Given
the boom in electronic resources and new alternatives
in electronic, low-cost scholarly publishing, what is
the state of academic libraries today? What has changed
for librarians, students, scholars publishing their work,
and the publishing industry? This article introduces key
issues explored elsewhere in this issue of TTT. Don't
miss the resource section including links to new e-publishing
ventures and a list of background reading on the changed
terrain of academic libraries and the dissemination of
scholarship. (Sept. 2000)
Increasing
Access and Managing Challenges: UW-Madison Librarians Discuss
Academic Libraries Today
by Jennifer Smith, TTT Editor
Lou
Pitschmann, Assoc. Dir. of Collection Development for
UW-Madison Libraries, Jean Gilbertson, Dir. of Steenbock
Library, and Tom Murray, Dir. of Wendt Library, recently
met with TTT to discuss critical issues facing academic
libraries. Today's librarians must be tech-savvy risk-takers,
using new technologies to expand and manage services in
a world on the verge of information overload. Read about
round-the-clock service via electronic access, personalized
portal websites for users, new trends in scholarly publishing,
and the development and publishing environment librarians
now work in. (Sept. 2000)
Educating
Librarians for the New Academic Library
by Louise Robbins, Director, School of Library and Information
Studies, UW-Madison
It
is a certainty that the technology explosion of the last
few decades has changed the academic library environment
significantly, and, with it, the duties and skills of
librarians. How do library schools keep up with the pace
of innovation? Louise Robbins provides one answer to this
question with a vision for her school's future. (Sept.
2000)
Anticipate
or Accommodate: Library Assistive Technology
by Lelah Lugo, Electronic Resource Access/Reference Librarian,
Library Learning Center, UW-Stout
Equal
access to education for persons with disabilities is a
top concern facing colleges and universities today. But
what special concerns are raised in the area of library
services? Lelah Lugo answers, emphasizing the need for
libraries to not merely provide assistive facilities,
but back them up with effective outreach and training.
Don't miss Lugo's resource section on accessibility and
libraries! (Sept. 2000)
Developing
Library Services for the Distance Education Student
by Cleo J. Powers, Circulation and Center for Reserve and
Instructional Media Center Librarian,
and Jill S. Markgraf, Distance Education and Reference Librarian,
UW – Eau Claire
DE
students, like all students, depend on library resources
to complete their educations. But how can libraries deliver
services to students who may never be able to physically
visit them? Powers and Markgraf discuss how to provide
high-quality resources to off-site students. (Sept. 2000)
Incorporating
Technology into Academic Libraries: New Developments on
the Madison Campus
by Nolan Pope, Associate Director for Technology,
General Library System, UW-Madison
Nolan
Pope highlights some of the recent technological developments
at UW-Madison campus libraries. Read about new scholarly
websites developed by professors and library staff, greater
cooperation among academic libraries, and some of the
technical issues that arise in providing services. (Sept.
2000)
Web-based
and Traditional Instruction:
A Systematic Study of Student and Instructor Perceptions
from a Graduate MLIS Program
by Elizabeth Buchanan, Malore Brown, Jean Casanova, Dietmar
Wolfram, and Hong Xie, School of Library and Information
Science, UW-Milwaukee
Are
there significant differences in the outcomes of graduate
courses taught in the classroom and online? Buchanan and
her colleagues at UW-Milwaukee provide a summary of their
recent research in this area, funded by a UW System Curricular
Redesign Grant. (Sept. 2000)
UW
Librarians Design Web-Based Research Tutorial
Debbie Cardinal, Wisconsin Library Services (WiLS), and Betsy
Richmond, UW-Eau Claire
On-campus
university students have long had access to bibliographic
instruction, generally in the form of training sessions
run by librarians to orient students to their library
system's resources. Now, with the growing popularity of
distance education, how can librarians reach students
who may never physically come to campus? UW System librarians
have already responded to this need with the creation
of a Web-based research tutorial to help new and returning
university students who have chosen distance education
build their information-gathering skills. (May 2000)
Virtual
Collection Development
Jane Pearlmutter
UW-Madison School of Library & Information Studies
ABSTRACT
Electronic resources are becoming increasingly important
to all types of libraries. How does this impact traditional
library collections, and how do librarians keep up with
the changes? In an on-line continuing education course,
Jane Pearlmutter, faculty associate in UW-Madison's School
of Library & Information Studies, has been teaching librarians
around the country -- and the world -- to select and evaluate
these resources, develop policies, and consider methods
of delivering electronic resources to library users. She
originally developed the course, Virtual Collection Development,
with the assistance of a grant from UW-Extension.