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September 1995, vol. 27, no. 9
Introduction
Every so often, one finds wonderful snippets of information about the role libraries play in the everyday lives of Canadians. Last May Feliciter published just such an item about the Calgary Public Library, noting that "in 1994, we recorded more than 4.8 million customer visits, which works out to 6.6 visits for every Calgarian and exceeds the combined 1994 attendance at city parks, golf courses, the Calgary Zoo, Stampede, Heritage Park, and Calgary Flames home games! 1 Just imagine what we might learn if we could say how many loans were made by all the libraries in the country in 1994, or how much money the work of libraries represents in the Canadian economy. The National Core Library Statistics Program will help to answer some of these questions by providing information on national statistics. As of September 1995, the program is only a few months away from producing 1994 survey results, which will cover special, public, and academic libraries. (see "National Statistics for Canadian Libraries", National Library News, vol. 25, no. 12, December 1993, p. 12).
The National Core Library Statistics Program (NCLSP) aims at having reliable, consistent statistics on Canadian libraries that can be used for a number of purposes, such as:
Partners are the key to the success of the program. Without them, gathering and analyzing the necessary data from Canadian libraries would not be possible. The National Library's partners in the program include:
Developments since December 1993
In February 1994, a proposal for a national core statistics program was mailed to special libraries and to other organizations to request their participation and their comments. Suggestions for improvements were received from across the country, and the results of the consultations were incorporated into a draft questionnaire. The questionnaire was then pre-tested by more than 80 libraries of different types and sizes from across the country, and a final version of the questionnaire and definitions was produced. As of mid-June 1995, over 250 completed questionnaires had already been received.
Thanks to the support of the members of PTLDC, CARL, CASUL, CRÉPUQ and others, the core statistics are expected to cover all public libraries and all degree-granting post-secondary institutions in Canada. Additional participation by libraries in non-degree granting post-secondary institutions (e.g., community colleges) and by special libraries is still needed. For special libraries, CASLIS has been very supportive in promoting the survey. In the case of colleges, ASTED has forwarded questionnaires to all CEGEPS (community colleges) in Quebec, and a contribution from colleges in B.C. is expected. Contacts with several other library groups have also been made.
An advisory committee for the program was formed in the autumn of 1994, and met for the first time in December 1994. The members have generated many useful ideas and much valuable advice, all of which are essential in ensuring that the greatest possible number of libraries participate and that the results are useful to libraries. The members of the committee are: Barb Clubb (CALUPL), Bev Chataway (CASLIS), Françoise Hébert (CLA), Pierre Meunier (ASTED), Sara Lochhead (CASUL), Jocelyne Lebel (PTLDC) and ex officio representation of the National Library.
The data received thus far appear to be very usable and consistent. As was expected, some respondents have not been able to provide data for all elements, but have contributed what is known. Planning for production and dissemination of the results has been underway since the beginning of the year. To meet specific needs and interests, the NCLSP statistics will be produced by sector; that is, with separate statistics for public, special, and academic libraries. It is hoped that results from special libraries will be available at the end of 1995, with results for public libraries, university libraries, and college libraries following in the first quarter of 1996.
One issue covered in the advisory committee meetings has been ensuring the widest dissemination of the results. It was concluded at the last meeting that articles in Feliciter, Documentation et Bibliothèque and National Library News would be an excellent way to summarize the results. A comprehensive source (probably an electronic version) is also being planned.
Anticipating that more and more libraries will have Internet access, the possibility of using a secure application for survey-ing respondents via the Internet is being investigated. Such a mechanism would have to address issues of information integrity and confidentiality. Gathering statistics over the Internet could potentially reduce the administrative costs of the survey, and would be an important and timely development. Such an application might also make the inclusion of school library statistics feasible.
If you are interested in knowing more about the program, or would like to participate, please contact:
National and International Programs
National Library of Canada
395 Wellington Street
Ottawa ON K1A 0N4
Telephone: (613) 943-8570
Fax: (613) 947-2916
TTY: (613) 992-6969
Internet: ralph.manning@nlc-bnc.ca
Copyright. The National Library of Canada. (Revised: 1995-10-31).