Nordic Journal of Information Literacy in Higher Education
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Expectations and Experiences of Information Literacy Instruction
No full textIn May 2016, 48 third semester undergraduate students enrolled in the physiotherapy program at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden were given three sets of questionnaires; before the information literacy instruction (ILI) started, at the end of the first session, and a week after, at the end of the second and last session.The aim of this small-scale pilot study was to shed some light on students’ motivation to attend ILI, how they value the sessions afterwards and how they assess their learning outcome. Furthermore, it was an attempt to do a "students’ user experience study” in a pedagogical setting, with the intention to evaluate and improve teaching in ILI to meet student expectations.The average response rate for the three questionnaires was 92%. The results show that students’ expectations were similar to the actual content of ILI, and that the students were satisfied with their own learning outcome. Both motivation and the sense of relevance got higher scores after students attended ILI. Motivation rose from 7,4 to 8,12 out of 10. This is positive because a high level of motivation often improves the learning outcome (Schunk, 2012). When asked which areas most needed improvement in order to further enhance their learning outcome, the most common responses were “the pedagogy” and “my own achievement”. It would be interesting to start collaborating with a group of students in order to explore new methods and learning activities
Focusing on Students: Librarians and Writing Tutors Working Together
No full textThe aim of this presentation is to highlight and reflect on the advantages of collaboration between librarians and writing tutors, as well as to give three examples of fruitful collaboration at the Karolinska Institutet University Library. Librarians and writing tutors have different competencies and can help students with different aspects of their work. This specialization is however not obvious to students, which may lead to them approaching the wrong person, or focusing on tangible and specific details instead of the big picture.Collaboration between librarians and writing tutors has many advantages, both for students and staff. Firstly, it enables an overall view of the student’s working process and a contextualization of their work in a way that each group cannot achieve on their own. When the students understand the context of their assignments and theses, they are able to assume greater responsibility for their work, act more independently, and develop their critical thinking. Secondly, collaboration leads to a development of the staff’s competencies as we learn from each other, but we also get a deeper and more nuanced understanding of each other’s competencies, and can therefore plan teaching in a more efficient way.During our presentation, we will present and reflect on three activities on which we have collaborated: a lecture which addresses all the aspects of writing a thesis: searching, collecting, writing, and sharing; a seminar which aims to deepen the understanding for why and how sources are used, as well as how they are indicated in the text; and an online self-correcting test which highlights all aspects of thesis writing.The collaboration has been successful and motivated us to find new areas of collaboration. The next planned step is to offer students joint appointments with librarians and writing tutors to discuss their assignments
From Quest to Conquer: Traversing General Education at a Diverse Alaskan University to Integrate and Assess Transferable Information Literacy Skills in Foundational Courses
Get PDFThe University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) is an open enrollment university that offers vocational, academic, and professional degrees in a northern region. UAA serves a culturally and demographically diverse population. Given this diversity, students display varying levels of information literacy (IL) competencies. Library Professors Anna Bjartmarsdóttir and Deborah Mole partner with faculty teaching composition and communication courses to create increasingly sophisticated and transferable IL learning opportunities. Strategies include: assessing students’ IL competencies; creating engaging activities; integrating IL throughout the semester; developing reflection opportunities to reinforce IL skills. UAA librarians, partnered with faculty, integrate and scaffold IL activities in foundational GE courses to develop increasingly sophisticated, transferable IL skills and knowledge practices. From team-based learning application exercises to workshops for teaching assistants, students learn how creativity partnered with initiative has helped to integrate transferable IL skill education at this diverse arctic university
Teaching Information Literacy for Engineering Students in a Rapidly Changing Information Landscape
