2015 Program
2015 KLA LIRT Retreat Program
July 10, 2015 | W.T. Young Library, University of Kentucky
Full presentations and handouts from the 2015 KLA LIRT Retreat are available here. Presentations are linked via Slideshare, Prezi, or individual presenters' institutional repositories.
Presentations
Library Instruction & Student Retention: The Relationship
Ashley Ireland, Director, User & Instruction Services | Murray State University
The purpose of this project was to contribute to the growing body of correlational research between known library use and student retention. The Murray State project is built similarly to studies conducted at the University of Minnesota and included common metrics such as circulations, enrollment in the credit-bearing information literacy course, and use of interlibrary loan. This session will focus on what we discovered with this incredibly large dataset and in-session assessment, particularly about the relationship between our library instruction sessions and other known library use.
Making it Real: Helping Faculty Connect Students’ Academic and Professional Information Needs
Elizabeth Price, Research & Instruction Librarian / Assistant Professor | Murray State University
Students moving into the workforce often struggle with the complexities of information in the “real world.” The academic research strategies that librarians help develop are not always straightforwardly applicable beyond the students’ time at the institution. How can librarians address this gap, either through their own instruction or by helping faculty design assignments that do? This presentation will discuss the information skills that employers say graduates need and map those skills to the new Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, focusing particularly on four threshold concepts: (1.) Authority Is Constructed and Contextual, (2.) Information Creation as a Process, (3.) Research as Inquiry, and (4.) Searching as Strategic Exploration. This session will model how to begin this conversation with faculty toward a goal of developing library instruction sessions for courses that focus on experiential and/or applied learning.
Twitter for Librarians
James Allen, School Librarian, KASL President-Elect | Oldham County High School
Learn how to make Twitter a valuable reference and educational resource. Bring your own smart device to practice with a live Twitter chat session and experiment with tools and applications that will supercharge your Twitter experience. We will also discuss the power of hashtags and explain how Twitter can expand your personal learning network across the globe.
One Way or Another: Moving from the One-Shot to the One-on-One Reference Consultation
Amanda Peach, Instructional Services Librarian and Angel Rivera, Coordinator of Information Literacy | Berea College
Instruction Librarians everywhere struggle with how best to reconcile the often incompatible need for active learning techniques and the time /curricular constraints of the on-shot instruction session. At Hutchins Library, the search for a compromise between the two, coupled with a need to reach those students whose faculty chose not to utilize library instruction, led us to turn to the one-on-one reference consultation model as a means to supplement our classroom instruction. We had always offered them on an as-needed basis, but this year we undertook efforts to make the one-on-one our signature instruction service. In doing so, we found an inspiring model of active learning. The one-on-one allows for a highly personalized learning experience in which the student becomes a partner in the discovery process, demonstrating their understanding of research as they collaborate with their personal librarian. In this session, we will discuss our experience providing the service, form the pragmatic considerations (staffing, scheduling, and promotion) to the pedagogical (How do you insure you are teaching and not just delivering a dose of research medicine? What should the student leave with in-hand?). We will share feedback from our student users and our thoughts on improving the service as we move forward.
Active Learning at the Next Level: Utilizing Student Assistants as Information Literacy Instructors
Robert Detmering, Coordinator of Information Literacy, Samantha McClellan, Social Sciences Teaching & Outreach Librarian, and Tessa Withorn, Library Student Assistant | University of Louisville, Ekstrom Library
While they often participate in basic reference desk service at many libraries, student assistants rarely have the opportunity to engage in classroom instruction, which is typically the purview of professional librarians. This presentation will discuss an innovative pilot project at the University of Louisville in which an undergraduate student assistant collaborated with two librarians to design active learning exercises and co-teach information literacy sessions.
We will demonstrate the value of having direct access to the student perspective when developing instructional content, elaborate on the training process used to prepare student assistants for a teaching role, and explain the benefits of peer instruction in regard to student engagement. The student assistant will highlight her role as an active learner via the exploration of academic librarianship and the development of meaningful, student-centered information literacy sessions. Likewise, the librarians will discuss the reciprocal advantage of active learning through collaborative instructional design with students. Finally, drawing on educational theorist Linda Nilson’s conception of self-regulated learning, we will share a metacognitive thought modeling exercise designed in collaboration with the student assistant and broadly applicable to a variety of information literacy contexts.
