Putting research into practice: Mobile technologies in
libraries Jo Alcock and Annmarie Lee Birmingham City University
CILIP Umbrella Conference 3rd July 2013
Research • Jisc-funded m-library community support
project Practice • Birmingham City University Library and
Learning Resources Conclusions • Implications for researchers and
practitioners
Overview
Mobile technologies in libraries
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kennedylibrary/6176216315
Jisc m-library programme
"to help support and engage the emerging
m-library community by reviewing and synthesising existing research and evidence-based guidance"
Evidence Base & Owen Stephens Consulting November 2011 - September 2012
http://mlibraries.jiscinvolve.org/wp/
M-library community support project
Evidence gathering
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vees/999594439
Community building
http://www.flickr.com/photos/omegaman/194705584
Pathways to best practice
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hockadilly/5744624394
• A student population of 25,000 • About a third of our students study part-
time • Six academic faculties offering over 350
courses • Eight campus libraries • Increase in users learning from a
distance
BCU Library and Learning Resources
Mobile at BCU - outreach
Since August 2011, 78,825 Library SMS messages have been sent.
Mobile at BCU - SMS
Mobile at BCU - QR codes
• Representatives from different campuses and parts of library, plus a CICT colleague
• Meet on a monthly basis • Bring ideas together and work on small
scale investigative projects • Organic process to enable new
opportunities
Mobile technologies working group
• Library functionality in mobile app • Mobile treasure hunt for inductions • Supporting learning and teaching (e.g.
augmented reality) • Recommended apps for outreach • Mobile access to resources • Google Maps for location-based
orientation
Working group projects
Mobile at BCU - iBCU
Research informing practice
Research informing practice
Research informing practice
http://www.libsuccess.org
• Ensure research is informed by practice o Need to be aware of pain points
• Ensure information is accessible to practitioners o Improve awareness by sharing at
practitioner events o Produce short easy-to-use guides
Implications for researchers
• Look for research to inform practice o Starting a new project? Has it been done
before? Has someone published lessons learned and tips for best practice?
• Remain aware of current research o Follow research blogs and tweets
• Help provide information to inform research o Contribute to research surveys
Implications for practitioners
• Both sides can learn from each other o Two way process - practice informed by
research, research informed by practice • Help improve practice and research
Benefits of collaboration
Jo Alcock @joeyanne
Annmarie Lee @annmarielee66
Thank you for listening