Research & Digital Initiatives

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/1807/74746

This collection assembles scholarly works authored by U of T Scarborough librarians and reaffirms the Library’s commitment to knowledge mobilization, open access and preservation, consistent with its core values.

The U of T Scarborough Library can partner on research, publication, events, classroom instruction, and special exhibits.

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Now showing 1 - 20 of 43

Open Access
Round Two, What’s New? Comparing Two Phases of UX Research at the University of Toronto Scarborough Library
(2019-05-07) Guay, Sarah; Reynolds, Sue
User testing is a valuable method for measuring user habits and expectations, as well as identifying problematic areas for improvement within a website. In this poster, we compare two phases of user experience research carried out on the University of Toronto Scarborough Library website using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative research methods. In particular, we discuss methods used for task-oriented usability testing and card sorting procedures using pages from our website. Widely applicable results from this study include key findings and lessons learned in order to improve library websites.
Open Access
Understanding User Habits for the Improvement of Library Websites: A Usability Case Study at the University of Toronto Scarborough
(2017-05-24) Guay, Sarah; Rudin, Lola
With the rise of virtual library users and a steady increase in digital content, it is imperative that libraries build websites which provide seamless access to key resources and services. Usability testing is a valuable method for measuring user habits and expectations, as well as identifying problematic areas for improvement within a website. In this presentation, we provide an overview of user experience research carried out on the University of Toronto Scarborough Library website using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative research methods and detail insights gained from subsequent data analysis. In particular, we discuss methods used for task-oriented usability testing and card sorting procedures using pages from the library website. Takeaways from this presentation include key findings and lessons learned, as well as application strategies within other organizational contexts.
Open Access
Beyond the Classroom: Creating eLearning Objects for the Advancement of Information Literacy Instruction
(2017-08) Guay, Sarah; Fedko, Sarah
In the midst of rapid technological change and modern information overload, information literacy has become a critical skillset for the 21st century citizen. Information literacy helps students build a foundation for lifelong learning by equipping them with skills needed to seek, evaluate, and utilize information effectively. Therefore, supporting information literacy across the curriculum has become a key priority within academic libraries. However, librarians face numerous challenges surrounding information literacy instruction, particularly with regards to time, resources, and student/faculty receptivity. In light of these factors, eLearning interventions are gaining popularity as an effective method for information literacy instruction both within and outside of the classroom. In this paper, we highlight two sample eLearning objects created for teaching undergraduate psychology students at the University of Toronto Scarborough how to search the PsycINFO database: Guide-on-the-Side tutorials and screencasts. Best practices will be discussed, as well as takeaway application strategies for other organizational contexts.
Open Access
First time supervising: A culturally responsive approach to supporting the next generation of BIPOC librarians
(Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Conference, 2023) Shujah, Sarah; Torres, Stefanie
As a person of colour (POC) librarian supervising for the first-time, I wanted to be in strengthening the community of future academic librarians from the hiring process to the final evaluation. I hired a library information sciences graduate student on a 4-month contract for an IL curriculum mapping project. We utilized the first month to articulate their learning goals and competencies, along with a detailed project plan that included professional practice, skill development, and equity diversity and inclusion. This helped to form a cross-racial relationship where the student shared their values in librarianship that included the goal of Hispanic people feeling like they had a place in the library, and in the library profession. If interested in becoming a supervisor, come to the session to discover strategies and activities to incorporate into your work plan that will help you to acknowledge the lived experience of future BIPOC librarians. Learning Outcomes - Identify reflective exercises for your 1:1 meetings to acknowledge the experience of LIS graduate students and be more aware of how you can support them as a new supervisor. - List strategies and activities for your LIS graduate student to engage in so to foster a cross-racial supervisory relationship and improve your ability to forge the future of new librarians. - Describe a template for developing the LIS graduate student’s learning goals and competencies that incorporates a meaningful project relating to their values as a BIPOC Librarian.
