Information Literacy Commons^™

Teaching Information Literacy Through "Un-Research", Allison Hosier

University Libraries Faculty Scholarship

Students who write essays on research topics in which no outside sources are cited and accuracy is treated as negotiable generally should not expect to receive good grades, especially in an information literacy course. However, asking students to do just this was the first step in the “un-research project,” a twist on the familiar annotated bibliography assignment that was intended to guide students away from “satisficing” with their choice of sources and toward a better understanding of scholarship as a conversation. The project was implemented as part of a credit-bearing course in spring 2014 with promising results, including a more …

Library Tour Evolution: Analog, Digital, Mobile, Michael J. Whitchurch

Faculty Publications

Evolution is a progressive change from something inadequate in a given circumstance or environment to a new or modified state with the ability to perform better in that new environment or situation. Evolution occurs in organizations, organisms and processes. One aspect of evolution is the ‘survival of the fittest’ which is that the most adept at survival will continue and propagate. In technology it is much the same as one technology becomes obsolete (dies), it gives way to the next better able to serve. For examples consider the cassette tape or the LP record and their demise. Often technology changes …

Situating Information Literacy In The Disciplines: A Practical And Systematic Approach For Academic Librarians, Robert Farrell, William Badke

Publications and Research

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to consider the current barriers to situating in the disciplines and to offer a possible strategy for so doing.

Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews current challenges facing librarians who seek to situate information literacy in the disciplines and offers and practical model for those wishing to do so. Phenomenographic evidence from disciplinary faculty focus groups is presented in the context of the model put forward.

Findings – Disciplinary faculty do not have generic conceptions of information literacy but rather understand information-related behaviors as part of embodied disciplinary practice.

Practical implications – Librarians …

Building A Scholarly Network In Learning Communities At The University Of Nebraska–Lincoln, Charlene Maxey-Harris, Lorna M. Dawes

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Faculty Publications

In 2011 the Chancellor at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln (UNL) charged each department and academic unit within the university to create programs and strategies to increase student enrollment within the next six years. The UNL Libraries embraced this goal by becoming more involved in the first-year experience programs and the first-year learning communities. This chapter will outline how the UNL Libraries gained library administration support to hire a Learning Communities/First-Year Experience Librarian and describe how they applied the theory of threshold concepts to develop a series of workshops and e-booklets to teach information literacy skills to students affiliated …

Teaching The Network: A Brief Demonstration Of The Internet’S Structure For Information Literacy Instruction, Robin Camille Davis

Publications and Research

A basic understanding of the Internet’s physical and operational structure is one element of information literacy. In this article, “traceroute” and “whois” commands are demonstrated as tools that librarians can use to illustrate how the Internet is geographically distributed, how businesses enable and control information sharing, and how to check a source's credibility by determining website ownership. With these tools, students can gain a better understanding of how online information is created, accessed, and affected in ways that may be otherwise invisible.

Pausing At The Threshold, Patrick K. Morgan

Faculty Publications

Threshold concepts are increasingly inescapable at library conferences and in general information literacy discourse, and this visibility will likely only increase as they figure so prominently in the Association of College and Research Libraries inchoate Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Nevertheless, very little has been done to critically consider the wider intellectual ramifications of certain assumptions fundamental to their manifestation in library/information literacy instruction. This paper is an initial attempt to promote such discussions.

Culturally Relevant Booktalking: Using A Mixed Reality Simulation With Preservice School Librarians, Janice Underwood, Sue Crownfield Kimmel, Danielle Forest, Gail K. Dickinson

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

The role of school librarians is often overlooked in advancing a respect for cultural diversity among youth, yet librarians are in key positions to champion for social justice reform in educational settings. In this qualitative study, we examine preservice school librarians' experiences with booktalking multicultural literature in a mixed reality simulation environment, as a vehicle to introduce social justice issues. Our purpose was to explore the booktalking experience as a means of developing preservice librarians' understanding of culturally relevant pedagogy, a stance concerned with developing cultural competence and critical consciousness. Our findings revealed that preservice librarians gained different levels of …

Pedagogies Of Possibility Within The Disciplines: Critical Information Literacy And Literatures In English, Heidi L. M. Jacobs

Communications in Information Literacy

While most disciplines have responded to the generic openness of the ACRL Standards by creating discipline-specific guidelines and competencies, there is a need for us to consider other ways to approach information literacy in the disciplines. Critical information literacy reminds us to engage ourselves and our students with what Freire described as "problem-posing education," which "bases itself on creativity and stimulates true reflection and action upon reality" (84). This article discusses how information literacy work in literatures in English could engage students and librarians in the act of collective problem-posing about the discipline. Drawing upon critical information literacy's emphasis on …

How We Got Here: A Historical Look At The Academic Teaching Library And The Role Of The Teaching Librarian, Susan Andriette Ariew

Communications in Information Literacy

This paper outlines a brief history of the academic teaching library and, in consequence, it examines the changing role of librarians. As part of that history, the paper also discusses distinctions among various terms used to describe instructional activities in teaching libraries, such as "bibliographic instruction" and "information literacy." Finally, amidst the renewed debates about the definition of information literacy and the Information Literacy Competency Standards, it attempts to answer the question, "What is a teaching Library?"

