Results from Survey of Library Services for Distance Learning Students

Primary Research Group Inc. has published The Survey of 
Library Services for 
 
Distance Learning  Programs (ISBN: 1-57440-098-3).  The
Survey of Library 
Services  
for Distance Learning Programs presents benchmarking data
from more than  100 
college  
libraries concerning their programs for serving their
distance learning  
students.  This 145  
page report gives extensive data, broken out by size and
type of college,  
for public and  
private colleges, and for  U.S. and  Non-U.S. libraries. 
Among the more  
than 500 tables of  
data presented is information about: use of real time chat
and virtual  
reference services  
for distance learners; percentage of libraries that offer
special classes  
for distance learners;  
future plans to offer information literacy courses to
distance learners;  
policies on  
providing web pages, blogs or listservs that specifically
serve the needs  of 
distance  
learners; number of interactive online tutorials provided to
distance  
learners; state of  
relations between the library and distance learning
instructors and data  on  
many, many other facets of  distance learning librarianship.

Some of the report’s many findings are  that: 
    *   Exactly half  of survey respondents offered special
classes or 
training programs  for distance  learners. Non-U.S.
libraries were 20% more likely 
than  U.S. libraries  to offer such classes. 
    *   Just over a  third of the sample, 37%, offered any
kind of formal 
non-credit or  credit course worth 1, 2, or 3 credits on the
subject  of 
information literacy for either distance learners or
traditional  students.  
    *   The majority  of the sample, over 72%, had a Web
page on the library 
Website  dedicated to the needs of distance  learners.  
    *   Private  colleges reported almost 3 times the mean
number of 
interactive online  tutorials as  public colleges, as well
as 3 times the median. 
    *   Over a third  of the sample had an equivalent to the
traditional 
orientation  program for  new distance learners. Over 40% of
U.S. libraries  and 
16% of non-U.S. libraries had an orientation program for
distance  learners.    
    *   Just over half of the sample, 53%,  maintained
agreements with other 
libraries to offer services to the college's distance 
learners.  
    *   Colleges with a smaller number of students enrolled
in  distance 
learning tended to be more likely to have reciprocal
agreements to  provide 
library services to the distance learning students of other
colleges. Over 90%  of 
colleges with fewer than 250 FTE distance learners offered
their library access 
 or services to students enrolled in other colleges'
distance learning 
programs,  but just 47% of colleges with between 250 and 999
FTE distance learners 
reported the  same, as did 63% of colleges with between
1,000 and 2,000 FTE 
distance  learners and over 55% of colleges with over 2,000
FTE distance  
learners.   
    *   78% of  colleges with over 2,000 FTE distance
learners had a liaison 
to the  distance learning program, compared with 68.4% of 
colleges with 
between 1,000 to 2,000 FTE distance learners and 71% of
colleges with  fewer than 
250 FTE distance learners.  
    *   Just over  11% of the sample had a specific
disbursement or line item 
in the  library budget for distance learning  programs.  
    *   The mean  shipping costs accrued annually by sending
physical books, 
magazines and other educational materials to distance 
learners was $2,048, 
with a median of $75 and maximum of $19,850.  
    *   Just over  half of the sample, over 52%, reported
that they had no 
restrictions on  the delivery of books, articles and other
paper  versions of 
intellectual property to distance learners, meaning that
they deliver such  
materials even if the students live close to campus.  
    *   The vast majority of the sample, close to  89%,
reported that the 
cost of shipping library materials to distance learners was
generally  paid for 
by the library 
This 145 page reports presents a broad range of data  about
the relationship 
between college libraries and distance learning programs.
Data is  broken out 
for public and private colleges, by enrollment size and by
carnegie  class, 
and other criteria, to allow for easier  benchmarking. 
For a complete table of contents, excerpts and other
information, visit our 
website at _www.primaryresearch.com_ (http://www.primaryres
earch.com/) .



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