Learning the Library: The Work of Public Library Storytime Participants

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela J McKenzie ◽  
Rosamund K Stooke ◽  
Lynne E.F. McKechnie
Keyword(s):  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Legitimate Peripheral Participation ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Library Staff ◽  
Peripheral Participation

This study uses Lave and Wenger’s concept of legitimate peripheral participation in a community of practice as an analytical framework for analyzing the ways that children, caregivers, and library staff members develop expertise in the ways of storytime and move from being novices to being full participants.Cette étude utilise le concept de Lave et Wenger sur la participation périphérique légitime dans une communauté de praticiens, comme cadre analytique pour analyser les manières avec lesquelles les enfants, les gardiens et les membres du personnel des bibliothèques développent leur expertise à l’aide de l’heure du conte et comment ces derniers passent de l’état de profane à celui de participant à part entière. 

Legitimate Peripheral Participation in a Makerspace for Emancipated Emerging Adults

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 144-158
Author(s):  
Rachel N. Bonnette ◽  
Kevin Crowley
Keyword(s):  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Emerging Adults ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Transitional Housing ◽  
Legitimate Peripheral Participation ◽  
Foster Care Youth ◽  
Safe Spaces ◽  
Transition Into Adulthood ◽  
Peripheral Participation ◽  
Housing Facility

Following emancipation from foster care, youth often transition into adulthood without the support of family or school. For some emancipated emerging adults (EEAs), alternative support may come from informal educational programs like makerspaces—safe spaces to learn, explore identities, build relationships, and become entrepreneurs. This exploratory study uses Lave and Wenger’s concept of legitimate peripheral participation as a lens to for analyzing the diverse relationships of three EEAs (ages 20, 22, and 25) to the maker community of practice, as they live in a transitional housing facility and engage with its on-site makerspace and its affiliated museum.

scholarly journals Shifting the Sands of Summer Reading

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne De Groot
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Reading Program ◽  
Reading Programs ◽  
Reading Interests ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Summer Reading ◽  
Library Staff ◽  
Summer Reading Programs

This study investigated ways in which summer reading programs (SRPs) support children’s recreational reading interests and habits and help to promote reading and literacy throughout the summer months. The primary research question was: How do children, parents, and library staff experience their public library summer reading program? This paper will present selected findings from the study related to children’s reading experiences in school and during the summer, reading games and incentives, and designing summer reading programs that emphasize the social aspects of reading. Findings from this study suggest that school and public libraries should consider moving away from traditional summer reading programs that include reading games and rewards and focus instead on providing children, their parents, and library staff members with greater opportunities to interact with books and reading, and one another, throughout the summer.

Public libraries and public primary school literacy: a Kenyan case study

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 689-701
Author(s):  
Peter Mose
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
School Type ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Library Staff ◽  
Teachers And Parents

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explain how public libraries have been instrumental in early child school literacy teaching and learning. Most African public schools do not usually afford enough core textbooks and supplementary readers.Design/methodology/approachThis was a qualitative case study in Western Kenya amongst public library staff members, public primary school teachers and parents of library children clients. The following questions were addressed: What is the book situation in public primary schools in the study site? What school-type literacy-related services are offered by the sampled public library? and What are library staff members’, teachers’ and parents’ feelings about the public library services offered? Observations, interviews and document studies were used to collect data. Data were analysed thematically.FindingsPublic schools do not have enough core textbooks and the situation is worse for supplementary readers; the public library branch studied offers critical school-type literacies to school children both at the library building as well as at public schools registered with it; and library staff members, teachers, and parents express positive feelings about the services offered.Research limitations/implicationsThis was a case study whose findings might not apply to the larger situation and the study did not confirm actual literacy benefits of the library services amongst school children by, for instance, conducting literacy tests. The findings are, however, an index to the possible situation in the macro context.Practical implicationsThe relevant stakeholders should find ways of co-opting public libraries as associates of public schools in literacy teaching. This relationship is not straight forward in Kenya.Originality/valueThe findings reported are from original research.

scholarly journals What Are the Opinions of New Zealand Public Library Staff on Ebooks?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Megan Adelle Percy
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Median Response ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
The Past ◽  
Library Staff ◽  
Strongly Agree ◽  
Level Of Agreement

<p>RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to discover the opinions of New Zealand public library staff on ebooks. While there are studies on opinions on ebooks, there is less emphasis on public library staff. Ebooks are becoming more and more popular and how libraries implement them will impact on the future of libraries. The aim of this study was to discover what library staff liked and disliked about ebooks and how they feel about ebooks in public libraries. METHODOLOGY: Invitations to participate in a survey about ebooks were posted on two email discussion lists, PUBSIG, for New Zealand public library staff, and NZ-Libs, for New Zealand library staff. Additionally, an invitation was emailed to all staff members of Wellington City Libraries. Data were collected using an online survey consisting mainly of Likert-type statements that respondents indicate their level of agreement to. These statements were adapted from previous studies done on ebooks. Respondents were not required to answer every question. RESULTS: There were 202 responses. 63% (127) of New Zealand public library staff surveyed have read at least one ebook in the past year. 93% (188) Agree or Strongly Agree with the statement that it is important for public libraries to offer ebooks. 57% (105) Agree or Strongly Agree with the statement “I enjoy helping patrons with technical questions about ebooks or ereaders”. Respondents think that the portability of ebooks and the ability to customise ebooks is useful. Most library staff surveyed think the increasing popularity of ebooks is good for libraries. The median response to “My library has a great stock of ebooks” was Neither Agree nor Disagree, with the majority of respondents agreeing that ebook licensing terms restricts the stock of ebooks available at their library. IMPLICATIONS: Library staff think that offering ebooks is important for libraries. However, libraries implementing ebooks need to ensure staff are ready to help patrons with ebooks. Ebook licensing terms are perceived as restricting libraries’ ebook stock, for libraries to be successful at offering ebooks the licensing situation may need to change.</p>