Open Access
Going Virtual: Pivoting to Remote Moderated Usability Testing During the COVID-19 Pandemic
(2022-10-14) Guay, Sarah; O'Brien, Elizabeth; Sgro, Adriana
Usability testing is a valuable tool to identify pain points and make improvements to web spaces. But what happens when the established approach gets disrupted by a pandemic? This session explores the methods and experiences of three academic library staff members’ foray into the world of remote website usability testing.
Open Access
Embracing my Curiosity through a SoTL Project
(Workshop for Instruction in Library Use (WILU), 2024) Shujah, Sarah
Is mind mapping an effective tool for developing a research question? I was curious to know, so I embraced the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) to prompt a research project. Using Research as Inquiry (ACRL IL Frame) as a learning outcome, I engage students in mind mapping to explore a topic and articulate questions of inquiry, and identify keywords to find scholarly information. I will share how I started on a SoTL journey including the development of my research question, methods, data, support, next steps, and why you too can embrace your curiosity of your teaching through SoTL.
Open Access
Contested Spaces: A Critical History of Canadian Public Libraries as Neutral Places
(2023-02-03) Kemble, Whitney
This presentation discusses a project that examines the history of controversial (mostly third-party) events at Canadian public libraries. In this work I ask what third-party event bookings at public libraries in Canada have created controversies and prompted protests. What were the issues at stake? What kinds of outcry or protest occurred? Did politicians get involved? Did the events happen, or did they get cancelled, and why? What kinds of impacts or outcomes resulted? I take an historical approach to explore occurrences of public outcry over primarily third-party booked events and examine the material, real-world impacts of neutrality policies in Canadian public library space use. I bring this Canadian historical context into the ongoing conversations that are critiquing the concept of neutrality in libraries, and I look at how critical race, feminist, and queer theories can inform library policies and practices that foster community, inclusivity, care, safety, and social justice. I see this work as part of bigger discussions in critical librarianship about neutrality, social justice, equity, diversity, accessibility, feminist ethic of care, workplace safety, and more. Through this historical examination I find that concerns about discrimination and hate were at the root of most public protests around controversial events, and that public library commitments to neutrality in protecting intellectual freedom and freedom of expression were determined to outweigh those community concerns in most cases. In this presentation, thus, I will discuss an ongoing conflict between different library values and a de facto hierarchy of those values that most commonly situates intellectual freedom at the top. My analysis also considers relevant librarian perspectives and critical theories to interrogate the myth of library neutrality, and identify positive and productive ways for libraries to engage with and serve their communities that honour library values and work toward social justice.
Open Access
Book Review: Transverse Disciplines: Queer-Feminist, Anti-racist, and Decolonial Approaches to the University, edited by Simone Pfleger and Carrie Smith
(Canadian Journal of Academic Librarianship, 2024-12-04) Slattery, Nicole
Open Access
From Framework to Integrative Praxis: Pedagogy of Care, Culturally Sustaining Teaching, and Neuroinclusion in Library Learning
(2025-04-08) Slattery, Nicole
Drawing from principles of trauma-informed teaching, anti-oppressive practice, and critical librarianship, this work presents strategies and reflections for creating welcoming and transformative learning environments that prioritize relationality and reflection. This poster demonstrates an approach to academic librarianship praxis that integrates neuroinclusion, culturally sustaining pedagogy, and a pedagogy of care, offering a holistic and justice-oriented framework. The poster explores how these values and strategies can be meaningfully applied across different modes of library engagement, including instruction sessions, asynchronous learning support, and one-on-one consultation meetings. Central to this approach is recognizing the library classroom as a space where students bring their full selves, including their lived experiences, identities, and emotions. Strategies include validating the emotional aspects of the research process, acknowledging that uncertainty and frustration are natural components of learning. Modeling vulnerability in instruction—such as sharing personal experiences with research challenges—humanizes educators, creating a sense of trust and fostering a culture of openness. Active learning activities are intentionally designed to encourage collaboration and peer support, helping students build connections and learn from one another. Moving beyond universal design principles, this work also advocates for a radically inclusive approach that actively dismantles systemic inequities and centers the needs of marginalized students. This includes confronting cognitive ableism, rethinking traditional power dynamics, and intentionally creating spaces where all students feel seen, valued, and supported. The success of these practices requires institutional recognition of the emotional labor involved in fostering such environments. Educators must be supported with resources, professional development opportunities, and spaces for rest and reflection to sustain this critical work. By reimagining the library classroom as a site of care for both students and educators, we can create meaningful and empowering learning experiences. These spaces not only help students engage critically with information but also nurture their development as resilient, reflective, and life-long learners.
