Digital research notebook: a simple tool for reflective learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia A. Glassman ◽  
Douglas M. Worsham
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Writing Process ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Instructional Tools ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hybrid Approaches ◽  
Assessment Of Student Learning ◽  
Face To Face Instruction ◽  
Digital Research

Purpose This paper aims to outline the ongoing development, implementation and evaluation of a digital research notebook designed to support hybrid and online approaches to information literacy development in one-shot, course-integrated and full course instruction. Design/methodology/approach The paper describes the authors’ collaborative creation of the research notebook and its evolution from a collection of online modules to a student-centered online learning tool focused on supporting the reflective research and writing process. A small random sampling of notebooks was used for assessment of student learning and the notebook’s effectiveness. Findings Hybrid approaches to library instruction that leverage direct assessment of student work as well as opportunities for students to reflect on their research process facilitate both student learning and increased understanding for library staff of how students experience the research and writing process. Practical implications The development of instructional tools to extend the “one-shot” model can lead to a variety of instructional innovations and open up opportunities to explore and develop new approaches. Including opportunities for students to reflect and provide feedback on their experience of the research and writing process offers important insights often missed by purely quantitative assessment methods. Social implications Use of the research notebook opened up more time during face to face instruction time for deeper learning, critical information literacy and discussions of social justice issues related to information production and access. Originality/value The paper presents an innovative, adaptable and scalable approach to addressing common challenges faced by information literacy instruction programs.

Librarians, step out of the classroom!: how improved faculty-led IL instruction improves student learning

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meagan Lacy ◽  
Alexandra Hamlett
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Student Survey ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Actual Application ◽  
Faculty Teaching ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
The Impact

PurposeIn most higher education institutions, information literacy (IL) instruction is usually considered the purview of librarians, not disciplinary faculty. However, a small but growing body of research indicates that students learn the research process best when these skills are taught in the context of a course or a discipline. For this reason, teaching faculty should share ownership of IL instruction — but how? In this case study, community college librarians explain how they successfully trained faculty to integrate IL into their English Composition courses and teach IL independently.Design/methodology/approachUsing a multimethods approach, the investigators draw on faculty interviews, student surveys, and content analysis of student essays to evaluate the impact of faculty-led IL instruction on student learning after one semester.FindingsFaculty reported that their instruction of IL was improved, and students work better as a result of their collaboration with the librarians. Compared to previous semesters, faculty perceived gains in terms of students’ ability to synthesize and cite evidence in their writing. Student survey results indicate perceived gains in their IL skills, but an assessment of their written work reveals a discrepancy between this perception and the actual application of these skills.Research limitations/implicationsBecause there is no control group, no conclusions can be drawn as to whether faculty-led IL instruction is as effective as librarian-led IL instruction or whether students’ academic performance improves due to faculty teaching IL. However, the purpose of this study is primarily descriptive. It addresses how other libraries may create a culture of shared ownership of IL instruction on their campuses.Practical implicationsThis study offers an alternative model to library instruction and suggests ways instruction librarians can prioritize their outreach and instructional efforts to maximize impact on student learning.Originality/valueWhile much has been written about how librarians can improve IL instruction, few studies mention the role of faculty. This case study starts the conversation.

Measuring longitudinal student performance on student learning outcomes in sustainability education

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 547-565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meghann E. Jarchow ◽  
Paul Formisano ◽  
Shane Nordyke ◽  
Matthew Sayre
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Student Assessment ◽  
Student Learning Outcomes ◽  
Longitudinal Assessment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Capstone Course ◽  
Assessment Of Student Learning

