What are we already doing related to the question?
If we wanted to consider starting this initiative or expanding what we are already doing, what do we want to learn about it from our future speakers? What questions do we want to ask during our upcoming speaker series?
If we wanted to consider starting this initiative or expanding what we are already doing, what do we want to learn about it from our future speakers? What questions do we want to ask during our upcoming speaker series?
I know that graduate students are trained to help at the reference desk. Most of our staff is capable of answering basic patron questions, though there is limited library specific training on this.
ReplyDeleteI am thankful for the courses on customer service made available over the years. These offer some insight into providing better service and positive interaction with both patrons and fellow staff.
I would like to see more information about the extent to which other libraries use staff for reference. I also think that having trained library employees walking the stacks available to answer questions could be a positive method of outreach. Many of us receive questions while working in the stacks. I wonder if the security students are asked questions while making their rounds and whether they might be a set of students that would benefit from additional training to answer basic reference questions.
For basic printer problems and routine questions, we could use more staff/GRA/even student help. Many patrons are sent to the ref. desk to ask questions by staff who might know the answer (such as where is this call number), so that makes it more frustrating to our patrons. But we need to have the expert, professional assistance available and not too far away from service points. I'd had to go to an all-appointment specialist service since you never know when someone will come to the desk with a complex literature search question or with a question that seems simple on the surface but turns out to be more complex. The reference interview also uncovers other more fundamental questions, and students, etc., will not have the training and the years of professional experience to know when you need to go further than just "where are the psychology books?" (when they really need peer-reviewed sources comparing different theories of abnormal psychology, etc., and should go to several specific databases, use the thesaurus, etc.).
ReplyDeleteI have long heard one of our service strengths is that we don't put up barriers between patrons and the subject specialists. While we might want to rethink some of the workflow procedures with reference, and could have more help from staff/student workers, we want to balance that with the continued availability of more specialized help when needed.
Could it be that we librarians could communicate better with staff and students, as well as patrons? I wonder if all of our students know that there's a "My Librarian" link in their D2L classes.
DeleteI have noticed that many public libraries are now hiring paraprofessionals to do nothing but manage their growing collection of public access desktop computers. They are often stationed in the computer lab with ready access to paper and toner and they do many of the things that our professional librarians are tasked with when they are at the reference desk. They fix paper jams, fill paper trays, change toner cartridges, and troubleshoot simple computer related issues like print settings in MS Word.
ReplyDeleteThis to me seems like a much better use of manpower than to make it a duty for reference librarians. I have often stood at the circulation desk, unable to leave my post, and wondered about the indignity of being a specially trained librarian, steeped in knowledge about locating information, and spending the lion's share of their time at the desk fixing paper jams, filling staplers and cleaning up hole-punch debris. It seems their skills can somehow be utilized much more effectively than the way they are being used right now.
When I worked at Dell we were required to be at our desks early enough before our shift began to review and familiarize ourselves with new specials, new policies, and new procedures before we ever interacted with a patron so that we would always have the most current, up-to-date information about the products and services we offered. Now, while "In The Loop" is a tremendous resource there are still many changes, updates, new tools and new services every semester that go unpublished or get forgotten about over time. Again, at the circulation desk I have often heard our library tour guides provide outdated or completely wrong information about our services or policies to the public. I am of the opinion that regular "refresher" courses be offered before and during the semester to keep everyone who gives these tours updated on changes in circulation policies and library services. I believe coordination between the librarians and the circulation staff is essential to providing positive patron experiences in this area.