Grading Ourselves

Abstract

While the need for a plan to evaluate distance library services is clear, the means by which this work should be done is less obvious. Faced with a variety of measurement tools, it can be difficult to decide not only what to evaluate but also how to do it. With the goal of providing information on how to develop appropriate assessment instruments to document performance and service quality, this paper gives an overview of the assessment movement. As a lens through which librarians, administrators, accrediting bodies and other stakeholders might view the effectiveness and value of distance library services, the Distance Learning Library Services (DLS) Guidelines serve as a framework that can be used to build an assessment strategy, as well as a gateway to other measurement tools and accreditation standards.

Key Words:

• Guidelines
• evaluation
• assessment
• strategies