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe the student learning outcomes (SLOs) for a sustainability major, evaluate faculty incorporation of the SLOs into the courses in the sustainability major curriculum and measure student performance on the SLOs from entry into the major to the senior capstone course. Design/methodology/approach Through an iterative approach with a faculty advisory committee, SLOs were developed for the sustainability major. Curriculum mapping followed by evaluation of course syllabi were used to determine the extent to which each course addressed the SLOs. Student performance on most SLOs was measured through student assessment in an introductory and capstone course to evaluate the change in performance over time. Findings The core courses of the sustainability major were more likely to address the SLOs of the major than that of the elective courses. Where measured, student performance on the SLOs increased from the introductory course to the capstone course. Sustainability majors participated in an average of almost ten experiential learning opportunities focused on sustainability. Originality/value This research provides a longitudinal assessment of student learning in an undergraduate sustainability major. Because undergraduate sustainability degrees are generally new, this research can serve as a base upon which to continue to improve sustainability curriculum design.

Librarians and instructors developing student learning outcomes

2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 484-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kacy Lundstrom ◽  
Britt Anna Fagerheim ◽  
Elizabeth Benson
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Student Learning Outcomes ◽  
Threshold Concepts ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Writing Instructors ◽  
Department Faculty ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper if to design a workshop that effectively facilitates the collaborative revision of student learning outcomes based on current research relating to competencies in information literacy (IL). Design/methodology/approach – This case study describes collaborations between librarians and writing instructors throughout an eight-week workshop. The workshop focused on using the results of assessments to revise learning outcomes and restructure instruction practices to help students in the areas they struggle with the most. Three significant frameworks, including threshold concepts, backward design and decoding the disciplines, were used to facilitate effective discussion and revise learning outcomes. Findings – The structure of the workshop based on three key frameworks stimulated innovation, fostered collegiality, prompted future collaborative opportunities and garnered buy-in for the importance and implementation of IL initiatives. This collaboration served as a pilot workshop for future plans to write and revise IL outcomes with other departments across campus. Practical implications – This study can serve as a model for future collaborations with any department faculty, especially when IL learning outcomes need to be articulated or revised. The frameworks described are particularly helpful for guiding this process. Originality/value – While much is written on librarian collaborations, this case study emphasizes the importance of creating even closer collaborative opportunities that place both non-library faculty and teaching librarians on equal footing, allowing everyone in the workshop to take part in the design and implementation of integrating IL into a program. It also gives concrete ways to use threshold concepts to discuss IL issues with faculty, which is a major focus of the newly drafted Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

scholarly journals Developing and evaluating an asynchronous online library microcredential: a case study

2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 699-713
Author(s):  
Rebeca Peacock ◽  
Heather Grevatt ◽  
Ellie Dworak ◽  
Lindsay Marsh ◽  
Shelly Doty
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
First Year ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Student Information ◽  
Design Integration ◽  
Face To Face Instruction ◽  
Time Required ◽  
Online Library ◽  
First Year Seminar

Purpose This paper aims to describe the evolution of an academic library’s approach to first-year student information literacy instruction from face-to-face instruction to a fully integrated online microcredential. The design considerations, motivation theory and evaluation methods used to create and evaluate the course are also discussed, with implications for future library microcredential design, integration and research in campus first-year seminar courses. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, a multi-method approach is used to evaluate an undergraduate asynchronous online information literacy microcredential embedded in a first-year seminar. Two methods (Likert scale survey and coded reflection essays) were used to evaluate whether one method may be more beneficial than the other in future iterations of evaluating microcredentials. Findings In looking at a complex cognitive process such as motivation, multiple approaches to analyzing student thoughts may be beneficial. In addition, the role of the first-year seminar instructor, to help students make a connection to library material, is reinforced as is the need to provide students with accurate expectations for time required to complete online asynchronous microcredential courses. Originality/value This paper addresses the evaluation of microcredentials in academic libraries and also has implications for other campus departments investigating the creation of microcourses that are integrated into campus programs. These implications can be addressed in the design and development phases of the microcredential using Keller’s attention, relevance, confidence and satisfaction model, and in turn, can be improved through iterative evaluation cycles using collected student data.

