Information Literacy Commons^™

Democratic Belonging As Informed Citizenry - Empowering Faculty To Empower Learners Via Information Literacy, Anna Santucci, Amanda K. Izenstark, Mary C. Macdonald

Public Services Faculty Presentations

Presentation at the AAC&U 2022 Annual Meeting as a Pre-Meeting Workshop.

Responsible citizens need the agility to navigate a changing information landscape. Intentionally designing learning experiences that integrate accessible Information Literacy (IL) skills for all students is a crucial step towards educational justice, a paramount responsibility in the democratic mission of our institutions. With this goal, the University of Rhode Island’s Office for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning has partnered with instruction librarians since 2018 in developing and facilitating a High Impact Teaching Seminar for faculty. Participants will learn about the seminar’s theoretical framework, impact and structure, engage in …

Crowdsourced Pedagogy: Editing Wikipedia And The Framework For Information Literacy For Higher Education, Courtney Stine

Faculty Scholarship

Although often used by students for academic research, Wikipedia has historically been ignored or shunned by librarians in the information literacy classroom. However, as one of the most popular websites worldwide, Wikipedia matters. Visitors frequent Wikipedia to get free access to information, reference articles for background information during current events, and as a starting point for further research. Librarians can implement Wikipedia as a crowdsourced pedagogical tool for teaching students the six information literacy threshold concepts in the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

Writing and editing Wikipedia articles showcases the research process, requiring students to understand how …

Information Literacy Among Students Of Regional Institute Of Paramedical And Nursing Science (Ripans) Aizawl, Mizoram., Ruth Lalthlamuanpuii, Lalngaizuali Ph.D, R. K. Ngurtinkhuma Ph.D

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The research looks into the information literacy skills of students at RIPANS Aizawl, Mizoram. To accomplish the goal, structured questionnaires were distributed to 150 respondents, of which 144 received questionnaires. There were 6 departments, and 25 questionnaires were distributed to students from each department. The results show that several students understand how to access and use information to meet their needs. They go on to say that they needed more information literacy awareness to become information literate, and that they needed a large number of books with the most recent editions in the library to have reliable information. They also …

Uniting The Field: Using The Acrl Visual Literacy Competency Standards To Move Beyond The Definition Problem Of Visual Literacy, Dana Thompson, Stephanie Beene

Faculty & Staff Research and Creative Activity

Visual literacy has evolved alongside information literacy and media literacy, reflecting social, technological, and cultural changes. Rapidly advancing technology, multimodal access to information and disinformation, and political rhetoric increasingly impact the perception, trust, and use of visual media. These broader technological and cultural shifts also change what it means to be a visually literate individual in the twenty-first century. Although much has been written about visual literacy, there is very little that reviews scholarship that uses the 2011 ACRL Visual Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. Through an analysis of 196 articles published from 2011 to 2019, this study …

Increasing Our Reach While Preserving Quality: Creating And Using Information Literacy Assessments And Rubrics For Non-Librarians, Rory Patterson, Angela Rice, Jeremy Roden

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2013

No abstract provided.

Student Information Use And Decision-Making In Innovation Competitions And The Impact Of Librarian Interventions, Heather A. Howard, Dave Zwicky

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

At a large Midwestern university, librarians work closely with an annual undergraduate agricultural innovation competition to guide students through the process of conducting market research and assessing patentability. In 2018, the authors conducted an exploratory study using focus groups of students who had participated in that year’s competition in order to learn how students find and use information in a competition setting, to evaluate the impact of library support on the students’ success, and inform further assessment activities. Results showed that students used information from the library and from their own research, notably seeking out first-hand expertise, to practice evidence-based …

The Potential Of Industry Standards In Undergraduate Education, Heather A. Howard, Margaret Phillips, Alyson Vaaler, David Hubbard

