Quality Undergraduate Education in a Research University 1

Quality Undergraduate Education in a Research University—The Role of Information Literacy

Ann C. Schaffner, Leslie Stebbins, and Sally Wyman

New concerns about undergraduate education, particu- a lively discussion in the literature of just about every larly in research universities, present new opportunities discipline—including mathematics, German, geology, for us as librarians—opportunities to strengthen our and many others. information literacy programs, to enhance our role in Most important for us as librarians is not the quan- undergraduate education, and to improve the quality of tity, but the focus of this new round of criticism and that education. debate – a focus on issues central to our own missions— Of course, concern about undergraduate education research skills, active learning and critical thinking. has been with us in one form or another for decades, The Boyer Commission Report, “Reinventing Under- from early reform efforts by John Dewey, and Alfred graduate Education: A Blueprint for America’s Research North Whitehead to the experimental colleges of the Universities,”3 brings together many of these concerns in a 1960’s and the “culture wars” of the 1980s.1 In the last 5 well-developed critique of undergraduate education at U.S. years, however, the level of concern has intensified and research universities. Released in April of 1998, the report’s the flood of reports, position papers and recommenda- conclusions, while aimed at research universities, applies to tions has crested at an alarmingly high level. Reports most U.S. institutions of higher education, whether classed with catchy and compelling titles continue to roll off as research institutions or not. In the months since its re- the presses with increasing regularity: “Shaping the Fu- lease, the report has been a catalyst for discussion, defen- ture: New expectations for Undergraduate Education sive action, and reform at a number of institutions—Roch- in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology,” ester, SUNY Binghamton, University of Michigan and the “Beyond Bio 101: The Transformation of Undergradu- University of Southern California, to mention just a few. ate Biology Education, Physics at the Crossroads,” to Many of our campuses are actively engaged in creative ef- mention just a few.2 The reports, in turn, have generated forts to improve undergraduate education.

Ann C. Schaffner is associate director, public services, Leslie Stebbins is reference librarian/instruction coordinator, and Sally Wyman is librarian for research services, Brandeis University.

