Reinventing the Library Class Session

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Reinventing the Library Class Session

• Eliot Finkelstein, Carrie Nelson, Trisha Prosise
• UW-Madison

WAAL Conference April 17, 2008
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Background

• Library module is faculty-mandated
• Embedded in introductory course
• In 2006-2007, 4300 students
• Online tutorial followed by 50-minute session
• Students arrive with research need

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Library Module Objectives

• Orientation to campus libraries
• Finding books (library catalog)
• Finding journal articles (basic databases)
• Distinguishing between free and licensed web
• Distinguishing between scholarly and popular
  sources
• Critical thinking regarding selection of sources
• Positive attitude towards the library

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Why Reinvent the Session?

• Repetition of tutorial
• Lets add this! syndrome / time issues
• Session became a collection of patches and
  rewrites
• Mostly demonstration-driven

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Reinvention Process

• Librarians from a variety of subject specialties
• Willingness to let go
• Follow a set process and stay with the process
  (first things first)
• Schedule a lot of time

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Online Tutorial Content

• Introduction to college-level research
• Overview of libraries on campus
• Basic, general research strategies
• Introduction to the library catalog
• Introduction to journal databases

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Library Module Objectives

• Orientation to campus libraries
• Finding books (library catalog)
• Finding journal articles (basic databases)
• Distinguishing between free and licensed web
• Distinguishing between scholarly and popular
  sources
• Critical thinking regarding selection of sources
• Positive attitude towards the library

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Five Questions Structure

• What do I want the student to be able to do as a
  result of this instruction? (learning outcomes)
• What does the student need to know in order to do
  this well? (curriculum content)
• What activity will facilitate the learning?
  (pedagogy)
• How will the student demonstrate the learning?
  (assessment)
• How will I know the student has done this well?
  (criteria)

From Gilchrist, Debra.  Outcomes Assessment from
the Inside Out.  LMDC of Washington, 1999.
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1. Learning Outcomes

• Analyze library information resources to select
  those most appropriate to the information need
• Apply search techniques learned in the online
  tutorial to develop search strategies that will
  enable students to search the selected library
  resources effectively
• Critically evaluate search results and select
  those items most relevant to the specific
  information need

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2. Curriculum Content

• Articles provide current, short (compared to
  books) and focused information
• Articles on a topic can be found by using a
  journal database
• Databases by Subject in the E-Resource Gateway
  lists databases by subject and can be used to
  select databases relevant to a particular
  research topic

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3. Pedagogy

• What activities will facilitate students learning
  this content?

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Welcome to the WLA fast food counter!
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Reactions to Activity

• Can you identify any specific differences between
  these two models?
• What did you think about the differences?
• Are there advantages of one model over the other?

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Instruction in Our Old Model

• Use engagement strategies
• Avoid complicated, discouraging examples
• Cover as many of the useful resources and tools
  as possible

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Constructivist Learning

• Active learning vs. hands-on
• Activity leads to concepts, not other way around
• Enhanced by social interaction
• Enhanced by authentic tasks
• Students learn more by recovering from mistakes

From Cooperstein, Susan E. and Elizabeth
Kocevar-Weidinger, Beyond Active Learning
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Transformative Learning

• Paradigm shift vs. assimilative learning
• Students must recognize the limitations of their
  current knowledge . . . What is needed is a true
  transformation of students existing knowledge.

From McGonigal, Kelly, Teaching for
Transformation
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Transformative Learning contd

• Create a disorienting dilemma
• Arrange for students to fail safely
• Careful balance between support and challenge

From McGonigal, Kelly, Teaching for
Transformation
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Constructivist Learning in Our Class Session

• Active learning vs. hands-on
• Students try it instead of following along
• Activity leads to concepts not the other way
  around
• Students start with an activity
• Enhanced by social interaction
• Partner activities and discussion
• Enhanced by authentic tasks
• Sample research topic a workplace activity
• Students learn more by recovering from mistakes
• Students try searching until they find something

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Transformative Learning in Our Class Session

• Paradigm shift vs. assimilative learning
• We need to convince students that they cant do
  library research the same way they do other
  online searching.

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Transformative Learning in Our Class Session

• Create a disorienting dilemma
• Present students with a search box where they
  cant enter their search phrase
• Arrange for students to fail safely
• Fail together and talk about strategies to
  improve searches
• Dont send students off to fail alone after class
• Careful balance between support and challenge
• Chunk activities
• Change the plan if too challenging

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Constructivist Strategies Transformative
Strategies

• Remarkable Student Engagement
• Realize they dont already know how to do this
• Challenged by problem solving activities
• Constantly active and trying new things
• Working in groups
• Electronic worksheet to help manage activities

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Five Questions Structure

• What do I want the student to be able to do as a
  result of this instruction? (learning outcomes)
• What does the student need to know in order to do
  this well? (curriculum content)
• What activity will facilitate the learning?
  (pedagogy)
• How will the student demonstrate the learning?
  (assessment)
• How will I know the student has done this well?
  (criteria)

From Gilchrist, Debra.  Outcomes Assessment from
the Inside Out.  LMDC of Washington, 1999.
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Assessment Student Worksheet

• Basic rubric from electronic worksheets
• Rubric based on research topic for class, journal
  database, search terms
• Confusion about databases (about 1 in 4)
• Search terms include natural language phrase and
  dead words (about 1 in 5)

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Assessment Instructors

• Survey results
• Quotes
• It was very encouraging for my students to see
  how the process of research works in fits and
  starts, not as a perfectly fluid exercise.
• I liked that learning how to do research is now
  framed as a useful skill theyll need once they
  have jobs, not just something they need to figure
  out for college.

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Assessment Instructors contd

• Please do not have them role play as interns
  from Wash. D.C. Unfortunately they do not see the
  relevance of this exercise to the task at hand
  which is academic research.
• The online worksheet and search tasks seemed a
  little time consuming I think students could
  have carried out the searches and reported back
  verbally

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Assessment Librarians

• Using a 4-point scale, all indicated an
  improvement in student engagement from
  unengaged or engaged with the old model to
  very engaged with the new
• With the new outline, all the students have to
  be engaged, they have no choice. This is all
  very good, you cannot just sit and watch, you
  have to do the exercises.

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Assessment Student Evaluations

• 80 of students choose Librarian
  Demonstrations as the part of the class that
  helped them most
• It was very informative. Also having the
  students interact helped us understand the
  process better.
• It was really good. I learned a lot. And it
  was somewhat interesting.

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• The class now focuses on the key search
  strategies and builds directly on the tutorial.
  It keeps students engaged by turning the work
  over to them quite quickly, but is directed
  enough that things dont get chaotic. I think it
  helps students discover their research weaknesses
  on their own. And in an environment where they
  can seek help.

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Thank you!

• Eliot Finkelstein
• efinkelstein_at_library.wisc.edu
• Carrie Nelson
• cnelson_at_library.wisc.edu
• Trisha Prosise
• tprosise_at_library.wisc.edu

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References

• Cooperstein, S. E., Kocevar-Weidinger, E.
  (2004). Beyond active learning A constructivist
  approach to learning. Reference Services Review,
  32(2), 141.
• Gilchrist, D. (1999). Outcomes assessment from
  the inside out. Presented to Library and Media
  Directors Council, Washington State.
• McGonigal, K. (2005, Spring). Teaching for
  transformation From learning theory to teaching
  strategies. Speaking of Teaching, 14(2), 1-4.
  Retrieved 4/03/2008, from http//ctl.stanford.edu/
  Newsletter/