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Pump ‘em up: a research led approach to library induction
Carl Cross
LRC Manager
Heanor Gate Science College
© Viktor Rosenfield used under Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Licencewww.flickr.com
Year 1 inductions
Student Academic Honesty
Learning to learn
Evaluating & Discriminating
Search Strategies
Boolean Logic
Year 2 Inductions
Student
‘advanced’ Google
Searching
Learning to learn
Due dates
Intro to Dewey
Navigating a book
The perception gap
Basic/Functional Information Skills
Higher Level Information Skills
Digital Native
Uncritical
Google Generation
Google dependent
Information Behaviour of the Researcher of the Future (11th January 2008). JISC.
How far have we come in 8 years?
• [students’] apparent facility with computers disguises some worrying problems
• …speed of web searching means that little time is spent evaluating information either for relevance, accuracy or authority
• [students’] exhibit a strong preference for natural language searching rather than analysing which key words might be more effective
Information Behaviour of the Researcher of the Future (11th January 2008). JISC.
How far have we come in 8 years?
• …young people find it difficult to access the relevance of the materials presented and often print off pages with no more than a perfunctory glance at them
Are these still the behaviours of today’s students?
Participatory/Anecdotal Evidence
August 2011– What we found
Information Seeking Behaviours:
• Daunted by full texts• Lacked strategies to navigate and evaluate texts• “Everything’s on Google”• Lacked understanding of their own behaviours and how they could be
improved• Unwilling to ask for help• Shallow, iterative approach to web searching
Study Skills/Learning to Learn sessions
Approaches
• Assembly style mass instruction
• Chalk and talk sessions in small groups
• Interactive sessions delivered in LRC
• Tutorial activities written by LRC staff but delivered by tutors
• Self directed learning
The big idea:An attempt at designing a research led study skills programme
When I search for information I only use Google
• Discuss the filter bubble problem in relation to academic research
• Look at Boolean searching
• Effectively searching databases
• Webquests and Internet treasure hunts
Gamifying Study Skills
Achievement Generator http://x360ag.com/
Gamifying Study Skills
Zerg Rush!
I’m confident that I find the best available information when I search online
• Anatomy of a URL
• Databases vs search engines
• Books v Scholar
• Print resources – authority
I know which words most search engines ignore
• Stop words
• Keywords
• Reliance on natural language strings – noise?
I know the difference between the ‘open’ and ‘hidden’ web
• What search engines don’t index
• BL Catalogue/COPAC
I only use electronic resources to find information
• Is everything available digitally?
• Is it all searchable?
I know when information is biased
Perceived authority
~ in .ac.uk and .edu
I understand what plagiarism is
• Whole school gathering (assembly)
• Academic honesty and referencing sessions on demand
• Always available referencing clinics
• Support for Zotero and Word functions. Future support for Ref Me
Our Experience
What We Did
Involving tutors
• INSET training on electronic resources and study skills
• Banned photocopy boxes and other ‘short cut’ secondary sources
• ‘Just in time’ study skills sessions for coursework, projects and EPQ
Our Experience
What We Did
Training Students
• Study Skills/Learning to Learn sessions
• Self help tools – leaflets and guidance
• Screencasts
• Assessment questionnaires and activities
Study Skills/Learning to Learn sessions
• Interactive sessions delivered in LRC
Carl Cross
LRC Manager
Tamworth Sixth Form
Self directed learning
Screencasts
Leaflets and guidance
Future developments
• Too late by the time we get to them – needs to start in primary school
• Tutorial staff still not confident in many areas – training and support
• Consistency – Harvard? APA? Chicago? – mirrors university experience