1 April 8–11, 1999, Detroit, Michigan 2 Ann C. Schaffner, Leslie Stebbins, Sally Wyman

The Boyer Report asserts that undergraduate edu- research, teach evaluative skills, encourage the use of cation in research universities does not take full advan- primary materials, provide one-on-one guidance, intro- tage of the unique opportunities available in these insti- duce many of our students to the concept of a “disci- tutions. Links are often not made between undergradu- pline”, encourage and support multi-disciplinary ap- ate education and faculty research; opportunities to en- proaches and introduce active learning techniques to rich and strengthen undergraduate education through many students. exposure to the research process are missed. Under- The Brandeis library instruction program takes place graduates are too often the passive recipients of a seg- through two formal programs: the Freshman Library mented curriculum presented by untrained graduate stu- Instruction Program (or FLIP), for all first-year and dents. Uninspired, unmotivated, pushed through their transfer students, and the Library Intensive Program for education as unwilling participants, students often upper-level and graduate students. emerge from this process without an understanding of The FLIP program began in 1994, as a component how knowledge is produced, ignorant of the relation- of the writing lab portion of the University Seminars in ships between different fields, and incapable of express- our newly-revised curriculum. The University Seminar ing themselves clearly. program pairs small groups of first-year students (rarely We can all see some of these results in the students more than 18) with established faculty members from we work with at research universities. What are the solu- all different disciplines in the University. The course top- tions proposed by the report? There are ten major rec- ics are designed to catch the attention of the students, ommendations, and they will sound familiar to those of while at the same time, give faculty members the oppor- you who are instructional librarians: tunity to experiment with particularly interdisciplinary 1. Make research-based learning the standard topics. The adventurous spirit of these courses is best 2. Construct an inquiry-based freshman year illustrated by two of the recent course titles: “Everyday 3. Build on the freshman foundation Activity”, taught by a Computer Science faculty mem- 4. Remove barriers to interdisciplinary education ber, and using such activities as playing a CD and carry- 5. Link communication skills and course work ing on a conversation to explore models of skill acquisi- 6. Use information technology creatively tion and problem-solving and the role of culture in ev- 7. Culminate with a capstone experience eryday activity; and “Don’t Get Mad, Get Even: The 8. Educate graduate students as apprentice teachers Ethic and Aesthetic of Revenge”, taught by a faculty 9. Change the faculty reward system member from the Theater Arts program. Accompany- 10. Create a sense of community ing this discussion portion of the course is the writing Sound inspiring? What can we do as librarians? What lab taught by a writing lab instructor. It is within this role does the Boyer Commission outline for us? None! context and in anticipation of writing their first research The report advocates involving undergraduates in re- paper for the writing lab, that the students visit the li- search, exposing them to primary source materials, and brary for their FLIP experience. educating them about the production of knowledge. Yet FLIP’s are 50-minute hands-on active learning ses- libraries are given only a passing mention (as a part of sions, utilizing a specially designed interactive web page. the resources students may expect at a research univer- Prior to the session, students are instructed to complete sity) and no mention is made of the role of librarians or and electronically submit a web-based worksheet on topic information literacy programs. analysis and construction of a basic search strategy. The At the same time, library instruction programs at session begins with a brief introduction by the librarian. many of our institutions have begun to work on pre- Students are then paired up to complete an in-class web cisely these issues. We are all contributing to changing exercise requiring that they use their previously-devised undergraduate education in exactly the ways envisioned search strategy to search the Brandeis online catalog. by the report. Next, they choose from a selection of journal indexes At Brandeis, where we have the advantage of being to find articles on their topic, and, finally, they venture a small research university, library instruction programs out onto the Web to look for more information. The reach every first year student and many students in ad- last ten minutes of the session are devoted to a group vanced courses. Through these programs we encourage discussion of the differences encountered in the differ-

ACRL Ninth National Conference Quality Undergraduate Education in a Research University 3 ent types of databases. This portion of the session pro- tified as participants for the upcoming semester. Any vides a chance to emphasize the need for critical evalua- faculty members who might be potential participants are tion of the references the student retrieves, and to dis- also invited, along with various University administra- cuss the cues useful in distinguishing between popular tors. We find that the workshop is one of the most im- and scholarly literature. While the librarian is there to portant aspects of the program, exposing faculty mem- conduct the session, his/her role is secondary to the bers to the possibilities for instruction and assignment self-instruction and collaborative learning taking place design, engaging them in broader discussions, and al- in the working pairs at the workstations. The librarian lowing them to make connections with librarians and does, however, make an effort to orchestrate the closing with faculty members in other disciplines. The glue for discussion to make sure that certain key points are made all of this is the library and library instruction. in a “guide at the side” model. The instruction taking place in the Library Inten- The goals of the FLIP were, from the beginning, sive sessions, while very loosely guided by a model cur- modest. They were, first and foremost, to get students riculum, is highly individualized in its approach. The into the library and to make contact with an approach- choice of tools taught, the emphasis of the instruction, able and knowledgeable librarian, who could serve as a and the nature of the assignment, help convey to the resource when needed later on. Additionally, the pro- students that information is transmitted in a particular gram was designed to introduce students to the concept way in the particular discipline. At the same time, fea- of a discipline, to the research process, to the types of tures common to library research across disciplines are resources available, to the differences between popular also taught. and scholarly literature, and to plant the seeds of the Increasingly, just as the University curriculum is re- idea of critical evaluation. One other goal is that there flecting greater emphasis on inter-disciplinary instruc- be little preparation time involved, so that librarians have tion, so is the Library Intensive Program required to time to devote to the lengthier preparations required by address those needs. To meet this demand, library in- the Library Intensive Program. We are conducting a pre- tensive courses are frequently team-taught now, with each liminary evaluation of the FLIP program this semester, librarian contributing his/her expertise to the enlarged with a full-scale one planned for the fall. partnership with the faculty member. It has been inter- The Library Intensive Program is a formal program esting to note, in these instances, that it is sometimes providing course-integrated information literacy instruc- the librarian who is providing the bridge to the less-fa- tion for upper-level undergraduates and graduate stu- miliar discipline for the faculty member. Such was the dents. From the beginning it was viewed as, centrally, a case this past fall, when a chemistry professor taught his partnership between librarians and interested faculty first forensic science course. One library instruction ses- members to design instruction highly tailored to the sion focused on the wide diversity of scientific literature needs of the students in a particular course. To that end, and tools. The second library session, taught by the le- certain expectations are made of the faculty members gal studies librarian, introduced the students—and, not who join the program. Each faculty member must make incidentally, the faculty member—to some of the intri- a commitment to the program well in advance of the cacies of researching court cases. Both elements of the start of the semester of instruction; that commitment library instruction were integral to the success of the must include the faculty member’s agreement to begin students in completing their research paper assignment. working closely with the librarian well in advance of the The Library Intensive Program is considered a great in-class sessions, to design instruction and a closely linked success. We know this from the comments of students assignment jointly. Finally, the faculty member must agree and faculty members, who almost unfailingly remark on to provide the necessary amount of class time to ac- how much they have learned. We know this also from commodate the library instruction—from 1 to 3 in-class the growing demand for Library Intensive instruction, sessions. and from the rising attendence levels and active partici- The cornerstone of the program is the Faculty-Li- pation of faculty members at the Workshops. One of brarian Workshop, held near the end of each semester. the reasons the Program seems to work so well is that Faculty members from the past semester are invited, the faculty members who participate do so out of along with those faculty members who have been iden- choice—and it is their commitment to the importance