scholarly journals Assessment of Student Learning from Reference Service

2007 ◽  
Vol 68 (6) ◽  
pp. 488-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gillian S. Gremmels ◽  
Karen Shostrom Lehmann
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Instructional Activity ◽  
Reference Service ◽  
Assessment Of Student Learning

For at least 20 years, librarians have been evaluating the quality of reference service, and higher education has been grappling with assessment. This two-year study sought to bring together these two strands: (1) to compare the student’s self-report of what was learned in a reference encounter with the librarian’s statement of what was taught; and (2) to test whether students perceived a link to information literacy content that had been taught in class. The study found that students did understand reference as an instructional activity and that they made the desired links about two-thirds of the time, especially when the librarian was teaching the use of tools.

scholarly journals Learning information literacy through drawing

2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
David James Brier ◽  
Vickery Kaye Lebbin
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
High Tech ◽  
First Year ◽  
Library Instruction ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
First Year Composition ◽  
Face To Face Instruction ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore drawing as an instructional method to teach information literacy. Design/methodology/approach – The authors describe their work using Collaborative Speed Drawing with students in a collection of information literacy workshops for students enrolled in English 100 (first-year composition). Examples of student drawings from the workshops are examined to demonstrate the benefits and problems of this teaching method. Findings – Drawing is an excellent low-tech teaching method that helps students demonstrate their competence (or ignorance) of information literacy concepts. This method enables librarians to clarify, reinforce, challenge or change the pictures in student’s heads that underpin their understandings of library instruction and information literacy. Practical implications – This article provides ideas on how to use drawing in information literacy sessions or credit courses. Many of the ideas shared can be copied, enhanced or tailored to meet the needs of diverse lessons and students taking face-to-face instruction sessions. Originality/value – This is the first paper in library literature that focuses on and promotes drawing as a teaching method. In doing so, it challenges the high-tech instruction imperative and invites librarians to explicitly consider the images behind the words and concepts used in information literacy and library instruction sessions.

Assessment of information literacy skills

2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 521-535
Author(s):  
Chukwuma Clement Okeji ◽  
Obiageli Martina Ilika ◽  
Emmanuel Ebikabowei Baro
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
Credible Information ◽  
Training Programmes

Purpose The purpose of this study is to assess information literacy skills of undergraduates in Nigerian universities. Design/methodology/approach A self-assessed questionnaire was developed to collect data from the final year undergraduates in 15 universities. A total of 1,350 final year Library and Information Science (LIS) students responded to the questionnaire which was used for analysis. Findings The study revealed that the majority of the LIS final year undergraduates mostly consult journal articles, followed by internet information and online databases during their research process. The undergraduates rated well-known author(s), current information, credible information, accurate and relevant information as very important when evaluating online information resources. It was found that the students rated their ability to organize information and integrate ideas from consulted information as high. While they were deficient in ability to correctly paraphrase ideas to avoid plagiarism and use citation and referencing styles correctly. On the whole, almost half of the final year undergraduates of LIS rated their level of information literacy skills to be moderate. Practical implications The findings of the study will inform librarians and faculty in universities in developing countries like Nigeria to develop an information literacy instruction policy. Originality/value Assessing information literacy skills will provide the foundation and knowledge to improve the development of information literacy training programmes.

The Combined Use of Video and One-Way Broadcast Technology to Deliver Baccalaureate Education: A Comparative Assessment of Student Learning in a School of Social Work

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen E. Petracchi
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Social Work Education ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Assessment Of Student Learning ◽  
Face To Face Instruction ◽  
School Of Social Work ◽  
Work Education

