One-half of wisdom:

that is the E-librarian question

Barbara Sakarya

TTRB E-librarian

Institute of Education

London

‘A prudent question is one-half of wisdom’ (Francis Bacon)

A good question shows thought and deliberation, it ignites the desire for knowledge and creates more questions. A good, E-librarianquestioncan get the research ball rolling, it can identify an educational trend or it can highlight a research hole. In short, a good, E-librarian question is 50% of a good answer.

The E-librarian service as a part of the Teacher Training Resource Bank (TTRB) was launched in March 2006 as a question and answer service for teacher trainees and other educators. By August 2007, the service had responded to over 1000 questions and as E-librarian, the key insight for me was that questions are almost more important than answers. E-librarian questions have been diverse in content and style, but they all have a common theme – education.

Education and libraries have always been involved. As Jane Secker explains in Electronic Resources in the Virtual learning Environment, ‘…libraries have always been an integral part of learning, helping learners to find, evaluate and exploit resources. Yet now, with an increasing number of digital resources, librarians have a crucial role in navigating learners through the complex digital information environment’ (2004: 53). This ‘complex’ environment can be daunting and dangerous for some, and for these questioners, the E-librarian can be a non-threatening guide.

E-librarian background

The first version of the E-librarian was a 2003/2004 pilot. In the pilot, questions were received via email from selected UK educational institutions and E-librarian responses were emailed back to questioners. The E-librarian pilot, from December 2003 to December 2004, aimed to do the following:

to provide a question and answer service to selected teacher education institutions,

to built up a bank of questions,

  • to add new resources to British Education Internet Resource Catalogueand

to evaluate the needs of teacher training students and their tutors.

At end of the pilot, 174 real and 38 sample questions were answered, these questions were organised into a database and feedback was highly positive. More details of the pilot can be found in the final report in Education Libraries (Welshman 2005).

Building on this experience, the E-librarian question service reviewed here was launched in 2006 as a part of the Teacher Training Resource Bank which was initially a three-yearprojectfor teacher trainees, educators, teachers and others interested in education supported by theTraining and Development Agency for Schools(TDA). The developmentof the TTRB was managed by a consortium including: 3T Productions Ltd, Canterbury Christ Church University, Institute of Education and the British Education Index.

The TTRB aimed to:

  • make the Initial Teacher Education (ITE) professional knowledge base more easily accessible,
  • reference effective practices in all subject areas and across phases,
  • increase the quality and range of ITE resources available,
  • raise the status of ITE research and knowledge,
  • promote change by supporting tested knowledge transfer and adoption strategies,
  • provide a personalised support service for teacher educators and those training to teach.

The E-librarian that was introduced in March 2006 was sponsored by the TDA and funded by Microsoft. The basic premise of the 2006/2007 E-librarian was similar to the 2003/4 pilot -- asking and responding to education questions via email – yet there were marked differences. Firstly, while the pilot was only available to limited institutions, the 2006/7 E-librarian served a much wider audience and was available online to anyone who registered with the TTRB. Secondly, in the pilot, responses were emailed and not available as a database until the end of the project whereas 2006/7 E-librarian questions and responses were published online as soon as they were answered. Thirdly, the pilot was staffed by two part time managers and two part time E-librarians with shared responsibilities. The 2006/2007 E-librarian had one part-time manager, Stephen Pickles, and I was initially seconded as the sole E-librarian.

The 2006/2007 E-librarian sat inside the TTRB website and it worked by providing a Q & A service for registered users and published responses for everyone else. TTRB users could submit questions, E-librarian responses were emailed within 48 hours and questions/responses were published on the website. Users needed to register only once to ask questions; unregistered users were able to view questions and responses but could not ask questions. Registered users in 2007 varied daily but were broadly 40% teacher trainees, 20% teacher trainers, 20% teachers and 20% others.

From March 2006, the E-librarian was launched in road shows across the UKas a part of the TTRB which was advertised as a ‘one-stop web portal providing access to research and evidence based resources for the teacher education community.’ By September 2006, the E-librarian bank of questions had grown to 200. At the start of the academic year in October 2006, this number doubled in one month to 400. At this time, another librarian, Emily Treen (.4 time), was seconded from the Institute of Education library staff while I varied my hours (.6 – .8 time) depending on the number of questions. Generally, we each worked full days alone only doubling up when questions built up, usually on a Monday morning. For ten months, the E-librarian became a 35 hour week job share while E-librarian online continued 24 hours a day with occasional shut downs during holiday periods.