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Industry standards have a significant impact on business as a means to eliminate waste, reduce costs, market products (e.g., for quality, safety, interoperability) and lessen liability (Thompson, 2011). Consequently, an understanding and the ability to use standards, agreed upon practices among interested or vested parties, is a critical workplace competency for those engaged in business and industry. To have a workforce competent in the use of standards, higher education curricula must be developed to integrate standards education at appropriate points within the curriculum. Despite the importance of standards, they are not universally integrated into the college and university curricula. Given …

Making Local Knowledge Visible: An Ir In Kosovo, Michele Gibney

University Libraries Librarian and Staff Presentations

In 2017, a joint international effort commenced under the direction of the President of University for Business and Technology (UBT) in Kosovo with colleagues from Linnaeus University (Sweden) and University for the Pacific (USA) to define, create and populate a Knowledge Center for UBT which would include an institutional repository (IR). Enlivened by discussion and feedback from the intended recipients, the needs and goals of a UBT IR were identified. Of course, creating and populating an IR is a lengthy process with many potential problems and varied approaches. Discussion of best practices was undertaken early and currently, the UBT Knowledge …

Open Education Week @ Gettysburg College 2019, Lauren Ashley Bradford

All Musselman Library Staff Works

During Open Education Week 2019, Musselman Library's Department of Scholarly Communications educated the campus community about issues of textbook affordability and about the development of Open Educational Resources. This poster provides basic information about what Open Education is and how it is a response to the high cost of course materials, which creates barriers for many students who cannot afford to purchase their books. Open Education seeks to create equitable access to all course materials and transform traditional ideas about pedagogy.

Teaching Students To Critically Read Digital Images: A Visual Literacy Approach Using The Dig Method, Dana Statton Thompson

Faculty & Staff Research and Creative Activity

This innovative teaching idea, the Digital Image Guide (DIG) Method, addresses the pressing need to develop visual pedagogies in the university classroom by providing a technique for students to use to critically read digital images. This article also introduces the concept of shallow and deep images. It then explains the difference between the two types of images and how to use the DIG Method to dig deeper in order to understand deep images. By utilizing the DIG Method, students can learn to analyze, interpret, evaluate and comprehend images found on social media sites and around the web, increasing …

The Sociological And Humanistic Problem Of ‘Fake News,’ As It Applies To All Subjects, Including Scientific Research And Theories In The Public Sphere, Andrée Rathemacher, Amanda Izenstark

Technical Services Faculty Presentations

The main file available here contains the notes taken by student note-taker Kaleigh Miech during the Café Salon Discussion “The Sociological and Humanistic Problem of ‘Fake News,’ As It Applies to All Subjects, Including Scientific Research and Theories in the Public Sphere.” The discussion took place on January 17, 2019 as part of the University of Rhode Island 11th Annual Academic Summit. It was facilitated by Profs. Andrée Rathemacher and Amanda Izenstark.

Supplemental files include:

• An opening introduction prepared by the facilitators
• The official 11th Annual Academic Summit Program
• Café Salon Facilitator Guide

Problem-Based Learning And Information Literacy: Revising A Technical Writing Class, Kelly Diamond

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

This chapter discusses the collaboration between a librarian and faculty member to revise an online technical writing course using the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy, problem-based learning, and instructional design principles. The chapter outlines three components of course revision: 1) re-design online course to be more engaging to students as well as easier to navigate; 2) create assignments and activities to mirror actual workplace writing tasks; 3) develop research assignments focused on information literacy skills used in the workplace. Using elements from ADDIE (Analyze; Design; Develop; Implement; Evaluate) and Backward Design, the course …

The Information Literacy Continuum: Mapping The Acrl Framework To The Aasl School Library Standards, Elizabeth Burns, Melissa Gross, Don Latham

STEMPS Faculty Publications

The Association for College and Research Libraries (ACRL) and the American Association for School Libraries (AASL), two major divisions of the American Library Association (ALA), both recently released new guidelines. These documents form the basis for information literacy and library skills instruction for PK-20 education. In this study, we explored the alignment between these documents to identify the continuum of knowledge and skill expectations as well as the dispositional attributes toward information literacy that learners are presented. Our findings identified where the content of the ACRL Framework and AASL Standards Framework for Learners documents is strongly aligned as well as …

