Library and Information Science Commons^™

Types Of Sources: Online Module For First Year Writing, Hannah Cabullo, Bekah Dreyer-Rowe

New England Library Instruction Group

We created this Types of Sources module as one of four library modules for all sections of First Year Writing this fall. It is an asynchronous, online module delivered through Canvas, our institution’s learning management system, and consists of some reading, two short videos, and three discussion-board-based activities. The first activity, at the very beginning of the lesson, is intended to get students to start thinking about the characteristics of different types of sources. In the activity, students pick a type of resource (e.g. podcasts, scholarly journal articles, social media, etc.) from a list, answer some questions about it, and …

Mapping Out Your Research: From Topic Selection To A Thesis Statement, Alicia G. Vaandering, Lindsay Lachapelle

New England Library Instruction Group

Co-taught by an instruction librarian and a Writing Center coordinator, this lesson supports history students in exploring a topic and preparing for subsequent research and writing. The first and primary piece of this lesson centers on a topic speed dating activity that encourages students to look beyond the most obvious elements and narratives of their topic and seek nuance and unique perspectives through guided discussion with a peer. This is followed by a class discussion on the role that divergent thinking plays in developing a research question and some time for students to draft their own potential research question. Finally, …

Evaluation Beyond The Binary: Information Literacy For Core 103, Susan Adkins, Bethany Dietrich, Jes Mattera

New England Library Instruction Group

Our team of teaching librarians co-created this lesson as part of Champlain College’s Core 103 course, Navigating Your Information Landscape. Core is Champlain’s version of general education. Core’s four-year curriculum is interdisciplinary education with a focus on critical thinking, collaborative skills, and learning by doing. We will deliver the lesson to all Champlain College first-year students next semester via an online Canvas module. Students will engage with the lesson asynchronously. Librarians will interact with the students throughout their participation in the module.

Our Canvas instructional module focuses specifically on evaluation with an emphasis on the impact of the positionality of …

The Covid-19 Misinformation Challenge: Asynchronous Learning About (And During!) A Pandemic, Jennifer Bonnet, Senta Sellers

New England Library Instruction Group

In early 2020, the coronavirus pandemic ushered in a “new normal.” During this time, the world witnessed a prevalence of misinformation about COVID-19, on social media, in the news, and in academic publishing. We saw this emerging landscape as an opportunity to help people think critically about ways to combat false or misleading information. The result: The COVID-19 Misinformation Challenge.

Each day for five days, participants received tasks designed to test their knowledge of the coronavirus. They evaluated memes, doctors, news headlines, treatments, and some of the science behind the virus.

Join us for an interactive tour of the challenge! …

Creating A (Bright)Space For Library Instruction, Maureen A. Perry, Elizabeth Bull, Megan Macgregor

New England Library Instruction Group

Creating a (Bright)Space for Library Instruction

Students come into class with varied levels of preparation for college-level research. Faculty had little time to spare for library instruction prior to COVID 19, and the move to online instruction has left them with even less time.

As these things were happening across higher education, the University of Maine system was changing learning management systems, leading to a steep learning curve for everyone. The University of Southern Maine Libraries saw an opportunity to address these challenges and remain visible to faculty.

The reference librarians created a series of information literacy modules for instructors …

Creating, Using, And Remixing Online Learning Objects And Multimodal Lesson Plans For Asynchronous And Synchronous Learning, Blake Spitz

New England Library Instruction Group

This presentation covers online teaching practices and technologies for remote (a)synchronous library instruction. While discussing various learning objects - digital surrogates, accessible videos, questionnaires, and interactive spaces - the focus is on hyperdoc style lesson plans combining resources into consolidated and accessible presentations. Hyperdoc lesson plans frame multimodal presentation and learning during classes, remain as legacy teaching objects for asynchronous and repeat learning, are adaptable into several formats for increased accessibility, and, with reuse and remixing, can aid in creating and marketing sustainable teaching programs. Examples of lesson plans, learning objects, activities, technologies, and dual purpose synchronous and asynchronous content …

The Fave Is Problematic: Leaving One-Shots Through A Feminist Approach To Designing An Instruction Program, Nicole Pagowsky

New England Library Instruction Group

The University of Arizona Libraries has a coordinated instruction program for its 13 liaisons on a campus of over 40k. Various iterations of instructional approaches have cycled throughout the years, with one-shots sessions often dominating. Rather than continue the one-shot cycle, the program is intended to center feminist, collaborative approaches with faculty; incorporate critical pedagogy into philosophy and practice; and provide liaisons with more agency to have greater instructional partnerships. This presentation will provide background and discuss planning and documentation of the program, and share successes, challenges, and thoughts for the future.

Curiosity As Outreach: Flipping Outreach On Its Head, Paulina Borrego, Anne Graham, Ellen Lutz, Melanie Radik, Rebecca Reznik-Zellen

University Libraries Publication Series

Science and Engineering Library staff at the University of Massachusetts Amherst visited several sites on campus in a novel outreach initiative that involved all nine staff members taking “field trips” without agendas. We demonstrate that outreach without the explicit goal of promoting a specific resource or service can be an effective use of time, and can build social capital that shares the goals of traditional outreach. Involving all staff in this outreach effort was a valuable team building experience, exposing the depth of our interests and expertise to each other and to our campus community.

Too Taboo For You? - Questions, Lessons, And Strategies For Engaging Students With Challenging Materials, Blake Spitz

University Libraries Presentations Series

This talk will briefly present experiences of, and strategies for, teaching with challenging topics and materials in archives. In recognizing that our collections include (or have archival silences around) challenging, controversial, and even disturbing topics, when and why do we decide to share and prioritize these records, and how do we present and contextualize them for students? I will present a few case studies from my work presenting difficult records and topics to undergraduates, and some of my professional training and growth in these areas. I would love to start a dialogue, and hear from others in reaction to my, …

Women's Stories, W. E. B. Du Bois Papers Data, Blake Spitz

University Libraries Presentations Series

The UMass Amherst department of Special Collections and University Archives (SCUA) collects original materials that document the histories and experiences of social change in America and the organizational, intellectual, and individual ties that unite disparate struggles for social justice, human dignity, and equality. SCUA’s decision to adopt social change as a collecting focus emerged from our holding of the W.E.B. Du Bois Papers, and one of Du Bois’s most profound insights: that the most fundamental issues in social justice are so deeply interconnected that no movement — and no solution to social ills — can succeed in isolation. I …

Moving Archival Instruction Online - Creating Asynchronous, Interactive, Accessible, Multimodal Playlist-Style Lesson Plans, Blake Spitz

University Libraries Presentations Series

In this presentation I share the results of my deep-dive into the worlds of online teaching pedagogy, technology for accessible and active online learning, and best practices for teaching with digitized primary sources; my technology selections, for DIY (at home) creation of accessible videos and screencasts, questionnaires, and interactive spaces; and focus on my final product, a hyperlinked (hyperdoc) playlist style asynchronous lesson plan, with diverse information presentation modes, interactive activities, and some student choice. This lesson plan is easily adaptable by adding, editing, or removing various components for different class groups, and is in several formats to help increase …