Information Literacy Commons^™

Marijuana Legalization Papers Getting You Down? You Won't Believe What We Did About It, Anne-Marie Deitering, Hannah Gascho Rempel

Library Instruction West 2014

Current research shows that for many students, choosing a topic is the scariest and most difficult part of the research process. They want to stick to safe ground where they know they’ll find sources; we want them to explore the unknown and learn new things. Tired of reading papers on the same topics over and over, and concerned that students weren’t making the connections between research and learning, librarians and composition instructors at Oregon State University developed a new approach to teaching topic selection, putting curiosity at the center. Providing a structured and supportive process, we help students overcome their …

Using Open Access Resources In Data Literacy Instruction: Renewing The Il Curriculum By Aligning It With Changing Needs, Don Macmillen

Library Instruction West 2014

To align information literacy instruction with changing faculty and student needs, librarians need to expand their conceptions and competencies beyond traditional information sources. In the sciences, this increasingly means integrating the data resources used by researchers into instruction for undergraduate students. Open access repositories allow students to work with more primary data than ever before, but only if they know how and where to look. This presentation will describe the development of classes designed to scaffold student learning in biology across two courses, detailing the long-term collaboration between a librarian and an instructor that now serves over 500 students per …

Successful Strategies For Teaching Undergraduate Research, Steve Brantley

Faculty & Staff Research & Creative Activity

Book review of _Successful Strategies for Teaching Undergraduate Research_ Brantley, S. (2014). Successful strategies for teaching undergraduate research. Editors Marta Deyrup and Beth Bloom. Public Services Quarterly, 10(3), 217-218. DOI: 10.1080/15228959.2014.932225

Evolution Of The One-Shot Library Instruction Session, Michael C. Goates

Faculty Publications

The one-shot library instruction session is a balancing act between faculty expectations and student attention spans. Concerned with limited instruction time, many teaching faculty request that librarians relay as much information as possible during a single instruction session. Students, however, quickly experience information overload and disengagement during information-heavy instruction sessions. Determining what information to present and how to present it can be a challenge for many librarians. This workshop will address some of the varying methodologies to one-shot library instruction, including the flipped-classroom. Examples of library instruction models will also be shared, highlighting both successful and less-effective approaches.

Good Research (Literally) Pays: The Library Prize For First-Year Research, Amanda Y. Makula

Library and Information Science: Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works

The Tredway Library Prize for First-Year Research recognizes an outstanding research paper written by a first-year Augustana College student for a class in the Liberal Studies or Honors sequence. The award promotes students’ active engagement in the processes of library research and encourages them to synthesize library research skills with the reading, writing, and critical thinking skills developed in the Liberal Studies First Year (LSFY) sequence.

Learning Through Play, The Old School Way: Teaching Information Ethics To Millennials, Lucinda Rush

Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

Incorporating gaming and active learning elements into library instruction in academic libraries has proven to be an effective way to engage Millennials and increase their retention of knowledge. This article ties research on the learning preferences of Millennials to elements of active and game-based learning. The author describes the process of creating an innovative game based on Candy Land to teach undergraduates about information ethics and makes recommendations for creating non-digital games for instructional purposes based on this experience.

The Writing Is On The Wall: Using Padlet For Whole-Class Engagement, Beth Fuchs

Library Faculty and Staff Publications

Many of us define success in the classroom by the quality and quantity of student participation, but despite our best efforts, there are substantial barriers in place that discourage students outside of the vocal minority from getting more involved in our classes. This paper describes the use of a "graffiti wall" as found on Padlet (padlet.com) to overcome some of the challenges involved in class participation in order to encourage whole-class collaboration and engagement.

Integrating Theory Into Library Instruction To Help Students Understand Themselves, Anne Larrivee

Library Scholarship

No abstract provided.

A Joke Is A Very Serious Thing: Using Humor In Library Instruction, Linda Sizemore, Ashley Cole

Library Faculty and Staff Papers and Presentations

This interactive presentation will describe the biology behind humor; when to use humor; and the importance of it in communicating information literacy to students, faculty, and EVERYONE. As facilitators of learning, librarians can use humor as a teaching tool to reduce library anxiety and to increase creative thinking. Participants will learn techniques and share methods in order to gain an understanding that humor is a skill that must be cultivated. “Wit punctures, humor pictures.”

