Digital Commons Network^™

Mobile Information Literacy: Supporting Students’ Research And Information Needs In A Mobile World, Stefanie Havelka

Publications and Research

Mobile devices have changed everyday life and they have had a great impact in higher education. This article describes a pilot project in which an academic librarian at Lehman College, City University of New York, taught information literacy exclusively via mobile devices. The concept of mobile information literacy is also reviewed, and its role in current and future teaching practices is evaluated. Lessons learned from this project tell us that mobile information literacy, albeit in its infancy, could play an essential part in students’ learning, and therefore academic librarians could incorporate it as part of their practice.

Creating, Sharing And Reusing Learning Objects To Enhance Information Literacy, Philip Russell, Gerard Ryder, Gillian Kerins, Margaret Phelan

Articles

From June 2010 until the present, a suite of online reusable learning objects (RLOs) has been created by staff at the Technological University Dublin (ITT Dublin) library covering a range of information literacy (IL) competencies. These RLOs have helped to facilitate student transition from second to third level, advance IL and enrich the student learning experience. The purpose of this paper is to outline the development of these RLOs and how the resources have been shared, reused and repurposed to enhance IL progression. A review of recent literature explores some of the key issues around the creation of digital learning …

Reaching Out To Transfer Students: Usc Upstate's Foundation In Information Literacy, Andrew Kearns, Chris Vidas

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

How do you "catch" transfer students to ensure that they receive timely instruction in information literacy? What kind of intervention will be compatible with library staff and budgetary considerations? What kind of outreach is likely to gain support of the institution? This presentation will describe USC Upstate's Foundation in Information Literacy (FIL), an "inventory" administered through the admissions process. We will describe how we created FIL, how we marketed it, what kinds of follow-up we have designed for students who take it, and the results of the pilot administrations in Spring and Fall 2010. We will also address the future …

Libguides, Videos, And Screencasting: Technologies To Enhance And Promote Digital Wisdom In Information Literacy Instruction, Rafia Mirza, Jody Bailey

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

n this workshop, we will discuss how the information revolution affects teaching information literacy -- specifically, students' need for digital wisdom. Today, students are usually aware of what technology can do for them socially but do not know how to produce and critically assess digital knowledge in their scholarship. Demonstrating the production of digital objects will help promote digital wisdom in the classroom by making the process transparent. To this end, we will demonstrate the following:

- A LibGuide that is interactive, welcoming, personal, and helpful and that will focus on how to teach students or faculty about video editing. …

Evidence-Based Practice, Information Literacy, And Graduate Inquiry: A Collaborative Learning And Teaching Experience, Rosemary Green, Mary Corcoran

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

This session addresses the alliance between information literacy and evidence-based practice (EBP) - the process of applying clinically relevant research to patient care. The context of the discussion is an occupational therapy (OT) research course co-taught by a graduate librarian and an OT faculty member. The course was literature-based, evidence-based, and inquiry-based; students engaged in problem-based activities related to occupation, mobility, and accessibility. We describe our strategies for embedding and modeling information literacy as a natural function of the course; provide examples of class activities and studentsí multimedia projects; and invite participants to explore their own understandings of practice supported …

Library Instruction Credibility: How Do We Establish It? How Do We Publicize It?, Frances A. May, Yunfei Du

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

What I would like to propose is not a presentation but a strategy session. Over the ten years I have spent as an instruction librarian, I have come to realize that what we need is quantitative data showing the benefits that students derive from library instruction. It needs to be gathered and published in non-library forums, such as educational or subject specific journals. Once the benefits are publicized and understood by educators and faculty, we may be able to move beyond the fifty minute, one shot instruction session, and make an information literate society a reality.

To do this, we …

Muchos Mentores En Iowa: The Pedagogy Of Student To Student Mentoring In Information Literacy, Julia Bauder, Beth Bohstedt, Phillip Jones

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

At Grinnell College we believe that students can be the best teachers and that lasting learning also happens outside of the classroom. The Grinnell College Libraries' peer mentoring program is rooted in these beliefs. Our program has two components: advanced research help provided by reference assistants (RAs) at the reference desk; and basic information service provided by all students working at our public service desks. Throughout this presentation, attendees will be challenged to consider if peer information service is appropriate for their libraries and to articulate initial steps to explore and implement such a service.

