Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Supporting Digital Problem Solving, Tyler Frank

Presentations and Publications

This presentation draws from findings based on a three-year research project with the goal of achieving greater digital equity for adult learners in libraries. This project addresses digital problem solving, a unique task adults face in today’s age of ubiquitous technology use. Marginalized and under-resourced digital users face challenges of access not only to high-speed Internet but also to getting the support they need for their digital learning and problem solving. Libraries are uniquely positioned to support these learners. However, this calls for techniques and tools to assist digital users in accomplishing their goals as they continue to develop their …

Advancing Digital Equity In Public Libraries: Assessing Library Patrons’ Problem Solving In Technology Rich Environments, Gloria Jacobs

Presentations and Publications

This mixed methods research examined the digital problem solving processes of vulnerable adults within the community setting of a public library. Data were collected from approximately 450 library users who completed a library survey, a subset who completed PIAACs Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments (PSTRE) assessment, and a smaller subset who participated in an observation protocol. Quantitative analysis revealed that library website use was a strong predictor of PSTRE scores. Qualitative analysis showed that digital problem solving needs to be seen as a set of contexts and events that are dynamic across different situations. In order to respond to …

Executive Summary, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Presentations and Publications

The Advancing Digital Equity in Public Libraries: Assessing Library Patrons’ Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments research project was supported by a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant. It was conducted over the course of 3 years in cooperation with the Multnomah County Library in Portland, Oregon. The research was guided by a national advisory group made up of scholars and practitioners in the fields of adult education, digital literacies, online reading and research, and library services.

Project Summary, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Presentations and Publications

Summary of the project, Advancing Digital Equity in Public Libraries: Assessing Library Patrons’ Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments.

The purpose of the research was to examine and understand the digital problem solving processes of vulnerable adults.

Digital Problem Solving: The Literacies Of Navigating Life In The Digital Age, Gloria Jacobs, Jill Castek

Presentations and Publications

Digital problem solving reflects an individual’s ability to navigate and use multiple digital resources in order to accomplish goals across domains including work, personal interests, educational pursuits, social or professional networking, civic participation, and for future uses not yet conceptualized. To accomplish these goals, individuals need to enact everyday literacies (Knobel, 1999) that include: “asking questions, constructing meaning from [information and] data, generating [and sharing] creative solutions, and reflecting on how to improve these solutions for different contexts” (Manderino & Castek, 2016, p. 79). As individuals move through daily lives, they are constantly traversing disciplines as they collect information and …

Advancing Digital Skills For Problem Solving In Technology-Rich Environments, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs

Presentations and Publications

Digital and disciplinary literacies are not simply tools or cognitive behaviors. They have the potential to provide opportunities for students to better understand themselves, their communities, and their world. The presentation examines ways of conceptualizing and understanding digital literacies and disciplinary learning and consider implications for teacher education and community outreach efforts.

Examining Adult Learners’ Digital Problem Solving In Libraries Using A Learning Typology, Jill Castek, Amy Honisett

Presentations and Publications

In this presentation, we shared our emerging findings around what constitutes digital problem solving and the approaches and strategies digital problem solvers use.

From Digital Literacies To Digital Problem Solving: Expanding Technology-Rich Learning Opportunities For Adults, Tyler Frank, Jill Castek

Presentations and Publications

A window into an adult basic education (ABE) class shows several learners typing essays on laptops. Suddenly one student throws her hands up in the air loudly exclaiming, “I didn’t do anything! The computer just erased everything! It wasn’t me, it was the computer!” This scenario is all too familiar with new-to-computer users. Over time, this learner has developed more confidence and digital literacies, and has since passed the Language Arts GED test. However the technology skills needed in the workplace and in daily life go beyond those needed for test taking. Yet computers in adult education classrooms are most …

Research Into Action: Skills Assessment And Training To Support A Digital Equity Action Plan, Cindy Gibbon, Jill Castek

Presentations and Publications

This presentation focuses on digital problem solving skills in libraries.

Digital Equity In Libraries: Understanding The Problem Solving Skills Of Adults, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon

Presentations and Publications

Webinar introduces the purpose of the project as it relates to the collaboration between the library and researchers. The webinar also shares where the project is at with data collection and what it means.

Teaching For Digital Equity: Examining Digital Problem Solving In A Public Library, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs

Presentations and Publications

Presentation focuses on emerging findings around what constitutes digital problem solving and the approaches and strategies digital problem solvers use.

Examining Digital Problem Solving Skills In Libraries To Promote Digital Equity, Gloria Jacobs, Jill Castek

Presentations and Publications

This presentation was part of the digital skills and inequality session and focuses digital problem solving and the approaches and strategies digital problem solvers use.

Understanding Our Patrons’ Needs In Order To Thrive Together In A Digital Environment, Amy Honisett, Cindy Gibbon

Presentations and Publications

Data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) shows that adults in the US are less skilled in digital problem solving than in many other countries. As more of our communication, creation and learning moves online, how do we help our patrons thrive in a new environment, and how do we transform our training and resources so the library thrives, too?

