Graham, Rumi

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    Subject no-hits searches in an academic library online catalog: an exploration of two potential ameliorations
    (2004) Graham, Rumi Y.
    This paper describes a study that explored ways in which users’ subject-searching problems in a local online catalog might be reduced. On a weekly basis, the author reviewed catalog transaction logs to identify topics of subject searches retrieving no records for which appropriate information resources may actually be represented in the catalog. For topics thus identified, the author explored two potential ameliorations of the no-hits search results through the use of authority record cross-references and “pathfinder” records providing brief instructions on search refinement. This paper describes the study findings, discusses possible concerns regarding the amelioration methods used, outlines additional steps needed to determine whether the potential ameliorations make a difference to users’ searching experiences, and suggests related areas for further research.
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    Library online catalog: an exploration of two potential ameliorations
    (American Library Association, 2004-01) Graham, Rumi Y.
    This paper describes a study that explored ways in which users’ subject-searching problems in a local online catalog might be reduced. On a weekly basis, the author reviewed catalog transaction logs to identify topics of subject searches retrieving no records for which appropriate information resources may actually be represented in the catalog. For topics thus identified, the author explored two potential ameliorations of the no-hits search results through the use of authority record cross-references and "pathfinder” records providing brief instructions on search refinement. This paper describes the study findings, discusses possible concerns regard­ing the amelioration methods used, outlines additional steps needed to determine whether the potential ameliorations make a difference to users’ searching experiences, and suggests related areas for further research.
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    A multiple case study exploration of undergraduate subject searching: preliminary report
    (Canadian Library Association, 2007-08-16) Graham, Rumi Y.
    A common goal of undergraduate degree programs is to foster students’ critical and creative thinking skills within a liberal education framework, the desired result being graduates who habitually make positive contributions to society through sound independent thought and action. Academic libraries advance this endeavour through instruction, programs, services, resources, and research tools that promote the development of information literacy competencies (Association of College and Research Libraries, 2000) underpinning the ability to think critically. A multiple case study was undertaken to probe one such information literacy competency – the ability to access “needed information effectively and efficiently” – by examining undergraduates’ processes of subject searching for information in order to understand better the factors associated with successful subject searching.
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    A multiple case study exploration of undergraduate subject searching
    (Toronto, ON : University of Toronto, Faculty of Information, c2011., 2011) Graham, Rumi Y.
    Subject searching—seeking information with a subject or topic in mind—is often involved in carrying out undergraduate assignments such as term papers and research reports. It is also an important component of information literacy—the abilities and experiences of effectively finding and evaluating, and appropriately using, needed information—which universities hope to cultivate in undergraduates by the time they complete their degree programs. By exploring the subject searching of a small group of upper-level, academically successful undergraduates over a school year I sought to acquire a deeper understanding of the contexts and characteristics of their subject searching, and of the extent to which it was similar in quality to that of search and domain experts. Primary data sources for this study comprised subject searching diaries maintained by participants, and three online subject searches they demonstrated at the beginning, middle, and end of the study during which they talked aloud while I observed, followed by focused interviews. To explore the quality of study participants’ subject searching I looked for indications of advanced thinking in thoughts they spoke aloud during demonstration sessions relating to using strategy, evaluating, and creating personal understanding, which represent three of the most challenging and complex aspects of information literacy. Applying a layered interpretive process, I identified themes within several hundred instances of participants’ advanced thinking relating to these three information literacy elements, with evaluative themes occurring most often. I also noted three factors influencing the extent of similarity iii between the quality of participants’ advanced thinking and that of search and domain experts which reflected matters that tended to be i) pragmatic or principled, , ii) technical or conceptual, and iii) externally or internally focused. Filtered through these factors, participants’ instances of advanced thinking brought to mind three levels of subject searching abilities: the competent student, the search expert, and the domain expert. Although relatively few in number, I identified at least some advanced thinking evincing domain expert qualities in voiced thoughts of all but one participant, suggesting the gap between higher order thinking abilities of upper-level undergraduates and information literate individuals is not always dauntingly large.
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    Recalibrating some copyright conceptions: toward a shared and balanced approach to educational copying
    (University of Guelph, 2014) Graham, Rumi Y.