April 8–11, 1999, Detroit, Michigan 4 Ann C. Schaffner, Leslie Stebbins, Sally Wyman of this instruction that motivates the students. The use of the interactive web page for FLIP provides Of the major points in the Boyer Report: “Ten Ways instruction that feels comfortable to this generation of to Change Undergraduate Education,” the following are students. In Library Intensive courses, custom web pages incorporated in library instruction at Brandeis: and PowerPoint slide presentations are often used in creating hand-outs and as teaching tools in live demon- 1. Make research-based learning the standard strations. For library instruction to be meaningful, there must be a need. The Library Intensive Program has played a part 7. Culminate with a capstone experience in encouraging faculty at Brandeis to require a research While Brandeis does not have a campus-wide “capstone paper or other type of research effort — this phenom- experience”, the Library Intensive instruction, in a par- enon has been most noticeable in the sciences, where ticularly in-depth format, plays an important role in sev- movement away from complete reliance on textbooks eral senior honors programs, including those in Ameri- has been most difficult, but is taking place slowly. The can Studies and Chemistry. greatest benefit occurs when the instruction is timed in the semester to the period when the students are begin- 8. Educate graduate students as apprentice teach- ning their research efforts, and will be most open to ers instruction. 9. Change faculty reward systems 2. Construct an inquiry-based Freshman Year The Brandeis USEM program, with its real-life ques- 10. Create a sense of community tions and writing and research requirements, has pro- The Library Intensive Workshop held each semester vided a good venue for the training of first-year stu- provides a forum for discussion of information literacy dents in research and critical evaluation skills in the FLIP issues. Many of the faculty members who attend are sessions. “regulars”. This is one of the few times during the aca- demic year that issues of concern to both faculty mem- 3. Build on the Freshman Foundation bers and librarians can be freely discussed. Recent dis- Library Intensive instruction assumes that students have cussions have covered such topics as use of the web for already been introduced to basic research and introduc- research, copyright, and critical evaluation. tory critical evaluation skills through their Freshman The Freshman Library Instruction and Library In- Library Instruction sessions. Library Intensive sessions tensive Programs at Brandeis are not atypical of library can, thus, begin on a slightly higher level, and proceed instruction programs in other universities and colleges commensurately. across the country. Many of these programs already ad- dress some of the issues and imperatives detailed in the 4. Remove barriers to interdisciplinary education Boyer Report. Clearly, library instruction is but one com- Oftentimes, we have found that it is the librarians who ponent of the much larger picture of higher education, encourage faculty members to think in more interdisci- but, just as at other institutions, the two Brandeis pro- plinary ways, as they begin their planning for Library grams described here are working together to make a Intensive sessions. The team-teaching of Library Inten- difference in that larger picture. sive sessions by librarians specializing in different disci- What are the lessons here for librarians? We think plines incorporates the idea of the librarian as the bridge there are several: to a new discipline. Even in Library Intensive courses which are not team-taught, the fact that most librarians 1. Participate in the debate about undergraduate are generalists fosters a more an inter-disciplinary ap- education. proach to classroom instruction of all kinds. Find out what is being discussed or planned in your in- stitutions. National discussions about curriculum are 5. Link communication skills and course work being mirrored on individual campuses in major reviews and revisions of the undergraduate curriculum. Work 6. Use information technology creatively with faculty and academic administrators to generate

