Technology & Information Literacy Instruction:

A Model for Active Learning Environments

Jeremy W. Donald, MSLSFaculty Technology LiaisonTrinity UniversitySan Antonio, TX

From George M. Piskurich, Rapid Instructional Design, 2nd ed. Pfeiffer, 2006:

“The quality and success of your instruction

can be measured by the activities

you develop for it.”

Summary:

Knowledge-type information (facts, wisdom, demonstrations) is BEST DELIVERED OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM via technology.

Use class time to substantially address ONLY the 1-2 most challenging learning outcomes.

Class time is BEST USED for HANDS-ON EXPERIMENTATION WITH TOOLS and GUIDED REFLECTION on the results of that experimentation. 

Coverage of Key IL Concepts (some remedial)

Challenging Technologies

Engaging Activities

50 Minutes!

The “Old” Model

2 minutes

30 minutes

2 minutes

10 minutes

15 minutes

Completed before ILI

Up until due date

A “New” Model for the Library One-Shot

Learning Management System/LibGuide:

•Library Pre-Assignment     •Tutorials     •Pretest/Survey 

Visit to class when assignment is introduced:

•Explain your role•Sketch the research workflow

                     

  

•Describe your role again &

provide contact info, office hours

•Goals for the session (should

be the same as the students'!)

•Session outline and materials

•What do we need to know to be able start experimenting?

• What IL criteria do we need to learn and then apply to our active learning?

•What are the relevant systems (e.g., fielded search, peer review, bills vs. laws)?

Laboratory: "...to allow experimentation, testing, and hands on experience. Level of structure can vary"

Behavior Modeling: Ask students to share the results of their experimentation, and you/they model the application of the criteria introduced earlier.

From your list of outcomes, ask students to self-assess what they learned. Encourage them to address perceived gaps with...

…office hours, research appts, peer tutors, LibGuides, post/self-instruction, tutorials, Help Desk...

IL outcomes for an Intro to Neuroscience course

Students will be able to…• Look up a famous neuroscientist in

print and online subject encyclopedias and biographical databases

• Identify and locate three key works/contributions by this author

• Determine the impact of these works on the relevant scientific literature

• Create a bibliography of sources used

Subject Encyclopedias & Library Databases

Citation Manager

Library Catalog & ILL

Citation Tracking

2 3 4 1

Online Tutorial

Online Tutorial

8 minutes in class

15 minutes in class

1-2 min. in class

Drawbacks of This Model

• No thundering applause• Teaching faculty made anxious by your refusal to

simply talk & demonstrate searching for 45 minutes

• Legs get sore from providing guide-on-the-side assistance to practically every student during long activity segment

• Cynical students feel cheated of opportunity to complain about boring, repetitive “library day”

Questions?

Activity for Librarians:• www.trinity.edu/jdonald/Instructional_Design_Activity.doc