Information literacy instruction
Part of my work as a graduate assistant at the UW Libraries is to plan, teach, and assess information literacy courses. For each session I work with the instructor (in-person or via email) to create a plan that best suits the needs of their students and the focus of the assignment. I create a presentation that allows me to interact with the class and hopefully creates some visual context to my teaching. Utilizing sources created by myself and other librarians I've created class guides that are tailored to the needs of individual classes I work with. The class specific LibGuides are popular with students. I use them in class to walk them through important information related to their assignment (e.g. citation styles) and the guides are available to them online when they are ready to start searching for materials or want to refer back to what was covered.
I've also been trying various types of assessment (in low-tech and high-tech versions) with students to gain feedback on what they've learned during the instruction session and their level of comfort in searching on their own. I'm currently participating in a larger scale assessment project with other librarians to collect assessment data about the information literacy classes the libraries conduct for UW's Expository Writing Program.
I've also been trying various types of assessment (in low-tech and high-tech versions) with students to gain feedback on what they've learned during the instruction session and their level of comfort in searching on their own. I'm currently participating in a larger scale assessment project with other librarians to collect assessment data about the information literacy classes the libraries conduct for UW's Expository Writing Program.
Here is an example highlighting the process of creating a single information literacy session for English 103 (Fall 2013):
International student Orientation
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The UW Libraries participate in the orientation week activities to help new international students become adjusted to life on campus before the quarter begins. Rather than spend an hour walking the students through a vast amount of information they wouldn't be able to absorb in one sitting we decided to create a 10 minute introduction to the libraries and then take the students on a tour of the two biggest libraries on campus and show them what we have to offer rather than simply telling them about it.
I created this Prezi around a photo I felt the students could relate to and used the imagery to highlight services for students. The students liked that they didn't have to sit for an hour straight and commented that they liked the Prezi format. We also handed out bookmarks containing a url and a QR code for a LibGuide I created with the Japanese Studies librarian, geared towards international students new to the University.
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lightning talk for library staff
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The UW Libraries recently acquired a number of new databases and needed a way to inform librarians and staff who work the Reference desk what the new databases had to offer. I collaborated with my fellow graduate assistants to create a lightning talk session that highlighted a number of the new purchases.
The session was offered in person and was recorded for those who were unable to attend. I chose the "Entertainment Industry Magazine Archive" from ProQuest and created a five-minute talk highlighting the search features and quirks of the database. The format of the lightning talk was an excellent way to get the information out to everyone in a short amount of time. The librarians not only got to hear about a number of new resources without setting aside a significant part of their day, but many of them were introduced to the lightning talk format for the first time. |
Online instruction & Technology
I created this online instruction example as part of my Instruction for Information Professionals course. The point of the assignment was to teach something in five minutes. I decided to create a teaching segment that was part of a larger course, allowing me to showcase teaching one aspect of a larger set of ideas.
For this five minute teaching segment I created a walk-through for a Film Analysis assignment. I give a brief introduction and walk the students through a shot-by-shot analysis, a standard film studies assignment. The film used for the basis of the assignment is Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho". And because I like a good theme I used a photo of Hitchcock as the basis for my prezi. (Click here to view the prezi used in the video.)
Time is precious for busy students and faculty. It is important to develop skills that help us get information to patrons in a succinct manner. One way we can do this is by creating material that is engaging and to the point. |
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Moving forward
Keeping instruction fresh and interesting (both for the students and the librarian) can be daunting. I find that informal sharing amongst colleagues, even if only at the end of the term, is a great way to share things we've tried and brainstorm ways to make things better for the next session. I would like to continue this style of sharing as I move forward in my career, whether this means meeting with colleagues in person or virtually, as a way keeping my classes from getting stale or pedestrian.
Keeping up with literature on instruction methods and styles is an important part of professional development. That includes looking outside of library-focused literature to see what is being written in higher education and business related publications to find new ideas or techniques to try in the classroom. And as ACRL is currently reviewing and updating the Information Literacy Competency Standards I will be keeping up with the progress and the changes that arise in the standards.
Keeping up with literature on instruction methods and styles is an important part of professional development. That includes looking outside of library-focused literature to see what is being written in higher education and business related publications to find new ideas or techniques to try in the classroom. And as ACRL is currently reviewing and updating the Information Literacy Competency Standards I will be keeping up with the progress and the changes that arise in the standards.