 No Answers
  • last year’s assessment, with answers
• from Oct. 22/09: Technology Self Assessment

It is useful to occasionally review the library literature to follow issues and trends in the field. There are several Library and Information journals available through our catalogue. Why not take a look. Here is the citation for one article I recently looked at:

Goetsch, L.A. (August 2008). Reinventing our work:  new and emerging roles for academic librarians. Journal of Library Administration, 48(2): 157-172.

Try using your search skills to find this or other library-related articles.

The twenty-second (and last!) Blended Services Session will deal with the referral process.

The session will be offered twice:

Date: Thursday, April 23, 2009
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

OR

Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 pm
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

Session Materials:

• Referral Slides
• I.T. Help Desk Routines
• Peer Helper Program
• Liaison Program Pairs Librarians with Faculty
• Activity:  I.T. or Me?
• Reading:  Morgan, P.J. and McDaniel, J.A. (2009). Referrals. In Training paraprofessionals for reference service: a how-to-do-it manual for librarians (2nd ed., pp. 18-20). New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers.
• Key Science and Engineering Reference Sources
• Top Science and Engineering Databases
• Key Business Reference Sources
• Top Business Databases
• Core Business Databases by Information Type
• Activity: Liaison or Me?

The eighteenth Blended Services Session will deal with academic and research information on the Web.  Scholarly search engines, government information, think tanks, associations and research institutes on the Web will be covered.

The session will be offered twice as follows:

Date: Thursday, March 26, 2009
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

OR

Date: Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

Session Materials:

• Academic and Research Information on the Web Slides
• Reading: Jacsó, P. (2008, March). Amazon, Google Book Search, and Google Scholar. Online, 32(2), 51-54.
  
• Reading: Notess, G. (2005, July). Scholarly Web Searching: Google Scholar and Scirus. Online, 29(4), 39-41.
  
• Reading: Wleklinski, J. (2005, May). Studying Google Scholar: Wall to Wall Coverage? Online, 29(3), 22-26.
• Conducting Library Research / Using Government Publications (Engineering & Society 2X03 handout – Winter 2009)
• Exercises | Answers to Exercises

The fifteenth Blended Services Session will deal with customer service.

The session will be offered twice as follows:

Date: Thursday, March 12, 2009
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

OR

Date: Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

Session Materials:

• Customer Service Slides and Video Clips
• Activity: Closed or Open Questions Jeopardy Game
• Activity: Customer Service Puzzle
• Handout: Phrases to Use in Business Letters
• Reading: Bascal, R. (2005). Understanding what customers want. In Perfect phrases for customer service: hundreds of tools, techniques, and scripts for handling any situation (pp. 9-13). New York: McGraw-Hill.
• Reading: Strategic Communications and Marketing Plan 2008-2011 (internal document on McMaster’s staff web site)
• Assignment: Practice Questions | Answers

The thirteenth Blended Services Session will focus on the reference interview.

The session will be offered twice as follows:

Date: Thursday, March 5, 2009
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

OR

Date: Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Location: Mills Wong e-Classroom

Session Materials:

• Reference Interview Slides
• DVD: Conducting the Reference Interview
• Some Open Ended Questions
• Reference Interview Observer Checklist
• Reading: Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Service Providers (American Library Asssociation)
• Reading:  Ross, C.S. & Dewdney P. (Winter 1998). Negative closure (closure of library reference interviews). Reference & User Services Quarterly, 38 (2), 151-163.

Recommended reading:
Bracke, M. S., Brewer, M., Huff-Eibl, R., Lee, D. R., Mitchell, R., & Ray, M. (May 2007). Finding information in a new landscape: developing new service and staffing models for mediated information services. College & Research Libraries, 68(3), 248-67.

Abstract:
In response to changing user behavior and decreased funding, the University of Arizona Library recognized a need to reevaluate how it provided information and referral services. A project team conducted action gap surveys to determine customer satisfaction, logged questions actually asked to establish appropriate staffing needs, and calculated the cost of providing these services. As a result of the data gathered, new service and staffing models were implemented that reduced both the number of service points and reliance on professional staff without a reduction in perceived quality.

Training modules online: http://intranet.library.arizona.edu/teams/ust/ictraining.html

Recommended reading:
Murphy, B., Peterson, R. A., Vines, H., von Isenburg, M., Berney, E., James, R., Rodgriuez, M., & Thibodeau, P. (2008). Revolution at the library service desk. Medical Reference Services Quarterly, 27(4), 379-393.

Abstract
This article will describe how a revolution in customer service provision beginning in 2002 has led to an evolution of library services. When the reference and circulation desks were merged to create a single service point, responsibilities were broadened, core competencies were developed, and staff members were cross trained. In 2005, an analysis of staffing and work patterns demonstrated a need to build upon the original model to better utilize staff and ensure coverage of the desk. Reference librarians were moved to “on call” status, technical services staff were added to the schedule, and core competencies and procedures were refined.

This session will mark the “official” start of the Blended Services Training Programme for Thode and Innis library staff! Here’s when and where we meet:

Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Time: 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm
Location: Thode Conference Room (307)

In preparation for this meeting, please read the following two documents:

• Expectations of UL Service Desk Staff (August 19, 2008)
• Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Service Providers (American Library Association RUSA Reference Guidelines)

In addition, please take a look at the  McMaster University Libraries Research Help blog.

We will discuss the two documents, the blog and a general outline of the training programme at our meeting. Here’s a sneak peek at the upcoming sessions:

Tentative Blended Services Training Sessions:

• Introduction to Research Help
• Introduction to Basic Library Tools & Terminology
• Searching the Web (Local and External Sites)
• Library Catalogue in Detail
• Reference Sources
  • Science & Engineering (Thode Staff)
  • Business (Innis staff)
• Indexes, Abstracts & Databases
• Database Search Strategies
• Core Databases
  • for Science (Thode staff)
  • for Engineering (Thode staff)
  • for Business (Innis staff)
• Theses, Standards, Patents, Technical Reports, Conference Proceedings
• Question Negotiation Skills
• Research Help Service
• Citing Sources
• Important Databases Outside of Science, Engineering and Business