    Most of Canada’s publicly-funded educational institutions have operated since the 1990s under blanket reprographic licences. But recent Copyright Act amendments and Supreme Court decisions in several copyright cases have added legislative and judicial weight to the idea that copyright encompasses both private owners’ rights and public users’ rights in the form of infringement exceptions such as fair dealing. Many educational institutions have responded to these changes by moving toward greater reliance on statutory users’ rights and direct licensing with copyright owners, and by moving away from blanket collective licensing. Not unexpectedly, copyright owners and the societies and collectives that represent them see the changes in copyright law in a different light. Copyright owners’ and educators’ variant conceptions of the kinds of educational copying that are compensable pose a challenging policy problem in need of a principled solution that upholds the legislative underpinnings of copyright law and is perceived to be fair. This article attempts to frame a balanced understanding of underlying issues by considering the nature and purpose of copyright, the purpose of copyright collectives, what is meant by fair dealing, and, ultimately, how we should think about copyright. It suggests that meaningful change may not be achievable without concerted attention paid to the language we use to think and talk about copyright in order to construct a combat-free shared space in which learning, inquiry, and the production of creative works are fostered and, when appropriate, rewarded fairly.
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    Copyright practices and approaches at Canadian universities: a preliminary update
    (2015) Graham, Rumi Y.
    Much has changed in the copyright sphere since a 2008 survey found that Canadian universities delegated responsibility for copyright in widely variant ways, and that frustration regarding a lack of guidance on how to interpret aspects of copyright legislation was common. A study is underway to update the 2008 survey.
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    An evidence-informed picture of course-related copyright
    (Association of College & Research Libraries, 2016) Graham, Rumi Y.
    Recent changes in Canadian copyright law have prompted Canada’s educational institutions to reexamine their need for a blanket copying license. Users’ rights under the amended Copyright Act now include fair dealing for purposes of education, and the Supreme Court has established that copying short excerpts for classroom use can qualify as fair dealing. This study looks at one university’s examination of copied course materials made available via library reserve, coursepacks and its learning management system, and likely sources for copyright permissions, when needed. Results suggest that fair dealing is the most important and the institution’s blanket license is the least important basis for permissions clearance over a semester’s worth of copying.
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    How information literate are they? : a SAILS study of (mostly) first-year students at the U of L
    (University of Lethbridge, Teaching Centre, 2016) Cowan, Sandra A.; Graham, Rumi Y.; Eva, Nicole
    [No abstract available]
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    Copyright practices and approaches at Canadian universities
    (2016) Graham, Rumi Y.; Winter, Christina
    This session [jointly presented by R. Graham and C. Winters] describes findings of a 2015 national survey of copyright practices and approaches at Canadian universities. It takes a look at what appears to have changed in the areas of copyright education, permissions management and policy development since 2008 when a similar survey was conducted by a different research team.
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    What happened after the 2012 shift in Canadian copyright law? An updated survey on how copyright is managed across Canadian universities
    (Learning Services, University of Alberta, 2017) Graham, Rumi Y.; Winter, Christina
    Objective – The purpose of this study is to understand the practices and approaches followed by Canadian universities in copyright education, permissions clearance, and policy development in light of major changes to Canadian copyright law that occurred in mid-2012. The study also seeks to identify aspects of copyright management perceived by the universities to be challenging. Methods – In 2015, an invitation to complete an online survey on institutional copyright practices was sent to the senior administrator at member libraries of Canada’s four regional academic library consortia. The invitation requested completion of the survey by the person best suited to respond on behalf of the institution. Study methods were largely adapted from those used in a 2008 survey conducted by another researcher who targeted members of same library consortia. Results – While the university library maintained its leadership role in copyright matters across the institution, the majority of responding institutions had delegated responsibility for copyright to a position or office explicitly labeled copyright. In contrast, respondents to the 2008 survey most often held the position of senior library administrator. Blanket licensing was an accepted approach to managing copyright across Canadian universities in 2008, but by 2015 it had become a live issue, with roughly half of the respondents indicating their institutions had terminated or were planning to terminate their blanket license. Conclusion – In just seven years we have witnessed a significant increase in specialized attention paid to copyright on Canadian university campuses and in the breadth of resources dedicated to helping the university community understand, comply with, and exercise various provisions under Canadian copyright law, which include rights for creators and users.
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    Walking the textbook tightrope: how might copyright specialists help?
    (University of Lethbridge, 2018) Graham, Rumi Y.