Face-to-face instruction remains the dominant teaching method in undergraduate social work education today. However, the technological explosion of the 1980s and 1990s has provided the opportunity to expand our thinking beyond these traditional methods. An increasingly popular method of social work education utilizes various technological media to offer courses that serve students at a distance from the instructor. This article describes a post-hoc assessment of student learning conducted after a course was offered by a school of social work to 462 baccalaureate students. Approximately half of the students were enrolled in the course when it was delivered in a large lecture class format during the standard 15 week term. The remaining students (‘distant’ students) viewed videotapes of studio-filmed broadcasts of the same 15 week course. This assessment addresses the question, “Can undergraduate students learn as well by viewing videotapes of a broadcast course as from face-to-face instruction?”

scholarly journals Partnering for real world learning, sustainability, tourism education

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 378-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gayle Jennings ◽  
Carl I. Cater ◽  
Rob Hales ◽  
Sandra Kensbock ◽  
Glen Hornby
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Real World ◽  
Goodness Of Fit ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Education For Sustainability ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Real World Learning

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to study how real world learning was used to engender and enhance sustainability principles and practices with 11 micro-, small- and medium-tourism business enterprises and 101 university tourism students enrolled across three university courses. Design/methodology/approach – Action research processes were used to focus curricula on “education about and for sustainability”. A participatory paradigm informed the action research processes. The key methodology was qualitative. Empirical materials were generated through lived experiences, reflexive team conversations, team journals, reflexive journals and student learning materials. Reflexive conversations and reflective dialogue framed interpretations. Findings – The action research process found that pedagogies, andragogies and ethnogogies that emphasize social processes of meaning making and sensemaking enhance and engender “education about sustainability” and “education for sustainability”, especially when coupled with real world learning as a platform for social and profession-building processes between university students, course teaching staff and industry, in this case, micro-, small- and medium-tourism entrepreneurs. Research limitations/implications – The qualitative findings of this action research study are specific to the participants involved. Generalizability to other university and business settings and goodness of fit require further study. Practical implications – Insights are provided with regard to implementing real world learning in university undergraduate and postgraduate courses by partnering with industry and focusing on education for sustainability (EfS). A demonstration of the effectiveness of action research as a tool for changing curricula is provided. Social implications – Learning is a social process of meaning making. Time for real world social interaction is critical for learning. Partnering with industry complements student learning and facilitates the translation of theory into practice. Originality/value – EfS is engendered and enhanced when learning-teaching engagements are predicated on real world settings, circumstances and experiences.

Institutions collaborating on an information literacy assessment tool

2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 538-546 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Sharun ◽  
Michelle Edwards Thomson ◽  
Nancy Goebel ◽  
Jessica Knoch
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Multiple Choice ◽  
Clear Understanding ◽  
Multiple Choice Questions ◽  
Student Responses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Range

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to create an information literacy (IL) instruction assessment tool that responds to the unique needs of individual institutions and provides a strategic and relevant model for assessing IL skills among undergraduate students. Design/methodology/approach – The research team designed a post-test questionnaire comprised of two demographic questions, two open-ended questions and a pool of skill-based multiple-choice questions mapped to Association of College and Research Libraries Information Literacy (ACRL IL) Competency Standards for Higher Education. Participating librarians used a customized questionnaire to assess student learning at the end of their one-shot instruction sessions. Findings – In their responses to the multiple-choice questions, students demonstrated a clear understanding of ethical use of information and a strong ability to select appropriate tools for accessing information sources. Student responses to the open-ended questions revealed a wide range of confidence and ability levels, and provided insight into the frequency, depth and breadth with which various ACRL Standards are being addressed in library sessions. Research limitations/implications – This paper reports on student responses to questions that have subsequently been identified as problematic; therefore, strong inferences cannot be made about student learning from these responses. Questions have since been improved with further revision. In addition, the sample sizes for individual questions were too small to be generalizable. Practical implications – The intentional and strategic approach to the development of the assessment tool and its implementation is that it be practical and easy to implement for partner libraries. It is intended to make assessment of IL in the undergraduate context be assessable to all academic librarians who desire to participate. Originality/value – This paper describes a unique assessment tool that is designed to be responsive to local needs and provide a cost-free assessment option for academic libraries.

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