Exploring Instructional Computing Platforms for a Small Liberal Arts College: A Case Study with NoSQL

Author(s):  
Aijuan Dong ◽  
Baoying Wang
2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 292-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kasia Gonnerman ◽  
Ken Johnson

Purpose The purpose of this study is to demonstrate how to create and sustain a successful mentoring program for reference student assistants in the liberal arts environment. The study delineates student training, program assessment and the impact on reference practice in a way that can be used at other institutions considering implementing a similar initiative. Design/methodology/approach This case study is written by professionals who have been deeply engaged in initiating, running and assessing the program. It presents the value of the program in an unbiased and objective manner by including the voices of the student mentees themselves reflecting on the experience. Findings The mentorship program has proven to be worthwhile and rewarding in equal measures to both the mentees and reference librarians working with our future successors. It serves an important role in inspiring and encouraging library student workers to become interested in academic librarianship as a career choice and it prepares them to be successful students in library and information science graduate programs. Originality/value Although the discussion of training reference student assistants per se is not rare in the library literature, this particular program is unique in several ways: its main intent is to mentor students who are interested in pursuing librarianship as a career goal; it occurs in the context of a liberal arts college rather than in a larger university setting, especially those offering degrees in information and library science; and it empowers students to provide in-depth independent reference services for their peers and faculty.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Protasi

In this paper I discuss in some detail my experience teaching women philosophers in the context of a survey course in ancient Greek philosophy at a small liberal arts college. My aim is to share the peculiar difficulties one may encounter when teaching this topic in a lower-level undergraduate course, difficulties stemming from a multiplicity of methodological hurdles that do not arise when teaching women philosophers in other periods, such as the modern era. In the first section, I briefly review some of what we know about ancient Greek women philosophers, which is not only very little but frustratingly uncertain and highly debated. I devote the second section to some of the scholarly debates surrounding these philosophers’ doctrines, the details of their biographies, and their very existence. The third section is about the corresponding pedagogical challenges, and the fourth and final section describes the strategies I implemented to face those challenges.


2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
P. Raj Devasagayam ◽  
Thomas R. Mahaffey

Continuous quality improvement is the clarion call across all business schools which is driving the emphasis on assessing the attainment of learning outcomes. An issue that deems special attention in assurance of learning outcomes is related to consistency across courses and, more specifically, across multiple sections of the same course taught by different professors.  This paper is intended to accomplish the two objectives.  First, identify and discuss the situational factors that are driving the need for improving quality through assessment.  The expectations of students and parents, employers and graduate programs, accrediting organizations, and faculty are examined in this situational assessment.  Second, a review of the process utilized by the School of Business at a small, private, liberal arts college to address consistency issues that adversely impact quality improvement is provided.  This process, still in the early stages of evolution, has had a significant impact on the culture of the institution as it strives to meet AACSB requirements. The process described in this paper has been utilized to address concerns and fears of faculty, and has resulted in improvements in consistency among courses in the curriculum.  Concluding remarks provide general recommendations that can be used by our peers who aspire to travel down the same path of using assessment data to improve quality.


Collections ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-35
Author(s):  
Benjamin Jenkins ◽  
Keren Darancette

Archives and Special Collections at the Wilson Library of the University of La Verne, located in inland southern California, offers an informative case study of descriptive practices and metadata attached to digital collections at a small liberal arts college. Since recruiting a staff specifically tasked to manage the archives, the Wilson Library has increased the number of collections available to patrons online through the creation of a digital collections Web page. Digitized, hosted collections include the papers of a faculty member from the early 20th century, photographs of early La Verne, historic local newspapers, and manuscript sources regarding Japanese American internment. Metadata fields at Wilson Library have developed to encompass a greater variety of contextual information about digitized records, improving users' ability to put the collections to use for research. Ultimately, this case study demonstrates what a library at a small university can accomplish with a dedicated staff and a clear objective, even with limited resources.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-84
Author(s):  
Sarah McCorkle ◽  
Paul Whitener

This case study describes a small-scale Lightboard pilot and a full-scale Lightboard build with accompanying studio at a small, private liberal arts college in the southern United States. This article will provide an overview of the Lightboard landscape in higher education, offer considerations for the construction of a Lightboard, and share the authors’ experiences and outcomes. In writing this article, the authors’ goal is to present an attainable use case for the construction of a Lightboard by introducing a simplistic pilot design that was well received by faculty and administrators.


Author(s):  
Andrew Gades

The undergraduate music curriculum has been the subject of ongoing discussion with regards to technology, repertoire, pedagogy, and purpose. This article contributes to this continuing conversation by presenting a case study of a restructured music theory sequence at a small liberal arts college. Part of the liberal arts mission at the College of Idaho includes a commitment to interdisciplinary ways of knowing, effective written communication skills, and information literacy. The curriculum proposed in this article reflects the liberal arts identity of the instition and some of the practical realities faced by smaller programs. Although specific to the needs of the institution, this model provides one path forward to a more efficient and flexible core theory curriculum.


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