Davidson-Reaffirmation of Accreditation

Compliance
Certification
Core Requirements
2.1 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 2.7.1 | 2.7.2 | 2.7.3 | 2.7.4 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 2.10 | 2.11

Quality Enhancement Plan
2.12

Comprehensive Standards
3.1.1 (Mission)

3.2.1 | 3.2.2 | 3.2.3 | 3.2.4 | 3.2.5 | 3.2.6 | 3.2.7 | 3.2.8 | 3.2.9 | 3.2.10 | 3.2.11 | 3.2.12 | 3.2.13 | 3.2.14 (Admin.)

3.3.1 (Effectiveness)

3.4.1 | 3.4.2 | 3.4.3 | 3.4.4 | 3.4.5 | 3.4.6 | 3.4.7 | 3.4.8 | 3.4.9 | 3.4.10 | 3.4.11 | 3.4.12 | 3.4.13 | 3.4.14 (Educational Program)

3.5.1 | 3.5.2 (Undergraduate Program)

3.7.1 | 3.7.2 | 3.7.3 | 3.7.4 | 3.7.5 (Faculty)

3.8.1 | 3.8.2 | 3.8.3 (Library)

3.9.1 | 3.9.2 | 3.9.3 (Students)

3.10.1 | 3.10.2 | 3.10.3 | 3.10.4 | 3.10.5 | 3.10.6 | 3.10.7 (Resources)

Federal Requirements
4.1 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.8

>Signature Page
>Summary Report
>Report Abstract

Link to Quality
Enhancement
Plan (PDF)

References & Resources

Home

Davidson > Administration > Home

<Previous

Next>

Compliance Certification Report

Comprehensive Standard 3.8.2 - Instruction in use of library and other information resources

The institution ensures that users have access to regular and timely instruction in the use of the library and other learning/information resources.

Judgment of Compliance

Davidson College is in compliance with Comprehensive Standard 3.8.2.

Rationale for Judgment of Compliance

Library instruction is an integral part of the Library’s services and has grown over recent years. A $250,000 electronic classroom was added three years ago which contains 21 terminals and electronic controls that allow for very sophisticated pedagogical exercises. A Library Instruction Librarian coordinates the class offerings by the four Public Services librarians and several other librarians participate at various times during the year. The Music Librarian coordinates these classes in the music library with the music faculty. Over 100 classes a year are conducted with a total of over 2,000 students attending (some, of course, attend more than one subject class). Each class is tailored for the focus of the individual class and a research guide is provided on-line on the Library’s Web site. Follow-up sessions with faculty members are used to determine effectiveness of these sessions and refinements are made based on these evaluations for future classes. Individual research consultations are offered and many of the librarians participate in these. They are scheduled via the Library’s Web page and can last from 30-60 minutes. Also, Davidson 101, a multifaceted orientation course that all freshmen must complete in the fall term, has a 90-minute library introduction section. Nearly all of the librarians participate in this program. This is a low-key but carefully constructed presentation to introduce first-year students to the arrangement of information resources in the library—print, non-print, on-line—how to select the most appropriate one, and how to evaluate the legitimacy of each. Literally in the first three weeks of the fall term, all but a handful of the approximately 460 first-year students participate in this presentation. Feedback obtained from the first-year students themselves after each session and from faculty during the year is used each year to evaluate and improve the teaching methods of the course. The usage statistics for these programs can be found here.

Reference services are offered 71.5 hours a week. This schedule is selected from among the 106 hours a week the Library is open, and it is based on traffic/use patterns of the building which are monitored by daily door counts electronically and by hourly reference statistics that indicate times of use. Use patterns by students and faculty determine each term when this service is offered. The reference desk is maintained by a professional librarian during those 71.5 hours a week. The music librarian maintains reference services most day hours and one evening a week in the Music Library. One of the librarians has office hours in the science building two afternoons a week. The success of both of these locations has been shown by the inclusion of these librarians by the faculty in their scheduled teaching syllabi and the increased dependence by students in these departments for this on-location service. The College archives is open every day and one evening a week, with reference service offered by the librarian in charge of that department. Upon request by faculty members, classes are offered for students in various academic departments using the resources of the archives. Usage Statistics for the Reference services can be found here.

Feedback from the various campus constituents comes in various ways during the year. First-year students give immediate feedback from their experience with Davidson 101. Students attending library instruction classes and their professor give immediate feedback from those sessions. This information is shared among the teaching librarians and used to adjust, when appropriate, the course outline and method of presentation. All faculty are invited at the end of each academic year—including a special appeal to first-year faculty—to offer any comments or suggestions about Library services and resources. This invitation is sent to the faculty listserv and replies go to the Director. Librarians respond to all, and the librarians discuss and consider service suggestions made by the faculty. At times there has been an on-line user satisfaction survey conducted of faculty. Results of the survey are shared with the librarians and the faculty library committee. The survey was also used in preparation for an external review, conducted a few years ago.

There is an external review of the Library every seven years. The members of the most recent external review team were Dr. Raymond English, Director of Libraries at Oberlin College and a Davidson graduate, and Dr. Deanna Marcum, then-President of the Council of Library and Information Resources. Some years during Spring final exams, the library has hosted box lunches for any faculty who would come and share their experiences and suggestions regarding their Library experiences. These sessions have provided very useful feedback to the librarians as they prepare for the next year. There is an on-line suggestion box via the Library’s Web page available to all patrons. Suggestions are submitted directly to the Director, who either completes the reply or forwards it to the appropriate librarian for reply. Often these are suggestions for titles to be added to the collection, and the collection development librarian acts on those; replies by a librarian are made to all who make suggestions. Building repair suggestions are acted on by the library business manager. Each year all seniors complete a questionnaire about their Davidson experience. This year the Library had 10 questions as a part of that exercise, and those results will be available later in the academic year. The Library expects to use this vehicle to survey seniors every year and then will analyze the results to improve services and instruction methods.

Supporting Documentation

Return to Table of Contents for Compliance Certification Report