Goal 4: Theory and Praxis
Students have a critical grounding in theoretical perspectives that draw on research in LIS as well as other fields of knowledge, that inform their professional practices including research, organization, management, and access to information.
Goal 4.A
Students will describe applications of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies in library and information science.
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LIS6271 Research Methods for Library & Info. Science - Spring 2019, USF
While the ability to manage and locate information is important in the information management profession, sometimes the information one is looking for does not exist. In the case where information does not exist, it is important to be able to create that information yourself.
The culminating project of the Research Methods course was a research proposal for a topic of interest that currently lacks information. Having taken a Digital Storytelling course, what interested me specifically was whether the act of creating a digital story is more effective at helping students in higher education retain information than writing a traditional academic research paper. Based on the fact I could not find any research papers on said topic, this was the focus of my research proposal.
Goal 4.B
Students will identify opportunities for research and develop plans for research in applied settings in library and information science.
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LIS6511 Collection Development and Maintenance - Fall 2019, USF
Collection development is a key area that requires research and development plans. Nothing stays the same; this includes interests of the patrons served by libraries. The ability to gather information about local patrons and develop a collection development policy based on gathered information is essential for ensuring library patronage does not decline.
For our Collection Development Needs Assessment project, my group decided to create a needs assessment for a small simulated public library. It had been some time since the library had evaluated its collection and, as such, patronage was decreasing. As a result, the librarians decided it was time to reevaluate their patrons' needs and see how those needs matched up with the current collection, making changes where needed.
Note: This exhibit was completed as group work. The group consisted of: Christopher Schultz, Genesis Minera, Stacey Cox, and myself.