Open Access
Engagement Practices of Canadian Academic Libraries for the Advancement of Student Voices
(2025-03-11) Guay, Sarah
Student engagement is an integral part of the mission and function of academic libraries, with powerful potential to impact decision-making across various facets of governance, operations, services, and space design. Despite its importance, however, “student engagement” is a broad and highly contested term, even within the domain of libraries. While recent efforts have been made to categorize the concept of “student engagement” in this context and numerous case studies exist to highlight individual libraries’ efforts, successes, and challenges, there is a lack of existing studies involving a cohesive exploration across Canadian academic libraries. In response to this gap, this research details a national-level investigation of how academic libraries in Canada are approaching student engagement, with specific attention towards use of student voices as a feedback mechanism for decision-making. Using a combination of a national virtual survey and semi-structured interviews / focus groups with library employees, this study explores specific engagement strategies and processes used by academic libraries, as well as the perceived challenges and benefits of this work. Sample findings indicate that, while library staff are generally enthusiastic about engagement and voice-seeking work, limited time, resources, and complex organizational cultures can limit activities and alienate students. Despite challenges, participants highlighted numerous benefits, including increased proximity and relevance to students, upholding of the key mission and goals of academic libraries, enhanced quality assessment and improvement of library operations through evidence-based decision-making, and bolstered ability to pursue authentic equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility (EDIA) commitments. Feedback mechanisms, student employment, and teaching and learning interactions were the most reported strategies for engagement, though opportunities for other engagement domains remain. Implications of these findings are discussed in the broader context of library and information science and student engagement literature, followed by recommendations for academic libraries to take action via the integration of self-reflective practice, universal design, and care / justice-oriented engagement frameworks.
Open Access
Community-Centric Digital Collections: Library Strategies and Tools for Collaborative Arrangement and Stewardship
(2025-02-19) Steinburg, Bennett; Ledchumykanthan, Natkeeran; Stapelfeldt, Kirsta
The University of Toronto Scarborough serves as a vital institution in the eastern Greater Toronto Area, supporting one of Canada's most culturally diverse communities with strong global diaspora connections. Our library fosters both institutional and local community engagement by creating diverse, open, multimedia collections. We actively collaborate with community groups, faculty, and other institutions, emphasizing reciprocal learning and non-extractive, collaborative stewardship, description, and access methods. In our presentation, we will describe the library's potential role in community partnerships and outline the strategies we commonly employ for community-centric digital collections. By thoughtfully applying technology and information access standards, we aim to enhance the longevity and improve outcomes for all collaborators.
Open Access
Fostering Community-Centric Digital Collections
(2025-01-25) Stapelfeldt, Kirsta; Steinburg, Bennett
Digital special collections can serve as powerful tools to "enrich, capture, store and disseminate" community conversations (R.D. Lankes). However, partnerships with communities raise complex legal, ethical, technical and professional questions that can easily frustrate even the best intentions. The University of Toronto Scarborough Library's Digital Scholarship Unit partners with diverse internal and community groups to create unique digital collections using the openly-licensed U of T Scarborough Partnership & Engagement Framework. Our poster provides practical tools for co-creating digital objects in common-shareable formats, examples from our experience, and guidance about using frameworks like U of T Scarborough's to support mutually beneficial, non-extractive collections development.
