Embedded Reference: Providing Research Guidance within the Education Courseroom.

Much research has been conducted on general virtual reference interactions but little on reference provided within an online embedded librarian program. To better understand embedded reference, the author studied 275 student-initiated reference interactions, conducted either through email or in an online course discussion board, to determine what types of questions students asked and if these were affected by the mode of communication. Students used email and the discussion board nearly equally, and providing reference within an online courseroom, but not the specific mode of communication, seemed to influence the nature of the questions students asked. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]