Betwixt Wind and Water: Research Project Results on LibrarianintheClassroom Distance Learning Servic

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Betwixt Wind and Water Research Project Results
on Librarian-in-the-Classroom Distance Learning
Service

• Elizabeth Figa, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• School of Library and Information Sciences
• Tonda Bone, M.A., PhD Candidate
• School of Library and Information Sciences
• Erin OToole, M.L.S., Science and Technology
  Librarian
• University Library
• University of North Texas
• Denton, TX

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Meaning Betwixt Wind and Water

• The part of a ship's side or bottom which is
  frequently brought above water by the rolling of
  the ship, or fluctuation of the water's surface
  -- hence, an injury to that part of a vessel is
  particularly dangerous.
• Being bewixt wind and water is a metaphor for
  the vulnerable part or point of anything.

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Rationale for the Librarian in the Classroom
service (LITC) Part 1

• Student success is influenced by their ability to
  access, evaluate, and use information resources
• Traditional and formal library instruction as
  well as independent school of hard knocks
  learning has provided many (but not all) students
  with differing levels of information literacy
  skills (also known as library use skills)
• The increase in distance-learning options has
  created the need and challenge for libraries to
  transform reference services

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Rationale for the Librarian in the Classroom
service (LITC) Part 2

• Online students lack the physical and visual cues
  that would typically orient student to the
  library, such as tours and class sessions at
  library
• Need to develop library resources equitable to
  those available onsite as well as access to
  online resources to meet the needs of all
  students

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History of the Initiative

• Three years of collaboration
• Affiliates a designated librarian with an
  instructors online course(s)
• Librarian has subject specialization in related
  field to course content
• Collaborative process with librarian and faculty
  to design, implement and evaluate the services
• Provides students with personalized service from
  librarian they know by name and with whom they
  can have a teacher-student relationship
• Fun and gratifying work that continues!

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Pedagogical Strategies for LITC Part 1

• Librarian embedded into courses
• Has distinctive librarian-run LITC discussion
  forum
• Librarian available in the class via discussion
  forum and email
• Librarian can schedule appointments for consults
  via phone, online or in person for personal
  bibliographic instruction upon student request

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Pedagogical Strategies for LITC Part 2

• General all-class instruction provided via tips
  of the week, tutorials, information quest
  challenges and games
• Hint and tips board allow students to participate
  in peer helping
• Design customized LITC services to specific
  courses, students, and assignments
• Assignment board instruction to generate ideas
  and examples of how the librarian can advise
  students
• Long-term Integration of library use in
  professional and in personal information seeking
  behavior
• Best Practice

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Implementation

• LITC in one class in Fall and Spring semesters
  since fall 2006
• SLIS 5600, Information Access and Retrieval
  offered every fall semester is core course
• SLIS 5440, Storytelling for Professionals offered
  every semester is elective course
• History and Culture of Youth Information Services
  offered every spring semester is elective course
• Research study was started with the initial
  implementation

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Faculty Protocols for the Librarian

• Librarian given instructor-level access
• Librarians part of the teaching team
• Faculty-only discussion board and team meetings
• Librarian works as member of the teaching team
  AND autonomously with the students
• All best practices

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The Research Methodology

• A first-week-of-class pre-LITC service
  questionnaire (all short answer narrative
  questions)
• Mid-Semester Survey (one question on LITC
  service)
• End of semester evaluation survey (multiple
  choice with short-answer option and other short
  answer questions)

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The Research Questions

• RQ1 Do students perceive the LITC as a
  value-added service?
• RQ2 In what ways do students see the LITC being
  beneficial to them personally and academically?
• RQ3 How do the faculty and LITC librarian
  perceive the service and its impact on the
  students?
• RQ4 What impact does participation have on the
  librarians and their work load?
• RQ5 Does the program advance the mission of
  library services to e-learning students?

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About the Students

• Pre-service questionnaire explored students
• Academic standing toward degree
• Experience with librarys services
• Initial reaction to LITC component

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Pre-Service Questionnaire Rate of Return
IAR Introduction to Information Access and
Retrieval
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Student Characteristics
Includes one response of not sure
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RQ1 Do students perceive LITC as a value-added
service?

• Pre-LITC Impression
• What are your initial impressions about this
  concept of "Librarian in the Classroom"? (Out of
  122)
• Very positive 93 (76.23)

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RQ1 Do students perceive LITC as a
value-added service?

• Post-LITC Impression
• What are your impressions about this concept of
  "Librarian in the Classroom"? (Out of 33)
• Very positive 32 (96.97)

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RQ2 How do students see the LITC being
beneficial to them?

