JOURNAL OF ACADEMIC LIBRARIANSHIP

Post Covid-19 pandemic and library users' education: Impact on examination and survey
Adetayo AJ
The study investigates the impact of post-COVID-19 pandemic on library users' education course, specifically on examinations and survey practices upon the resumption of on-campus instruction. A descriptive survey research design was employed with 384 students from [university name] responding to the survey. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data collected. The study found that library users' education was significantly impacted post-pandemic in terms of examinations, questionnaire administration, lectures, and orientation exercises. The majority of students preferred computer-based tests (CBT) for exams and online methods for questionnaire administration, but the study also identified challenges such as rigid examination schedules, internet connectivity issues, and a limited number of computers available. The study, therefore, recommends that universities invest in technology infrastructure to improve internet connectivity, increase the number of computers available for students, and offer more flexible examination schedules to accommodate students who face internet connectivity issues. These measures would help ensure a smoother transition to online learning for library users in the case of a future pandemic and beyond.
Examining undergraduate student perceptions and engagement during the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic
Jackson JM, Moreno TH and Scoulas JM
The objectives of this study were to understand undergraduate students' overall experiences with the transition to remote learning and understand students' level of involvement with online and in-person campus programs at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper presents the findings from a series of library focus groups conducted with undergraduate students in the summer 2021. Findings showed that students experienced parallel benefits and challenges to that of remote learning when attending online campus programs. Based on these findings this paper provides student-driven recommendations for library programming. Understanding the levels of student involvement across different types of engagement and different campus stakeholders allows for articulation of the greater implications for developing library student engagement efforts.
How Covid-19 literacy influences fear, protective behaviour, and conspiracy beliefs among university students in Pakistan?
Naveed MA, Shaukat R, Asghar A and Rafique GM
Covid-19 literacy, a social vaccine, is crucial to cope pandemic situations as it helps individuals to manage panic situations, adopt health preventive behaviours and adapting to the new normal.
Student information use during the COVID-19 pandemic
Howard HA, Bochenek A, Mayhook Z, Trowbridge T and Lux S
Since early 2020, life for students has changed tremendously. It has been a time of stress, turmoil, and trauma for students. Researchers from a large Midwestern university wanted to determine how student information use has changed during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper examines the results of a mixed-methods study undertaken in 2021 using surveys and follow-up focus groups to determine if and how student information use has changed. To answer this, we explored student use of news sources, social media sources, political affiliations, and information responses, coupled with to what extent these factors demonstrate or impact potential changes in information use. We also addressed changes in the frequency of use, as well as the types of resources consulted, pertaining to information use of traditional and social media sources.
Remote usability testing carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic on the example of Primo VE implementation in an Academic Library
Marzec P and Piotrowski DM
The article presents usability tests of Primo VE carried out as part of the implementation of the Alma library services platform at the Nicolaus Copernicus University Library. Remote usability tests were carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the tests was to assess the ease of use of selected system functionalities and the ease of learning how to use them by users. The method of remote usability testing using the Office365 application package, including MS Teams, was used. The tests allowed for the preparation of a report that took into account the identified problems and became the basis for introducing modifications to the configuration of the system's functionality and some elements of its interface, as well as for the preparation of instructional materials. The results indicate a fairly high level of intuitiveness of the interface and the analyzed functionalities. Test participants had no major problems with using Primo, apart from handling facets and full record services.
Evaluation of streaming video usage in a university library before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown
Foley M
As the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown and remote course delivery recede in the rear-view mirror, academic librarians look to what the future holds for streaming video. During 2020 and 2021, library-funded streaming video requests soared while library budgets declined. Librarians are concerned that this trend will continue beyond budgetary limits. This paper describes an analysis of streaming video usage from 2019 through 2022 at California State University, Fresno. The results provide evidence that the elevated growth rate is tapering off at this institution, but the medium remains popular. The impact of streaming media on library budgets and collection development policies is also discussed. Our evaluation is distinguished by the inclusion of data from before, during, and after the pandemic lockdown.