One Tutorial, Many Purposes: Adapting The University Of California's Begin Research Tutorial For Diverse Instructional Settings, Jeffrey M. Mortimore

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

See presentation description.

Authentic Assessment In The Library Classroom: Transforming Activities Into Assessment, Camilla B. Baker

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

See presentation description.

Building A Culture Of Il Assessment: Establishing Buy-In For Programmatic Change, Christina H. Gola, Kerry M. Creelman

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

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The Power Of Observation: How Librarians Can Benefit From The Peer Review Of Teaching Even Without A Formal Prot Program, Jaena Alabi, William H. Weare Jr.

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

See presentation description.

Creating Online Tutorials For Freshmen, Anne Grant

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

See presentation description.

Librarians & Information Literacy: Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad, Trenia Napier, Kevin Jones

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

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Collaborative Learning In The Library: Redesigning Your Instruction Sessions To Cultivate Critical Thinking, Amanda Bird

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

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Library Instruction And Ludonarrative Dissonance: Making Our Rules Fit Our Narrative, Jeffrey Gallant

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

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The Pyramid Method Of Teaching Information Literacy, Marcia Dursi, Mason Yang

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

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Concept/Context: Information Literacy And Assessment In The First Year, Stefanie R. Bluemle, Amanda Y. Makula, Margaret W. Rogal

Library and Information Science: Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works

At Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, where the academic calendar consists of trimesters, all first-year students enroll in a year-long sequence of three "Liberal Studies First Year" (LSFY) courses, which are taught by faculty from a variety of disciplines. LSFY emphasizes core competencies in reading, writing, oral communication, and information literacy.

Since 2011, the Augustana librarians have been using performance-based assessment to evaluate their work with LSFY classes. This qualitative approach, which encourages real-life application of skills, has proven well-suited to an information literacy program in which concepts carry more weight than the mechanics of searching. Each term, the …

The Joy Of (Performance) Assessment, Amanda Y. Makula, Stefanie R. Bluemle, Margaret W. Rogal

Library and Information Science: Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works

How can librarians assess student learning in a way that is organic to the assignment and instruction session, yet gives results that are comparable across classes?

Performance Assessment is a qualitative method of assessment in which students demonstrate learning by completing specific tasks related to targeted learning outcomes. Performance Assessment encourages real-life application of skills and is well-suited to an information literacy program in which concepts carry more weight than the mechanics of searching.

The Augustana College instruction librarians use performance assessment to evaluate their work with a three-term sequence of required first-year general education classes (”Liberal Studies First Year” …

The Postmodern Shift In Library Instruction, Terry Dwain Robertson

Faculty Publications

Fifty years ago, prior to the digital revolution, library instruction consisted of a knowledgeable librarian guiding students through the various classes of documents, with examples of recognized authorities. Each bibliographic tool was handcrafted by competent individuals, published by reputable publishers, and recommended by disciplinary practitioners. While working through these various tools was time consuming, and getting access to materials not held locally often proved slow, the student researcher could reasonably assume the sincerity and integrity of the sources. With the digital revolution, much has changed. Now, instead of bibliographic instruction, librarians engage in “information literacy”(IL) training. Rather than point students …

The Three-Credit Solution: Social Justice In An Information Literacy Course, Anne E. Leonard, Maura A. Smale

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Does It Pay To Discover: Teaching For Information Literacy With The Exlibris Primo Discovery Tool, Jeffrey Mortimore, Drew Mcnaughton, Elizabeth Novicki

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

See presentation description.