No full textThe KTH Library has a long tradition of teaching information searching to technology students. Over the last years teaching information searching has become teaching information literacy, including more evaluation and source criticism. Traditionally, there have been three forms of teaching: independent credit-giving courses, integrated shorter modules in subject-specific courses and support via individual face-to-face supervision.Although evaluation and source criticism are now important parts of our teaching, much focus is still on search methodology. During this spring we, and our teaching colleagues at the KTH library, will revise and develop the content and pedagogical methodology for the courses and integrated modules in information literacy. In doing so, we need to address important questions on how to face the changing information landscape.Should the teaching be adapted to the search behaviour observed in our students or should we keep trying to change that behaviour? Do we put our effort into directing students to traditional scientific subject databases or should we put more emphasis on the importance of critically evaluating the search results, regardless of their source? How do we find the balance between these alternatives?Recently published studies have already covered these questions to some extent. The findings from a systematic literature search, together with insights collected from our development work during Spring 2016, will be used in an analysis of these questions in the context of teaching information literacy for engineering students
"What Today\u27s University Students Have Taught Us”
No full textToday, more students in the US are attending university than ever before. An unprecedented number of these students were born digital—meaning digital technologies have been a constant feature in their lives. For these young adults, information literacy competencies are always being formed, practiced, and learned. Project Information Literacy (PIL) is a series of ongoing quantitative and qualitative research studies in the US that investigates what it is like to be a university student in the digital age. This research study has investigated how students find information and conduct research—in their words and through their experiences—for coursework, use in their everyday lives, and, once they graduate, in the workplace and their communities. Since 2008, more than 11,000 university students at nearly 60 US higher education institutions have been surveyed or interviewed, making PIL the largest study of information literacy ever conducted. Results from PIL’s studies have concluded students’ information competencies are put to the test in the vast information landscape they inhabit. Furthermore, finding and using information is exponentially more complex than it was a generation ago, especially since the information landscape has shifted from one of scarce resources to one of overload. In this keynote, five research takeaways were presented from PIL’s eight studies: (1) Students find research more difficult than ever before, (2) getting started is the hardest part of research, (3) frustrations begin with finding context, i.e., big picture, information-gathering, language, and situational context, (4) search strategies are based on predictability, familiarity, and efficiency, and (5) evaluation is the one information skills most learn to use. Discussion included implications of these findings for teaching, learning, work, and librarianship in the 21st century
Integration of Information Literacy into the Curriculum: Constructive Alignment from Theory into Practice
No full textLibrarian-teacher cooperation is essential for the integration of information literacy into course syllabi. Therefore, a common theoretical and methodological platform is needed. As librarians at Kristianstad University we have had the opportunity to develop such a platform when teaching information literacy in a basic course for teachers in higher education pedagogy. Information literacy is taught in context with academic writing, distance learning and teaching, and development of course syllabi.Constructive Alignment in Theory: We used constructive alignment in designing our part of the course. John Biggs’ ideas tell us that assessment tasks (ATs) should be aligned to what is intended to be learned. Intended learning outcomes (ILOs) specify teaching/learning activities (TLAs) based on the content of learning. TLAs should be designed in ways that enable students to construct knowledge from their own experience. The ILOs for the course are to have arguments for the role of information literacy in higher education and ideas of implementing them in TLAs. The content of learning is for example the concept of information literacy, theoretical perspectives and constructive alignment for integration in course syllabi. TLAs are written pre-lecture reflections on the concept of information literacy, used as a starting point for the three-hour seminar. Learning reflections are written afterwards. The AT is to revise a syllabus (preferably using constructive alignment) for a course the teacher is responsible for, where information literacy must be integrated with the other parts and topics of the course.Constructive Alignment in Practice: Using constructive alignment has taught us that this model serves well as the foundation of the theoretical and methodological platform for librarian-teacher cooperation when integrating information literacy in course syllabi. It contains all important aspects of the integration of information literacy in course syllabi and reflects constructivist and socio-cultural theories
Teaching the Next Generation of Information Literacy Educators: Pedagogy and Learning
