Developmental Mastery of Information Literacy Skills

ACA’s Project Workshop on Integration of Library Materials and Information Literacy

March 22, 2008

Melissa Garrett, Union College[mgarrett@unionky.edu]

And Emaly Conerly, Carson-Newman College

[econerly@cn.edu]

Points to consider for Developmental Mastery of Information Literacy:

ACRL IL Standards

Learning Stages

Discipline

Taxonomy of Learning

Campus Culture

Pedagogy

ACRL Information Literacy Standardshttp://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlstandards/informationliteracycompetency.cfm

• The information literate student:• Standard 1

Determines the nature and extent of the information needed.• Standard 2

Accesses needed information effectively and efficiently.• Standard 3

Evaluates information and its sources critically and incorporates selected information into his or her knowledge base and value system.

• Standard 4Individually or as a member of a group, uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose.

• Standard 5Understands many of the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and accesses and uses information ethically and legally.

Campus Culture

• Commitment to the development of life-long learning for students

• Openness to change and learning by the librarians and the faculty

• Collaboration between faculty and librarians• Use and on library resources and services in course

instruction dependence • Support for information literacy at multiple levels, from

college administration to librarians

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational ObjectivesA. Lower skills

1. Knowledge*list, name, describe, state, measure, label, summarize

2. Comprehension*identify, illustrate, explain, classify, indicate

3. Application*perform, use, manipulate, assess, change, demonstrate

B. Higher Skills4. Analysis*analyze, discriminate, criticize, infer, conclude5. Synthesis*combine, discuss, argue, derive, reconstruct, design, relate6. Evaluation*support, attack, appraise, judge, justify, clarify

Scholarly Publication: Books and journals, print and online

Popular Publication: Books, magazines and newspapers, print and online

                                                                                                           

Author Is a noted professional or expert Is a journalist, student, popular author; or may not be listed

Advertising Very little or highly specialized Significant amount

Audience Advanced reading level; may have specialized vocabulary Basic reading level for a general audience

Indexing Articles are listed in specialized indexes; for example PsycINFO, Biosis or Humanities Index

Articles are listed in general indexes; for example Reader's Guide or Periodicals Index

Purpose Discusses a specific scholarly field Current events, general interest items

Review Policy

Articles are reviewed by peers;  editorial board composed of scholars in the field

Editor or editorial board are members of the magazine's staff

Sources A list of references is included at the end of each article Articles rarely include references

                                                                                                                          Credit: John Adkins, University of Charleston

ACRL IL Standard 1.2.d.

Do our students come to us ready to move right through these learning stages?

T

Thinking Mode A: Sgt. Friday – Just the Facts Ma’am 1st teaching/learning task: Change student’s concept of knowing from memorizing to understanding Transition 1: Understanding that knowledge is uncertain 2nd teaching/learning task: Recognizing legitimate uncertainty

Thinking Mode B: Baskins Robbins – Anything GoesTransition 2: Perceiving opinion as insufficient 3rd teaching/learning task: Teaching students to develop criteria for making judgments, to compare and contrast

Thinking Mode C: Playing the Teachers’ Games Transition 3: Convincing students that the game matters

4th teaching/learning task: Tying analysis to values

Thinking Mode D: Playing like a Pro

(Chuck Bonwell, TLI, ACA, June, 2007)(

C-N Library Homepage Gateway to our Resources and Services

Lib 101 1st Class Session

Lib 101 2nd Class Session

The Jeopardy! Information Literacy Challenge Jeopardy! Information Literacy

Challenge

Emphasize these resources:$$SelectedUnderutilized

Internet

Multi-Media, Interactive

Journals

Books

Subject-Specific Reference

Bibliographies

General Reference

_________________________________________________________________

Pathfinder: a Dynamic Model

Discipline or Subject Content

• Flow of information and importance of currency of information

• Specialized vocabulary• Formats and methods of organization used in

writing• Authorities and credentials presented?• Primary/secondary sources?• Use of statistics, field research, interviews,

ethnographies?• Documentation style used

Union College & Information Literacy: Maximizing Fitness Peaks in the IL Adaptive Landscape

• Summer 2006 – Library initiates 5-Year BI Plan (ACA FELR Grant)– IL standards included in three of Union College

Goals for General Education (Communication; Critical Thinking; Learning Skills)

– Library BI Plan links BI session syllabi w/Goals for General Education and ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education

– Incremental progression: Basic Library Orientation; ENCO 101-102; Entry-Level Discipline-Specific Courses; Capstone Courses

• Spring 2007 – IL outcome consolidated and added to UC Liberal Education Outcomes – Liberal Learning Goal 1: Communication SkillsA Union student should, by graduation, be able to:

• 1.4 locate, evaluate (for authenticity, validity and reliability) and use effective graphical, aural and textual information available through libraries, community resources, special interest organizations, media and the internet.

• Academic Assessment Committee– Determine assessment measures– Each Academic Program to identify course(s) which

assess the Liberal Education Outcomes

Managing It All: a Few Tools to Encourage Developmental Mastery

• Weeks-Townsend Memorial Library Assessment Plan

• Library Session syllabi • Pathfinder Model

– Provides overview of possible resources– Links with library Learning and Information Resources– Permits Discipline-specific application

• Taxonomy & IL Outcomes Working Chart– Lower & Higher Skills at a glance– Alignment of Skills w/ACRL IL outcomes

Unit Objective Link to Vision Expected OutcomeAssessment Criteria & Evaluation Methods

Maintain % use of WTML resources in 099 and 1xx courses

180% plus students using at least 1 recommended WTML resource

Bibliographies/works cited from student assignments following formal BI sessions

Syllabi for BI sessions:

• Include a Module or Session Description which gives an overview of the session(s)

• Link student learning outcomes to Union College Liberal Education Outcomes and ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards

• Include assessment method and goal• Coordinate w/Discipline-Specific course or assignment

– Outcomes– Resource requirements

Fall 2007: First-Year Students

Bloom’s Taxonomy

• Knowledge

• Comprehension• Application

Library Instruction Sections• 50-minute Basic Library Orientation

(Welcome Weekend)• 50-minute Research Overview• 50-minute Discipline-Specific BI

– IL outcomes linked to Discipline-Specific course outcomes/assignment outcomes(Ready to Learn Workshop, May 2007)

Carson-Newman College & Information Literacy: From Big Bang to Evolution

1. 2003: The Big Bang- WebCT Tutorial: 8 modules

Pretest Orientation to the Carson-Newman Library Introduction to types of information resources Defining the information need Locating information resources on a topic Evaluating information resources found Using information resources ethically and legally Post test

- Developed using the ACRL Standards and Learning Outcomes (We taught it all!)

- Taught in English 101 sections- Two class sessions: library tour, hands-on lab session- Killer Worksheets with each module for student homework

2. 2006: Evolution

~ Phase I- Restructuring- Information overload- Emails on ILL listserv: Laddered Information Literacy - Restructured tutorial & Senior quizzes- Library Outreach- Aids to students and faculty on Library Homepage

~ Phase 2: Information Literacy Initiative- Approvals & Support: Provost, Academic Council, Academic Programs Committee- Revised General Education Program- Information Literacy – Core Component in each LA101 course & other core courses- For LA 101 courses (Freshman): WebCT IL Tutorial, research log, multiple library mini-sessions- C-N 101 – New, revised Scavenger Hunt- Library instruction in English 101 and Religion 101- IL instruction in first major course- IL instruction in Capstone Major Senior course & IL Senior quiz

http://www.oswego.edu/library/instruction/outcomes.pdf

Example of Laddered Information Literacy Learning Outcomes: SUNY Oswego