The LITA Guide to No- or Low-Cost Technology Tools for Libraries

The LITA Guide to No- or Low-Cost Technology Tools for Libraries provides a practical guide on how to find and use technology tools for a variety of purposes in libraries and, more broadly, in education. Each topic showcases two technology tools in detail and discusses additional tools and provides examples of how librarians or educators are using them in libraries and schools.

Types of tools covered are:
Video creation tools, such as PowToon and Animaker, can be used to create animated videos to tell patrons about a new service or teach students about search strategies.Screencasts includes tools like Jing or Screencast-O-Matic, which can be used to show how to use a new library database or service.Collaboration tools, including tools such as Padlet or Lino It, can be used for student collaboration or teamwork with colleagues and sharing project ideas quickly and easily.Assessment tools such as Quizizz and Kahoot allow for gamified assessment of student or patron knowledge.

Author Biography

Breanne A. Kirsch is a public services librarian at the University of South Carolina Upstate in Spartanburg, South Carolina and the Coordinator of Emerging Technologies. She has an MLIS from Dominican University and was a 2011 American Library Association Emerging Leader and a past Chair of both the Imagineering Interest Group and the Game Making Interest Group within the Library and Information Technology Association. She collaborated with four other librarians in South Carolina on an ILEAD USA grant funded project to develop the Find Your Hat website, which reviews 50 different free or low cost technology tools and how they can be used in libraries.