Digital Transformation of Education Library: A New Service Model
Introduction
Virtual Teaching & Learning Is the Way Forward
The adoption of virtual teaching accelerated across the education sector. Our students, especially those who are digital natives, will acquire knowledge from an increasingly wide range of virtual learning platforms and online services.
Therefore, the Libraries actively rethink our roles in digital literacy education. We would like to engage the HKU community with an enhanced digital experience and online resources. One of our plans is to transform the Education Library into a next-generation collaborative space with more digital services.
Collection Management: Shift to E-resources
Design
New Education Collection in the Main Library
Users visit the Main Library for books on Education Theory, Speech and Hearing Sciences and the Education Journals all along. It would be convenient to provide centralized access to all physical education collections in one go. A new Education Collection will be built in the Main Library.
The existing items in the Education Library will be relocated to Main library 4/F Old Wing. The new Education Collection can be found in a prominent location which is also an expandable space. Also, the Education Course Reserves will be transferred to the Self-service Collection Room on 2/F New Wing.
In line with the digital transformation, the Inter-branch delivery service to the Education Library will be phased out. With a larger collection of e-resources and enhanced support for electronic document delivery services, users will enjoy more convenient access to the materials they need.
Learning Space in the Education Library
The learning space in the Education Library will be jointly supported by the Libraries and Information Technology Services (ITS) under a co-branded Learning Environment Services (LES) team.
Space Reorganization
The revamped setting would encourage active learning through a mix of digital resources, a user-friendly learning environment and responsive services.
To pave the way for digital transformation, the stack area released can be optimized with modern furniture. An open area will be created to encourage interactions and group discussions.
The equipment in the existing Discussion rooms will be upgraded and a wireless BYOD setting will be provided to align the self-service model with other digital learning spaces like Chi Wah Learning Commons and Main Library Level 3. The LES team will manage the learning space and offer technical support.
Books donated from the Tin Ka Ping Foundation and the deans of the Faculty of Education will be displayed. Also, books on the book giveaway shelves could be read in the library or be taken home to be treasured, which give a second life to the books.
Library Virtual Counter
During the digital transformation, Main Library and all Branch Libraries have already set up virtual counters. In the Education Library, a tablet is installed in the public area to handle enquiries. The ultimate goal is to handle all walk-in and online enquiries through a central Contact Center. In future, the library staff will continue to provide support to the Faculty of Education and users virtually. Face-to-face consultation can be arranged as needed.
Digital Library Services
The library services are also going digital in diverse ways.
- Online Courses: Some traditional face-to-face library courses will be conducted online. For instance, two information literacy online courses will be launched to allow students to learn at their own pace.
- Featured Resources Promotion: We will increase user awareness of some featured resources via different e-channels and digital signage.
- Workstations with Online services: The workstations can connect users to the library subject guides and reading lists.
- Communal Virtual PC: The VPC will allow HKU users to access the library e-resources and cloud services more easily.
Future Enhancements
The Libraries believes further enhancements to user services can be achieved in the transformation. As the learning space will be self-operated in future, the opening hours could be extended to 24 hours. It is expected that the library usage will increase after the space reorganization with the increased opening hours and overall seating capacity.
Transformation Timeline