• Pre-LITC Service Results
• Mode of communication
• Examined how students preferred to communicate
  with the librarian
• Anticipated information needs
• Examined what sorts of information and assistance
  students hoped to receive from the librarian

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Pre-Service View of Mode of Communication
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Post-Service View of Mode of Communication
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Anticipated Information Needs

• 6 areas of need delineated
• Learning to locate and use various library
  resources
• Receiving specific course-related assistance
  regarding assignments
• Developing strategies for effective searching
• Developing research agendas
• Writing up results
• Recognizing authoritative sources
• 72 (64.54) of the 117 respondents felt the
  discussion board forum offered the most efficient
  model for meeting information needs

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Information Needs and LITC Use

• 25 did use the LITC for a personal information
  need / 75.76 did not contact the LITC for a
  personal information need
• 93.94 indicated they read the librarians posts,
  tutorial and advice and benefitted from reading
  other students questions and the librarians
  responses
• Indicates discussion board forum magnifies impact
  of librarians services

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RQ3 How do the faculty/LITC librarian perceive
the service and its impact on students? Part 1

• Students are more willing to interact with other
  library services, such as media library,
  interlibrary loan, circulation
• Personalized service makes students less anxious
  or hesitant about asking questions because are
  assured of dependable and relevant answers
• Students who are less comfortable with sharing
  their questions benefit from seeing others
  questions posted and answered. This benefit is
  unique to distance students because face-to-face
  students only receive library instruction
  individually.

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RQ3 How do the faculty/LITC librarian perceive
the service and its impact on students? Part 2

• LITC service has become proactive over time as we
  can anticipate what major challenges and barriers
  to learning will be
• LITC service makes the course a fuller learning
  experience because students learn that the
  library and its resources are valuable tools that
  should be used in all information seeking, not
  just for one class or just in college

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RQ4 What impact does participation have on the
librarian work load? Part 1

• Have developed ability to troubleshoot technology
  problems and a close relationship with Libraries
  LAN department
• Have become the Reference Departments local
  expert on reference to online students, evidenced
  by recent request to give a presentation to
  library staff
• Most difficult aspect is daily attention needed
  by course when library work tends to be feast or
  famine

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RQ4 What impact does participation have on the
librarian work load? Part 2

• Time commitment is not burdensome averages
  around 5 to 6 hours per week, which is 10 of
  workload. Current load is acceptable as is
  considered part of my instructional role as
  library liaison to the School of Library and
  Information Sciences. (Note More than 3 classes
  would be difficult to maintain, unless I
  negotiated less time on virtual and desk
  reference.)
• My participation is considered valuable to
  Libraries because we are very aware of obligation
  to distance students and want to increase library
  support to them.

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RQ4 What impact does participation have on the
librarian work load? Part 3

• Participation is viewed as valuable because
  collaboration with faculty is highly encouraged,
  and this is a successful model of that activity
• Participation in this research is improving my
  promotion application, which will be submitted
  this summer
• The student assessments support positive
  performance evaluations for me because reports on
  individual performance, rather than department
  performance

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RQ5 Does the program advance the mission of
library services to e-learning students?

• Serves as a suggested model
• This year a three-year report will be submitted
  to show some outcomes
• OToole recently gave a presentation to the
  library staff on our project
• Weakness Need to determine a way to assess
  long-term impact

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Overall Benefits to the Students Part 1

• Extends embedded librarianship to encompass group
  instruction related specifically to the course
  subject matter
• Provides personalized instruction on refining and
  researching topics (including implementing a
  virtual reference interview to guide the
  librarians assistance)
• Provides formal informal instruction in general
  bibliographic literacy

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Overall Benefits to the Students Part 2

• Become more familiar with librarys resources,
  which translates to greater course success
• More comfortable with using librarys other
  services
• Carry library knowledge into future courses
• Become life-long learners

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Benefits to the Librarian

• Kept current on electronic resources, their
  functions, features and foibles
• Kept current on circulation and interlibrary loan
  policies
• Become more comfortable with technology questions
  and develop greater computer literacy
• Receive more challenging questions than I often
  do when doing virtual or desk reference
• Receive great satisfaction of knowing that
  students have found my assistance and instruction
  valuable
• Develop long-term relationships with students,
  much like being a mentor

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Benefits to the Faculty

• Saves me time having to monitor library- related
  issues and problems
• See better work emerging from my students
• Keeps me more current on library trends,
  databases, and issues than previously
• Interesting research thread for presentations and
  papers as well as collaboration
• Progressive, unique service for my students
• Gratifying relationship with the librarian

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Limitations, Challenges, Opportunities

• Requires student buy in
• Librarian needs to set a limit on commitment
  hours per week
• Collecting and reporting service data
• Asynchronous service schedule
• Online learning system challenges
• Library access problems
• Replication on large scale initiative

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Conclusions Part 1

• Students value and benefit from the LITC Service
• Enhances learning and application of new skills
  in both school and personal life
• Encourages students to make greater use of the
  university library and hopefully of other
  libraries once they graduate
• LITC extends efforts to provide equitable library
  services to distance and online learners
• LITC also supports on-campus students enrolled in
  online courses

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Conclusions Part 2

• Data indicate the acquisition of improved and new
  library use skills
• Student perceive the service as special and
  just for them
• In our view, it has a big payoff without a lot of
  overhead or extraordinary time commitment for
  the faculty and librarian
• Helps ensure student success and keeps their
  ship afloat!

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Conclusions Part 3

• Value-added pedagogical strategy
• The LITC service has been mentioned in
  university distributed end-of-semester student
  course evaluations (narrative comments section)
  every semester it has been offered
• Anecdotally, the professor believes the LITC
  service has an impact on student over all
  course satisfaction, but there is no empirical or
  assessment data to support this

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Best Practices

• Please see the two handouts

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Final Thoughts

• Summary
• This research was funded by grant fromDEMCO,
  Inc.

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The End

• Thank you for spending your time with us!
• Discussion?
• Questions?
• Wishing you smooth sailing home!

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