Academic libraries' leaders' decision-making during the COVID-19 crisis
Lembinen L
During the COVID-19 crisis, leaders of academic libraries had to make various decisions to retain library relevance and maintain essential services. The COVID-19 crisis raised the question of libraries' value to their universities more than ever. Libraries were facing financial difficulties but also operational challenges due to the services built around physical libraries. This paper uses a mixed methods approach to investigate academic library leaders' decision-making during the first year of the COVID-19 crisis. It combines quantitative and qualitative data from previous studies with primary data collected by the author to determine what kind of decisions university library leaders faced during the crisis and why. These studies show that leaders were concerned about the following main challenges: lack of access to physical services and collections, the safety of staff and patrons, new ways of working, and the library's role during the crisis. The results show that library leaders made decisions in smaller groups or some cases, individually due to the lack of time or information. While there have been numerous studies on libraries' response to the COVID-19 crisis in the past three years, this paper focuses mainly on academic library leaders and their decision-making to solve the crisis for their libraries.
Online health information seeking and digital health literacy among information and learning resources undergraduate students
Abdoh E
During the COVID-19 pandemic, students have trouble coping with the available health information regarding the coronavirus in their daily lives because of misinformation.
A silver lining for pandemic-weary libraries: How blended and flipped instructional programs have improved upon pre-pandemic norms
Walker KW
The COVID-19 pandemic presented instructors and learners with novel challenges related to the delivery and consumption of instructional content. Within academic libraries, these changes have resulted in an expanded reliance on asynchronous learning content delivered through a variety of instructional approaches. The study described herein was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a blended and flipped program of information literacy (IL) instruction. Deploying a pre/post-test methodology within a quasi-experimental study of student learning outcomes, this research compares achievement across two cohorts of students receiving IL instruction as part of a first-year writing program (FYWP) requirement. While one cohort participated in a multi-shot, in-person, synchronous instructional program during the pre-pandemic period, another cohort participated in a blended and flipped instructional program delivered under pandemic-related restrictions. Comparative analysis revealed net positive achievement outcomes for both the pre-pandemic and pandemic cohorts, as well as interesting points of contrast between the two groups. In particular, students in the pandemic cohort arrived to their first year with less research experience than their pre-pandemic peers-signaling a gap in knowledge that pandemic-era library instruction must overcome. Fortunately, the blended and flipped instructional program experienced by the pandemic cohort proved successful in helping those students overcome their research experience gap, while delivering additional benefits that help confirm previous research in this area of practice.
Academic library spaces and student activities during the COVID-19 pandemic
Kim Y and Yang E
A library in higher education plays a primary role in students' learning on campus. In addition to individually-focused studying, students come to a library for various purposes, such as group learning, collaborating, and socializing. To support students' different types of learning, appropriate physical and functional environments of the spaces must be provided. However, the environmental effects of learning spaces have not been explored extensively. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced students to remain and study at home for extended periods, and it is expected that the pandemic experience has affected students' space use patterns. This study aims to examine the effect of the pandemic on students' library usage and to investigate the necessary environments to effectively support students' learning activities. Data was collected via interviews with 12 students. One of the main findings is that, even though students used the library less during the pandemic, they expected to use it as much as pre-pandemic or even more after the pandemic. Furthermore, both physical and functional environments were associated with the study performance and wellbeing of the students. Therefore, understanding students' learning activities and preferred environments in a library is critical to providing appropriate spaces supporting students' learning performance and wellbeing.
Crisis Librarianship: An Examination of Online Librarianship Roles in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Reed KN, Kester B, Kaufmann KF, Homol L and Crampsie C
This study surveyed the members of a professional library organization for their perceptions of their online librarianship role. In particular, the survey sought to examine any change in online librarianship roles after March 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. Participants were administered a survey comprised of both quantitative and qualitative response options. Findings present a nuanced professional environment post-lockdown in which individual job duties largely remained the same; however participants reported increased demands stemming from workplace issues, including attrition and lack of resources.
COVID-19 impact on the Chinese top academic libraries: Libraries' response to space, collection and services
Kang Q, Song Z, Lu J, Shi T and Yang J
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was a major public health emergency on a global scale. The literature regarding the pandemic and its impact on academic libraries is still rising. This article examines the two-year process of developing a flexible service scenario and the broader picture by analyzing data on Chinese top university libraries' programmes and outreach initiatives prior to, during, and the normal COVID-19 pandemic (Sept. 2019-Sept. 2021). COVID-19 is found to have a significant impact on the physical space, collection development, and service of the library, demonstrating the characteristics of space access restricted by security measures, collection digitization, and online service. This research also examines the previous year's initiatives and programmes and discusses the next phase of "new normal" procedures. Hopefully, this study will give insight on how Chinese libraries responded to the recent pandemic, informing libraries' outreach and efforts to be better prepared to take imperative, swift, and decisive action in the post-COVID-19 era and beyond.
