ERIC Number: ED449803
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 2001
Reference Count: N/A
Library Evaluation: A Casebook and Can-Do Guide.
Wallace, Danny P., Ed.; Van Fleet, Connie, Ed.
This book, written by a number of library professionals, familiarizes the reader with the motives for and purposes of evaluation and the major contexts and models for evaluation and provides explicit examples how evaluation projects have been and can be carried out in a variety of library contexts. The strategies in this book grew from the S:OLE (Seminar: Ohio Library Evaluation) project, recently carried out at Kent State University. Organized into six major sections, the book revolves around the 11 case studies that are introduced by overviews of broader concepts and function areas. Chapter 1 gives a summary of the need for evaluation and the process required to make evaluation an important part of library management, administration, and operation. Chapter 2 deals with evaluation in the context of organizational effectiveness, beginning with an overview of the nature of and models for understanding organizational effectiveness. The next three chapters focus in turn on the evaluation of reference materials, collections, and digital resources. The book closes with a summary of the nature of evaluation that ties into its conceptual origins and contexts. Case studies are: "Implementing Total Quality Management"; "Conducting Focus Groups"; "Gathering and Presenting Comparative Data"; "Measuring Library Services"; "Using the Wisconsin-Ohio Reference Evaluation Program"; "Assessing Reference Behaviors with Unobtrusive Testing"; "Using Qualitative Criteria To Evaluate Reference Resources"; "Identifying Library Policy Issues with List Checking"; "Conducting a Citation Analysis"; "Developing Search Engine Evaluation Criteria"; and "Creating Accessibility Guidelines for Web Page Developers." There are two appendices located at different points in the text: "Measuring Library Services 1998: A Joint Project of the State Library of Ohio and the Ohio Library Council-Reference and Other Questions" and "Evaluation Checklist." Includes 37 figures and tables throughout the text and an index. (Contains 231 references.) (AEF)
Descriptors: Case Studies, Evaluation, Evaluation Criteria, Evaluation Methods, Library Administration, Library Planning, Library Services, Program Administration, Program Development
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Publication Type: Books; Guides - Non-Classroom; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Administrators; Media Staff; Practitioners
Authoring Institution: N/A