Real Learning Connections Project: The New Internship

1. Real Learning Connections Project: The New Internship Nora Bird, Asst Professor, DLIS-UNCG Mike Crumpton, Asst Dean, UL-UNCG

2. Librarian • Student • Faculty Traditional Model of Internship/Practica • Reflection on process is primarily done by the student

3. Student Employee Model • Learning goals defined by the practitioner

4. Teacher-Librarian Pilot • All parties are considered equal learning partners. Locus of control and knowledge is shared. Each party has their own goals. • Interaction between all three parties is explicit. The proposal is that some research component be added to the internship and the end product might be a co-authored publication/presentation. • The proposal also includes reflection by all parties.

5. Current Theory and Research LIBRARIAN Practical Work Experience FACULTY STUDENT Academic Content

6. Real Learning Connections Project • Pilot to examine new model on internship • Curriculum (theory) vs. practice (work) • Student as catalyst • Product(s) produced

7. Collaborative Learning University Libraries Dept of Library and Information Science • Students learn practical application of librarianship skills • Librarians learn about trends and technologies impacting libraries today • Students learn theory, technical overview and historical reasoning behind the values of librarianship • Faculty learn how it is being applied

8. Theoretical Base

9. Experiential Learning • Creating meaning in learning via direct activities • Learning through reflection on learning • Engages learner at a more personal level • Creating an experience where learning can be facilitated "For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them."[--Aritotle

10. David Kolb on Experiential Learning • Learner must • be willing to be actively involved in the experience; • be able to reflect on the experience; • possess and use analytical skills to conceptualize the experience; and • possess decision making and problem solving skills in order to use the new ideas gained from the experience.

11. Donald Schön • "In some fields, the question of professional artistry has come up in the context of continuing education. Educators ask how mature professionals can be helped to renew themselves so as to avoid 'burnout,' how they can be helped to build their repertoires of skills and understandings on a continuing basis." p. 15 • "In the terrain of professional practice, applied science and research-based technique occupy a critically important though limited territory, bounded on several sides by artistry." p. 13

12. Critical Reflection – DEAL Model • Describe Experience Objectively • Big picture, significant experiences • Examine from personal perspective • Feeling generated • Past experiences, expectations, bias • Personal skills, strengths and weaknesses • Learning • What was learnedand how • What was important and why * need reference

14. Reflective Writing • Vehicle for reflection on practical application of learning • It helps you to reflect on your thinking, how you think and how to put your emotions down in words.

16. Amy Archambault Library and Information Studies University of North Carolina at Greensboro a_archam@uncg.edu More than a GAship: The Teach/Library Project Defined Abstract The Difference The Teach/Library project is a joint venture between UNCG’s Library and Information Studies department and Jackson Library to foster an innovative exchange of ideas, knowledge sharing and goal-defined outcomes between faculty member, practitioner and student. During the course of one academic year, the student works with a librarian in a chosen specialty area. They collaborate to create projects that align with, not only the practitioner’s needs, but also with the student’s interests and career objectives. The faculty member contributes fundamental understanding, theory and/or learning objectives through either a course or regular meetings. All contribute to the shared knowledge by electronic journal, in this case, a wiki. The overall objective is that all three parties are sharing, learning and meeting individual goals. Each is an equal stakeholder in the learning process. The desire is to produce a body of work that can be shared with others outside the institution when the project is completed. • The DEAL Method: (Ash, 2009) • Describe • Examine • Articulate Learning • Each member revisits this process each week and places it in context with experiences learned or observed. The wiki journal provides a collaborative space not only to share, but also to engage in a meaningful dialogue among each other. • Faculty • Learner • Librarian • Learner • Student • Learner The Benefits • Practical experience while learning “the basics” of library studies • Networking alliances • Academic financial support (Student) • Communicate academic initiatives and needs • Practitioner viewpoint encouraged • Collaborative and open – no hierarchy Shared Knowledge Ash, Clayton & Moses. (2009). Learning Through Critical Reflection. A Tutorial for Service-Learning Students. Raleigh, NC.

17. Pilot’s Projects SPECIAL COLLECTIONS/ARCHIVES Instructional Toolbox • Five collections processed • Student participated in dept reference activities • Processed oral histories • Supervised undergrads • Redesign DE website around new tools developed • New tutorials and usability testing included • Conference presentations with librarian and student (resume builder) • http://library.uncg.edu/info/depts/reference/instruction/tech_toolkit_homepage.aspx

18. Pilot’s Lessons Learned • Development of roles and responsibilities has direct relationship to product(s) produced • More attention needed on choosing applicants and development of project goals • Higher level of reflective work needed to monitor and share experiences • Present different models of faculty side such as independent study, or seminar courses focused on related projects.

19. A Case in Point (Year Two)

20. Fine Tuning Logistics The position requirements:You must be a full-time LIS graduate student.  You must be able to work 20 hours/week at the internship. You must participate in the Real Learning Connections project including meetings, assessment, and ongoing journaling. You must be willing to take specific courses in the LIS Department that will be tied to the internship described in the project descriptions above. 

21. Second Year Projects The projects:1) Special Collections and University Archives working primarily with Beth Ann Koelsch on the Women Veterans Historical Project. [LIS 688-07, Advanced Archives (Fall), LIS 688-06, Preservation Management].2) Digital Projects. Working primarily with David Gwynn on the Bernard Greenhouse Project, to display artifacts, oral histories, and other materials related to cellist, Bernard Greenhouse. [Coursework: LIS 640 or LIS 644 (Fall), LIS 688, Music Librarianship (Spring).] 3) Administration and Assessment. Working primarily with Kathy Bradshaw, Human Resources Librarian and the Assessment Committee. [LIS 650 - Fall, LIS 652 or 656 - Spring].

22. Second Year Potential Products

23. Mid-term Feedback • Course curriculum suggestions • Job preparation experience • Higher quality project work • Student perspective • Learning resources broadened

24. Community College Partners • Each member of the class is linked with a practitioner in a community college. • Checking theory being learned from articles with what is being done in libraries. • They will write about the connections and disconnections.

25. Let Go of My Lego • Lego (trademarked in capitals as LEGO) is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, mini-figures and various other parts. Lego bricks can be assembled and connected in many ways, to construct such objects as vehicles, buildings, and even working robots. Anything constructed can then be taken apart again, and the pieces used to make other objects. The toys were originally designed in the 1940s in Denmarkand have achieved an international appeal, with an extensive subculture that supports Lego movies, games, video games, competitions, and five Lego theme amusement parks.

26. Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene It is a copolymer made by polymerizing styrene and acrylonitrile in the presence of polybutadiene.

27. Let’s Build Something

28. Lego City

29. REFERENCES Ash, S. L. and Clayton, P. H. (2004). The articulated learning: An approach to guided reflection and assessment. Innovative higher education, 29 (2): 137-154. Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. Schön, D. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Todd, L.T. (2007). NYS Library Development: Making It REAL! Teaching Library Model, http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/imls/teachlib.htm

30. Questions?????? Nora J. Bird, PhDAssistant ProfessorUniversity of North Carolina at GreensboroSchool of EducationDept. of Library and Information Studies1300 Spring Garden St., P.O. Box 26170Greensboro, NC   27402-6170njbird@uncg.edu336-541-6571 Michael Crumpton Assistant Dean for Administrative Services University Libraries The University of North Carolina - Greensboro PO Box 26170 Greensboro, NC 27402-6170 phone (336) 256-1213macrumpt@uncg.edu