Grinnell College participated in ACRL's first cohort of Assessment in Action (AiA), undertaking a mixed-methods action research project to assess the effectiveness of librarian-led research literacy sessions in improving students' research skills. The quantitative data showed that the quality of students' sources did not markedly improve following a research literacy session, while the qualitative data indicated that many students were able to state and describe important research concepts they learned. This article profiles the development of Grinnell's AiA project and discusses how Grinnell's librarians responded when the initial results led to more questions rather than to satisfactory answers.
BackgroundGrinnell College, a highly selective residential liberal arts college that enrolls 1,600 fulltime undergraduate students, is located in central Iowa. Grinnell's AiA team included members from across campus, including three librarians, a religious studies faculty member with assessment experience, and a professional from the Office of Analytic Support and Institutional Research. In abidance with AiA guidelines, this team conducted action research, a methodology concisely defined by McMillan and Wergin as research undertaken in a practice setting for the purpose of better understanding professional work and how to improve it.
Fettalkoholoxethylate, die durch Umsetzung von Fettalkoholen aus hydrierten Fettsäuremethylestern mit Ethylenoxid hergestellt werden, sind die Ausgangsbasis für eine wichtige Klasse von anionischen Tensiden, den Fettalkoholethersulfaten. Als interessante Alternative zu den Fettalkoholethersulfaten bieten sich Fettsäurepolyglykolestersulfate an, die unter Einsparung der Hydrierstufe prinzipiell unmittelbar durch Fettsäureoxethylierung oder Veresterung der Fettsäure mit Polyglykolen und anschließender Sulfatierung zugänglich sind. Wir berichten über die Darstellung von Fettsäureestersulfaten durch Sulfatierung der Fettsäurepolyglykolmonoester mit Schwefeltrioxid oder Chlorsulfonsäure. Anhand von Ergebnissen physikochemischer Messungen und anwendungstechnischer Untersuchungen wird vergleichend diskutiert, inwieweit Fettsäurepolyglykolmonoestersulfate als alternativer Tensidrohstoff zu Fettalkoholethersulfaten geeignet ist.
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