Washington, DC–The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has published Collaborative Teaching and Learning Tools, SPEC Kit 328, which gathers information about what collaborative teaching and learning tools are currently being offered to users in ARL member libraries. It covers questions on which kinds of tools are offered, how many, and why; where they are located; who may use them; the sources of funding; who provides training and support; and what techniques are used to promote and evaluate the tools. For the purpose of this survey, “collaborative teaching and learning tools” are limited to the equipment, devices, or systems being offered to research library users in a self-service environment including, but not limited to, the following: interactive whiteboards (IWBs, e.g., SMART Board), touchscreen tablet computers (e.g., iPads), classroom/audience response system (e.g., clickers), interactive learning centers (e.g., TouchTables), and Wii gaming systems.
Results and documentation from this survey demonstrate that a variety of collaborative equipment, devices, or systems are available or soon will be available to research library users. Respondents report that offering these tools enhances the users’ learning experiences in and out of the library and also provides improved patron services.
This SPEC Kit includes documentation from respondents that describe available equipment and services, loan policies, instructions for using equipment, and materials promoting the services.
The table of contents and executive summary from this SPEC Kit are available online at http://publications.arl.org/Collaborative-Teaching-and-Learning-Tools-SPEC-Kit-328/
Ordering Information
SPEC Kit 328, Collaborative Teaching and Learning Tools
Marilyn N. Ochoa and Thomas Caswell • July 2012 • 214 pp.
Print: ISBN 1-59407-881-5 • $45 ($35 ARL members)
Online: ISBN 1-59407-882-3 • $50
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SPEC Kits Exchange Information
Designed to examine current research library practices and policies and serve as resource guides for libraries as they face ever-changing management problems, each SPEC Kit contains a summary analysis, survey questions with tallies, pertinent documentation from participating libraries, and a reading list and Web site references for further information on the topic.
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2012 SPEC Kit print subscription (ISSN 0160-3582): $225 ARL member/$300 nonmember, six issues per year, shipping included (additional postage may apply outside North America).
The SPEC Kit Collection provides online access to all titles published from 2006 to the present (SPEC Kit 292 –). IP access to the collection for one year is $300.00 for ARL member libraries and $400.00 for all others.
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 126 research libraries in the US and Canada. Its mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, facilitating the emergence of new roles for research libraries, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations. ARL is on the web at https://www.arl.org/.