Welcome To The New Perspectives, Kim Leeder Reed, Sarah E. North

Communications in Information Literacy

Introduction to the new Perspectives Section.

Engaging Beyond The First College Year: Exploring The Needs Of Second-Year Students, Elizabeth L. Black

Communications in Information Literacy

This article makes the case for librarians to engage with second-year students as part of the burgeoning movement in higher education to provide dedicated programming and experiences for second-year students. Grounded in development theories and transition theory, the article describes the special needs characteristic of typical second-year students and how librarians can build on the excellent work in first-year programs to collaborate with campus colleagues to further information literacy instruction.

Peer Review Of Teaching: Best Practices For A Non-Programmatic Approach, Jaena Alabi, William H. Weare, Jr.

Communications in Information Literacy

Many academic librarians who provide library instruction have never received formal training in educational theory and methods. In an effort to bridge this gap and improve the teaching skills of instruction librarians, some academic libraries have established peer review of teaching programs. Despite the recognized benefits of peer review, it may not be feasible for every library to establish such a program. In an effort to aid those who are interested in peer review, but who may not be able to participate in a formal program, the authors identify the principles of peer review that can be applied on a …

Introduction To Cil Book Reviews, Merinda Mclure

Communications in Information Literacy

No abstract provided.

Information Literacy And The Flipped Classroom: Examining The Impact Of A One-Shot Flipped Class On Student Learning And Perceptions, Andrea Wilcox Brooks

Communications in Information Literacy

This article examines the flipped classroom approach in higher education and its use in one-shot information literacy instruction sessions. The author presents findings from a pilot study of student learning and student perceptions pertaining to flipped model IL instruction. Students from two sections of the same course participated in this study. One section received one-shot information literacy instruction using a flipped approach, while the other section received traditional one-shot instruction. No difference was found between the two groups on a pre- and post-test analysis; however, an analysis of students' final papers from the flipped section showed more bibliography citations to …

Teaching Matters: The Information Literacy Implications Of The Bohannon Sting, Rudy Leon

Communications in Information Literacy

This column looks at the information literacy implications of the John Bohannon Open Access Sting.

Website Blocked: Filtering Technology In Schools And School Libraries, Jennifer M. Overaa

School of Information Student Research Journal

This paper investigates the impact of filtering software in K-12 schools and school libraries. The Children's Internet Protection Act, or CIPA, requires that public schools and school libraries use filtering technology in order to receive discounted rates on technology. As a result, nearly all public elementary and secondary schools today use filtering technology. While the provisions of CIPA narrowly define the content to be blocked, filters are often set to block much more than is required. Filtering technology is often ineffective, and many unobjectionable sites end up being blocked, including Web 2.0 sites and tools needed to educate students in …

Social, Legal, And Technical Issues In The Library, Adrienne Mathewson

School of Information Student Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Slis Connecting, Volume 3, Issue 2, Teresa S. Welsh

SLIS Connecting

Entire issue of SLIS Connecting, Volume 3, Issue 2

A Comparison Of Public Versus Private Academic Library Web Sites In Alabama For Accessibility And Web 2.0 Applications, Amy E. Smith

SLIS Connecting

The purpose of this study is to analyze and compare Alabama’s academic library Web sites to determine how accessible they are for persons with disabilities and what kind of useful links such as tutorials and Web 2.0 applications can be found on the home pages. The importance of this study is to determine the accessibility and readability of academic library Web site home pages based off of the current WCAG 2.0 guidelines, as well as the availability of Web 2.0 tools and tutorials on library home pages. By studying the results of the Web site accessibility software, college and university …

Analysis Of Primers In The De Grummond Children’S Literature Collection, Preston R. Salisbury

SLIS Connecting

This study examines the primers collected in the de Grummond Children’s Literature Collection at the University of Southern Mississippi. “The de Grummond Children’s Literature Collection is one of North America’s leading research centers in the field of children’s literature,” with a main focus on American and British literature both historical and contemporary (lib.usm.edu). Specific characteristics of the primers examined in this study include publication year, publisher, and stories and illustrations used in the content. These data provide a general view of the development of the primer both for educative and socio-political purposes over time.