LibGuides in the News

As a school librarian, I find that LibGuides provides a good practical solution for helping with library instruction, including teaching the research process, using databases, emphasizing age appropriate information literacy skills, and providing subject-specific resources for individual class assignments.

Lately, I find myself using LibGuides in ways never expected. Sure, as a member of the community, I can ask a fellow curator if I might use his/her guide as a template in building my own. But way more often, I simply link to the Guides of others as resources or links in my own guides. You don’t have to be a paying member of the community to do that.

We can design surprisingly good websites with LibGuides 2.0 CMS. Most importantly, libraries can customize LibGuides-based websites as extensively or minimally as available talent and time permits, without sacrificing visual appeal or usability–or control of the library’s own site.

I have a favorite tool. I know I shouldn’t, but there are tools that I like more than others. I find them more helpful. They seem to be just a bit more easy to work with. And frankly, they may be more responsive.

I find them particularly helpful in shepherding students towards the most appropriate databases, web resources, weaving in source evaluation checklists/instruction, embedding videos, promoting print and ebook collections…I could go on and on. I’m not ashamed, I’ll just say it: I heart Libguides.

Voss explains that the shooting and its aftermath had initially made her feel “helpless”—and also forced her to examine what she could do.
“As a librarian, I always feel like I have to share what resources are out there and the best of what is out there.” Voss has created a LibGuide, an online resource containing related articles, books, Gale databases, and more, providing information on the Brown shooting and its aftermath for the teachers at her school.

Further research will include investigation into ways to improve the subject guides’ “discoverability” so it’s easier for patrons to access and use the guides.

Is there too much choice out there? Do we need 35 varieties of coffee? 46 cereal options? 17 brands of garbage bags? Over half a dozen sites to find US caselaw? At least the same number for cases from England and Wales? Did we ask for all this choice? And do we need it?
So one service that might be of use to you in wading through the quicksand of multiple sources is the library research guide produced by your friendly librarian. You don’t have a librarian? Oh, and you don’t have a library anymore because it’s all online? Never fear, there is still a librarian out there, to help you, virtually.
I am referring to a service out there called LibGuides. These resources provide subject, course and topic guides.

According to Melissa Vetter, Head of Research Services for the university’s John M. Olin Library (link is external), Libguides is a significant upgrade from the library’s old hand-coded HTML guides, which she said had become outdated and were never that user-friendly. Since migrating to Libguides, library staff members have been pleased with its ease of use and impressed with Springshare’s product support.

The reference librarians at the Naval War College use a mix of workshops, new student orientation sessions, individual reference appointments, small group bibliographic instruction classes, faculty workshops, and multimedia subject guides called “LibGuides” to expand and support information literacy.