Open Access
Strategies for Preserving Digital Scholarship / Humanities Projects
(2022-05-09) Stapelfeldt , Kirsta; Khera , Sukhvir; Ledchumykanthan, Natkeeran; Gomez, Lara; Liu, Erin; Dhaliwal, Sonia
The Digital Scholarship Unit (DSU) at the University of Toronto Scarborough library frequently partners with faculty for the creation of digital scholarship (DS) projects. However, managing completed projects can be challenging when it is no longer under active development by the original project team, and resources allocated to its ongoing maintenance are scarce. Maintaining inactive projects on the live web bloats staff workloads or is not possible due to limited staff capacity. As technical obsolescence meets a lack of staff capacity, the gradual disappearance of digital scholarship projects forms a gap in the scholarly record. This article discusses the Library DSU’s experimentations with using web archiving technologies to capture and describe digital scholarship projects, with the goal of accessioning the resulting web archives into the Library’s digital collections. In addition to comparing some common technologies used for crawling and replay of archives, this article describes aspects of the technical infrastructure the DSU is building with the goal of making web archives discoverable and playable through the library’s digital collections interface.
Open Access
Campus entrepreneurs research habits and needs: A five- year study
(Emerald Publishing, 2024-06-04) Toane, Carey; Shujah, Sarah
This study surveyed the entrepreneurship community on a large university campus in 2016 and in 2020 to identify and understand its information habits and needs. User needs can inform service design and assessment, as well as inform approaches to reference interactions. Librarians are encouraged to conduct similar surveys to better understand this niche population. Investigators employed repeated cross-sectional design, a longitudinal research approach that draws on samples of non-overlapping or minimally overlapping cases over time. Qualitative and quantitative data was collected using two online survey instruments. Data collected included demographic information, venture characteristics, participation in institutional activities such as accelerator programs and credit courses; general startup research behaviors and needs; and details of a specific instance of business or market research, as well as interaction with the library and access to training. Triangulation of semantic and episodic was applied to draw reliable conclusions about respondent behavior. In both surveys, over half of respondents were students and 75% of respondents were engaged in startup activity, most at the early stages. While respondent demographics, type, and purpose of information sought remained constant between the two surveys, awareness and use of the library rose on several metrics. Coding revealed insights into respondents’ attitudes toward and strategies for secondary business research. Information obtained during the research process had a moderate impact on their ventures. The repeated cross-sectional design of the study is unique and shows trends in the community over time. The mixed-methods approach provides a robust and nuanced portrait of the community. These findings informed the development of library research and instruction services, programs, and collections for entrepreneurs.
Open Access
Metadata Gadgetry for Contemporary Digital Collections
(2024-01-25) Stapelfeldt, Kirsta; Steinburg, Bennett
The U of T Scarborough Library Digital Scholarship Unit is responsible for diverse collections created in co-operation with Faculty and external partners with unique needs and backgrounds: from oral histories to post-custodial collections. A (very) small staff is tasked with coordinating description in multiple formats and languages as well as producing indices and interfaces that work for stakeholders, but also digital objects that can claim citizenship in the wider world of controlled information standards. This poster shares lessons learned and introduces the library’s open metadata documentation. We hope these resources and workflows can inform similar work happening in other libraries as well as foster practical discussions about describing and stewarding modern digital objects.
Open Access
Protocol for Scoping Review of Academic Retirement
(2023) Silver, Michelle; Barrett, Kathryn; Teshome, Bethlehem; Hou, Chang (Melissa); Lalchand, Punita; Santhikumaran, Sivangi
The number of academics reaching traditional retirement age has been increasing worldwide, as the proportion of mature adults reaches all time historic highs. Academics provide unique contributions to society and have unique work and retirement trajectories; thus it is important to understand the nature of their perceptions and experiences with retirement. Furthermore, because many academics have job tenure, insights into their retirement experiences also provide insights about varying retirement pathways. These insights will help elucidate retirement pathways that enhance the transition for academics and enhance understandings of retirement from professions with generally high autonomy. Previous studies and reviews of the literature have focused specific academic subfields or studying applying specific research methods. This study offers the first scoping review of the nature and quality of the literature on academic retirement including quantitative, qualitative, and potentially mixed-methods research.
Open Access
Canada’s Student Journal Forum: From Humble Beginnings to National Conference
(2023-08-28) Maistrovskaya, Mariya; Eke, Victoria; Forbes, Sarah M.
