Key Elements of IL Education embedded in Research

Activity Liu Qing, Zhong Yongheng

Hanover ， October 13, 2008

Background

• Scientists and researchers must have a sound understanding of the community in which they work and must be able to look at problems from different perspectives.

• They must analyze, gather evidence, synthesize and be creative thinkers.

Background

They are creators, users and disseminators of information

The various roles and functions of the scientific activities bring along various information needs.

Background （ Cont’ ）Researchers require a range of more advanced

information skills to operate effectively in an electronic information environment: – identification of information needs has to be more precise,– more advanced browsing skills are required; for example

expertise in the use of search language to accommodate different search engines and electronic databases is needed,

– communication technologies must be used effectively to identify and communicate with subject experts and researchers around the world,

– critical evaluation of information is paramount when accessing information on the internet which may not be subject to a peer review process and is unregulated,

– information technology skills are required in managing, storing and presenting information.

Embedded IL Education

Since the early 1990’s, libraries of different types have explored different ways of decentralizing the delivery of services, by

embedding librarians and their services in targeted patron’s groups.

““ Get out of the library, and Get out of the library, and into the business”, into the business”, “ “Actively assess who needs Actively assess who needs information, and who has it - information, and who has it - then help them to connect”then help them to connect” --Tom Davenport, President of --Tom Davenport, President of Information Technology and Information Technology and Management at Babson College, USAManagement at Babson College, USA

“ just-in-time” delivery of IL knowledge of immediate importance to the work of the customer group.

Embedded IL Education• Embedded IL education in

research community plays important roles in helping researchers and scientists enhance their competencies when facing changing science information environment.

• Embedded IL education could happen anywhere or anytime in anyway.

• The librarian’s value is defined primarily by all these services that contribute important IL programs to the target groups in a timely fashion.

Several Issues we should consider

Key elements we should consider

• migrate programs centered on library to incorporate wider Internet-based sources and skills.

Element 1: Solutions - Discipline Specific

• Discipline-Specific Solution is not new for library;

• DSS are receiving increasing attention;• DSS is actually a bunch of solutions based

on different discipline specific needs .

• specific resources• Generic and specific ways in using E-resources • Analysis Tools.

Element 1: Solutions - Discipline Specific

– Materials– Engineering– Optics– Environment– Chemistry– Computer and

Information Science– Biomedical– Mathematics– Astrology– Physics– Pharmaceutical– Botany

Scientists, researchers and graduate students of different institutes

Element 2: Concept -- Information management

• Since scientists and researchers get involved in the whole life cycle of information from creation to dissemination, Information management, rather than information retrieval, should be the focus of information literacy education for researchers.

• In short, information management entails organizing, retrieving, acquiring and maintaining information.

• Embedded IL education should pay more attention on IM in developing more structured knowledge and skills on information organizing, processing, acquiring and maintaining with no extra burden which makes scientists and researchers feel reluctant.

Element 2: Concept -- Information management

Element 3: Content -- Patent and patenting

• A patent specification is written by an inventor for the instruction of those wishing to make a practical application of the inventor's finding

• a scientific paper, written by the scientist and for the scientist, is designed primarily to record scientific knowledge.

Element 3: Content -- Patent and patenting

• what patents are and how they fit with the rest of scientific literature?

• how to read and interpret patents?

• how to search for patents using both the uncontrolled vocabulary of the abstracts and full text and the controlled chaos of the classification system?

Element 3: Content -- Patent and patenting

• how to explore what else patents can tell them about their discipline– where are the new

discoveries being made?

– how fast is the field changing?

– what instruments are being used in the development of new processes? and

– how old some technologies really are?

Element 3: Content -- Patent and patenting

• What is the Patentable Invention?

• how to make patentability determination?

Element 4: librarian’s role -- Educator? Learner?

• how far librarians can go when facing complicated and advanced needs from scientists and researchers?

• They should develop a critical consciousness about libraries and become specialists in specific information resources and skills

Conclusions

• Embedded IL education in research community confronts complicated situation

• How to make it feasible, operational and repeatable is a big challenge for librarians

• We need to dynamically modify our programs to meet real needs

• a good practice of embedded IL education should be flexible with different needs.

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• 10 The ALA/ACRL/STS Task Force on Information Literacy for Science and Technology. Information Literacy Standards for Science and Engineering/Technology. Retrieved September 18, 2007, from ALA web site: http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlstandards/infolitscitech.cfm

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Thank you!谢谢！

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