Helsingin Yliopisto
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Exploring Possibilities in Bachelor Level Information Literacy Teaching Maija Paavolainen and Kati Syvälahti 24.10.2013 Helsinki University Library, Finland Helsinki University Library, City Centre Campus Library www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 1 University of Helsinki • 11 faculties • 35,000 degree students • 8,160 employees • including 3,930 researchers and teachers www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 2 The Helsinki University Library City Centre Viikki Campus Meilahti Campus Kumpula Campus for for Life Sciences for Medicine Science Campus Human Sciences The library operates on four campuses and is the employer of ca. 250 information and service professionals. UH Library hosts ca. 1,5 million visits per year. Online services are used ca. 1,7 million times per year. Printed materials fill 73,5 shelf kilometers. UH Library has licenced ca. 26500 e-journals and 339 000 e-books. www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 3 Contents • Background of the credit-bearing programs at the City Centre Campus Library • Librarians and faculty working together • What and how we teach • Benefits of the credit-bearing information literacy course • Future hopes www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 4 Information Literacy Curriculum Researchers Master’s level students Bachelor level students First year students www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 5 Question of resources compulsory courses – one-shot more students to sessions at short teach notice? student motivation on courses at right a compulsory course? time for right people? workload in the beginning of term Copyright /Picture : University of Helsinki/University Communications and Community Relations www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6 Different Operational Environments The Faculty of Law Arts and Hum. Faculty • one major subject • 38 disciplines in 4 departments • 240-260 new students/per year • variation in organization of studies across disciplines • suggested linear curriculum • Appr. 600 students starting • good motivation to graduate / year and begin a career • studies not linear: several • information seeking skills minor subjects and unique are essential for lawyers combinations of disciplines are common • students do not graduate with a definite profession www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 7 The Faculty – Librarian Collaboration • Teaching librarians are members of faculties’ Teaching committees in both faculties What • To know how courses are developed in the faculty Why • To be considered a teaching collegue • Action when new members of committees are chosen How • Attending Uni pedagogy courses within the faculty www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 8 Planning the IL-courses Student Teaching Activities Outcomes factors context We use John Biggs (2003) 3P (presage, process and product) model in designing of the IL-courses. Biggs emphasizes the alignment of the course aim, content, learning methods and assesment to attain a deep approach to learning. www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 9 Students learn • How information seeking is a process and how to plan information seeking • How to find scientific publications (articles, theses, dissertations) • To seek information from international databases • Critical review and evaluation of information • Learn the difference between popular and scholarly articles • What reference management tools are and how to use them www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 10 Information Literacy Course for Law Students the IL course has a part of the ICT- been compulsory advanced course since 2008 (2 ECT) four courses are 200-280 students offered per academic participate to the year courses compulsory online course (+ optional compulsory lecture face to face sessions and workshops) www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 11 Humanities IL-Course (1) • Face-to-face sessions • 90 min in the computer classroom open to everyone • sessions 1-2 times per week during the semesters • students can choose a preferred time • four librarians are teaching • Credit-bearing course (1 ECT) • face-to-face session + subject specific web assignments • students search their own subjects www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 12 Humanities IL-Course (2) • 10 disciplines out of 38 taking part in the credit- bearing combination • important disciplines taking part (Finnish language, History) • still only 100 out of total 600 3rd year students • some disciplines recommend only the face-to-face session • More disciplines wanted – resources still adequate www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 13 Assessing Students´ Learning • Student-centered deep learning approach entitles student self-assesment • Feedback form steers towards reflection through asking • if discussion was encouraged • the most important thing learned • if practical skills were learned • if what you learned is going to be useful in the future • Feedback form becomes the last assignment in face-to- face sessions or teachers send the form via email couple days after the course www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 14 Student Feedback - I learned.. “to search ”that journal “practical scientific databases are searching tips” articles” indispensable” ”that I have a “courage to safety net in the continue ”that I need to information searching” google less” jungle” “how to save search results” www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 15 Benefits of the Compulsory Credit-bearing Course • Library has the planning initiative • resources distributed more evenly • Students have equal access to IL skills • not dependent on the subject teacher • on Bachelor level a standard course works well • IL teaching in the Curriculum • recognized status • Tailoring for disciplines possible to some extent www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 16 Future hopes • Integrating information literacy to larger modules • integration in research skills or scientific writing courses • Working to reach the subject teachers better • Working with students to develop IL courses • Developing better assessment tools • for student learning outcomes • how to measure the effects of information literacy programs • Developing personal expertise www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 17 Thank you! Contact: • Kati Syvälahti [email protected] • Maija Paavolainen [email protected] Helsinki University Library, City Centre Campus Libary www.helsinki.fi/library/citycentre www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 18 References and Literature • Badke, W. (Nov-Dec 2008). Ten reasons to teach Information Literacy for credit. Online, 32(6), 47-49. • Biggs, J. (2003). Teaching for Quality Learning at University: What the student does (2nd ed. ed.). Ballmoor, Buckingham: Society for Research into Higher Education, Open University Press • Buchanan et al. (2005). “Information seeking by Humanities scholars” Research and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries, Lecture Notes in Computer Science Volume 3652, Springer • Burke, M. (2011). Academic libraries and the credit-bearing class: A practical approach. Communications in Information Literacy, 5(2), 156-173. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1038044088?accountid=11365 • Head, A (2008). How do Humanities and Social science Majors conduct academic research? College and Research Libraries, 69, 5, 427-446. Association of College and Research libraries. • Hollister, C. V. (2010). Best practices for credit-bearing information literacy courses. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries • Jones, Y. P. (2008). “Just the facts Ma’am?” a contextual approach to the legal information use environment. Retrieved from http://idea.library.drexel.edu/handle/1860/2837 • Kuhlthau, C. C. & Tama, S. L. (2001). Information search process of lawyers: A call for’just for me’information services. Journal of Documentation, 57(1), 25-43 • Makri, S. (2009). A study of lawyers’ information behaviour leading to the development of two methods for evaluating electronic resources. Retrieved from http://eprints.ucl.ac.uk/14729/ • Melissa Bowles-Terry. (2012). Library instruction and academic success: A mixed-methods assessment of a library instruction program. Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 2012, Vol.7(1), p.82, 7(1), 82. Retrieved from http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP/article/view/12373/13256 www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 19 .