99 ARL library websites were selected and then surveyed to learn about the prevalence and general features of subject-based research guides. Effectively, all websites offered research guides in some shape or form, of which LibGuides featured prominently (67 out of 99 libraries used this platform). 75 of the surveyed library websites also included course specific guides.
In addition, a 10-question survey was conducted (driven via different librarian mailing list services including web4lib) to find out more about general attitudes and practices in libraries when it comes to the implementation and management of online research guides. The survey’s response rate among college/university libraries was very strong (155, 82%) within the context of 188 library and 198 individual responses in total. Importantly, the questionnaire's results correlated with the website survey confirming that LibGuides features heavily among college and university libraries.
One interesting question considered the types of content hosted on subject-based online research guides (“What other type of content do you host on your research guides system?”). The table below offers an overview of provided answers (n=198).
Answer
|
Total
|
Course pages
|
127 (68%)
|
“How to” instruction
|
123
(65%)
|
Alphabetical list of all databases
|
76
(40%)
|
“About the library” information
(for example hours, directions, staff directory, event)
|
59
(31%)
|
Digital colletions
|
34
(18%)
|
Everything – we use the research guide platform as our website
|
16
(9%)
|
None of the above
|
17
(9%)
|
Source: Ghaphery & White, 2012
|
Below is a list of a selection of Irish academic libraries (universities and institutes of technology... I hope I didn't miss anyone here) with links to their relevant subject-portals:
Institution
|
Operating platform
|
Dublin City University
|
|
University College Cork
|
|
University College Dublin
|
|
National University of Ireland, Galway
|
|
National University of Ireland, Maynooth
|
|
University of Limerick
|
|
Trinity College
|
|
Athlone Institute of Technology
|
|
Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown
|
|
Institute of Technology, Carlow
|
|
Cork Institute of Technology
|
|
DĂșn Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology
|
|
Dundalk Institute of Technology
|
|
Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology
|
|
Letterkenny Institute of Technology
|
|
Limerick Institute of Technology
|
|
Institute of Technology, Sligo
|
|
Institute of Technology, Tallaght
|
|
Institute of Technology, Tralee
|
|
Waterford Institute of Technology
|
|
Dublin Institute of Technology
|
Ref:
Ghaphery, J., & White, E. (2012). Library Use of Web-based Research Guides. Information Technology & Libraries, 31(1), 21-31.
Thanks for this Alex. Nice work collating the range of subject pages, I am looking at this area myself for a paper I'm working on, so it will come in very useful. From my experience using Libguides, I find they are very user-friendly and allow for a nice, consistent look and feel across guides. Very easy to update if links and resources change etc. which I feel is key with online subject guides; broken links can be very frustrating for the end user.
ReplyDeleteThanks Michelle. I guess database driven subject/course portals are the way ahead. An in-depth analysis as to policies and practices reg. subject portals in Irish higher ed institutions would be a great thing. As an aside, a low-cost alternative to LibGuides is subjectsplus. Very straight forward to set up and run.
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