By the end of August 2007, the E-librarian had fielded over 1000 questions, we had carried out four highly positive feedback surveys and the service had become an essential part of the Teacher Training Resource Bank. At this time, a second, three-year contract including the E-librarian was agreed with the TDA which will feature a third version of the E-librarian service.

While the basic aims of the E-librarian stayed similar to the pilot, as the service evolved, other advantages were realised. The E-librarian was able to:

respond to questions within two days,

supply a range of reliable references,

give questioners search tips on sources and search terms,

suggest a variety of search paths and ideas,

compile a bank of questions that could be ‘harvested’ by TTRB,

provide a response for one questioner that could be used by others.

After a year of service, with questions increasing and excellent feedback, we knew we were valued, but we were not able to assess the impact of a good question until May 2007. Before that time, questions were only available in a long list online. In April 2007, E-librarian questions were made searchable and a month later as the academic year wound down and the number of questions submitted decreased, the viewings of questions/responses online increased. Although not conclusive, this increase in viewing activity suggests that accessible questions could be used and re-used. I would like to believe that a ‘prudent’ E-librarian question is one that can be recycled again and again.

Some abbreviated versions of E-librarian questions include:

  • How do children's images of God differ as children get older and what influences this?
  • Do you have practical resources that would assist the teaching of gifted and talented children?
  • How do teaching styles in gymnastics affect children’s learning?
  • Does the use of ICT put boys at an advantage against girls?
  • What evidence is there to support the widely held view that young children actually learn through play?
  • What makes a good mentor?
  • How do teachers' questions in the classroom affect children's learning?

Ideally, we expect users to search the TTRB first before asking the E-librarian, although realistically, we accept that this is not always the case. In an attempt to urge users to carry out initial research before asking a question, our online advice is:

When you ask a question, please tell us what you have found so far and what extra you are seeking. We also need to know where else you have searched and what you have found. This information will help us give you a speedy response. Please specify age range, key stage and/or curriculum subject if appropriate.

Unfortunately, questions we receive do not often give a full picture of previous research and some questions are starkly brief while others meander. A question with too little or too much information may indicate that the questioner is still thinking and perhaps unsure where to start. No doubt, there are many reasons for poorly phrased questions. Questioners may have poor typing skills, rushed deadlines, unclear focus or some have the mistaken notion that the E-librarian is a search engine and not a real person.

As E-librarians, we aim to respond rather than to answer questions completely. There is a fine line between guiding and actually doing the research so we need to be able to act as catalysts. As analogies go, we metaphorically aim to provide the keys, routes and a map for the research journey. It is up to the questioner to choose a path in the first steps toward information literacy.

Information literacy is defined as ‘knowing when and why you need information, where to find it, and how to evaluate, use and communicate it in an ethical manner’ (CILIP, 2004). Ideally, information seekers should be passing through a series of stages in research.

Independent learning and information literacy cycle

  1. planning*
  2. researching (searching & locating)*
  3. selecting
  4. recording
  5. analysing
  6. synthesising (creative/practical output)
  7. evaluating
  8. drafting
  9. presenting (Jones 2005)

Practically, the E-librarian aims to help with the first two steps above or the first three stages in the SCONUL model below. In the SCONUL model, step one is usually straightforward: a question is asked. During steps two and three, however, searchers can easily lose their way.

SCONUL Seven Pillars Model for Information Literacy

1. Recognise information need*

2. Distinguish ways of addressing gap*

3. Construct strategies for locating*

4. Locate and access

5. Compare and evaluate

6. Organise, apply and communicate

7. Synthesise and create

(Society of College, National and University Libraries 2007)

In fact, starting the information literacy journey with research online can have distinct advantages for the information seeker. Emails are quick and can be sent at any time and place. For hesitant questioners, sending an email can be less traumatic than asking face to face. On the negative side, lack of personal contact can be a disadvantage. In the real world, questioners do not always write clear, concise questions and relevant details can be absent or misunderstood. In addition, on both sides of the question-asking, body language can not be read and helpful nuances can be lost.

What is lacking online is the standard reference interview with a real librarian. Sarah Hinton describes this as interview asfollows:

‘… type of detective work can be tricky and is often a step-by step process, so you may well go back to the user with further questions several times. Getting to the point where you feel satisfied that you have as much information about a search as can be provided sometimes takes a fair amount of determination. Most searches require you to ask questions of the enquirers to find out if what they say they are looking for is the same as what is really required’ (2007: 76-77).

