Library Analytics: Shaping the Future — Applying Data Analysis: Demonstrate Value, Shape Services, and Broaden Information Literacy

摘要

Academic librarians are no strangers to statistics and assessment, and we do not just passively provide access to materials. For decades, librarians have evaluated their collections and programming against changing user needs and interests. In recent years, however, librarians have shifted from assessing their impact primarily through peer comparisons to instead turning inward and assessing their impact against distinctive institutional student success outcomes. With decreasing budgets and increasing calls for evidence of impact, we are having to prove both our value and our expertise at every turn. We are being asked to justify the purchase of expensive tools and journal packages, and we are called upon to demonstrate how our subject expertise directly influences student learning. Rather than waiting to be asked to provide proof of impact, librarians have assumed the driver's seat and begun collecting and analyzing data to assess the value of our collections and demonstrate our importance to the academy.