Approaches to teaching through digital referenceLisa A. Ellis
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537630
As “teaching libraries,” many academic libraries are committed to teaching not only in classrooms but also at the reference desk. As reference has expanded to include digital modes of e‐mail and chat, reference librarians are prompted to consider approaches to teaching in these new reference venues in ways that are meaningful to the user. A promising approach to teaching through digital reference is the application of the ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards. This paper presents some challenges and benefits of teaching via digital reference. Practical methods for promoting self‐directed learning by examining online instruction, and suggestions for effectively advancing a pedagogy based on the ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards, are offered.
E‐mail and chat reference: assessing patron satisfactionBruce Stoffel; Toni Tucker
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537649
In fall 2002, Illinois State University librarians surveyed their e‐mail and chat reference patrons to determine how they feel about the services and how the services might be improved. The survey also attempted to identify the extent to which the services are used in conjunction with more traditional reference venues. While most electronic reference services utilize brief “pop‐up” forms to survey patrons, Illinois State patrons were invited via e‐mail to complete a more extensive online survey form. Approximately 400 patrons were surveyed, and a response rate of 17 percent was achieved. Results indicate a high level of satisfaction with electronic reference, the desirability of retaining both services despite the more immediate need of chat, and the need to cross‐market reference services. Survey participation suggests that use of e‐mail and online forms to survey electronic reference patrons may be effective in the case of e‐mail reference, but not chat.
Beyond active learning: a constructivist approach to learningSusan E. Cooperstein; Elizabeth Kocevar‐Weidinger
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537658
Guided by four principles – learners construct their own meaning; new learning builds on prior knowledge; learning is enhanced by social interaction; and learning develops through “authentic” tasks – constructivist learning moves from experience to knowledge and not the other way around. In a constructivist classroom, the activities lead to the concepts; the students construct the meanings. Learning happens! Abstract concepts become meaningful, transferable, and retained because they are attached to the performance of a concrete activity. This article discusses the elements of constructive learning and describes ways to apply those elements to library instruction to create truly “active” learning. An appendix contains sample exercises.
Reading, writing, and research: added value to university first‐year experience programsSue Samson; Kim Granath
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537667
Retention rates, the development of quality first‐year experience programs, accreditation, learning outcomes, and the goal of creating life‐long learners place research instruction as an essential part of the academic curriculum. The ability to find information, evaluate information resources, and use quality resources to write and present research effectively is critical in this information‐rich society. This manuscript describes a research project based on a comparative analysis of randomly selected sections of English composition that include library research components integrated into their curriculum. The project implemented and analyzed pre‐ and post‐tests, the use of online instruction modules, literature cited analyses, grade comparisons, and varied instructional opportunities in an effort to identify and assess effective pedagogy for research instruction provided to entry‐level students. The results show that this collaborative model of working with teaching assistants and faculty coordinators to integrate research instruction into the writing curriculum is student‐centered and effective. This model can be readily implemented in a variety of core courses that include writing and research elements.
Student psychosocial and cognitive development: theory to practice in academic librariesJeffrey N. Gatten
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537676
Academic librarians have long been concerned with facilitating the teaching of information seeking and critical thinking skills among the undergraduate student population. In this sense, librarians are very much interested in facilitating student development. This article briefly describes the two major theories of student development, places these theories in the context of academic librarianship, and offers suggestions on how librarians can apply (map) these theories to practice when interacting with students. The goal is to enhance programmatic library interventions in order to further develop students’ information research skills.
Consensus without all the meetings: using the Delphi method to determine course content for library instructionPhilip C. Howze; Connie Dalrymple
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537694
Encourages the use of Delphi for librarians in search of a research methodology. Describes one of many applications of the method, as an example of how the method can be employed in a library‐related problem solving process. The Delphi method is an effective means of consensus building, without all the meetings. Includes a description of one such consensus building process, used at an academic library a number of years ago, to determine standardized course content for a formal course in library instruction, a component of the university's general education initiative. A 134‐item checklist of learning objectives was distributed to participants, with the aim of refining the list based on an environmental scan of faculty librarians as experts. High consensus learning objectives were included in the manual, and low consensus objectives were not used. Discusses the viability of applying the Delphi technique to library science and librarianship.
Leveraging collaboration for information literacy in psychologyLyn Thaxton; Mary Beth Faccioli; Anne Page Mosby
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537702
A case study of the integration of information literacy into a psychology research course is presented. The process of integration began with developing learning outcomes, a four‐hour curriculum, exercises, and an assessment instrument, which were approved by the Psychology Department's undergraduate curriculum committee. Also emphasized is the ongoing exchange of expertise between liaison librarian and psychology faculty to enhance library‐related components in the design of the course. Difficulties in implementing the program are described, along with the use of outcome statistics to underscore the value of the partially implemented program. Librarians used data from student assessments to highlight the need for more intensive and extensive student training to meet learning objectives. The sometimes laborious process of academic negotiation is discussed, along with the resulting decision to develop a psychology literature tutorial through collaboration between a junior Psychology Department faculty member and a librarian.
A credit course assignment: the encyclopedia entryJeanne Armstrong; Margaret Fast
2004 Reference Services Review
doi: 10.1108/00907320410537711
Teaching research as a cognitive process rather than a set of skills and thereby ensuring critical thinking has been a concern of instructions librarians for some time. This article explains the design, rationale, and use of an innovative assignment, the encyclopedia entry, in a 200 level library credit course that targets sophomores and transfer students. At Western Washington University this course, “Library 201: Introduction to Research Strategies”, has historically required students to produce a free‐standing annotated bibliography. The encyclopedia entry assignment integrates “point of need” relevance into the course because the students choose sources that provide information which will actually be used in writing an encyclopedia entry.