Question asking and answering, whether online or off, can be difficult as there is frequently a great deal of difference between what the questioner thinks he is asking and what he is actually asking. A question like: ‘Can you help me find out more about special needs?’ as a face to face reference inquiry can become quite a ping pong rally. It might take a number of volleys to go from general to specific and to heart of the question:

Enquirer: I’d like to find out more about special needs.

Librarian: Special needs is a big topic. Are you interested in a special learning disability? Autism? Dyslexia? Dyspraxia?

E: Dyslexia is what I’m really interested in.

L: And what specifically do you want to find? How dyslexia affects adults? Children? Are you looking for a certain age level?

E: Mainly children and primary children. I’d like to know what aids there are to help primary children with dyslexia.

L: Do you have specific subject in mind like literacy?

E: Yes, literacy, especially reading.

L: Where have you looked and have you found anything useful?

E: I looked on our library catalogue but I only searched for special needs. I’d really like some current journal articles or research.

L: OK, now you have a slimmer focus, try searching with combinations of terms like dyslexia, primary, literacy including reading and teaching aids. For journals, try….

An exchange like above might take sixty seconds while a similar asynchronous email exchange could be spread across hours and even days. For this reason, rallying back and forth for more information is not a viable option for many E-librarian questions as it only slows down the process without adding value. When we have requested more information via email, we have rarely received all the information required even with a second and third email. Eventually either questioner or E-librarian loses track or patience.

‘To be able to ask a question clearly is two-thirds of the way

to getting it answered.’ (John Ruskin)

A good question means the questioner has already taken the first steps of information literacy. A well-rounded question packs in lots of relevant details and shows that the questioner has started to think, plan and probe. As an E-librarian guide in this research journey, I will not be able to reach the end destination, but I can try to signpost helpful sources along the way.

Although some research and instruction is essential in E-librarian responses, we take pains to be neutral and try to restrain ourselves from making evaluations about research although we do evaluate appropriate sources. Our basic aim is to give the questioner a choice of educational sources, to provide a brief introduction to these sources and to suggest a search strategy. What the questioners do or don’tdo with this informationwill comprise their research. After fielding over 1000 E-librarian questions, we have clear guidelines about what we would like to see in questions and in E-librarian responses.

Asking and answering E-librarian questions

Do ask precise, clear and descriptive questions. When asking an E-librarian question, one or two words are not enough and 200 words are far too many. In fact, a frank, fine-tuned question is better than polite vagueness. Some details are helpful. For example, we’d like to know if a student is working on a MA dissertation as it helps us to choose appropriate sources. However, a 250 word question full of unfocused lists is time-consuming to read and often impossible to respond to quickly. In the E-librarian response, we try to avoid long, disjointed lists. Instead, we organise a sampling of references under main search sources with an introduction that sets out the search path and search terms. We hope a few tips will rub off on the user in his/her next research assignment.

Do some preliminary research before submitting a question online. The E-librarian should not be the first port-of-call in research. One serial questioner was found to have asked the same question on other online sites instead of searching for herself. In this instance, while I delivered a response, I noted that posting a question to a number of online facilities was resourceful, but not actually a vital research technique. In the E-librarian response, we suggest a finer focus before we can carry out a search although we always try to give options. Sometimes, the questioner requires some direction, and with a little tweaking, a weak question can turn into a strong one.

Dospell, punctuate, and correctly. Sentences do not need to be long, but they should be complete. We realise that the E-librarian question box is small, some users are poor typists and many are harried. Even so, a question is much easier to understand when it is written in Standard English and looks as if it has been pondered. In the E-librarian response, we proofread questions within time constraints, but we would rather spend the time searching for sources instead of trying to decipher the question.

Do be truthful. Groveling and exaggeration are a waste of words. One questioner swore that she would fail the course if she didn’t get a quick response. Others claim they have searched ‘everywhere’ yet neglect to define where ‘everywhere’ is. In the E-librarian response, we attempt to be honest and own up when there is little information to be found in the time we have. We also repeatedly remind questioners that we can only skim the surface; we leave it to the researcher to dive in.

Do be courteous. We always appreciate a “Please” and “Thanks” and although we’ve never had an outright rude question, some questions come across as curt, lazy or even cheeky. In the E-librarian response, we respond to all questions although not all E-librarian questions are published. A thoughtful and courteous question makes us feel the service is valued and the user is keen. Admittedly, we sometimes grumble to ourselves offline if a question is incomplete. Online, we try to be polite.