Assessment in Action: Academic Libraries & Student SuccessCRITICAL THINKING & INFORMATION LITERACY

Poster Presentation: American Library Association Annual Conference, San Francisco, 2015 Sherry Tinerella

ACRL: Value of Academic Libraries Initiative

Association of College & Research LibrariesInitiative is the result of Summits –

Themes

Accountability Unified Approach

Student learning/success Evidence-based

AiA

Institution of Museum & Library Services (IMLS) Collaborative Planning Grant

Assessment in Action: Academic Libraries & Student Success

Goal 1• Develop professional competencies of librarians to document &

communicate the value of the library in relation to institutional goals for learning & student success.

Goal 2• Build & strengthen collaborative partnerships with stakeholders in

higher ed.

Goal 3• Contribute to higher ed assessment work by creating approaches,

strategies & practices that document library’s contribution.

Overview

2013-201475

institutions

2014-201573

institutions

2015-201655

institutions

• Application process

• 14 month commitment

• Attend 2 full day workshops at ALA annual & midwinter

• Moodle learning management system meetings & assignments

• Group discussions

• Poster Session Each librarian is a team leader on their campus who is to create a community of practice. Teams should consist of librarians, administration, & faculty. The purpose is to design, implement, and present research that provides evidence of the library’s value & contribution to student learning or success.

Purpose:

To demonstrate the impact of information literacy (IL) through library instruction on critical thinking and to create a sustainable IL program to ensure student success.

Arkansas Tech Team

Sherry Tinerella – Team Leader

Monica Varner – Director of Institutional Effectiveness

Rebecca Callaway – Professor of Education & Instructional Designer for eTech

Regina St. John - Associate Professor of English

Hanna Norton – Assistant VP for Academic Affairs

Research Question: How does information literacy contribute to critical thinking in undergraduate students?

• Use 2 sections of Introduction to Library Resources LBMD 2001

• Use TRAILS Assessment, pre and post tests

• Rubric for Final Project

TRAILS Assessment AlignmentTo Standards

Number of Questions on Assessment

Data Used to Assess Prior Knowledge

Develop Topic 6 5 most relevant 1 point each

Identify Sources 6

Search Strategies 6

Evaluate Information

6 5 most relevant1 point each

Use Information 6

Prior Knowledge Post

This score

Average of these four skills

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 450

1

2

3

4

5

6

Develop a Topic

Pre-test Post-test Final

Students

Scor

e

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 450

1

2

3

4

5

6

Evaluating Sources & Information

Pre-test Post-test Final Project

Students

Scor

e

Students Pre & Final Rubric85.5% Increase12.5% No Change.05% Decrease

Students Pre & Final Rubric

56.5% Increase

17.5% No Change

25% Decrease

Students would benefit from IL instruction embedded into relevant courses within their majors. Library faculty can provide a strategy to implement IL instruction into these courses. Librarians can collaborate with faculty to create authentic learning activities that teach IL and subject specific research methods together.

Critical thinking & information literacy have been examined together in library science for at least 25 years when Sonia Bodi published a paper about the connection between bibliographic instruction & critical thinking.

More recent literature indicates that campus-wide programs exist based on this correlation. (Johnson, Lindsay, & Walter 2008).

Studies examine the critical thinking aspect of IL instruction within specific disciplines. (Van Loon & Lai, 2014)

Information literate college graduates are desirable in the workplace as well as academe. (Bell, 2014).

Benefits of AiA• Created relationships with campus administrators and

faculty• Invaluable professional development and networking• Education in assessment, research, and communication• Basis for expanding Information Literacy education through

library instruction

• ACRL (2000). Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/informationliteracycompetency

• Bell, S. (2014, March 19). Employers want workplace-ready grads, but can higher ed deliver?/from the Bell Tower. Library Journal: Academic Newswire. Retrieved from http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2014/03/opinion/steven-bell/employers-want-workplace-ready-grads-but-can-higher-ed-deliver-from-the-bell-tower/#_

• Johnson, C., Lindsay, E.B., and Walter, S. (2008). Learning more about how they think: Information literacy instruction in campus-wide critical thinking project. College and Undergraduate Libraries, 15(1/2).

• Kent State University Libraries. TRAILS: Tools for real-time assessment of information literacy skills. Retrieved from www.trails-9.org

• Van Loon, J.E., Lai, H.L. (2014) Information literacy skills as critical thinking framework in the undergraduate engineering curriculum. Library Scholarly Publications 80. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/libsp/80

References