LIBRARY PROCESS - Research Paper Example

Describe the “best practices” you follow when conducting research in a bricks-and-mortar library Brick-and-mortar library is a central place in a campus where a student can go for books, magazines, newspapers, journals and any other published materials (Zemliansky, 2008). For effective access of materials, various considerations have to be put in place as best practices. This practices range from the reference desk to the shelves where one gets the materials. Starting from the reference desk helps one to avoid wasting time while wandering around the library since the reference librarians directs one to where the materials could be found on the shelves.

A researcher should always start from the reference desk before starting researching on his topic. At the reference desk, the researcher should describe their research interests to the reference librarian based on the research questions a researcher had formulated as a guide in the project. A good researcher is always composed and sure of what they want to research on. This gives a reference librarian confidence to direct the person on the relevant steps and sources. The reference librarian will then direct the researcher to the library catalog where a researcher gathers several relevant materials on the research topic.

With all that, the researcher now explores all the available materials that will assist in gathering relevant information on the research topic (Zemliansky, 2008). The exploration starts from browsing through the materials to see whether they contain information worth investigating on. Having gotten the materials, it is also part of best practice to ensure that the materials remain in good condition since another person may need them on a later date.In your opinion, what are the advantages and disadvantages of conducting research in a brick-and-mortar library rather than online?

Explain your answer.Advantages of conducting research in brick-and-mortar library are:Opportunity for consultation: When using brick-and-mortar library, a researcher is in a position to get first hand assistance on their research topic from experienced and trained reference librarians as compare to online research where one relies on the information gotten first (Peters, 2010).Concentration of so many resources in one place makes it easier to access several materials at a go (Coyle & Law, 2009).

Looking for materials in a brick-and-mortar library is much easier than going online especially for IT incompetent users (Schultz, 2009). Disadvantages of conducting research in brick-and-mortar library are:A researcher could be tempted to take the reference librarian’s direction as final without giving it further thoughts on exploration. This is risky since it might end up changing the researcher’s original idea of the project.A brick-and-mortar library only handles a given number of resources while compared to the online library that has a capacity of millions of resources at a time (Schultz, 2009).

Not all brick-and-mortar libraries have the latest materials. This makes researchers in the brick-and-mortar library work with post dated sources that at times are not reliable due irrelevance.It is time-consuming research in a brick-and-mortar library as compared to online research where one gets materials faster on a click of a button.They are inconveniencing especially when a given source is not available in the library. Usually it takes a lot of time for an interlibrary loan since protocols and procedures have to be followed before the material is availed to the researcher.

ReferencesCoyle, W., & Law, J. (2009). Research Papers: Learning Research Resources and Procedures (15th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.Peters, T. (2010). Brick and Mortar. ALA TechSource. Retrieved from: http://www.alatechsource.org/blog/2010/05/bricks-and-mortar.html.Schultz, A. (2009). Digitalization and the Library: The End of Libraries as Physical Place? Redoable Lite Dean J Robinson. Retrieved from: http://waynebloggers1.wordpress.com/tag/bricks-and-mortar-library/.Zemliansky, P. (2008). Finding and Evaluating Research Sources.

Methods of Discovery: A Guide to Research Writing. Retrieved from: http://methodsofdiscovery.net/?q=node/23.