Library makerspaces in China: A comparison of public, academic, and school libraries

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 1209-1223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fenfang Cao ◽  
Shuheng Wu ◽  
Besiki Stvilia
Keyword(s):  
Academic Libraries ◽  
School Library ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Physical Space ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Library Staff ◽  
Type Data ◽  
Physical Spaces

This exploratory study identified and compared the organization, services, challenges of and motivations for makerspaces in public, academic, and school libraries in China. Although there is a significant body of literature on makerspaces in libraries, this study is one of the first ones that provides a comparison of library makerspace organization and operation by library type. Data was collected using paper and online surveys from 158 librarians. Supporting learning was the most frequently identified motivation for establishing a makerspace by all three categories of librarians. While makerspaces in academic libraries were mostly operated by library staff, school libraries more evenly relied on teaching staff, volunteers, library staff members, and paid instructors to operate their makerspaces. Makerspaces in public and academic libraries were funded mostly from the libraries’ budget, while school libraries were funded more by other units on the campus and institutional or individual investments. The most frequently selected technologies were 3D printing and modeling technologies, and makerspaces in academic libraries were better equipped than makerspaces in the other two types of libraries. Group study rooms and learning commons centers were the most frequently occurring physical spaces in academic and public library makerspaces. School library makerspaces differentiated themselves by offering wooden crafts centers more often than other library makerspaces. While participants selecting budget limitation and inadequate equipment as barriers to implementing makerspaces was not surprising, public and academic librarians also often cited the lack of professional instructors. Based on the findings, several suggestions were offered to the practice of planning and operating a makerspace in libraries such as bringing together internal and external funding to support makerspaces, consolidating the required physical space of makerspaces and the existing space arrangement of libraries, and developing additional training programs to address the problem of a lack of professional instructors.

scholarly journals Fertile Ground: Assessing the Public Library as a Context for Preparing Youth for Community Engagement

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-29
Author(s):  
Kenneth R. Jones ◽  
Terrence J. Delahanty
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Community Engagement ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Positive Development ◽  
The Public ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Fertile Ground ◽  
Library Staff

Libraries provide settings where youth can experience positive development. However, many young people and their families do not access the potential these institutions afford their communities. In addition, library staff are seldom presented with opportunities to work more intimately with young people visiting the library. This article provides data on library staff and their feelings toward youth and their experiences interacting with young people in their local libraries. The findings of the study reveal that library staff members have an array of perceptions toward young people and how youth can be affected.

scholarly journals Semi-authentic practices for student health interpreters

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ineke Crezee
Keyword(s):  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Professional Practice ◽  
Student Health ◽  
Community Of Learners ◽  
Legitimate Peripheral Participation ◽  
Pedagogical Tools ◽  
Peripheral Participation

This paper will briefly describe some pedagogical tools used to provide semi-authentic practices for trainee healthcare interpreters. Such practices facilitate legitimate peripheral participation by a Community of Learners in the Community of Practice (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Wenger, 1998, 2000). Special emphasis will be placed on the importance of shared pre-professional practice, and an example of this will be described in some detail. The pedagogical tools outlined in this paper can be easily replicated by interpreter educators internationally.

scholarly journals Central practitioners’ developing legitimate peripheral participation in a community of practice for changing schools

2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Woo
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Legitimate Peripheral Participation ◽  
Font Size ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Peripheral Participation ◽  
Organisational Factors

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span><p>As new technologies continue to shape society, there has been a greater need for communities of practice to facilitate changing teaching and learning practices through technology in schools. Legitimate peripheral participation through these communities of practice has become an essential means to spread and support this technology integration movement, but understanding this participation in communities has been limited. This paper reports on a study of how central practitioners developed legitimate peripheral participation episodes in an inter-organisational, international community of practice. It describes the qualitative, case study approach to the study, and outlines the community of practice, its central practitioners and the legitimate peripheral participation episodes in which they participated. The paper presents and discusses essential central practitioner individual and organisational factors which enabled the continuity and change of legitimate peripheral participation episodes in the community. Individual factors to emerge from the study include central practitioners’ desire for continuous professional development and individual agency. Organisational factors include an organisation’s distinctive mission, its distinctive roles, and constant negotiation, including conflicts of interest, between organisations and their members. The paper concludes with considerations of the value and relevance of legitimate peripheral participation in an inter-organisational community of practice for changing practices.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 28.35pt 0pt; line-height: normal;"> </p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span>

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