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    "Let's start a journal!": the multidisciplinary graduate student journal as educational opportunity
    (Michigan Publishing, 2018) Esau, Paul; Viejou, Carey; Chow, Sylvia S. T.; Dohms, Kimberly M.; Firth, Steven J.; McKinnon, Jarret; Morrison, Dorothea; Parsons, Reed; Rieger, Courtney; Spiric, Vanja; Toth, Elaine; Ueland, Kayla; Graham, Rumi Y.; O'Donnell, Daniel Paul
    The University of Lethbridge is a medium-sized, primarily undergraduate, comprehensive research university on the Canadian Prairies in Alberta. It has a small but growing graduate school, within which most students are studying at the masters level. For many years, the graduate student elected representative body, the Graduate Students Association (GSA), has sponsored an annual refereed conference, Meeting of the Minds. In 2015 the GSA decided to supplement this conference with an accompanying journal, also called Meeting of the Minds. This article discusses the lessons learned in establishing this journal and overseeing its first two years of operations (and first year of publication). The article concentrates on two sets of problems: 1) philosophical, economic, and sociological issues that arose at the conceptual level while establishing a multidisciplinary, institution-focused graduate journal; and 2) technical, bibliographic, organizational, and economic issues encountered in attempting to address these conceptual concerns and ensure the long-term viability of the research accepted and published. Although the journal was not able to solve all the problems that arose during the first two years of operation, several solutions on the organizational, technological, economic, and bibliographic levels were developed that might be used by others establishing similar scholar- or student-led journals.
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    SAILS, take 2: an exploration of the "Build your own test" standardized IL testing option for Canadian institutions
    (Communications in Information Literacy, 2018) Graham, Rumi Y.; Eva, Nicole; Cowan, Sandra A.
    Several standardized and validated information literacy (IL) tests have been developed for use in U.S. post-secondary contexts, but fewer choices exist for schools outside of the U.S. In an earlier study (Cowan, Graham, & Eva, 2016) the authors explored IL testing at a Canadian university using the international version of the SAILS Cohort test. This article describes a second study that used the Build Your Own Test (BYOT)—a customizable version of the SAILS Individual Scores test—to evaluate undergraduate students’ IL learning. Pros and cons of using the Cohort and BYOT versions of SAILS are discussed, with the aim of providing guidance for other schools interested in pursuing such testing. The authors found the BYOT allowed them to better gauge the extent to which individual students’ IL ability levels changed over the course of one term.
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    Zombie journals: designing a technological infrastructure for a precarious graduate student journal
    (Simon Fraser University, 2018) O'Donnell, Daniel Paul; Viejou, Carey; Chow, Sylvia S. T.; Graham, Rumi Y.; McKinnon, Jarret; Morrison, Dorothea; Parsons, Reed; Rieger, Courtney; Spiric, Vanja; Toth, Elaine; Dohms, Kimberly M.; Esau, Paul; Firth, Steven J.; Ueland, Kayla
    Background: The Meeting of the Minds graduate student journal is edited primarily by students from our Masters programme. This means that our editorial board is subject to high annual turnover and that our technological infrastructure and workflow needed to be easy to train for, accommodate differing levels of technological skill and editorial interest, and provide archiving that did not require a continuing interest in the journal by future generations of students. Analysis: This article provides a detailed and comparative account of the "off-the-shelf" systems and software used in developing the journal with an explanation of the rationale behind our choices. Conclusion and implications: The choices we made can be adopted by other journals interested in a low-cost, "future-proof" approach to developing a publishing infrastructure.
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    OA policies & traditional publishing agreements: status of non-exclusive licenses in Canadian copyright law?
    (2019) Graham, Rumi Y.; Bell, Allan; Lapierre, Dominique; Swartz, Mark
    To ease the problem of paywall-blocked access to scholarly articles arising from publicly funded research, some universities have adopted a rights-retention OA policy. In this type of policy, faculty grant to the university a blanket non-exclusive license to make the accepted manuscript version of their scholarly articles publicly available in the university's research repository. But what happens if a university adopts an OA policy and faculty subsequently continue to sign publishers' standard publishing agreements that typically require an author to either transfer all copyrights or provide an exclusive license to the publisher? This presentation outlines a project that explores this question within Canadian copyright law.
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    "Social justice in scholarly publishing: Open access is the only way"
    (University of Lethbridge, 2019) Cardozo, Paula; Craig, Romany; Graham, Rumi Y.; Scott, David R.
    The title of this presentation is borrowed from the title of a 2017 article in The American Journal of Bioethics, which opens with the incontrovertible observation, “we live in an unequal world.” The arenas in which inequality plays out are many and varied, but one of them happens to be our intellectual heartland of scholarly publishing. If social justice is an end we believe in, then open access is a means by which we, as researchers and teachers, can meaningfully move the dial toward equality. In this talk, we sketch some ideas that show how we can do that together, and why we should try.