Drexel university, the university of maryland and their libraries’ experiences collaborating with various research programs

Abstract

Last year, researchers and librarians at both Drexel University and the University of Maryland initiated similar collaborative projects in their respective institutions to contribute to the development of life-long learning skills among the select participants. One joint finding was the importance of linking advances in knowledge, not just as hypothetical learning that benefits an elite few, but rather for the advancement of our society as a whole.Drexel University has two NSF-supported programs, Research Experience for Teachers (RET) and the Research Experience for Undergraduates Site (REU) DREAM (Drexel Research Experience in Advanced Materials). RET's primary goal is to provide experiential engineering education to K-12 teachers in the Delaware Valley. DREAM hosts undergraduates from around the country to work closely with faculty and graduate students in cutting-edge research areas, such as biomaterials, nanomaterials, and the design and processing of advanced materials. In both these programs, the participants learned different skills. For example, in the RET program, participating teachers developed skills that would help them to find, apply for, and secure funding for their schools to improve their classrooms and laboratories. RET participants also worked with their faculty mentors on research projects in emerging technologies, such as nanotechnology, biotechnology, and information technology. The library staff played a key role in helping participants in both programs develop crucial information seeking skills to obtain, evaluate, and use needed research material through a variety of information sources.

Library Experience For Applied Engineering Technology Students

“…Studies conducted at Drexel University of collaboration between the library and various engineering departments have shown that involvement by the faculty and librarians play crucial roles in educating students about the variety of information tools and resources available for their academic research 4,5,6 . Using a similar approach with the AET students can also prove to be extremely useful in helping these students acquire information skills.…”

Creating Partnerships Between Librarians And New Engineering Faculty Members

“…Faculty and librarians collaborated extensively on the projects with great success. "The mutual bond that evolved contributed to learning experiences among all the participants involved in the project 18 ." Kearns and Hybl add, "Collaboration between library and teaching faculty is crucial to the vitality of information literacy program[s] incorporating both curricular objectives and student relevancy 19 .…”