[Publib] Counting Reference Questions

[Deborah Shepherd]

We have a cadre of part-time staff we call "Computer Assistants", always
on the ready to help patrons with "how to" questions on the (over 150)
computers we make available for patrons. They are all knowledgeable
about Internet and MS Office. Many are LIS students -- it gives them a
chance to work in a library environment and interact with patrons. They
are trained to refer the patrons to the reference librarians when their
questions move to more "traditional" reference. Not always an easy call,
BTW.
 
 
 
 
Deborah Shepherd
Southfield, Michigan
 
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's
too dark to read." Groucho Marx


>>> "Christopher F. Bowen" <cbowen at downersgrovelibrary.org> Thursday,
May 15, 2008 1:39 PM >>>

Since Publib is considering counting computer reference questions, I
thought I would share the experience of the Downers Grove Public
Library.
 
We have 40 full-service computers available to the public in our
library. They can be used to access our online databases and library
selected websites, the online catalog, Microsoft Office and similar
applications, and for general Internet surfing. Ideally we hope to be
assisting patrons using computers for their information needs, so most
of the pubic computers are located near the non-fiction and readers
advisory service desks, rather than in a dedicated computer room. This
means that staff are asked the whole variety of questions mentioned in
the original query, as well as “traditional” reference and reader’s
advisory questions. By traditional reference questions, we mean finding
a specific piece of fact or statistic, information on a particular
subject, or reader’s advisory recommendations, answered by any means –
print or electronic. We consider teaching a patron how to search an
online database a traditional reference question, just as searching a
print resource would be. 
 
We have been considering how the increasing use of library computers
for “non-traditional” reference purposes had impacted the work of the
library staff. The number of questions we answer has been pretty
constant over the last few years, but our impression was that a lot more
of those questions were practical how-to use a computer or how-to use
the Internet, rather than assistance in finding information.  We did a
week-long job study last fall and found that, in fact, 14% of adult
reference and readers advisory staff interactions with the public are
nitty-gritty how-to use computers or how-to use the Internet type
questions.
 
Since patron usage of computers continues to increase, I suspect that a
growing portion of library staff’s jobs will be facilitating patrons’
computer usage. This does raise interesting questions about library
public service staffing. Our approach will be to consider the needed
computer skills in our requirements for hiring and training professional
librarians. I am aware of some public libraries in my area that are
moving toward reducing the number of librarians and replacing them with
technical staff. I am curious about how other publibers are dealing with
this change in library work. 
 
Christopher Bowen
Library Director
Downers Grove Public Library
 
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