Information Literacy Commons^™

Lived Experiences Of Marginalized Pre-Service Teachers' Technology Ownership And Acquisition Of Digital Skills, Jerolyn Brown, Tian Luo

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Aim/Purpose

Despite increasing access to technology, persistent disparities in digital competence and self-efficacy remain among marginalized pre-service teachers, often exacerbated by systemic inequities and the digital divide. This research explores the gap in knowledge of the lived experiences of marginalized pre-service teachers’ (PST) prior access to technology and their current perceptions about educational technology integration.

Background

Grounded in Sociocultural Theory and the Theory of Planned Behavior, this study seeks to answer how marginalized pre-service teachers perceive prior and current technology ownership and related skill acquisition, what beliefs and intentions they have for future classroom technology integration, and what systemic disparities …

Why We Should Remember The Soviet Information Age?, Ksenia Tatarchenko

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

How to navigate the rapidly changing digital geopolitics of the world today? How do we make sense of digital transformation and its many social, political, cultural, and environmental implications at different locations around the world?

Researcher And Academic Library Roles And User Beliefs In The Pandemic: Designing The Open-Access And Library Usage Scale (Oalu), Elizabeth Dezouche, Angelique Blackburn

Killam Library Faculty Publications

We investigated whether individuals believe they have a right to information during a crisis, and whether attitudes about crisis-related information sharing differ by age and one’s role in providing or consuming information. We measured attitudes about aspects of data sharing related to COVID-19: researchers’ obligation to share data, publishers’ obligation to share information, and libraries’ responsibility to provide them. We predicted younger individuals, especially students as consumers of information, would report stronger preference for open access to pandemic-related information. A principal components analysis was performed, and two predicted factors emerged: information-sharing obligations and libraries’ responsibility to provide resources. Age was …

Senior Citizens And Digital Information Access: The Obstruction Of Comforting Silence, Rodney C. Lawley

The Southeastern Librarian

This study investigates the possibility of undetected access obstructions preventing senior citizens from using digital information maintained by Alabama public libraries. Research methods include a literature review, a survey of Alabama public library administrators, and a textual analysis of online public library programming guides from four urban areas within the state. The survey gauges the perceptions, experiences, and actions of library administrators pertaining to digital library accessibility for senior citizens. The textual analysis component measures significant outreach efforts by public libraries targeting senior citizen patrons. Data collected suggest that Alabama public libraries lack unity and direction in their approach to …

Poverty, Literacy, And Social Transformation: An Interdisciplinary Exploration Of The Digital Divide, Amy J. Bach, Todd Wolfson, Jessica K. Crowell

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Harnessing scholarship focused on literacy and poverty, in this article we aim to complicate the common understanding of the digital divide. First, we argue that the dominant literature on the digital divide misses broader connections between technological exclusion and broader forms of economic and social exclusion. Accordingly, and following recent qualitative research on the digital divide, we believe future scholarship must examine the complicated relationships between poverty, inequality, and the digital divide and we look to poverty scholarship to understand the complicated and shifting nature of poverty. Finally, we make the case that scholars and practitioners focused on digital literacy …

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 …

Documenting Digital Problem Solving: Qualitative Results Strategies And Approaches For Digital Problem Solving, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Data

This document shares qualitative analysis and findings from a 3 year research effort focused on digital problem solving. Key concepts emerging from the analysis are operationally defined. The document describes how individuals engaged in digital problem solving and describes their cognitive and affective strategies. The analysis reveals the vital role of examining digital problem solving through a diversity of contexts. Different contexts require the use of a range of approaches applied in different ways for different purposes. Data suggest that the number, frequency, and complexity of contexts in which an individual is familar plays an important role in how individuals …

Analyzing And Interpreting Data From Piaac’S Problem Solving In Technology Rich Environments (Pstre) Assessment And Library Use Survey: Quantitative Results, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Data

This document contains an explanation of the quantitative analysis conducted using data from a researcher-designed library use survey and PIAAC's PSTRE survey accessed through OECD's Education and Skills Online portal. Data were collected in two phases and are presented using descriptive statistics and through a latent class analysis. The latent class analysis allowed for the examination of the relationship between library activities, library website use, and PSTRE scores. Results indicated that library website use is strong predictor of higher PSTRE scores and competency in digital problem solving.

Defining Digital Problem Solving, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Digital Problem Solving Toolkit

This document introduces the definition of digital problem solving that emerged from a three year long research project. Digital problem solving is described as being related to, but unique from, digital literacies and basic digital skills. Specifically, digital problem solving involves the use of the skills, strategies, and approaches (including mindsets) needed to navigate online in everyday contexts, including the library, and use novel resources, tools, and interfaces in efficient and flexible ways to accomplish personal and professional goals. Authors describe how the definition of digital problem solving was developed and applications within libraries, Adult Education, and Lifelong Learning.

Observing Digital Problem Solving Checklist, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Digital Problem Solving Toolkit

This adaptable tool was developed from research findings from a 3 year research study exploring digital problem solving. It is intended to be used by a librarian/staff/volunteer during an in-person interview and observation context. It is designed to better understand how to shape interactions with a library user when they come into the library for assistance that requires gathering, exploring, and making sense of online resources. The tool can be used to support individual or small group interactions. It contains a series of questions that provide insight into the knowledge and experiences of the library user as well as the …

Digital Problem Solving: Score Report, Jill Castek, Gloria Jacobs, Cindy Gibbon, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Digital Problem Solving Toolkit

This test tries to measure how well you use technology to solve problems. The digital tools in the test might not look familiar. As you get more practice meeting different goals using technology, these tasks will become easier to do.

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.

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 …

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.

Blueprint For Designing Digital Problem Solving Tasks, Jill Castek, Cindy Gibbon, Gloria Jacobs, Tyler Frank, Amy Honisett, Judy Anderson

Digital Problem Solving Toolkit

This document explains how the research team developed tasks and an observational protocol that allowed for the examination of individuals’ digital problem solving. These tasks, and the metacognitive scaffolding prompts and protocol associate dwith them, were developed and refined with the Multnomah County Library’s website resources in mind. Other libraries can adapt these tasks and protocol or develop a related observational protocol inspired by the design principles offered. This document suggest what libraries can do to support digital problem solving development.

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.

Emerging Roles: Academic Libraries Crossing The Digital Divide, Kenneth Angell

SLIS Connecting

For every advance of information and communication technology in the 20thand 21st centuries, there has been gap between those who can readily adopt and benefit from it and those who cannot. As higher education becomes increasingly enmeshed in Internet-based learning, academic libraries will need to maintain and even increase digital literacy and fluency instruction in spite of presumed reduced need. Furthermore, academic libraries themselves will need to examine their own status in the divide.

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 …

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.

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.

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.

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 …

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.

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.