ACRL Ninth National Conference Quality Undergraduate Education in a Research University 5 interest and discussion on these issues if the debate is 4. Seize the opportunity presented by the interest not already taking place on your campus. in curricular reform to strengthen your library in- struction programs. 2. Publicize the role that library instruction has Now is the time to make the case for that new instruc- played or can play in improving the undergraduate tional position or a new classroom. Now is the time to educational experience. increase participation in our programs. By tying requests Make sure that academic planners know the role that an into the broader goals of educational reform, we have a aggressive library instruction program can play in en- better chance at success. couraging faculty to expose their students to the research Finally, there is the lure of outside funding. Corpo- process. As already mentioned, we have evidence at rations, foundations, and government agencies are all Brandeis that our library instruction program has supporting undergraduate educational reform. Library changed the way that some science courses are taught— instruction programs can be linked to broader educa- inspiring faculty members to incorporate library research tional funding proposals. At Brandeis we have done just (as opposed to lab research) into courses that previously this with a proposal to incorporate multidisciplinary relied entirely on texts, reserve readings and lab work. learning and critical thinking into the undergraduate cur- Administrators may not be aware of this. Make sure that riculum. If funded, our proposal will bring added re- the role we play in introducing research skills and critical sources to our library instruction program, allow us to thinking skills is also understood and appreciated. incorporate more critical thinking into our program, and integrate it more thoroughly into the curriculum. 3. Publicize the unique skills and talents that librar- Librarians and library instruction play an important ians can bring to the undergraduate educational role in a quality undergraduate experience. It will take reform effort. some work to make sure that role is understood and In addition to the core skills in research and critical think- appreciated on campus. Once it is, we can all realize real ing, many librarians have broader skills and knowledge benefits for our programs, our profession, and the un- to contribute. Often we are among the few people on dergraduates we serve. campus who have a broad view of the disciplines and of how knowledge is produced, transferred and pre- Notes served in different disciplines. This perspective may prove 1. For a good review of the history of curriculum valuable on a campus which is beginning to embrace development and change in the U.S., see Handbook of the multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary studies. Undergraduate Curriculum, Jerry G. Gaff, and James L. Librarians are also often among the most knowl- Ratcliff, eds., San Francisco, Jossey-Bass, 1997. edgeable people on campus about the educational use 2. For a good collection of recent reports see Case of technology or active learning techniques. We can be Studies in Science, http://wwwublib.buffalo. valuable resource people for efforts to incorporate tech- edu/libraries/projects/cases/sites.htm. nology and active learning into the curriculum. 3. http://notes.cc.sunysb.edu/Pres/boyer.nsf

April 8–11, 1999, Detroit, Michigan