(via Gwen Gregory, IACRL President)
Several Illinois academic libraries are participating in this important ACRL project, including Augustana College, DePaul University, Illinois Central College, Illinois Institute of Technology, Joliet Junior College, Knox College, and Northeastern Illinois University.
A list of participants from each school, along with project descriptions and links to more-detailed information (including the accompanying posters), are below.
Augustana College
Stefanie R. Bluemle, Research and Instruction Librarian
Sarah M. Horowitz, Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts and Head of Special Collections at Haverford College, and formerly Special Collections Librarian at Augustana College
“Assessing Hands-On Learning in Special Collections: A Pilot Study”
How does experience in special collections (SC) affect first-year students information literacy and critical-thinking skills? Students completed pre- and post-tests of their ability to describe, analyze, and engage with primary documents. Then, papers by students who used SC were compared with papers by students who had not to identify differences in source use. Learn the results of this study and implications for future assessment of student learning in SC.
Full description
DePaul University
Heather Jagman, Coordinator of Reference, Instruction & Academic Engagement
“‘I felt like such a Freshman!’: Creating Library Insiders”
Independent learning activities, when coupled with reflection, are effective in providing an orientation to the library in particular, and academic life in general. After participating in a self-guided library activity and reflecting on the process, students in DePaul’s First Year Experience program are able to articulate how the library can contribute to their success as academic learners.
Full description
Illinois Central College
Amy Glass, Reference Librarian
“Library Assessment: the Next Frontier!”
This poster session is the story of the Illinois Central College Library and its mission to explore the impact of librarian led instruction over the course of two papers in several sections of ENG 111 (Composition II) courses. The team sought out assessment strategies to measure student success with those papers (as part of a new general education goal to demonstrate information literacy) and boldly went into the new and exciting world of assessment.
Full description
Illinois Institute of Technology
Lisa Massengale, Coordinator for Research and Instruction
Pattie Piotrowski, Assistant Dean for Public Services
Devin Savage, Assistant Dean for Assessment and Scholarly Communication
“Articulating the Effect of Library Usage on Student Success and Persistence”
The study allowed the library to establish connections between academic success outcomes such as student persistence and GPA by demonstrating the variety of ways that libraries contribute to student learning and success. This information will be used to anticipate student expectations, expand services, and develop collections and access.
Full description
Joliet Junior College
Melvin Whitehead, Librarian
“Impact of Libguides & IL Instruction on Developmental Reading Students”
Meeting the needs of students enrolled in developmental education remains one of the most challenging problems for community colleges. However, providing effective library support to this population remains an under-researched topic. This project assesses the impact of two variables on the quality of the sources used by four sections of a developmental reading in their final projects: the number of information literacy (IL) instruction sessions with a librarian and access to a course Libguide.
Full description
Knox College
Jeffrey Douglas, Director of the Library
Anne Giffey, Assistant Librarian for Public Services
Ryan Lynch, Assistant Librarian for Instructional Services
“The Seats Don’t Lie: Study Preferences of STEM Students”
Our research gained insight into the study preferences of Knox College students enrolled in STEM courses, especially in regard to use of the campus libraries. Using mixed methods research, results indicate preferences for a variety of study spaces to accommodate quiet, communal, and collaborative study for individuals and groups. The data allows us to assess both the niche that the current science branch library fills and the future requirements a renovated facility must have to encourage and sustain student success.
Full description
Northeastern Illinois University
James Rosenzweig, Education Librarian
Mary Thill, Humanities Librarian
Lisa C. Wallis, Web Services Librarian
“Architect, Coach, or Sage: How Can We Teach so They Will Learn?”
Given limited time and resources, librarians at Northeastern Illinois University hoped to identify the most effective role a librarian can play in information literacy instruction: designer of online curricula, moderator in a flipped classroom, or presenter in a traditional classroom. This poster reports on a semester-long study comparing the attitudinal and academic effects of three instruction models on undergraduate students in English 102.
Full description