Student Journal Forum began as an in-person half-day event at the University of Toronto (U of T) in 2015. It was organized by a group of librarians with the goal to connect editors of 60+ student-led U of T journals with publishing supports, best practices, and with each other. The audience’s enthusiastic engagement and the community-building power of the event prompted the librarians to offer it again the next year, and the year after. Eight years later, this local annual event has grown into a Canada-wide virtual gathering. The shift to online during the COVID-19 pandemic was a key catalyst to open the Forum to students to connect remotely, and for the event to be jointly organized by multiple libraries across Canada. The event’s offering has evolved as well, moving from librarian-led publishing best practice sessions to student-led presentations and participatory learning sessions. The most recent 2023 Forum featured an open call for proposals that let student editors share their experiences and present on topics that mattered to them. It was complemented by a half-day of publishing skill sessions presented by Canadian librarians and two panels with scholarly editors and publishing professionals. In this paper, we reflect on the evolution of the Student Journal Forum, its successes and challenges, and its role in establishing the connection between student editors across Canada and between different Canadian libraries that offer student journal publishing support.
Open Access
Evaluating Information Quality: The Use of Research Logs in Academic and Professional Business Research
(Association of College & Research Libraries, 2022) Jardim, Mariana
This chapter discusses how the use of ‘research logs’ can support information literacy instruction for both academic and professional research purposes, and offers a sample lesson plan implementing this tool. Research logs are database search organizers that prompt students to describe their search strategies, track search results and reflect on the quality of articles and other sources of information. The research log-based lesson plan described in this chapter was designed and implemented in accordance with active learning principles (Bonwell and Eison 1991, 5-6), to engage learners in meaningful, hands-on activities while providing opportunities for reflection. This ninety-minute one-shot accounting information literacy workshop employing research logs is aligned with assignment objectives for a Master’s level accounting course. In this advanced assurance course, students are asked to summarize the main points from an article published in a scholarly accounting journal. Students are expected to: find additional peer-reviewed articles that are for or against the article’s standpoint; find professional articles by accounting standard setters or regulators; and describe the impact that the intervention proposed in the article would have on the CPA Code of Professional Conduct and current Assurance Standards. The information literacy session for this course utilizes research logs to encourage learners to embrace “searching as strategic exploration” (American Library Association 2015). The logs will help learners organize their thoughts, devise and refine search strategies, develop an iterative approach to searching, and evaluate sources critically and thoughtfully.
Open Access
Aligning Business IL with Startup Thinking: A Series of Open Workshops
(Association of College and Research Libraries, 2022-04) Toane, Carey; Inglis, Holly; Shujah, Sarah; Spence, Michelle
In the context of entrepreneurship, traditional business literacy as a one-off is rarely sufficient. Research strategy and content must be scaffolded to reflect the interdisciplinary audience that is academic entrepreneurs and campus startups. Traditional industry reports or company profiles are often outdated, or unavailable for new and emerging markets, while startup culture tends to rely on free tools and primary sources of information. University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) developed an Entrepreneurship Research Skills workshop series to integrate business information literacy with the other information needs and perspectives of this group. This chapter describes the content and structure of the workshop series, with lesson plans and resources for each session.
Open Access
The 99 AI Challenge: Empowering a University Community through an Open Learning Pilot
(Association of College and Research Libraries, 2022-04) Toane, Carey; Doucette, Lise; Rousseau, Paulina; Serafin, Michael; Spence, Michelle; Kim, Christina
The University of Toronto Libraries’ (UTL) year-long community-based learning and engagement pilot engaged 99 students, staff, faculty, and community members to learn about AI, its workings, applications, and implications. Designed to build awareness and capacity among non-technical experts, the AI Challenge consisted of two phases: an open online course exploring the basics of AI, and six in-person group conversations. The six in-person sessions featured U of T experts on a range of areas, including the use of AI in immigration policy and practice, the exploration of the ethics of AI, and the potential for AI to redress inequalities in healthcare.  This chapter frames The 99 AI Challenge in the context of library user services and instruction from a community engagement perspective. It will provide a program rationale and a detailed program description as well as a critical assessment to inform potential implementation at other institutions. It will share results of the cohort surveys that occurred at the completion of each phase, and which sought to assess the challenge and address its impact on participants’ perceptions and attitudes towards AI and its function, adoption, and use.

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