From Scavenging to Critical Thinking: Evolving Library Instruction
Karla Aleman, Distance Instruction Librarian & Ray Bailey, Head of Instructional Services |Morehead State University
Library instruction is constantly evolving. Every year we adapt to new advances in communication and technology, try new techniques in the classroom, and develop new online learning spaces. Making deep, systemic changes, however, can be a daunting challenge for any library’s instructional program. How can we fundamentally restructure library instruction while maintaining good relations with our constituents, meeting changing information needs, and avoiding extinction? Join this session for an interactive exploration of one library’s ongoing program evolution, with a spotlight on a recent mutation in the library’s LSIM 101 course. The presentation will also include an open discussion of issues related to managing change in library instruction.
Using Social Media in the Classroom: Assessment of its Effectiveness
Jennifer Joe, Owensboro Campus Librarian | Western Kentucky University
Social media can be an effective tool in promoting critical thinking and collaboration in library instruction. Whether it is simple polls or a much more collaborative event, these methods engage students and allow them to interact with material, professors, and other students in an organized fashion that might not be feasible without the use of technology. However, many faculty members are quick to incorporate these new learning tools without regard to their effectiveness. In this session, several applications of social media will be presented and their effectiveness will be discussed. Then, to conclude, the participants will discuss the best way to assess these applications.
Developing Framework Inspired Outcomes and Learning Activities for One-Shots (and Beyond)
Andrea Brooks, Information Literacy Coordinator and Jane Hammons, Instructional Services Librarian | Northern Kentucky University
The ACRL’s Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education has challenged many librarians to develop strategies for incorporating threshold concepts into library instruction. This has been especially problematic for instruction programs that still rely primarily on one-shot sessions. In this session, librarians from Northern Kentucky University will share how they have used the ACRL Framework to revise information literacy learning outcomes and develop new instruction resources and activities. They will provide practical examples of activities that align with each of the six threshold concepts and can be incorporated into 50 minute sessions. As part of the presentation, participants will work in small groups to create, and then share, their own framework inspired activities.
Once Upon a Time in Technology
Dwayne Buchanan, Instructional Development Specialist | Murray State University
Stories have always been the basis of communication and we'll look at apps and websites that will allow you and your students to tell your story. These may include digital versions of research papers, book reports, and more. Bring along your creativity!
Brad Marcum, Distance Education Program Officer, Sarah Richardson, Business Librarian and Karen Gilbert, Librarian | Eastern Kentucky University
Distance learning continues to grow by leaps and bounds and almost all academic libraries are struggling to evolve and adapt to offer quality equivalent services and resources to their distance students. This interactive presentation will offer participants an in-depth analysis of the new ACRL Distance Learning Library Services Standards, offer forecasts regarding the future of distance learning, and will draw distinctions between the previous 2008 Standards for Distance Learning Services and the new standards. Practical advice on how to update participants’ library distance learning library services to meet the new standards will be offered, and participants are encouraged to bring their own experiences and questions to the discussion.
What, No Computers?: Engaging Students in a Low-Tech Space
Amy Bessin, Instructional Services Librarian | Asbury University
Ashley Cole, Reference & Instruction Librarian | Eastern Kentucky University
There is such an emphasis today on technology and teaching technological skills that it can be a challenge to instruct in a classroom where little or no technology is available. Having the ability to talk about research with a class in a computer lab is great, but what can we do when that is not an option? In this session we will talk about the challenges and opportunities of teaching information literacy skills in a low-tech space. Specific examples of successful sessions will be shared and attendees will be invited to share their own questions, roadblocks, and successes.
Collaboration is Key: Planning Co-Instruction for Student Research and Writing Workshops
Carla Redden, Assistant Professor / Librarian III and Christina McCleanhan, Adjunct Instructor (English) | Maysville Community & Technical College
Since it can be challenging to teach students writing and research skills seamlessly, an idea was born in Fall 2014 to co-teach workshops to more effectively mesh writing and research concepts. We teamed up to develop a series of co-curriculuar library workshops to teach students about writing and information literacy outside the classroom. The resulting collaboration provided for practical, individualized teaching and can serve as a model for co-teaching information literacy in context.