Campus collaboration to embed information literacy learning outcomes into curricula, courses, and assignments is essential to achieving the academic library’s primary goal of developing information-literate learners. Panelists from a private, medium-sized university and a large public university with strong information literacy programs will bring attention to three categories of success articulated in ACRL’s Characteristics of Programs of Information Literacy that Illustrate Best Practices: A Guideline regarding planning, placement in the curriculum, and outreach.
Collaborating with faculty and university administration to embed information literacy learning outcomes into curricula, courses, and assignments, as outlined in the ACRL Standards for Libraries in Higher Education (2011), is essential to achieving the academic library’s primary goal of developing information-literate learners. How can libraries engage in the institution’s curricular development process? What elements contribute to a successful information literacy program? Where across the curriculum can libraries strategically assess information literacy competencies? Panelists from a private, medium-sized university and a large public university with strong information literacy programs will bring attention to three categories of success articulated in the Characteristics of Programs of Information Literacy that Illustrate Best Practices: A Guideline (Best Practices Initiative Institute for Information Literacy, 2012) document. These three categories— “Planning,” “Articulation within the Curriculum,” and “Outreach”— led to advancements in information literacy initiatives at the panelists' institutions.
In terms of planning, situational factors on campus leading to curriculum reform will be discussed, including librarian participation in shared governance, librarian participation in faculty-driven curriculum development programs, methods for identifying and targeting high-impact courses and programs, and early adoption of the assessment paradigm that is increasingly necessary for accreditation. In considering articulation within the curriculum, panelists will give an overview of information literacy learning outcomes and assessment measures at the course level, program level, and institution level. They will describe how information literacy was integrated into their core curriculum as a tiered, sequential program across students’ academic careers. In discussing outreach, panelists will describe how they market information literacy to stakeholders and how information literacy professional development workshops and programs were presented in collaboration with campus partners. This panel clearly demonstrates the components necessary for successfully advancing information literacy programs on campus.
This panel will use a web-based audience response system to allow the audience to ask questions throughout the panel using their mobile devices. We will also survey the audience on their accomplishments within the three categories discussed in order to begin creating a “community of practice” contact list for participants. We will provide a takeaway toolkit for self-assessment that includes an environmental scan worksheet and a rubric for gauging where attendees are on the continuum of “best practices” described in the panel. Finally, we will provide a recommended professional reading list for attendees.
References
Association of College and Research Libraries. (2011). Standards for Libraries in Higher Education. Retrieved May 8, 2014 from http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/standardslibraries
Best Practices Initiative Institute for Information Literacy. (2012). Characteristics of Programs of Information Literacy that Illustrate Best Practices: A Guideline. Retrieved May 8, 2014 from http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/characteristics
Objective 1: Participants will create effective strategies for planning an information literacy program in order develop collaborative models at their home institutions.
Objective 2: Participants will compare models for articulating information literacy within the curriculum in order to design and assess effective, sustainable information literacy programs on their campuses.
Objective 3: Participants will evaluate effective outreach activities for an information literacy program in order to market information literacy to relevant stakeholders at their institutions.