Teaching With Worldcat Local: What's Different?, Margaret G. Grotti, Karen Sobel

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

This presentation discusses a recent study examining how WorldCat Local impacts library instruction. WorldCat Local is a library catalog discovery layer offered by OCLC. It has proven popular with academic libraries since its initial launch in 2008. This system is not merely a more flexible catalog interface, however; rather, it provides users with simplified search capabilities and access to multiple types of resources such as articles drawn from databases as well as catalog records drawn from an OPAC. Thus, WorldCat Local can be characterized as a meta-search system. Meta-search systems have long been at the center of a debate in …

Bridging The Gaps: Transliteracy As Effective Pedagogy, Lane Wilkinson

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

'Transliteracy' is a topic that is quickly spreading around the library world. However, there is little agreement about what, exactly, transliteracy is. This presentation will situate transliteracy within the context of library instruction as an enhanced approach to information literacy. Students are surprisingly information literate as they make effortless cognitive shifts between Facebook and e-mail, smart-phones and desktops, or text-messaging and speaking. Yet, they often hit a wall with library databases, indexes, or other research tools. Transliteracy addresses this issue pedagogically by emphasizing and harnessing the cognitive processes underlying preexisting media and information use. The presentation will begin with an …

Singing The Praises Of Il: The Case Of A Required Credit-Bearing Il Music Course, Paul J. Neff

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

This presentation will focus on Music 228 -- the required credit-bearing discipline-specific information literacy course for undergraduate music students at the Augustana Campus of the University of Alberta in Camrose, Alberta, Canada. Augustana students in both the Bachelor of Arts (Music) and Bachelor of Music degrees are required to take this course (preferably in their 2nd year of study) to graduate. This presentation will include discussion of the course structure, example assignments and practical advice. Commentary will be offered regarding the course components including, but not limited to: understanding information, using the library catalogue, interdisciplinary and subject specific database searching, …

The Teaching Librarian's Toolkit, Amy Harris Houk, Jenny Dale

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

Engaging students is critical to maximizing the effectiveness of information literacy sessions. But when you're faced with heavy teaching loads, back-to-back sessions, and balancing your other professional responsibilities, it can seem that there's never enough time to develop effective, engaging, and creative classroom activities. Enter the Teaching Librarian's Toolkit - flexible, modular activities that can be mixed and matched to align with student learning outcomes and enhance your information literacy sessions. In this interactive workshop, you'll participate in sample activities, share your strategies, and develop a sample lesson plan to use or adapt in your teaching.

Formative Assessment: Transforming Education In The Library, Teague Orblych, Michelle Kathleen Dunaway

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2011

How can librarians provide effective research instruction to groups of students with widely varying information competencies? How can we engage students in the process of creating library instruction that responds to their individual learning needs? This presentation will demonstrate the process of using assessment-elicited evidence of students' information literacy skills to tailor each instruction session based on the information proficiencies of the students in each instruction session. Using formative assessment in one-shot library instruction sessions makes information literacy instruction significantly more practical for students, and therefore improves students' learning.

Reconsidering The Relationship Between Generic And Situated Il Approaches: The Dreyfus Model Of Skill Acquisition In Formal Information Literacy Learning Environments, Part Ii, Robert Farrell

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This is the second of two papers discussing the application of Berkeley phenomenologist Hubert Dreyfus’ five-stage model of skill acquisition to information literacy (IL) theory and practice. This second paper will consider in detail how Dreyfus’ model might be used by academic librarians to scaffold information literacy learning opportunities that foster students’ development of information behaviors characteristic of experts within various disciplinary contexts. The article draws on several of the models mentioned in the previous article as well as representative works in the IL field that have put forward instructional activities and pedagogical strategies both for teaching generic IL skills …

Why Some Students Continue To Value Individual, Face-To-Face Research Consultations In A Technology-Rich World, Trina J. Magi, Patricia E. Mardeusz

University Libraries Faculty and Staff Publications

For decades, academic librarians have provided individual research consultations for students. There is little information, however, about why students schedule consultations, the kinds of assistance students feel are provided by librarians during consultations, and what students find valuable about face-to-face consultations, even with the availability of online research help. This exploratory, qualitative study of individual research consultations at the University of Vermont gathered students’ views on these questions. The findings will help librarians better understand how individual consultations serve students and what role consultations should play in the mix of reference services offered.

