Information Literacy For Teaching & Learning:

1. Information Literacy For Teaching & Learning: A Workshop For Faculty & Librarians Libraries & Educational Technologies Center for Faculty Innovation James Madison University Dr. Terrence Mech King’s College, Wilkes-Barre, PA May 9-11, 2006

2. Today’s High Education • Articulation & assessment of outcomes • Student centered approach to course & curriculum development • Emphasis on student understanding & capabilities rather than fact-learning • Emphasis on undergraduate research • Preparing students to apply their knowledge in non-academic settings(NEA 2001)

3. From Teacher Centered to Learner Centered • Cover the material VS. using the material • Cover topics VS. mastering learning objectives • Listening/reading VS. constructing knowledge through integration

4. From Teacher Centered to Learner Centered • Lecture VS. active learning • Sage on the stage VS. designer of learning environments • Present VS. engage • Grades VS. classroom assessment

5. Why Information literacy ? • It draws on and builds on basic general education skills • Reading • Critical thinking & reasoning abilities • Written & oral communication skills • It is actively student focused • It is assessable

6. Information Literacy “To be information literate, a person must be able to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information.” American Library Association Presidential Committee on Information Literacy: Final Report, 1989

7. Information Literacy:A Classic Liberal Art

8. Information Skills • Know • Determine Need • Access • Access Efficiently/Effectively • Evaluate Sources • Evaluate Critically • Evaluate Content • Add to Knowledge & Values • Use Information • Accomplish Specific Purpose • Do All Ethically/Legally • Understand Economic, Legal & Social Issues

9. New Knowledge Critical use & ethical application Effective use of information resources Access resources Ability to determine information need Building Process Need a solid foundation to achieve new knowledge.

10. Information Literacy’s Common Themes • Recognizes a need for information • Engages in information seeking behavior • Explores, accesses and locates materials • Interacts with the information to formulate hypotheses • Synthesizes, interprets. organizes, applies and communicates the information • Evaluates the results (Eisenberg & Brown, 1992)

11. Why Information Skills? • Faculty want improvements in the quality of student work, more effective student research, & students taking more responsibility for their own learning • Students want to complete assignments with less difficulty & more satisfaction • Employers want to hire graduates who are “competent”, take responsibility, can solve problems, & produce new ideas

12. Why Information Skills? • Content mastered by graduation is soon outdated or forgotten • Ongoing personal & professional competence depends on knowing how to find, evaluate, & use information • Ability to find data, absorb & synthesize key concepts, organize & present information are desirable “knowledge economy” skills

13. Why Information Skills? • Common to all disciplines, to all learning environments, & levels of education • Enables learners to master content, solve problems, & become critical & effective information consumers • Recognizes that learning is a combination of content plus competencies

14. Why Information Skills? • Society functions best when it has an educated, informed & productive citizenry. • Easy access to information & good information skills are vital for a vibrant democracy.

15. “Access to computers, computer applications, web-enhanced courses, and information resources such as books, journals, and databases does not translate into information literate students.” Developing Research & Communication Skills, p.6

16. Information literacy is not about libraries. Information literacy is about teaching and learning.

17. Metacognitive Approaches “How can students gain the skill to manage their own thinking, change unproductive search strategies, monitor their time and attention, know what they know and what they need to learn?” Diane Halpern

18. Understanding The Recursive Nature of Learning UseInformation Determine theInformation Needed Access Information EvaluateInformation

19. The Recursive Nature of Learning • Recursive questioning and searching • Promotes conscious regulation of the investigative process • Through the continuous reprocessing of: • Information • Findings • Pro-forma conclusions Oswald Rattery

20. Model of the Information Search Process Tasks Initiation Selection Exploration Formulation Collection Presentation ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------→ Feelings uncertainly optimism confusion clarity sense of satisfaction or (affective) frustration direction/ disappointment doubt confidence Thoughts vague-------------------------------------→focused (cognitive) -----------------------------------------------→ increased interest Actions seeking relevant information----------------------------→seeking pertinent information (physical) exploring documenting • Carol Collier Kuhlthau, Information Search Process, Rutgers University

21. Information literacy is a curriculum issue.

22. Why • Strong information skills have a positive effect on student academic success • Information skills are best learned when integrated into the curriculum and taught in context • Many courses already include information literacy concepts, although not explicitly • Students often look to faculty and to each other to learn information skills

23. The Three Curricula • One in the catalog • One the professors teach • One the students experience

24. An Information Literacy Curriculum is: • University-wide • Inquiry and resource based • Makes effective use of instructional technologies and communication tools • Learner centered • Integrated with learning outcomes in general education and the disciplines

25. How is Information Literacy Achieved? Reinforcement in: • freshmen & transition courses • lower & upper division GE courses • junior level courses for transfer students • major courses • honors programs • service & experiential learning • senior capstone experiences

26. How is Information Literacy Achieved? • Integrated into department learning outcomes • Included on class syllabi • Reflected in class assignments • Assessed in GE and the major

27. Information literacy as an end in itself Information literacy as a means to an end

28. Cognitive development

29. Ways of Knowing. Baxter Magolda (1992)

31. Why Information Literacy? • More time & energy students invest in activities related to desired outcomes, the more likely they are to achieve those outcomes • Educationally effective institutions design experiences that channel students’ energies to purposeful activities

32. Whose Job is It? Everybody Somebody Anybody Nobody

33. Questions?

34. Exercise & Discussion