Present: Maureen McCormack, Doug Morton, Susan Moskal, Shabiran Rahman, Susan Routliffe (Chair), Mary Stanley, Rose Koebel (Recorder)
Regrets: Marlene Laurence, Wish Leonard, Linda Teather
Guests: Susan Bellingham, Connie Pantic, Richard Pinnell, Margaret Aquan-Yuen, Erin Murphy
The minutes of the May 15, 2001 meeting were approved with changes, which Susan R. and Rose had discussed prior to the meeting.
Susan R. outlined the purpose of the discussion, which will likely take place over two to three meetings. The purpose is to determine whether we are collecting any statistics that we don't need and whether there are ones that we are not now collecting, but should. The Committee will also need to consider issues associated with the interpretation of particular figures and what needs to be done to resolve those issues. At today's meeting the Committee identified four broad areas of activity that are considered "information services" for statistical purposes as follows:
The Committee began to fill in the following categories for activities in the first area (reference):
Susan R. will ask Cheryl to compile charts for the above information. Issues raised include providing instruction on the use of equipment e.g. networked printer; even though it is not considered an information service, it should be counted because of staffing implications. "Consultation" needs to be defined and we need to encourage librarians to record this activity consistently. Recording time spent responding to individual questions was discussed. Doug reported that the responses to his listserv query indicated that those libraries attempting to record time spent typically do so in into blocks of time (0-5 minutes, etc.). Responses to Maureen's query seemed to show that it is difficult to define the average length of time it takes to answer a reference question.
The next meeting on statistics will be on June 12, 2:30 pm, Porter 428.
The Committee reviewed Linda's notes of ISMC's meeting with the librarians on May 11. One change was suggested: include the full name for the acronym FLIRT. Susan R. will make the modification and ask Cheryl to put the notes on the Web, along with Susan's introductory remarks and the letter sent to librarians inviting them to attend the meeting.
ISMC considered what to do next to keep the momentum going regarding information literacy. Suggestions included holding a brainstorming session on strategies on how to approach faculty, or inviting someone from TRACE to a meeting. It was agreed that there is merit in waiting until after the workshop with Jo Ann Carr (date has not yet been set), before inviting TRACE to participate in a discussion. ISR could be asked for suggestions at their next meeting as well. In the meantime, Erin will search ERIC for library literature, and will send ISMC a list via e-mail.
A volunteer recorder is needed for ISMC's next meeting on June 5 as Rose will be away. ISMC talked about the growing amount of material on its Web page, and how we might re-design it in the near future.
Next Meeting
June 5, Porter 428.