Beyond Simple, Easy, And Fast, Catherine Cardwell, Vera J. Lux, Robert J. Snyder

University Libraries Faculty Publications

The authors present their experiences implementing Summon, a web-based search engine similar to Google produced by the software company Serial Solutions, at Bowling Green State (BGSU) University Libraries (UL). The authors discuss using the teaching method of reflection, described by Char Booth in the book "Reflective Teaching, Effective Learning: Instructional Literacy for Library Educators," to train librarians, students, and faculty to use the software. The authors describe personal and group instruction, training undergraduates to use Summon for research, and alternative search tools such as the EBSCO Publishing database.

Get In The Game: Developing An Information Literacy Classroom Game, Maura A. Smale

Publications and Research

Much current research in the field of games-based learning demonstrates that games can be successfully incorporated into educational contexts to increase student engage-ment, motivation, and learning. Academic librarians are also using games as an innova-tive instructional strategy to strengthen students’ research skills and their understanding of information literacy concepts. This article discusses the development and implemen-tation of Quality Counts, a classroom information literacy game designed to teach un-dergraduate students how to evaluate Internet sources. After a brief overview of the game’s development and rules, the article describes the process of playing Quality Counts in several classes and presents the results …

Helping International Students Succeed Academically Through Research Process And Plagiarism Workshops., Yu-Hui Chen, Mary K. Van Ullen

University Libraries Faculty Scholarship

Workshops on the research process and plagiarism were designed to meet the needs of international students at the University at Albany. The research process workshop covered formulating research questions, as well as locating and evaluating sources. The plagiarism workshop focused on acknowledging sources, quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing materials, citation styles, and avoiding plagiarism. The effectiveness of the workshops was measured by administering pre-and post-tests and by interviewing students several months after the workshops. The results showed that students achieved significant improvement for both the research process and plagiarism by attending the training, and they continued to apply new skills several …

Learning Through Quests And Contests: Games In Information Literacy Instruction, Maura A. Smale

Publications and Research

Games-based learning is an innovative pedagogical strategy employed at all levels of education, and much research in education, psychology, and other disciplines supports its effectiveness in engaging and motivating students, as well as increasing student learning. Many libraries have incorporated games into their collections and program-ming. College and university libraries have begun to use games for information literacy and library instruction. Academic librarians use commercially-produced games, create their own games, and employ game principles and mechanics to enhance their tradi-tional instructional offerings. While there may be impediments to implementing games-based learning for information literacy, the promising benefits of this approach …

Needs Analysis: The First Step In Library Instruction Assessment, Anne Pemberton

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

Using instructional design methods, specifically conducting a needs analysis, can provide librarians with a road map for designing an assessment plan for library instruction. Instructional design models are often unfamiliar to librarians and underutilized in library instruction and in information literacy programs. One instructional design model is ADDIE: Analyze Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate. The first step in the process, the analysis, can be done by developing a needs analysis for your specific institution in order to measure the gap between what faculty expect students to know and the knowledge and skills that students actually possess. Conducting a needs analysis …

Exploring The Political Dimensions Of Information Literacy Through Popular Film., Robert Detmering

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Certain popular films contextualize the access, use, and interpretation of information within a political and social framework. As a result, these films function as alternative pedagogical sites for analysis and critique, facilitating critical thinking about information beyond the library and the classroom, and leading students to a deeper understanding of the fundamental need for information literacy. A conceptual basis for the consideration of film in politically engaged information literacy instruction is provided, supported by a discussion of three relevant films: Jason Reitman’s Thank You for Smoking (2006), Joel and Ethan Coen’s Burn after Reading (2008), and Oliver Stone’s W. …

The Ile Project: A Scalable Option For Customized Information Literacy Instruction And Assessment, Steve Borrelli, Corey M. Johnson, Lara A. Cummings

Communications in Information Literacy

With the vast amount of information available today, information literacy (IL) education is a critical component of undergraduate education necessary to prepare students for tomorrow's world. Instructors want students to demonstrate critical thinking skills and are often disappointed with student submissions resulting from undeveloped IL skills. Library Instruction programs are often tasked with addressing this educational need and often struggle to find a scalable method to provide IL instruction to the student body. The Information Literacy Education (ILE) Project is an asynchronous learning environment tailored to deliver instruction and assessment. Posited as a customizable option to present IL instruction, this …