Johnson - Fundamentals of Collection Development & Management

Haley Tallent

Citation:

Johnson, P. (2014). Fundamentals of Collection Development & Management. American Library Association.

            Summary:

This book provides researched information into the art of Collection Development. The book covers a wide variety of topics including: Selection Theory, Departmental Issues, Ethics, Planning Methods, Policy Statements, Marketing, Analysis, and Cooperative Development. It also provides an appendix of selection aids, resources, and sample development polices.

            Analysis:

I found this book to be an excellent match of history, theory, and execution. The author does not just tell you what to do but why you should do it and how the methods were developed. The case studies were a great treat as they gave real examples of challenges she talks about. The section on Cooperative Collection Development was unique among the books I have read and thus very interesting. The book does weigh to heavily on some topics, (ex. marketing,) while not giving others enough space (ex. diverse communities). Overall this book is excellent and delves more into nitty gritty things unlike some step by step beginner guides. 

Disher - Crash Course in Collection Development

Haley Tallent

Citation:

Disher, W. (2014). Crash Course in Collection Development. Westport, CN: Libraries Unlimited.

            Summary:

This book provides an introductory look at Collection Development with sections covering: Community Analysis, Assessment, Policy Creation, Collecting Data, Budgeting, Selection, Sources, Maintenance, Promotion, Complaints, and Digital Collection.

           

            Analysis:

Overall this book is a good introductory read although it gets a bit repetitive if one has read other books on the topic so this is definitely a book for beginners. The new editions section on digital collections is important and a part that seems to be left out of other introductory books that deem it as needing a whole book of its own. This book also has a lot of sections that deal with potential problems or challenges which is great for newcomers and experienced librarians alike to reference when problems arise. 

Alvarez, Liza

Stroup Tristao, M. (2017). Sources unknown: Confirmation bias. Retrieved from https://www.sjpl.org/blog/sources-unknown-confirmation-bias

Sources Unknown: Confirmation Bias 

This is a video clip and article explaining “confirmation bias” on the San Jose Public Library Blog by librarian Megan Tirstao. The video features an example of an interviewer testing people to see if they can catch their own confirmation bias with brain exercise to find a pattern. Time after time the participants continue to incorrectly answer the puzzle because of their “conformation bias”. The article goes on to describe the concept in further detail providing examples as well as tips on how to avoid “confirmation bias”  by expanding routine media sources, relying more on primary sources, and verifying the information against more than one other source.

The article provides links to other blogs about data literacy, fact INFOchecking and “fake news”. I find this type of article and material extremely pertinent to the public in general, but very apropos of the social and political climate in the United States at the moment. Not only does this topic inform the populace on how to be more discriminatory in order to find accurate information, but it is one of much interest across the nation and can contribute to a more educated and democratic population.

Alabaster - Developing an Outstanding Core Collection: A Guide for Libraries

Haley Tallent

Citation:
Alabaster, C. (2010). Developing an Outstanding Core Collection: A Guide for Libraries. American Library Association.

            Summary:

This book, updated in 2010 from an original 2002 edition, gives step-by-step instructions on building a core collection practically from scratch and then maintaining that collection. The book is laid out in a logical order with the development of the collection including budgeting, selection, and acquisition, and the steps to maintain a collection once it has been developed including tracking, weeding, and reconsideration.

           

            Analysis:

The updated version of this book is still relevant in our time though it does leave out some information about electronic resources choosing instead to focus on physical collection. The examples of core collections, mission statements, and collection development statements are great jumping off points for anyone struggling to get started with these things. Some chapters will be more relevant than others depending on the size of the library and department as some libraries have separate departments for different steps of the development process. 

Fenner - Selecting Materials for Library Collections

Haley Tallent

Citation:

Fenner, A. (Ed.). (2004). Selecting Materials for Library Collections. Binghamton, NY: Haworth Information Press.

Summary:

This book is a collection of articles which attempts to walk the reader through the entire process of collection development. The articles are presented in a logical order that tells the story of collection development. The book contains articles pertaining to academic and public libraries. The articles address a wide variety of topics such as music resources, resources for minorities, genealogical resources, specialized collections, and collection development in the 21^st century. The book attempts to provide articles that apply to librarians in many different kinds of libraries and with many different kinds of collection.

Analysis:

Overall I found this book to be an excellent collection of relevant articles that attempts to walk the reader through the collection development process. The book is a bit outdated being written in 2004 and thus the sections on technology are not current but many of the ideas expressed are universal such as the need for libraries to continue innovating. There is really something in this book for everyone which is nice but makes the book seem a bit unfocused until you notice the roots that connect all the essays. 

E-books: Are We on the Same Page?

Ogden, Kaylene

Bozarth, S., & Zhong, Y. (2016). E-books: Are we on the same page?. Journal Of Electronic Resources Librarianship, 28(4), 232-253

Summary:

EBooks are increasingly popular throughout all types of libraries. In order to effectively include eBooks in an academic library's collection, it is important that the library first determine students wants and needs so that the library does not spend its budget frivolously.  

For this study, a survey of students, staff and faculty was sent out, with a response of 630, the majority of which were student responses.  Demographic data was also gathered.  The study found that 62% of students had read an eBook compared to 84% of faculty, with the most common use of eBooks for students being personal, class assignment, and required text.  48% of students found eBooks through and internet search, compared to only 23% who used the library catalog.  Across all three categories, most respondents learned about the eBook collection from the survey itself, followed secondly by an instructor or librarian.  Use of eBooks was overwhelmingly done through Amazon.  The most common reasons for using eBooks were 24/7 access, extra features such as highlighting, price, and ability to search within the books.  In comparison to print, students were more likely to prefer print for required texts and digital for research.  While many respondents were not aware of the eBook collection, faculty said they were more likely to recommend eBooks to be purchased.  A major takeaway from this study is that the library's eBook collection needs better marketing.

Evaluation:

This article is a great example of how important it is to do research on current and potential users when trying to develop a collection.  A huge part of collection development is marketing, that means both knowing your market (the students, faculty, and staff) and promoting to them as well.  The findings about what kind of eBooks students and staff are most interested in will be useful for this particular library's collection.  It may have been more prudent to start this kind of "market research" before purchasing eBooks, in order to use the library's budget more effectively.  This research can't be generalized, but the idea is a great one that can be used by school, public, and academic libraries alike when deciding what sort of eBook collection to develop (or if they are going to develop one).  

#colorourcollection

Garner, A., Goldberg, J., & Pou, R. (2016). Collaborative Social Media Campaigns and Special Collections: A Case Study on #ColorOurCollections. RBM: A Journal Of Rare Books, Manuscripts, & Cultural Heritage, 17(2), 100-117.

This article is about using social media to promote a library or institution. The New York Academy of Medicine Library started a social media campaign in which they would create coloring pages based on objects in their collection: plants, herbs, anatomy, and unicorns. Users and participating libraries can download the images and share them across social media using #colorourcollection. This campaign got buzz through many libraries, publications, and websites. It became an education tool for school libraries or schools in general. This became quite successful. This was a fun and cool idea to get people engaged in one's collection. The library was able to get on that trend of the adult coloring books and social media in order to have it work for their own library. This article could help library staff think creatively about engagement with the community. They should focus on trends and what people are doing. It is also important to establish relationships ad get people on board for a program to flourish. I liked this article because it is just an interesting idea for a library to tackle. It may not work for every library but if you have an interesting collection that could lend itself to a coloring book, then go for it. It is fun to see outside of the box and that hard work can be a good pay off.