Help out with the reading research
Introduction
The research will try to gain insight and understanding into how students actually do their academic reading, what happens outside of a library, what are the social implications, and how reading fits into the everyday life. We are essentially curious, and trying to understand HOW, WHERE, and WHY students read what they read, and how you are organising things like reading lists. If you are any kind of student at the University of Cambridge at the moment, you can take part.
Why are we doing this?
We are doing this because we believe by understanding and clearly communicating real student needs and understanding how things really work in your life, the university and its affiliated libraries would be in a better position to provide what you need and when you need it. Your contribution will directly affect things like library acquisitions, (imagine less competition for those core books for a weekly essay) will inform the design of future online and mobile tools, or may help organising resources so that they are easier to find.
What’s in it for me?
There are cool prizes to be won, depending on your level of involvement. The more you can contribute, the more chance you will have for prizes. Here is a quick rundown:
- If you fill in an online survey
(about 20 minutes, online)
You will be entered into draw for an Amazon Kindle, or same value physical book tokens - your choice
- If you complete a book or a reader diary
(1 week quick logging of reading related activities on paper)
You will enter into draw for an Amazon Kindle or same value physical book tokens (again your choice), and also five Amazon vouchers (30 pounds) will be drawn among participants.
- If you take part in an interview, focus group or you are prepared to hang out a bit with our researcher
(1 hour interview or focus group in person, or spending a couple of hours with a researcher)
You will be rewarded with an Amazon voucher worth 30 pounds.
As much as we’d love to get all applicants in, we only have limited places for interviews, focus groups and shadowing so unfortunately we will have to make a selection. The selection will also make sure that the final list of participants is diverse enough.
When will this take place?
In a nutshell, pretty soon. To be a little more specific, all surveys, interviews, diaries etc. will most likely happen between 21st of November and 16th of December 2011. We will get back to you as soon as possible with specific dates and places.
What happens with my contribution?
Your contribution will be stored safely, anonymised and analysed. We won’t share your data with any third parties, and we promise to only use it for this specific research. At the end of the research, the research findings will be published online, with open access to everybody who is interested.
This project is now finished, and will not accept any further applications for participation. Thanks very much!