Faculty Perceptions And Practices In Health Sciences Information Literacy Instruction In Tanzania, Edda Tandi Lwoga Dr

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This study assessed the information literacy (IL) instruction perceptions and practices of faculty at Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences in Tanzania. An online survey was distributed to all faculty members in five schools and one institute at MUHAS (235 in total) from 2011 to 2012, with a response rate of (34.5 percent). The study findings show a general support for IL development, and its importance in enabling students to do library-based research. To a large extent, faculty believed that the IL competencies of students, including their ability to find, use and evaluate information, was average at the lower …

Plenary Session: The State Of Information Literacy Policy: A Global Priority, Sharon A. Weiner

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

This was a plenary presentation given at the XXIV IAALD World Congress on July 22, 2013, at Cornell University. It described international information literacy policy with examples from different countries and organizations. It clarified definitions of information literacy and policy; discussed information policy in relation to global challenges; and addressing the challenges.

Incorporating Online Instruction In Academic Libraries: Getting Ahead Of The Curve, Pauline Dewan, Michael Steeleworthy

Library Publications

A sea change in higher education is shaping the way many libraries deliver instruction to their students and faculty. Years of technological innovation and changes in the way that people discover and use information has made online instruction an essential part of a library's teaching and learning program. In order to evaluate our library's online instruction program and to determine its future goals, we analyzed the technology, pedagogical models, organizational structures, administrative supports, and partnerships we would need in order to succeed. Our findings may be useful for libraries reassessing their own online instruction programs.

Using A Research Log And Reflective Writing To Improve Ebp And Information Literacy Skills Of Bsn Students, Suzanne E. Zentz, Kimberly J. Whalen

Library Faculty Presentations

Background Baccalaureate nursing educators must prepare nurses to implement evidence-based practice (EBP). BSN nurses must be able to effectively identify, analyze, and synthesize evidence (AACN, 2008). In a nursing research course, students conducted group projects which required searching for the best evidence. Project evaluations revealed that students were not searching systematically. To facilitate EBP and information literacy skill development, a collaboration between the College of Nursing and Library Services emerged.

Targeted Learning Outcomes 1. Formulate a strategic search using databases and Internet resources 2. Evaluate and select the ‘best available’ evidence 3. Document systematic search (keywords, subject headings, limiters, and …

Returning To Learn: Research And The Prodigal Student, Emily Ford, Meredith G. Farkas, Molly Blalock-Koral

Library Faculty Publications and Presentations

Returning students - those with a significant lapse in time during their formal education - make up a large and growing percentage of the student population at Portland State University (PSU). Over 40% of PSU undergraduates are over 26 years of age and 21% of graduate students over 39. Given returning students’ experiences in the work force, motivations for learning, and the lapse of time since conducting academic research, returning students may approach research differently than traditional students. Despite the size of this student population at PSU and the growth of the returning student demographic in higher education, very little …

Strategizing For Public Policy: The Information Literacy State Proclamation Project, Sharon A. Weiner, Lana W. Jackman, Emily Prause

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

This paper describes a project designed to raise the awareness of policymakers about the importance of information literacy to achieve societal goals. Issues benefit from the governmental support, prioritization, mandates, and funding that can result when there is policy behind them. Studies indicate that many people lack the ability to draw on quality sources of information for a variety of purposes. Attention by policymakers would accelerate the inclusion of information literacy in settings such as education, workforce training, citizenship preparation, and lifelong learning. One way to raise awareness of policymakers is by recommending a proclamation to government executives.

Teaching Information Literacy For Life: Addressing The Issues, Sharon A. Weiner

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Information literacy is not only a critical competency for academic success, but also for decision-making and problem-solving in the workplace and in everyday life. This presentation discussed what we know about finding and using information in these contexts. It explored key issues such as:

What does information literacy mean in the workplace and in everyday life?

How does it differ from information literacy for students?

What are the issues and how can they be addressed?

The implications for policy included an update on the work of the National Forum on Information Literacy.

