CLIR Workshops on Participatory Design in Academic Libraries

Workshop I. Introduction to Participatory Design in Academic Libraries
Workshop II. Intermediate Workshop on Participatory Design in Academic Libraries

The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) is offering a series of workshops on participatory design in academic libraries led by Nancy Fried Foster, director of anthropological research at the University of Rochester's River Campus Libraries. This series, which replaces the faculty and undergraduate workshops previously offered by CLIR, presents many of the same topics plus considerable additional material within a completely reorganized framework. The workshops are open to all CLIR sponsors on a first-come, first-served basis, with preference given to those who have not participated in previous workshops.

The University of Rochester's River Campus Libraries are known for using a participatory process to conceptualize, design and build new technology, library facilities, and public services. Projects include the IR+Plus institutional repository platform, the eXtensible Catalog, and the Gleason Library, among many others. A popular book, Studying Students: The Undergraduate Research Project at the University of Rochester, was based on a two-year study conducted by members of the Libraries' staff. The Libraries also host the AnthroLib listserv and manage the AnthroLib group bibliography on Zotero to provide resources and a community to those interested in learning about and conducting user-centered projects in libraries and higher education.

The workshops are designed to provide participants with an overview of the participatory design process and familiarity with some of the key methods for including faculty members, graduate students, undergraduates, and library staff in the design process. They feature extensive interaction among workshop participants and between participants and research subjects. Participants will gain an overall understanding of the design process in either workshop, from information gathering and analysis through interpretation and concept development. The workshops focus on the front end of the process leading up to the creation of a requirements document and do not cover usability testing or other stages in the actual development and roll-out process. During the workshops, participants will become familiar with interviewing, observation, and design workshop methods through hands-on practice. They will also spend time planning how they could implement a participatory design process at their home institutions.

It is recommended that institutions send participants in teams of two. Both workshops require one to two hours of advance preparation. The workshops provide ample time for participants to share information and learn about each other's work through formal activities and informal conversations.

Note: These workshops are designed to provide exposure and practice rather than full preparation for doing this kind of work or for training others to do it. Participants with prior research experience or an educational background in social science have gone on to conduct their own participatory design projects, often with support from Dr. Foster or from local experts. Participants without this background have learned what is involved in projects of this kind and have gone on to identify resources that would allow them to develop a participatory design project; some have applied the methods on a limited scale to learn more generally about their students and faculty members.

Workshop I. Introduction to Participatory Design in Academic Libraries gives an overview of the participatory design process and introduces the interviewing and design workshop methods through hands-on activities with faculty members and graduate students. In addition to conducting a design workshop, participants co-view and analyze an interview video, conduct an interview on their own, and work in small teams to recognize and address "Interview Dos and Don'ts." Planning activities round out both days of this workshop.

Workshop II. Intermediate Workshop on Participatory Design in Academic Libraries builds on Part I, reviewing the overall participatory design process and introducing three new methods: observation, photo elicitation, and "retrospective" interviews. Working with graduate and/or undergraduate students, participants engage in hands-on data collection, reflection, and planning activities, including "Asking the Right Questions," a process of conceptualizing information needs and selecting appropriate methods. This workshop ends with a large-scale planning activity for conducting participatory design at the home institution.

How to Register

For information or to sign up, contact Alice Bishop, abishop@clir.org. Acceptance is on a first-come, first-served basis with a preference given to sponsors.