WORKSHOP ON
EMBEDDED
LIBRARIANSHIP
17 DECEMBER 2015
UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA
FORUM:
The State of
Embedded
Librarianship in
Malaysian Research
Intensive
Universities
Dr Nor Edzan Che Nasir
Chief Librarian
University of Malaya
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Embedded librarianship
Google (15/12/15: 7.30 pm) – “embedded librarianship” =
About 19,400 results (0.25 seconds)
– Google Scholar (15/12/15: 7.30 pm) – “embedded
librarianship” = About 1,650 results (0.04 seconds)
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Research intensive university - Malaysia
INTRODUCTION
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Undergraduates
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Then
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Orientation week – guided Library tour
Bibliographic instruction at reference desk
NOW
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1 hour introduction during Orientation Week to freshman
Guided Library tour – by appointment
Compulsory 2-credit GIG1004 : Information Literacy Course
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1st semester = non-science
2nd semester = science
Law & Medicine – same course but conducted separately for them
Our librarians design & develop the modules and delivery is via blended learning
OPAC & online databases – by appointment
Final year project – by invitation
Subject cluster – headed by a senior librarian & liaison librarians
UM LIBRARY
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Postgraduates, researchers, academics
Information Skills sessions
– specialised databases workshops
– specialised tools workshops
– authorship workshops
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Faculty level
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Liaison Librarians attend faculty meetings and are involved
in the going ons of the faculty
UM LIBRARY
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With embedded librarianship
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We go to our users
Immersion
Beginning 2008
Research Methodology for postgraduates with IPS and FBA for
postgraduates
– Invited to be a part of Research Methodology course at various
academies, institutes, faculties and centres
– FOM is sponsoring our librarian for medical librarianship –
currently involved in research at FOM
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Is embedded librarianship alive and well at the UM
Library?
UM LIBRARY
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Results – Currently, there is disparity in how embedded librarianship is being defined and used in
common practice, ranging from embedding an online component into a single course to full physical
and cultural integration into an academic college or business unit of an organization. Activities of
embedded librarians include creating course integrated instruction modules for either face-to-face or
online courses, providing in depth research assistance to students or faculty, and co-locating within
colleges or customer units via office hours for a few hours to all hours per week. Several case reports
exist in the recent literature. Few high quality research studies reporting outcomes of librarians or
library programs labelled as embedded exist at this point. Some evidence suggests that embedded
librarians are effective with regards to student learning of information literacy objectives. Surveys
suggest that both students and faculty appreciate embedded librarian services.
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Conclusion – Most published accounts discuss librarians embedding content and ready access to
services in an online course management system. A few notable cases describe the physical and
cultural integration of librarians into the library user environs. Future research using valid quantitative
methods is needed to explore the impact of large scale, customized, embedded programs.
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Panel Members
Professor Dr. Abrizah Abdullah
– Associate Professor Dr. Kiran Kaur
– Madam Khasiah Zakaria
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Questions from me
– Questions from you
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FORUM
1. Is embedded librarianship just a
fancy name for a task that librarians,
especially those in academic libraries,
have been doing all this while?
Is it a passing fad or is it here to stay?
Will it be confined to academic
libraries only as the case may be right
now?
QUESTION 1
2. With the existing skill sets and
competencies, are the current group
of librarians in the various Malaysian
academic libraries well equipped to
play the role of embedded
librarians? What other additional
skills and competencies, if any, do
they require?
QUESTION 2
3. We tend to borrow a lot from the West in
terms of terminologies and jump on the band
wagon with regards to practices within our
discipline eg. embedded librarianship,
evidence-based librarianship, maker spaces,
data managers. Do you think its high we
come out with our own terminology taking
into consideration our culture and beliefs and
thus introduce them to our Western
counterparts through our writings?
QUESTION 3
Thank you
edzan@um.edu.my