Transformation of libraries during Covid-19 pandemic: A systematic review
Ashiq M, Jabeen F and Mahmood K
This study analyze academic library services during Covid-19 pandemic (2020 and 2021), as well as the challenges they face, emerging library roles, and the most effective communication tools.
Reading Format Attitudes in the Time of COVID
Mizrachi D and Salaz AM
The objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of the COVID-19-related changes to educational delivery on students' academic reading format preferences and behaviors. Pre-pandemic studies showed that students preferred print when needing to engage in academic texts for their coursework, and that under certain circumstances, students learned better when using print texts. During the pandemic however, many institutions implemented a sudden shift to remote learning and electronic readings. We questioned whether students would adjust their learning strategies to accommodate the abrupt change, and whether the increased experience with e-formats would boost their favorable attitudes towards digital reading. This study's data from students at a North American university does not support this hypothesis. While some respondents did report improved attitudes towards e-reading during COVID, most attitudes were less favorable or reflected no change. Nearly half the respondents stated that they highlighted and annotated their readings less than they did before, and over a third said they completed their assigned readings less frequently. Negative feelings may reflect a new trend in attitudes or they may be a temporary outcome of general screen fatigue. The findings reinforce the importance of providing print format options for students during this time.
Health sciences librarian research and instruction services in pandemic information environments
Charbonneau DH and Vardell E
This study examined research and instruction services provided by academic health sciences librarians in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 205 respondents (N = 205) completed an anonymous online survey about academic health sciences librarian involvement in providing research and instruction services during the global pandemic. In-depth literature searching services (86%, n = 176), curated COVID-19 research through guides (66%, n = 135), and systematic review consultations (53%, n = 109) were reported as the top three research services in demand. Librarians supported online teaching and learning at their institutions by providing online instruction for a course (92%, n = 189), facilitating access to licensed resources (73%, n = 150), and identifying open access and open educational resources (62%, n = 127). Overall, this study contributes to understanding pandemic-responsive academic library services to meet the unique needs of health sciences education and research in evolving COVID-19 pandemic information environments.
A perspective on academic library middle management in the COVID era
Bynoe V
Middle managers in academic libraries are often the first point of contact for employees within their departments. Middle managers work as colleagues, advocates, and project managers. While the responsibilities may vary between institutions, it is essential that middle managers develop leadership skills to function effectively in their positions. In the era of COVID-19, middle managers must reconcile their own expectations of their role with the changing needs and responsibilities of those they manage. COVID-19 is a complex phenomenon that has brought many issues such as health and social inequity to the forefront. These issues should be considered in leadership techniques that are utilized by middle managers in academic libraries. When leading a department, the manager must consider the whole person. This column will discuss several leadership styles that consider the whole person and can be effective for academic library middle managers as they navigate the complexities of their positions in the COVID-19 Era.
Knowledge management in the classroom using Mendeley technology
Reis MAF, Favretto J, Favretto NM, Favretto LMH and Dos Santos RP
Research in higher education institutions is present in all courses, and academic instruction in research methodology is vital, with educational technologies being an essential component of this process. With the Covid-19 pandemic, there were changes in teaching, learning, and in performing scientific research in undergraduate courses. Among the technologies, the Mendeley reference management tool has become increasingly helpful in these contexts. Therefore, this manuscript is an account of workshop experiences for the use of the Mendeley tool in the teaching of Research Methodology and Scientific Methodology offered in the distance education modality in undergraduate courses at the Universidade do Contestado, Brazil. After basic instruction on Mendeley, students participating in the workshops were guided to apply the tool using Bardin's content analysis technique. This technique is usually laborious and seldom involved in literature reviews by undergraduate students; Mendeley technology makes it more accessible. From experiences with the 2020 and 2021 workshops, during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is suggested that the content analysis method combined with the Mendeley technology can help students present better literature reviews, especially for final graduation projects such as course completion monographs.
