Literature+Review

We started our group discussion by each locating articles of interest. Below you will find additional reading materials that are considered relevant to the topic of assessment and evaluation of learning. The articles are summarized in a literature review and the citations are included at the end. You should consult the article summary, for a summary of the JOLIS article that was used as a basis of our group discussion.

Megan Oakleaf (2009) presents a number of questions that should be pondered before committing to an information literacy assessment within an institution. Librarians should ask themselves “if they are [trying to] increase student learning, to respond to a call for accountability, or to strengthen instructional programs” (pg. 276). Once a direction is discovered, further decisions entail the type of assessment to be used, the cost of assessment and how the assessment will help to improve the quality of information literacy; as “Donald Barclay states, Unless evaluation will somehow improve the thing being evaluated, it is not worth doing” (pg. 276).

Patricia Owens (2010) discusses the TRAILS-9 assessment tool that is utilized by school media specialists to ascertain whether or not information literacy instruction has been successful. Administering and evaluation of the assessment tool is discussed in detail within the article. The TRAILS assessment tool is discussed further in the assigned reading “Dangers and Opportunities: A Conceptual Map of Information Literacy Assessment Approaches” by Megan Oakleaf and the TRAILS individual activity in Module 7.

A concise definition for the concept of information literacy is up for great debate. Many pages in the textbook, Information Literacy Instruction by Grassian and Kaplowitz, are dedicated to educated perspectives of the topic and their definition of the term. In addition to this definition, Barbara Stripling (2007) asserts that students must demonstrate information fluency “because students must not only know the skills, but also apply the skills fluently in any personal or academic learning situation” (pg. 25). Stripling goes on to discuss how the application of skills can be assessed by instructors in elementary and high schools. One of her last statements is particularly thought provoking, “assessment is a critical element of effective teaching. Library media specialists who are able to provide evidence that students have learned information fluency skills will be more successful in their teaching and more integral to the instructional program of the school” (pg. 29).

Lynn Cameron (2007) in collaboration with Steven Wise and Susan Lottridge, discuss the effectiveness of the Information Literacy Test (ILT) on assessing students’ information literacy skills in academic institutions, thereby determining the strength of the instruction offering (pg. 229). Perhaps the most important point to glean from the topic of assessment and evaluation of a library’s instruction programs, is that the “outcomes assessment can be used to demonstrate the value of the library as a partner in teaching and learning” (pg. 230) in all types of library institutions. The ILT was created as a response to increased pressure to be held accountable for quality of programming offered, by governing bodies (pg. 231) and evaluates low and high level critical thinking skills (pg. 229). The test is administered online in under an hour and measures 4 out the 5 ACRL standards (pg. 235).

Graduate students are often ill prepared for the rigors of scholarly research, “older students, especially career-changing adults who seek advanced degrees in education may be inappropriately categorized as digital immigrants, and youth are often erroneously assumed to have technological expertise they do not possess” (pg. 439). Patricia Deleo (2009) in collaboration with Susan Eichenholtz and Adrienne Sosin discuss their research study that, “examines the innovation of incorporating a Class Performance System, (CPS), a combination of hardware and software designed to provide the instructor immediate feedback from the students, into information literacy pedagogy” (pg. 438) and the implications on improving library instruction. The challenge for information literacy instructors in a library setting is that you typically have a short period of time to share an overwhelming amount of material to students of varying skill levels.

Closely related to the work done by Deloe, Eichenholtz and Sosin, Celene Seymour discusses three methods for attacking the need to bridge the learning and assessment breach between high school students and college freshmen. According to Seymour, the huge gap between “expectations and reality” (p. 32) can be closed by using one of three methods; SAILS, ICT, and TRAILS. Developed by Kent State University, Project SAILS (Standardized Assessment of Information Literacy Skills) relies on targeting IL deficiencies by assessing multiple choice questions to incoming freshman and measuring their progress and reassessing teaching methodology along the way (p.33). Critics of this method insist that IL learning must begin much sooner than this, even as far back as middle school (p.33). ICT (Information Communication Technology) Literacy Assessment accomplishes this by evaluating competencies of high school students before they head off to college. Whereas SAILS measures understanding of information gathering tools (both print and digital), ICT measures a student’s ability to apply technology to learning tasks (p.34). Finally Seymour looks at the TRAILS method (which has been previously discussed) which measures competency in applying technology skills (p.35).

Katherine Kimball and Lisa O’Conner pose an interesting idea promoting the use of one of the most ignored sensory methods of teaching information literacy, aural learning (p.316). According to their report, aural learning provides many advantages in the library setting and can be used in all facets of ACRL IL competency standards (p.317). According to Kimball and O’Conner, one of the biggest benefits to aural learning is that it is “creative and efficient” for the typical “one-shot” library instruction style (p.316). The use of music can be utilized as an effective tool for “analogy and metaphor building, which increases conceptual learning” and aids in memory recall (p.316). Such examples include how we learn the ABC song or Happy Birthday at such a young age and are able to apply those songs to a proper context when needed. Another example is using music as a means of teaching such concepts as plagiarism to students by listening to music that uses “samples” from other songs to create a new, “original work”. The most compelling argument for the aural method is that neither the teachers nor the students need musical training to understand the concepts being taught (p.318).

References Cameron, L., Wise, S.L. & Lottridge, S.M. (2007). Development and validation of the information literacy test. College and Research Libraries, 68(5), 229-236.

Deleo, P.A., Eichenholtz, S. & Sosin, A.A. (2009). Bridging the information literacy gap with clickers. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 35(11), 438-444.

Kimball, K., & O'Connor, L. (2010). Engaging auditory modalities through the use of music in information literacy instruction.(INFORMATION LITERACY and INSTRUCTION)(Essay). Reference &amp; User Services Quarterly, 49(4), 316(314).

Oakleaf, M. & Kaske, N. (2009). Guiding questions for assessing information literacy in higher education. Libraries and the Academy, 9(2), 273-286.

Owen, P.L. (2010). Using TRAILS to assess student learning: A step-by-step guide. Library Media Connection, 28(6), 36-38.

Seymour, C. (2007). Information technology assessment: a foundation for school and academic library collaboration.(FEATURE). Knowledge Quest, 35(5), 32(34).

Stripling, B. (2007). Assessing information fluency: Gathering evidence of student learning. School Library Media Activities Monthly, XXIII(8), 25-29.