Reference: Evaluation of an Outside LibGuide

A LibGuide is a particular style of online reference guide. Most of them are created by universities about subjects. Some of the subjects are very broad - European History - while others can be very specific - The French Revolution. UNCG MLIS students had to analyze and create one for this program. In this context an "outside" LibGuide would be one that was not maintained by UNCG. 

Assignment 1: Evaluation of an Outside Library/Reference Guide

Belk Library and Information Commons

For this assignment, I went to the academic library attached to Appalachian State University – Belk Library and Information Commons. There, I looked at their collection of research guides, and clicked on a subject I didn’t know. I chose the Band Music Guide, and started scrolling. 

Band Music Guide: Home

I thought that the Band Music Guide would be a collection of books, sheet music, magazines, journals, and electronic resources related to either the academic study of band music or the teaching of band to high school and college students. I was wrong.

Screenshot of a LibGuide 

First, the layout. Despite the small size, the above image details the layout of what the page looks like to the outside observer. The headings are (from left to right) Basic Reference Tools, Using the Catalog, and Subject Guides.[1] Under the heading of Basic Reference Guides is a collection of band music books currently held at the reference desk, and not in the stacks. It is a very small section, but each of the books is hyperlinked to the catalog record, so a student could see if the reference book is the one for which they are searching.[2] The largest, most central, panel is a how to: how to search for music in the catalog. It details how to search for composers, titles, etc, for specific pieces of music.[3] The final column, Subject Guides, shows a picture of the creator of this guide and gives his picture and email address.[4] It is only at the very bottom of the page does the guide suggest some of the online reference tools, which include databases and encyclopedias.[5]

            There are no book suggestions for beginners, and the browsing information is very small, almost as if it is being hidden. The physical location of the stacks isn’t given in the guide.[6] There is no suggestion of a book about the composers of band music, or even the history of band music. The handy reference books are all collections of music which bands can perform.[7]

            If a person was using this guide to learn how to search for the specific piece of music that they wanted, this guide is perfect, as it has a large section on how to search the catalog.[8] If a person were looking for that encyclopedia on band music, they would be out of luck, as the reference books do not include such a source. If a person were looking for a list of composers, they would also be out of luck, as there is no such list, nor any clear place to get this list.[9]

            A couple of suggestions for improvement would be to include a couple of reference books in the reference section. By this I mean traditional reference materials, such as a couple of band music encyclopedias and dictionaries of musical terms. Another suggestion would be to add a section on common composers, with a hyperlink to the catalog record for the encyclopedia in which an entry can be found. The same for some common band music pieces, with a hyperlink to the catalog record for the encyclopedia or book in which some information about the piece can be found. This would make the research guide more useful for someone who is looking for musical history, musical theory, or some information so that they can choose a composer or piece of music to study for the semester.

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[1] Boye, Gary. “Band Music Guide: Home.” Library Guides.  http://guides.library.appstate.edu/             band (accessed February 17, 2015).

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.