COVID-19 doesn't change anything: Neoliberalism, generation-ism, academic library buildings, and lazy rivers
Buschman J
Does COVID-19 challen04ge the persistence of neoliberalism? The pandemic and popular resistance to globalization seem to coincide, and there considerable discussion of neoliberalism within LIS now. First, this paper defines the centrality of the market as neoliberalism. With that in place, the remaining parts of the paper will explore and document phenomena in and related to academic libraries that instantiate how neoliberalism stubbornly persists. Second, the continuing reliance on generational cohorts to characterize incoming students - generation-ism- is a manifestation of categories of consumption and marketing. The influence of generation-ism on academic libraries is significant in the form of design pressures on space and to market the college experience. Third, where neoliberalism does tend to drive higher education investments in facilities, it results in the "lazy river" trend. This will be examined in direct contrast to the finance/space pressures on academic libraries. The paper concludes with a short discussion of these factors and what this analysis can tell us about academic libraries going forward into a post-COVID-19 era.
Remaking academic library services in Zimbabwe in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic
Chisita CT, Chiparausha B, Tsabetse V, Olugbara CT and Letseka M
The outbreak of the global COVID -19 pandemic has affected all aspects of life, access to higher education has not been out of danger as evidenced by the enforcement of official closures, enforcement lockdown and social distancing rules by governments throughout the world. However, while the COVID-19 pandemic has presented the world with numerous socioeconomic challenges, it has also helped to spur creativity and information as evidenced by the responses of academic libraries that have seen a heighted use of digital platforms to support education, teaching and research. The study sought to establish how librarians in Zimbabwe responded to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the implications of the pandemic on library service delivery. A qualitative research was adopted for the study. Using snowballing, interviews were used to gather data beginning with the library association's branch leadership. The researchers ensured that the questions were aligned to the research objectives. The interview schedule included open and closed questions to enable participants to provide further details relating to the phenomenon under study. The participants were guaranteed their rights to consent, privacy and anonymity in the introduction of the interview schedule. An The study reveals that there has been an increase in the use online platforms for accessing information especially library's webpages, electronic books and journals. The use of library online resources from distance locations also rose following closure of campuses. Library patrons' perceptions towards electronic resources significantly improved as they realized that they were equally useful as the print. Findings from the study provide useful recommendation on how librarians can remodel their services to match new demands presented by the COVD-19 pandemic. The study provides a starting point upon which further research on the effect of COVID-19 or other similar pandemics have on library service delivery.
College students' perceptions on sense of belonging and inclusion at the academic library during COVID-19
Scoulas JM
This paper demonstrates how university students experienced and perceived inclusion in a public research university library context during COVID-19. Both quantitative ( = 3379) and qualitative data ( = 575) from the 2021 student survey were examined to explore students' library experiences and their perceptions of inclusion. The quantitative data revealed that students using both the physical and online library had the greatest sense of belonging, whereas students who never used any library resources had the least sense of belonging. The qualitative data further revealed that when students used the in-person library space they felt a sense of belonging, as well as feeling accepted and valued; on the other hand, it was hard for them to judge inclusion when they had not been in the library due to COVID-19. This finding suggests how academic libraries need to prepare for the hybrid environment (in-person and online) so that students using online resources and services feel connected to the library.
Love Data Week in the time of COVID-19: A content analysis of Love Data Week 2021 events
Rod AB, Isuster MY and Chandler M
A primary role for data-focused librarians is building community through traditional and novel modes of in-person outreach, including consultations, training, and themed events such as Love Data Week. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic rendered in-person events impossible. However, Love Data Week 2021 persisted in an online format, allowing data-focused librarians a unique chance to initiate outreach to geographically dispersed constituents. In this study, the authors investigate the nature and context of Love Data Week 2021 events to gain insight into current research data services trends, as impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. The authors collected qualitative information about 242 Love Data Week 2021 events across 37 organizations and coded the information using manual content analysis. This paper reports on descriptive results from the content analysis, including the dominant topics across events (software or digital tools, research data management, and service or product awareness) and the primary mode of events (workshops). The authors discuss implications for future research on Love Data Week and themed weeks in general as successful modes of outreach, community-building, and as venues for tracking emerging trends in the context of research data services.