Assessing History Student Research Activity And Learning Outcomes Through The Understanding Library Impacts Project, Jessica Hronchek

Faculty Presentations

In an era when academic libraries increasingly need to justify their budgets and impact to campus administrators, there is a growing necessity for helpful assessment tools. Engaging in this current trend of “demonstrating value,” this liberal arts college sought to explore areas of impact through a focused study on one particular department with known high library activity. For the past two years the library and the history department have partnered with an outside project called Understanding Library Impacts. Beginning with a beta-test of a quantitative and qualitative survey tool in upper-level courses and later expanding to history courses at all …

Sketching Success: Assessing Learning Outcomes With Concept Maps, Heidi Gauder, Fred W. Jenkins

Roesch Library Faculty Presentations

Learn how one library uses concept maps to conduct both quick and in-depth assessments of student learning. This technique evolved into a more formal assessment with pre- and post-testing for both one-shot instruction sessions and semester-long research classes. After transcribing the concepts to spreadsheets, librarians standardize the terms and map them to ACRL Information Literacy Standards for more rigorous analysis and assessment. Discover how concept maps can be easily utilized for assessment.

Making Il Relevant: Inspiring Student Engagement Through Faculty-Librarian Collaboration, Meggan D. Smith, Amy B. Dailey, Kayla M. Lenkner, Kelly Ruffini

All Musselman Library Staff Works

This panel presentation addresses some of the issues around creating meaningful, relevant assignments and breaking information literacy instruction into manageable segments. It's also about generating enthusiasm for a topic by close collaboration with faculty from the very start.

Community Engagement: Computer Skills For The Homeless, Fannie Cox

Faculty Scholarship

What does it mean to provide information literacy skills? The number of homeless people is growing regardless of their socio-economic status, age, gender, race, religion, or ethnicity. An Outreach Librarian from a university developed a community partnership to teach computer skills to residents of a homeless shelter. This paper presents the benefits, impacts, and outcomes of these classes for both the residents and librarians.

Serving Those Who Serve: Outreach And Instruction For Student Cadets And Veterans, Nancy E. Fawley, Nikki Kyrsak

Library Faculty Publications

Student cadets and veterans new to college have unique academic needs, and the abrupt switch from civilian to Corps life for new students at a military university can be challenging. Likewise, transitioning from military life to civilian life as a veteran student can be overwhelming. The libraries at Norwich University and The University of Alabama are supporting programs to assist new students in the transition from civilian to Corps life and from military to civilian life, respectively. While these students are at different stages of their military careers, cadets and veterans have common attributes that inform library support and instruction, …

At The Nexus Of Scholarly Communication And Information Literacy, Marianne A. Buehler, Anne E. Zald

Library Faculty Publications

Introduction

Graduate students embarking upon a new phase in their educational careers may not realize the range of expectations, particularly the cocurricular or extracurricular expectation to participate in the scholarly communication process. Unforeseen faculty expectations may include a requirement to publish or copublish an article in order to pass a graduate course or to engage in grant-funded research that will result in conference presentations or publications. Learning about the publication process provides a key transitional experience between the independent intellectual endeavor of conducting research for course assignments and the social dynamics of being a professional researcher or scholar, interacting with …

One-Shot Or Embedded? Assessing Different Delivery Timing For Information Resources Relevant To Assignments, Amy S. Van Epps, Megan R. Sapp Nelson

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Objective – This study aims to determine if the timing of library in-class presentations make a difference in the type and quality of resources students use for each of four assignments in an introductory speech class. This comparison of content delivery timing contrasts a single, 50-minute lecture early in the semester with four, approximately 12-minute lectures offered just before each assignment.

Methods – First-year engineering students taking Fundamentals of Speech Communication provide the study group. Each speech assignment requires students to turn in an outline and list of references. The list of references for each student was given to the …

The Rubric: An Assessment Odyssey., Elisa Slater Acosta, Susan Archambault

LMU Librarian Publications & Presentations

No abstract provided.

Learning From Recent British Information Literacy Models: A Report To Acrl's Information Literacy Competency Standards For Higher Education Task Force, Justine Martin

Library Services Publications

Information literacy is a fluid concept, shaped by our experiences, and changes in our information rich society. Guidelines articulating information literacy need modification to reflect the current form of this evolving concept. This report highlights the work of four groups in the United Kingdom to create innovative guidelines to assist practitioners in the promotion and teaching of information literacy.