Libraries as Community Hubs for Citizen Science

Skills and Competencies

The recipient has demonstrated all of the following skills associated with utilizing libraries as community hubs and obtained a score of 80% or better via traditional assessment:

• Recognize why engaging the public in citizen science is a critical component of library life-long learning efforts.

• Identify the benefits of turning your library into a community hub for citizen science.

• Identify strategies and tools for selecting and aligning the right citizen science programs with your community's interests or concerns.

• Identify resources (including health and medical resources) to introduce, supplement, and support citizen science efforts in your community.

• Identify resources and strategies to train staff to recruit and sustain patron engagement in citizen science.

• Develop a strategy for implementing a citizen science-based program through the lens of a library.

• Explore strategies to facilitate staff training.

• Investigate ways of growing and sustaining engagement for library-based programs.

Earn the Libraries as Community Hubs for Citizen Science badge

The Libraries as Community Hubs for Citizen Science badge equips learners to create engaging and exciting citizen science programs for their community.

Visit https://scistarter.org/training-library to learn more about earning this badge.

What is SciStarter?

SciStarter is a globally acclaimed, online citizen science hub where millions of people connect with thousands of scientific research projects in need of their help.

SciStarter is supported by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the National Library of Medicine, the Institute for Museum and Library Services, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Verizon, the Girl Scouts of the USA and others seeking to support and sustain engagement in science, catalyze customized experiences and pathways, track progress and measure collective impact among their communities.

SciStarter is a research affiliate of Arizona State University and North Carolina State University.

Visit https://scistarter.org/ to learn more.

Professional Competencies for Health Sciences Librarians

(3) Understand the principles and practices related to providing information services to meet users' needs, including:

• The information needs of health practitioners, researchers, administrators, educators, students, patients, consumers, and the general public

• The institution's information policies

• Methods of information delivery and access including consideration of the specific information needs of diverse populations

• Information services management

ALA’s Core Competencies of Librarianship

Libraries and the communities they serve are continually evolving. As such, continuing education, professional growth, and a commitment to lifelong learning are key components of a well-informed library professional. Library professionals, regardless of their specific title and/or role, should have the foundational skills and understanding to:

• 3A. Participate in and lead on-going professional development to better serve their communities.

• 3B. Recognize the role of the library in continuing education and lifelong learning initiatives.

• 3C. Employ multiple techniques to accommodate diverse learning preferences to promote lifelong learning.

• 3D. Understand established and new learning theories, principles of critical and inclusive pedagogy, instructional methods, and learning outcomes assessment; and apply them to educational initiatives in information settings.

Research and Resources

Learn more about the skills and competencies that this digital badge recognizes:

• “Professional Competencies.” MLA, Medical Library Association, 2007, www.mlanet.org/education/policy/

• “Competencies for Professional Success: Personal Attributes That Contribute to Success.” MLA, Medical Library Association, 2007 www.mlanet.org/p/cm/ld/fid=385.

• Special Libraries Association. Competencies for information professionals of the 21st century. Rev. ed. Washington, DC: The Association, Jun 2003.

• "Core Competences", American Library Association, June 10, 2008. http://www.ala.org/educationcareers/careers/corecomp/corecompetences (Accessed March 4, 2021)

Document ID: e6a50326-3885-6304-7155-b17175db8ac0