Comics, Questions, Action! Engaging Students And Instruction Librarians With The Comics-Questions Curriculum, Stephanie Margolin, Mason Brown, Sarah Laleman Ward

Publications and Research

In a four-session Summer Bridge programme, we experimented with new curricular and pedagogical ideas with a group of incoming freshmen. We developed the Comics-Questions Curriculum (CQC), which melds students’ question asking with a focus on comics. The purpose of this paper is to describe the rationale for and ongoing development of the CQC as well as the ways the CQC fosters engagement of students and librarians, builds upon students’ existing skills but propels them forward toward college-level work, and positions librarians as partners in students’ college work. Although it was designed for a specific purpose initially, the CQC in its …

University Libraries Materials Budget: Spring 2018, Sue Polanka, Karen Wilhoit

University Libraries' Staff Publications

The University Libraries’ mission is to provide exceptional research services and resources to facilitate faculty and student success. We strive to uphold this mission in all we do. Our budget remains a challenge however, and limits our ability to provide exceptional resources. The Libraries’ materials budget has been flat or reduced every year since 2009. During that time, journal prices have increased an average of 5% to 6% per year, and book prices have increased an average of 1% to 2% per year. Because our budget has not kept pace with inflation, we have been forced to cancel over 800 …

Examining Student Perceptions Of Their Knowledge, Roles, And Power In The Information Cycle, Lucinda Rush

Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

This project report describes a collaborative effort between librarians, staff, local journalists and students at Old Dominion University (Norfolk, VA) to provide a venue for a discussion about ‘fake news’. Post-event questionnaire results are analysed to explore what students learned as a result of attending the event as well as student perceptions of their own understanding and ownership of the roles that they can play in the information cycle.

What Clues Tell You Something Is True? Empowering Students To Find Evidence, Amanda Izenstark

Public Services Faculty Presentations

Slides from a presentation for the third regional Friends Education Conference: Discerning Truth in a Post-Fact World: A Friends Education Conference for Librarians and Educators, held October 13, 2017, in Providence, RI.

Instruction @ The Uri Libraries - May 2017, Mary Macdonald, Amanda Izenstark

Instruction @ the URI Libraries

No abstract provided.

Let’S Go Deeper! Creating Threshold Learning Opportunities With The Il Framework, Amanda Starkel, Sally Neal

Scholarship and Professional Work

No abstract provided.

Going Beyond The One-Shot: Spiraling Information Literacy Across Four Year, Shawna E. Egan, Alan Witt, Shawna M. Chartier

Milne Library

Many institutions overwhelm the first year seminar with “one-shot” library instruction sessions, which are not necessarily linked to any form of assignment or assessment. So how can librarians maintain information literacy instruction throughout a student's academic career? Data collected by the Rivier University librarians showcases the ability to implement information literacy more effectively by streamlining and leveling it out over a four-year period.

Reorienting An Information Literacy Program Toward Social Justice: Mapping The Core Values Of Librarianship To The Acrl Framework, Shana Higgins, Lua Gregory

Library Faculty Publications & Presentations

Since the publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries' (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education librarians have grappled with the purposes, impact, and meaning of this teaching document for their daily instructional practice, for curriculum development, and for institutional and programmatic assessment goals. A strength of the Framework is its emphasis on context, an emphasis aligned with the goals of critical pedagogy and one that acknowledges investment in specific community needs. This article reflects on an attempt to contextualize the Framework for an information literacy program concerned with social justice and student agency by connecting it …

Faculty-Librarian Collaboration: Applying Metacognitive Pedagogy To The Research Process, Heather K. Beirne, Nicole Montgomery

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Metacognition is a current buzzword in higher education. But what does it mean for the research process? Presenters and attendees will brainstorm together to come up with good, better and best concrete strategies for collaboration between subject faculty and librarians to integrate metacognition into research instruction.

