This post is part of a series, describing the assessments used to develop the Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL).
At the end of the program we checked in with the Scholars via a questionnaire, to learn at what point they were in completing their research projects. We asked if they had begun any other new research, as well as anything else research-related in the past year. In an open-text response, we asked the Scholars what surprised them most about their IRDL year, if they experienced unexpected advantages or disadvantages from their participation in the program, and if they had any specific changes to suggest to us about the pre-summer-workshop activities, the workshop itself, or support structures after the workshop.
Regardless of what stage of completion of their project the Scholars were in, overall they were surprised to feel so motivated and “well-equipped” to complete their projects. They commented throughout the open-ended text responses about the necessity of the ongoing peer support and mentor support.
In response to the question about what they were most surprised about, one Scholar commented, “I’m surprised at how confident I feel. Not that I feel over confident, but I don’t feel scared or hesitant to give something new a try with regards to research.” Another noted, that, “I did not anticipate the critical importance and wonderful opportunities to develop a valuable research network, which have been amazing.”
Linked here is the version of the survey in use from 2022-2024.
My reflection on the use of this tool for assessing the program
The results of this anonymous survey were affirming for many reasons. A main goal of the program was to increase the number of librarians publishing quality research, so it was good to see that within a year the Scholars had completed many of the pieces of their research project, with some even having published their results. Their responses demonstrate that the program model is working as intended, to give them the tools and support needed to succeed in conducting novel research.
The cost of this assessment tool
Because LMU has an institutional subscription to Qualtrics, no grant funds needed to be used for the assessment.
Introduction post, Confidence scale, Research networks of the Scholars, External review, Post-workshop survey, Pre-/post-workshop research proposal evaluation, Mid-point check-in survey
