Through the Viewfinder: Using Photography to Document Library Space Use Kathleen Webb

Background The University of Dayton Catholic and Marianist Approximately 7000 undergraduates ◦ Residential – 96% live in University housing all four years  Developmental approach to living – from traditional residence halls to single family houses

Primary Focus 1. Developing a method for assessing learning spaces – both classrooms and non-classroom spaces 2. Exploring relationship between learning and the characteristics of space

Plan Photograph how the spaces were being used Experiment with classroom layout and pedagogy and collect data Use multiple survey methods to determine student preferences on various topics Correlate results with NSSE data

Participants Learning Teaching Center Faculty Development Committee Provost’s Office School of Education Faculty ◦ Molly Schaller and Sawyer Hunley Libraries

Why the Library Largest non-classroom learning space on campus (117,000 square feet) Opened in 1972 – decisions needed on renovation or new construction Questions about the need for a library and computer lab ◦ How much use are we really experiencing and what are the students doing when they are there? ◦ What is the mix between individual and group work?

Video Project Initial project called for analysis of entire building – baseline Library opened at 7:45 a.m. and closed at 2:00 a.m. Began filming at 9:15 a.m. and last period began at 12:15 a.m.

Preparation Permission – Human Subjects Committee Notices – throughout the building about the project Handouts explaining the project

Logistics Staffing, scheduling and training Equipment – cameras, batteries, memory cards Procedures – where to get the camera, security, backing up data

Decisions What are we looking at? What is the layout of areas to be filmed? How do the areas naturally break into zones? Where and when to start? What is the best routes and timing

Zones – What are you studying Zones were determined by architecture  Windows, open spaces, enclosed by stacks, in a corner, etc.  Secondary consideration was type of furniture  Signs were placed throughout the building and each zone number was filmed upon entering the zone

Output Over 90 segments of tape – some lasting about 15 minutes, others closer to minutes Variety of styles used – from slow and steady with lots of zooming to race walk through the area

Video Sample

Data Analysis Instrument Time Floor and Zone # Gender Single or Multi Task Academic or Other focus With food or beverage Alone, or with one person or with more than one person Very large table 4-6 person table Round table Study carrel Soft furniture At computer station

Data Analysis Converted video tapes to DVD Analysis done by several people ◦ Group training session  Lesson Learned – check work after someone completes 2 or 3 segments ◦ Used paper check lists that were then entered into SPSS by administrative assistant ◦ Ran crosstabs and other analyses  Not all trends ended up being statistically valid

Other Considerations Monday, November 08, 2004 Day of the Dead exhibit being taken down in the 1 st floor gallery (zone 1). Training for other videographers going on during the 9:00 AM, noon, 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM shifts. People were still learning the zones and a few zone signs were missed. Tuesday, November 09, 2004 Training during the 4:00 and 7:00 shifts There were a few people observed getting up and moving out of camera range Wednesday, November 10, 2004 Training during the 9:00 and 5:00 shifts A class was held in the Reference room between 2:00 and 3:00 Thursday, November 11, 2004 New exhibit is being installed in the gallery. 2:15 shift began to run out of tape. 1 st floor was done with snapshots and not running video Friday, November 12, 2004 New exhibit still being hung in gallery – gallery closed in afternoon The tape for 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM includes the 7:00 - 8:00 PM shift (forgot to switch tape) Saturday, November 13, 2004 Gallery closed - photography students hanging exhibit Sunday, November 14, 2004 Gallery closed - photography students hanging exhibit

Follow-up Projects Continuing Requests for Group Spaces ◦ No funds for building projects to create group rooms ◦ Could we change behavior by changing the furniture? ◦ Identified area on 1 st floor where noise would not be an issue  Previous study indicated that most people who studied there studied alone  2 years later we evaluated that space again

First Photo Project Much smaller area lent itself to still photographs Long, narrow space Broke up the space into zones based on what could be captured by the camera Marked photography locations with tape Numbered the tape locations All the same permissions and preparation needed ◦ Permissions, notices, staffing, equipment, batteries, training, etc.

Samples

Samples

Samples

Samples

Experiment After collecting data we removed all existing furniture Replaced old furniture ◦ Movable tables of all shapes that could be used alone or pushed together ◦ Movable tablet arm chairs ◦ 2 large booths ◦ Coffee and end tables ◦ Lots of movable white boards ◦ Large, plasma TV with laptop cables

Second Photo Project Redid the still photography study Establishing zones was more difficult ◦ The furniture moved constantly ◦ Needed to take additional shots to be sure we could see all the furniture Studied an additional area on the 2 nd floor that had been the current periodical area and now was equipped for group computer projects and included other movable furniture

Samples from Second Photo Survey

Challenges and Observations Not counting people twice Identifying trends ◦ Near outlets ◦ Near TV on certain nights ◦ Use of white boards to create privacy ◦ Use of white boards for studying

Lessons Learned Plan ahead Walk through the route and know what you are measuring Date and time stamp photos Organize photos/videos when you transfer them from the memory cards Make time to analyze the data If possible have one person analyze all the data

Additional Information More on the results of our photo studies: Kathleen M. Webb, Molly A. Schaller, & Sawyer A. Hunley. "Measuring Library Space Use and Preferences: Charting a Path Toward Increased Engagement." portal: Libraries and the Academy, Volume 8, Number 4, October 2008, pp An article which really helped us in our planning: Virginia E.Young, “Can We Encourage Learning By Shaping Environment? Patterns of Seating Behavior in Undergraduates” (paper, Association of College and Research Libraries Conference, Charlotte, NC, 2003), 6. The book was by the faculty members who developed the methodology: Collier, J. & Collier, M. (1986). Visual anthropology: Photography as a research method. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico.

Questions? Kathleen Webb