Searchpath @ Rutgers

Roberta Tipton, Rutgers University Libraries

Digital Resources and Librarians: Invention and Implementation

June 6, 2005

Thanks to Jeanne Boyle and Sam McDonald for their contributions to

this presentation.

What We Did

Adapted a tutorial created by Western Michigan University for use by students, faculty, and librarians at Rutgers University Rewrote content for our catalog, index, approaches Created backend for handling quizzes and

gathering statistics

Rutgers Context

2,500 faculty 50,000 students Located across New

Jersey at three main campuses

Growing number of off-campus and distance education students

87 librarians 17,000 students taught

in nearly 1,000 library instruction

sessions

Previous Experience with Systemwide Tutorials

eCollege tutorial Single person eCollege technical support

KnowledgeMaze Committee effort Never became interactive

Our Goals

Address information literacy competencies Serve students at all appropriate levels Increase effectiveness of librarian-led sessions Expand reach to students we currently do not

serve

The Players

Jeanne BoyleAssociate University Librarian

Administration liaison/Champion Administrative support License Image permissions

Instructional Services Committee

Instruction coordinators from every unit of Rutgers

Content Assessment plan Implementation

Sam McDonald, Webmaster

Feasibility studies Workspace Scheduling Coding Programming

Harry Glazer, Communications

Marketing plan Low-cost alternatives

Marilyn Wilt, Training

Will implement training for library staff

Administrative Planning Process

Strategic Plan for RUL Cabinet Strategy for Information Literacy A Learning Framework for Information

Literacy and Library Instruction Programs at Rutgers University Libraries

Information Literacy Initiative PlanningSpring Semester, 2004 Faculty Advisory Group Symposium

The “Make or Buy” Decision

Time Cost Chose TILT as adapted by Western Michigan

University Ended up “making” AND “buying”

Searchpath @ Western Michigan

Developed 2000-2001 Based on TILT Open publication

license Adopted by a growing

number of libraries

Zip file downloaded by Rutgers dated March 2003 800 files, 8 megabytes Old HTML No backend

Technical Changes

Pages re-coded to use style sheets Some tables retained Extraneous HTML discarded Flash to rebuild "Information Overload" and

"Thinkfast game"

Technical Changes

Backend created with PHP and MySQL to enable Page counting Records of quizzes JavaScript for quiz validation Server-side includes for easy management,

updating Future extendibility Email quiz results

Technical Issues and Challenges

Requirements Apache, PHP, MySQL installation, with mail host PHP programmer Database designer Flash editor and software XHTML, CSS, JavaScript skills

Converting quizzes from JavaScript to PHP

Marketing

Signature file Better Research, Better Papers, Better Grades! Try

Searchpath, our new online information literacy tutorial. Website news and placement Email to library personnel Ads in student newspapers Pens Notepads for department chairs Articles in Targum and Focus Word of mouth

What We Have Learned

Support from the top is essential Project management is key Open source is barely and rarely good enough Need to sell the product It’s a never ending story

Next Steps

iLink—New catalog version Assessment Market for fall Reports

Generate graphs for visually displaying usage Export for analysis with SPSS

NetID login vs.guests

Searchpath @ Rutgers

Better Research, Better Papers, Better Grades!

Questions?

Roberta Tipton tipton@andromeda.rutgers.edu

Resources

Searchpath http://searchpath.libraries.rutgers.edu/

A Bridge to the Future http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/about/

long_range_plan.shtml

Strategy for Information Literacy http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/staff/groups/

instructional_services/reports/info_lit_strategy.shtml

Resources

A Learning Framework for Information Literacy and Library Instruction Programs at Rutgers University Libraries http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/staff/groups/

instructional_services/reports/learning_frameworks.shtml

Information Literacy Initiative PlanningSpring Semester, 2004 http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/staff/groups/

instructional_services/reports/infolit-init-planning-sp04.shtml

Resources

Fowler, C.S. and Dupuis, E.A. What have we done? TILT’s impact on our instruction program. Reference Services Review, November 2000, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 343-349