scholarly journals Developing and Applying an Information Literacy Rubric to Student Annotated Bibliographies

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin E. Rinto

Objective – This study demonstrates one method of developing and applying rubrics to student writing in order to gather evidence of how students utilize information literacy skills in the context of an authentic assessment activity. The process of creating a rubric, training scorers to use the rubric, collecting annotated bibliographies, applying the rubric to student work, and the results of the rubric assessment are described. Implications for information literacy instruction are also discussed. Methods – The focus of this study was the English 102 (ENG 102) course, a required research-based writing course that partners the instructors with the university librarians for information literacy instruction. The author developed an information literacy rubric to assess student evaluation of information resources in the ENG 102 annotated bibliography assignment and trained three other librarians how to apply the rubric to student work. The rubric assessed the extent to which students critically applied the evaluative criteria Currency, Relevance, Accuracy, Authority, and Purpose to the information sources in their annotations. At the end of the semester, the author collected up to three de-identified annotated bibliographies from each of the 58 sections of ENG 102. The rubric was applied to up to five annotations in each bibliography, resulting in a total examination of 773 annotations (some sections turned in fewer than 3 samples, and some bibliographies had fewer than 5 annotations). Results – The results of the study showed that students struggle with critically evaluating information resources, a finding that supports the existing information literacy assessment literature. The overwhelming majority of annotations consisted of summative information with little evidence that students used any evaluative criteria when they selected an information source. Of the five criteria examined, Relevance to the student’s research topic and Authority were the most commonly used methods of resource evaluation, while Currency, Accuracy, and Purpose were criteria least-often used. The low average scores on the rubric assessment indicate that students are not adequately learning how to apply this set of information literacy skills. Conclusions – The library instruction sessions for ENG 102 need to move beyond the skills of choosing and narrowing a topic, selecting keywords, and searching in a library database. Students also need more targeted instruction on higher-order skills, particularly how to critically evaluate and question the sources they find. The results of this assessment are being used to refocus the learning outcomes of ENG 102 library sessions so that instruction can better meet student needs. The results are also being used to make the case for further collaboration between ENG 102 and the university library.

2016 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. 536-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily P. Frank ◽  
Nils Pharo

E-science has reshaped meteorology due to the rate data is generated, collected, analyzed, and stored and brought data skills to a new prominence. Data information literacy—the skills needed to understand, use, manage, share, work with, and produce data—reflects the confluence of data skills with information literacy competencies. This research assessed perceptions of data information literacy and attitudes on its instruction for graduate students in meteorology. As academic librarians have traditionally provided information literacy instruction, the research determined if they were perceived as having a role in data information literacy instruction. The modified Delphi method was applied to obtain the perspectives of a panel of experts, representing students, librarians, professors, and researchers, for the purpose of forecasting and consensus-making. Through the consideration of the University of Oslo’s Department of Geosciences’ Meteorology Section, the research found that data information literacy skills were relevant to the work of meteorology students. Stakeholders perceived that academic librarians could play a future role in general instruction but that they would have to overcome obstacles to be involved in data information literacy instruction. For librarians to enter this domain, they would need to improve their technical skills, enhance their discipline-specific knowledge, or rely on collaborations. The significance of these findings was limited by the modest target population under examination; as a consequence, the results were strongly linked to the specific setting. Further studies would be necessary to determine their generalizability.


2011 ◽  
pp. 1091-1092
Author(s):  
Elaine Magusin

Information literacy is essential in the creation of lifelong learners. As educators struggle continually to ensure that students are able to successfully navigate the plethora of information available, and be able to think critically about this information, it is logical to consider information literacy skills instruction as a method of helping meet this goal. However, in order to provide information literacy instruction it is necessary to fully understand the concept and all it entails, including how it can be implemented and what benefits it offers to students, educators, and higher education institutions as a whole.


Author(s):  
Heidi Julien

This paper reports a study of information literacy practices in Canadian public libraries. The project explored the actual and potential role of public libraries in developing the public’s information literacy skills, and included a national survey of instruction and visits to public libraries where staff and library customers were interviewed.Cet article présente une étude sur les pratiques de la culture de l’information dans les bibliothèques publiques canadiennes. Le projet a exploré le rôle actuel et potentiel des bibliothèques publiques dans le développement de la compétence en matière de culture de l’information, et inclus un sondage national sur l’enseignement et les visites dans les bibliothèques publiques où le personnel et les usagers des bibliothèques ont été interviewés. 


Author(s):  
Helen Boelens

The purpose of this paper is to describe the instruction in specific information literacy skills, in several different languages, for final examination pupils, which has taken place during 2005. This instruction is part of a structure or matrix for information literacy instruction and training, for pupils aged between 11 and 18 years of age, which has been developed in the School Library and Information Centre at the Kalsbeek College, Woerden, the Netherlands.