No full textThe aim of this presentation is to compare key aspects of learning in two core information literacy (IL) modules, one delivered to a face-to-face cohort (MA Librarianship) and one to distance learners (MA Library and Information Service Management). Graduates of these programmes (delivered by the University of Sheffield iSchool, UK) often pursue careers that require excellent personal Information Literacy (IL) and the ability to teach IL to others. Inskip’s research (2015) identified that these are subjects that library and information (LIS) students want to learn, and Saunders et al.’s (2015) international study found that LIS students’ IL requires development.Our modules aim to develop the students’ understanding of themselves as information literate citizens and teachers, and introduce them to theories and models in the fields of IL and information behavior, teaching and learning. The modules include a practical strand (searching, evaluating, using (etc.) information) and assessment is through coursework.Using Entwistle et al.’s (2004) model of the Teaching and Learning Environment (TLE), we will map key elements (e.g. learner characteristics, approaches of teachers, course design) relevant to the quality of learning. We will also look at three “layers” of teaching: (1) overall pedagogic beliefs and institutional policies, (2) design for learning (overall planning for achieving learning outcomes), and (3) techniques, tools and methods used. We will draw on documentation, reflection and (with cooperation from learners) material created by learners during, and subsequent to, the modules.Through the use of the TLE model we will surface differences in the experience of face-to-face and distance learners and also differences in development of their personal IL and pedagogic knowledge for IL. References at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JwNCYU-Uh9e-AIyRwTnMyU6Qooab0Tn8vYC-kzd1_Mw/edit?usp=sharingThe PowerPoint slides that accompany this presentation are available on SlideShare: http://www.slideshare.net/PamelaMcKinney/creating-knowledge-viii-teaching-the-next-generation-of-il-educator
Creating Knowledge VIII: Practices, goals and visions for information literacy in higher education
Get PDFThis special issue of Nordic Journal of Information Literacy in Higher Education is a compilation of the Creating Knowledge VIII conference (CKVIII) held in Reykjavík, Iceland, 2-3 of June 2016. This was the second time Icelandic universities hosted the conference in cooperation with NordINFOLIT, a Nordic collaboration forum for information literacy
Variations on the Theme of Information Literacy – Implementation of Information Literacy into the First-Year Curriculum at Åbo Akademi University
Get PDFHow can information literacy (IL) courses be organized into the curriculum in the best possible way for first-year students at Finnish universities? This question has been discussed time and time again. At Åbo Akademi University we have, since fall 2015, developed a course in Academic study skills where IL is included in the course. This means that IL is now for the first time included in all study programmes at the university. The IL module is, however, implemented in different ways in different faculties. In this article, we will focus on the method of embedded learning of IL in the study programme of Chemical Engineering, as it was implemented during the fall semester 2015 for all freshmen. For the first time the library was involved in a “hands-on” project with practical tasks at the Faculty of Science and Engineering. The students were motivated to learn how to search for information and how to improve their skills in reference management, and they passed the course
Partners in Information Literacy: The Research Mentor Program at UNH Manchester
No full textThe Research Mentor Program is a partnership between the UNH Manchester Library and the College’s Center for Academic Enrichment whereby student peer tutors receive training in both practical writing and research strategies along with theoretical applications for peer-assisted learning. Research Mentors are able to holistically support the research process from brainstorming topics; developing effective search strategies; and evaluating sources to preparing outlines; developing thesis statements; and drafting through the writing/revision cycle. The Research Mentor Program originated in 2004 and evolved during the past decade in response to classroom assessment and program evaluation findings.In the current adaptation, the research mentor training curriculum aligns with the ACRL Frameworks for Information Literacy. Mentors engage with each of the Frames through class discussions, hands-on activities, role-playing exercises, and reflective writing entries. In one-to-one tutorials, research mentors are able to apply the Frames’ dispositions thereby guiding students to engage more effectively with scholarly inquiry, contextualizing authority, and acknowledging value in the research process. In this way, Research Mentors contribute to the effectiveness of information literacy instruction by recognizing gaps in students’ evidence, modelling the dispositions of the information literacy Frames in their interactions with students, and connecting students to the librarians for further research instruction.UNH Manchester’s Research Mentor Program impacts library instruction by extending the influence of information literacy principles beyond the librarian’s classroom instructional sessions into the research mentor led tutorials and circling back to the library for individually focused instruction. Our Creating Knowledge VIII conference presentation is available at http://libraryguides.unh.edu/partnersinfolit. This presentation is based on our forthcoming chapter in Peer-assisted Learning in Academic Libraries, edited by E. Rinto, J. Watts, & R. Mitola published through Libraries Unlimited, Santa Barbara, CA (anticipated publication date early 2017)