Peer Support For The Development Of Information And Digital Literacy Skills At The Institute Of Technology Tallaght, Philip Russell, Gerard Ryder

Conference Papers

This paper presents the work of the Peer Assisted Learning Support Programme (PALS) at the Institute of Technology Tallaght (ITT Dublin) which was initiated in September 2014.

All first year students at ITT Dublin must complete a five credit module called Learning to Learn at Third Level (L2L). This module was introduced in 2012 to develop a range of core academic and information and digital literacy skills including research, writing, critical thinking and referencing skills. Collaborative work between the Library at ITT Dublin and the Department of Mechanical Engineering on this module has focused on the development of a range …

Rethinking The Concept Of “Information Literacy”: A German Perspective, Rares G. Piloiu

Library Faculty & Staff Scholarship

The purpose of this article is to draw attention to the original and diverse approaches to the concept of information literacy in the German academic world. Unlike the American notion of information literacy, whose pedagogy, methodology and conceptualization follow guidelines set forth by powerful professional organisations such as ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) and ALA (American Library Association), the German notion of information literacy is still negotiated on an interdisciplinary market of ideas ranging from communication science to didactics and from cultural anthropology to epistemology. An awareness of this international perspective on information literacy is timely, given the …

One Minute Tips: Take Two! Student Perceptions Of Videos Used For Information Literacy Instruction, Lucinda Rush, Rachel Lux, Christopher Lawton, Megan Smith

Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

Digital learning objects are all the rage, but what does the YouTube generation think? We will discuss student perceptions of videos used for information literacy instruction and methods for incorporating short videos into assessable learning activities.

Flipping The Business Information Literacy Classroom: Redesign, Implementation And Assessment Of A Case Study, Ilana Stonebraker

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

A team of librarians at Purdue University transformed a business information literacy course from a traditional lecture, 40-student class into multiple sections of a flipped, 70-student classroom to meet the request that the successful course be required for all 500 undergraduate students. Scaling up required the adoption of flipped learning techniques for better utilization of library teaching resources. This case study provides key insights for others implementing credit classes or integrating similar content into one-shots or embedded work. It also describes the assessed results determined through student feedback (focus groups) and student performance (pre/post-tests).

Data Information Literacy And Undergraduates: A Critical Competency, Yasmeen Shorish

Libraries

As a primer on data information literacy (DIL), this column will cover the background of the field and why it is relevant to college and university libraries serving undergraduate populations. This article includes how data information literacy relates to information literacy, competencies associated with DIL, the relevance of DIL to undergraduates, DIL in library instruction, and the reasons for library engagement with DIL. Examining DIL within the larger framework of information literacy can help outreach and instruction librarians engage with a format that may be unfamiliar to them but whose underlying foundation is well-established.

Tutorials: Resource Instruction For Distance Learners, Pam Greenlee

Faculty Scholarship – Library Science

Academic librarians, devoted to providing resources and services for learners, find both opportunity and challenge in the continuing growth of online programs in higher education. The technology tools available for online courses are also available to librarians seeking to support those courses with research and information literacy skills instruction. Researchers have delineated factors necessary for achieving defined learning outcomes with online tutorials. These factors include assignment relevance, faculty collaboration, and student interaction. A fourth issue emerges as equally critical; there must be a single iteration of the tutorial, posted in an unique online location, and subject to dynamic revision. There …

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.

High-Impact Educational Practices: An Exploration Of The Role Of Information Literacy, Catherine Fraser Riehle, Sharon A. Weiner

UNL Libraries: Faculty Publications

There is an expectation that college students graduate with competency in information literacy. Ideally, institutions of higher education integrate these competencies throughout their curricula in a progressive manner. High-impact educational practices contribute to student success. The purpose of this article is to examine recent literature about five of the high-impact educational practices (capstone experiences, learning communities, service learning and community-based learning, undergraduate research, and writing-intensive courses) to understand the extent to which they include the integration of information literacy competencies. The article includes recommendations for practice and research in the areas of assessment, pedagogy, and program planning.