We used a digital problem solving assessment tool from PIAAC to find out if our patrons’ skills matched up with national data, and we mapped the digital skills we assessed to common library tasks. Results …

Developing Sustainable Partnerships To Advance Digital Equity, Jill Castek, Cindy Gibbon, Gloria Jacobs

Presentations and Publications

In the early 2000s, inequities surrounding affordable Internet access brought the digital divide into public consciousness. Over time, practitioners and researchers working to address this divide have revealed a persistent, wider gap that includes inequities in social support networks (DiMaggio & Hargittai, 2001). Jenkins et al. (2006) identified a participation gap in using and interacting with digital tools. Evolving conversations have produced a broader conceptualization of the issues through the lens of digital inclusion and digital equity (Siefer, 2016). Those on the wrong side of the digital divide need digital literacy training, access to technical support, and the applications and …

Assessing Problem Solving In Technology Rich Environments Within A Public Library, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs

Presentations and Publications

The presentation focuses on how critical thinking and a range of digital literacy skills may influence the ability to solve web-based information problems in diverse educational settings.

Digging Deeper: Can Patrons Use Our Resources, And Are Basic Digital Literacy Classes Enough?, Cindy Gibbon, Jill Castek

Presentations and Publications

We know our resources are easy to use and our patron training is relevant...don’t we? International assessment data show the US population scores below the international average in problem solving in technology-rich environments. At risk of disrupting the status quo, a public library collaborates with an urban university on a project funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services to assess patrons’ skills. Results will help inform how library services and digital content are presented and will help ensure patron training content includes meaningful skills. Come learn how our research might reflect the needs of your patrons.

What’S Their Story? Using An Online Assessment Tool To Learn About Patron Skills, Amy Honisett

Presentations and Publications

We believe our patrons can use our electronic resources, but international assessment data tell a different story. The US population scores below the international average in problem solving in technology-rich environments, so Multnomah County Library and Portland State University are collaborating on a project funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services to assess patrons' online abilities and how those abilities map to common library tasks. Results will help inform how online library services are presented and will help ensure computer class content includes meaningful skills.

Exploring How Problem Solving In Technology-Rich Environments Can Be Used To Design Responsive Programming, Jill Castek, Amy Honisett

Presentations and Publications

This session explored a project that assesses community members’ digital skills using Education and Skills Online (ESO) – a valid and reliable assessment tool based on PIAAC that addresses Literacy, Numeracy, and Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments (PS-TRE). The project will use these data to determine how the abilities of patrons map to the common library tasks that libraries assume patrons are able to access and use in a meaningful way.

Why Digital Problem Solving Matters: A Closer Look At How Education And Skills Online Can Be Used To Inform Educational Outreach Efforts, Jill Castek, Cindy Gibbon

Presentations and Publications

This presentation focuses digital problem solving and the approaches and strategies digital problem solvers use.

Leveraging Research To Inform Better Practice, Jill Castek

Presentations and Publications

Panel focused on the importance of research being designed strategically from the very beginning and thinking about dissemination at the outset of every project design, not as an afterthought.

Operationalizing Success In A Digital Learning Environment Designed To Support Vulnerable Adults, Elizabeth Withers, Jill Castek, Robert Fountain, Drew Pizzolato, Kimberly D. Pendell, Gloria Jacobs, Stephen Reder

Presentations and Publications

This study seeks to examine patterns of successful learning identified when economically vulnerable, underserved, and high-need adults engaged in self-access, tutor facilitated learning to acquire digital literacy. In large part, this diverse population of learners has been left behind in the digital revolution, thus compounding their social, economic, and educational disadvantages. These individuals have unique patterns of engagement within educational endeavors, at times dropping in and out of programs as a result of social and economic impediments that permeate their lives. Traditional means of identifying success in their learning endeavors inadequately describe the paths these learners take on the road …

Using Piaac’S Education And Skills Online To Examine Adults' Skills Locally, Jill Castek, Amy Honisett, Drew Pizzolato, Stephen Reder

Presentations and Publications

This session will explore Education and Skills Online (ESO) – a valid and reliable assessment tool based on PIAAC that addresses Literacy, Numeracy, and Problem Solving in Technology Rich Environments (PS-TRE). This project will use ESO’s PS-TRE together with the North Star Assessment to assess the digital literacy skills of library patrons.

Executive Summary: Tutor-Facilitated Digital Literacy Acquisition, Gloria Jacobs, Jill Castek, Drew Pizzolato, Kimberly D. Pendell, Elizabeth Withers, Stephen Reder

Presentations and Publications

The Tutor-Facilitated Digital Literacy Acquisition in Hard-to-Serve Populations research project was supported by a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant. It was conducted over the course of 3 years in cooperation with five partners across the United States, which were participating in a project funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Broadband Opportunities Technology Program (BTOP). All phases of the research were guided by two national advisory groups made up of scholars and practitioners in the field of adult education and digital literacy.

Production And Consumption: A Closer Look At Adult Digital Literacy Acquisition, Gloria Jacobs, Jill Castek, Drew Pizzolato, Stephen Reder, Kimberly D. Pendell

Presentations and Publications

In this column, the authors discuss emerging research in the field of adult digital literacy acquisition. The authors argue that the field of adult digital literacy acquisition has been under researched, especially in relation to multiliteracies and multimodal literacy practices. Data emerging from a large scale mixed methods study of adults engaged with Learner Web, a selfaccess online learning system, indicate that opportunities to engage in tutor-facilitated digital literacy acquisition, among populations that have been historically left out of the digital revolution, has the potential to change lives. Additionally, the research provides insights into the shifts learners undergo as they …