Author(s):  
Amy Jankowski ◽  
Yadéeh E Sawyer

The University Libraries at the University of New Mexico reconfigured their established library instruction program for biology as part of a broader grant-funded essential skills workshop series for STEM students. This initiative standardized supplementary instruction through seven in-person and online workshops delivered to students through the Biology Department’s four core undergraduate laboratory courses. Post-workshop feedback data were gathered from students throughout the two-year grant period. The present study analyzes this data set—including 3,797 completed student surveys from both library and non-library workshops over the course of four semesters—with the goal of understanding STEM student perceptions of the value of information literacy skills as compared to the general and disciplinary value of other essential intellectual and practical skills. The findings suggest that undergraduate biology students generally perceive information literacy to be among the most valuable and relevant skills introduced through the workshop series. The results have the potential to inform information literacy instruction practices and collaborative efforts with broader essential skills education programs.


IFLA Journal ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 259-270
Author(s):  
Leili Seifi ◽  
Maryam Habibi ◽  
Mohsen Ayati

The purpose of the present study is to examine the effect of information literacy skills instruction on the lifelong learning readiness of users in Iranian public libraries. To this end, 30 active users of two libraries were randomly placed in control and experimental groups. Information literacy skills were taught to the experimental group over one and a half months. The results revealed that information literacy instruction led to a significant increase in readiness for self-directed learning and readiness to overcome deterrents to participation. According to the findings, information literacy skills instruction made a significant difference to the information literacy of users in Iranian public libraries. The results of this study encourage public libraries to plan for the implementation of information literacy instruction in order to make public libraries lifelong learning centres.


Author(s):  
Amy Jankowski ◽  
Yadéeh E Sawyer

The University Libraries at the University of New Mexico reconfigured their established library instruction program for biology as part of a broader grant-funded essential skills workshop series for STEM students. This initiative standardized supplementary instruction through seven in-person and online workshops delivered to students through the Biology Department’s four core undergraduate laboratory courses. Post-workshop feedback data were gathered from students throughout the two-year grant period. The present study analyzes this data set—including 3,797 completed student surveys from both library and non-library workshops over the course of four semesters—with the goal of understanding STEM student perceptions of the value of information literacy skills as compared to the general and disciplinary value of other essential intellectual and practical skills. The findings suggest that undergraduate biology students generally perceive information literacy to be among the most valuable and relevant skills introduced through the workshop series. The results have the potential to inform information literacy instruction practices and collaborative efforts with broader essential skills education programs.


2015 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dani Brecher Cook ◽  
Kevin Michael Klipfel

Effective pedagogy requires understanding how students learn and tailoring our instruction accordingly. One key element of student-centered pedagogy involves understanding the cognitive psychological processes according to which students learn, and to structure our teaching with these processes in mind. This paper fills in a gap in the current literature, by applying empirically grounded lessons drawn from the cognitive science of learning, and discussing specific applications of these lessons for information literacy instruction. The paper outlines a framework for information literacy instruction, grounded in the educational and cognitive psychology literature, for facilitating student retention and transfer of information literacy skills, two classic measures of student learning. Five specific principles and several strategies for promoting retention and transfer within information literacy instruction are outlined. This article is an expansion of a presentation given at LOEX in May 2014.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Bjartmarsdóttir ◽  
Deborah L. Mole

The University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) is an open enrollment university that offers vocational, academic, and professional degrees in a northern region. UAA serves a culturally and demographically diverse population. Given this diversity, students display varying levels of information literacy (IL) competencies. Library Professors Anna Bjartmarsdóttir and Deborah Mole partner with faculty teaching composition and communication courses to create increasingly sophisticated and transferable IL learning opportunities. Strategies include: assessing students’ IL competencies; creating engaging activities; integrating IL throughout the semester; developing reflection opportunities to reinforce IL skills. UAA librarians, partnered with faculty, integrate and scaffold IL activities in foundational GE courses to develop increasingly sophisticated, transferable IL skills and knowledge practices. From team-based learning application exercises to workshops for teaching assistants, students learn how creativity partnered with initiative has helped to integrate transferable IL skill education at this diverse arctic university.


Author(s):  
Fang Chiong (Patrick) Pu ◽  
Su Yian Kho ◽  
Ke Khoon Low ◽  
Amy Chou

As a discipline-neutral entity, knowledge exchange, and nexus of the university, the National University of Singapore (NUS) Libraries is the ideal conduit for bringing together faculties and departments to facilitate cross-disciplinary education and research. This case study gives a detailed walkthrough on the creation and design of the Research Skills Framework (RSF), which forms the backbone for all information literacy programmes (ILPs), specifically the flagship Researcher Unbound (RU) programme and RU Symposium, and shares challenges faced and future improvement plans. The exploration, design, and continual improvement of the programme ensured that NUS Libraries provides relevant and timely research support and enhances the digital information literacy skills of the NUS community. This programme continues to be a work in progress drawn from participants' feedback, attendance, experience, and insights from seven semestral runs and cumulative total of 172 workshop sessions.


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