Library reference desk - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The reference desk or information desk of a library

Library

In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...

is a public service counter where professional librarian

Librarian

A librarian is an information professional trained in library and information science, which is the organization and management of information services or materials for those with information needs...

s provide library users with direction to library materials, advice on library collections and services, and expertise on multiple kinds of information from multiple sources.

Explanation

Librarians are experts in the contents and arrangement of their collections, as well as how information is organized outside the library. Library users are encouraged not to be shy about asking a reference librarian for help. Even though most librarians stay busy when not serving a patron, their primary duty when they are at the desk is to assist library users.

Purpose and usage

Library users can consult the staff at the reference desk for help in finding information. Using a structured reference interview

Reference interview

A reference interview is a conversation between a librarian and a library user, usually at a reference desk, in which the librarian responds to the user's initial explanation of his or her information need by first attempting to clarify that need and then by directing the user to appropriate...

, the librarian works with the library user to clarify their needs and determine what information sources will fill them. To borrow a medical analogy, reference librarians diagnose and treat information deficiencies.

The ultimate help provided may consist of reading material in the form of a book

Book

A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...

or journal

Academic journal

An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...

article, instruction in the use of specific searchable information resources such as the library's online catalog

Library catalog

A library catalog is a register of all bibliographic items found in a library or group of libraries, such as a network of libraries at several locations...

or subscription bibliographic/fulltext database

Bibliographic database

A bibliographic database is a database of bibliographic records, an organized digital collection of references to published literature, including journal and newspaper articles, conference proceedings, reports, government and legal publications, patents, books, etc...

s, or simply factual information drawn from the library's print or online reference collection

Reference work

A reference work is a compendium of information, usually of a specific type, compiled in a book for ease of reference. That is, the information is intended to be quickly found when needed. Reference works are usually referred to for particular pieces of information, rather than read beginning to end...

. Typically, a reference desk can be consulted either in person, by telephone, through email or online chat, although a library user may be asked to come to the library in person for help with more involved research questions. A staffed and knowledgeable reference desk is an essential part of a library.

The services that are provided at a reference desk may vary depending on the type of library, its purpose, its resources, and its staff.

Resources

Resources that are often kept at a library reference desk may include:

A small collection of reference book
Reference work
A reference work is a compendium of information, usually of a specific type, compiled in a book for ease of reference. That is, the information is intended to be quickly found when needed. Reference works are usually referred to for particular pieces of information, rather than read beginning to end...

s (called ready reference) that are most often used, so that the librarians can reach them quickly, especially when they are on the phone, and so that the books will be returned in time for someone else to use later the same day. The library's full reference collection is usually nearby as well.
Newspaper clipping files and other rare or restricted items that must be returned to the reference desk.
Index cards with the answers to frequently asked questions, and/or drawers with folders of pamphlets and photocopies of pages that, from previous experience, were difficult to find. These enable librarians to find such information quickly without leaving the desk—even faster than they could look it up in a reference book or using the Internet.
Books and other items that are being held for library users who asked the librarian by phone to set them aside for them to pick up later the same day, or within the next few days.
Books from the circulating collection that have been set aside for students working on a special assignment, and are temporarily designated to be used only within the library until the project is due.
Printed lists of items in the library that are not in the catalogue, such as newspapers, school yearbooks, old telephone directories, college course catalogues, and local history sources.

Services

Services that are often available at a library reference desk include:

A sign up sheet for reserving computers with Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...

access, or word processing
Word processing
Word processing is the creation of documents using a word processor. It can also refer to advanced shorthand techniques, sometimes used in specialized contexts with a specially modified typewriter.-External links:...

software.
The ability to place the book 'on hold', which prevents the person who has borrowed it from renewing it. The person who placed the 'hold' is notified when the book has been returned. (Some libraries provide this service at the circulation
Library circulation
Library circulation or library lending comprises the activities around the lending of library books and other material to users of a lending library. A circulation or lending department is one of the key departments of a library....

desk.)
The ability to request Interlibrary loan
Interlibrary loan
Interlibrary loan is a service whereby a user of one library can borrow books or receive photocopies of documents that are owned by another library...

of books and other material from other branch libraries in the same library system, or from a cooperating library anywhere in the world. (Some libraries provide this service at the circulation desk.)
The opportunity to recommend that the library purchase something for its collection that it doesn't have, which may be needed or of interest to other library users.

The librarian

Librarian

who staffs the reference desk can usually do the following by virtue of their professional training and experience:

The librarian can look up a brief, factual answer to a specific question.
The librarian can use the catalogue to find out whether the library owns an item with a particular title or author, or that contains a short story, chapter, song, or poem with a particular title, or to compile a list of books by a particular author or on a particular subject.
The librarian can briefly teach the user how to use the catalogue and how to use its advanced features, or recommend the proper subject words or terms that are used in the catalogue for the topic the user has in mind.
The librarian can often take the library user directly to the shelves with books on a certain topic without using the catalogue.
The librarian is familiar with the contents of hundreds of reference book
Reference work
A reference work is a compendium of information, usually of a specific type, compiled in a book for ease of reference. That is, the information is intended to be quickly found when needed. Reference works are usually referred to for particular pieces of information, rather than read beginning to end...

s, and can recommend books that might contain the answer to a particular question.
The librarian can teach the library user to use online database
Database
A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...

s such as magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...

and newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...

articles, and recommend words and search strategies for the topic the user has in mind.
The librarian can recommend reliable web sites, give advice on searching the Internet for information, and evaluate the reliability of the information on web sites.
If the library doesn't have information on a given topic, or if the library user wants more information, the librarian can refer the library user to another library or to an organization that can be contacted by phone or mail.

Staff qualifications

In the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, those who staff library reference desks are usually required to have an accredited Masters degree in Library Science from the American Library Association. (In Sri Lanka Sri Lanaka Library Association's Library and Infomation Science) However, if there is a lack of qualified applicants, particularly in rural areas of the country, a person with an Associate Degree, a Certificate in Library Technology, or a Bachelors Degree in Library Science may be performing these duties. In many academic libraries, student assistants are used as the primary contact, sometimes at an "information desk."

Electronic reference services

With the development of the Web, digital reference services

Digital reference services

Digital reference is a service by which library reference service is conducted online, and the reference transaction is a computer-mediated communication....

are beginning to take over some of the roles of the traditional reference desk in a library. There is disagreement over whether or not this development is desirable or inevitable.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.