"Last Wednesday" IL discussion on tinychat today

On Wednesday , 29 February, 2012 (at 7pm UK time; 2PM US ET; 11AM US PT) there is the Last Wednesday Information Literacy discussion on tinychat, sponsored by the ACRL Science and Technology Section’s Information Literacy Committee. To join the discussion, go to http://tinychat.com/steminfolit
Photo by Sheila Webber: Snowdrops, Botanic Gardens, Sheffield, February 2012

WILU Registration open

The WILU 2012 (Canadian information literacy) conference is open for registration. It will be held at Grant MacEwan University, Edmonton,Canada, May 23-25 2012. Keynotes include Michael Eisenberg and Adria Vasil. Registration closes on May 7, 2012. For more info go to http://sites.macewan.ca/wilu2012/program
Photo by Sheila Webber: The delegate pack for the 2005 WILU conference.

LILAC full programme available

The full programme of the LILAC (UK information literacy) conference, to held in Glasgow, Scotland, 11-13 April 2012, is now available: http://lilacconference.com/WP/

LibTeachMeet organised CILIP Sussex

On Tuesday 20 March 5.30-7.30 there is a TeachMeet organised by CILIP Sussex. The venue is the Audrey Emerton Building, Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, UK. They are looking for speakers willing to give a 5 minute or 2 minute presentation on the topic of Outreach, Marketing and Promotion. Lurkers are also welcome. Sign up at http://brightonlibtm2012.eventbrite.com if you’re interested in attending. Further details at http://www.brightonlibtm.info
Photo by Sheila Webber: snowdrops, February 2012

The Road to Information Literacy: Librarians as facilitators of learning

The IFLA satellite meeting The Road to Information Literacy: Librarians as facilitators of learning, 8-10 August 2012, in Tampere, Finland, is now open for registration. The event is organised by IFLA Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning Section and IFLA Information Literacy Section. The closing speech is by Professor Carol Kuhlthau. For more info visit: http://iflasatellitetampere2012.wordpress.com/ (the Registration tab is at the top of the screen)
Photo by Sheila Webber: Icey Amstel, Amsterdam, February 2012

Mobile Learning bibliography

Mobile Learning bibliography from Veronica Diaz, Associate Director, EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (just tweeted by Robin Ashford who's at an EDUCAUSE conference)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1M5skjHCBhmbvQDRpr4PCMFW1fnmGE9QsPc_6JFaG5go/edit?hl=en&pli=1

International Association of School Librarianship 2012 Conference; Qatar; cfp

The International Association of School Librarianship 2012 Conference takes place in Doha, Qatar, November 11-15, 2012. There is a call for papers. The theme is The Shifting Sands of School Librarianship and the major strands are: Internationalism, Innovation and Creativity, Collaboration, and Literacies and Fluencies. They seek presentations:
Workshop or Presentation for Concurrent Session (50 minutes or 1 hour and 50 minutes): Application deadline: April 15, 2012
Presentation of Professional Paper or Previously Published Article or Paper: Application deadline: April 15, 2012
Presentation of New Research as Part of the Peer-Reviewed International Research Forum: Application deadline: March 15, 2012
More information at http://iasl2012.org/CallForPapers.html
Photo by Sheila Webber: Beach, Branch, Yeppoon, 2008

Information Literacy in LIS curriculum

I found a copy of this book chapter, which had vanished from its original location (previously blogged):
- Virkus, S., Boekhorst, A. K., Gomez-Hernandez J.A., Skov, A. and Webber, S. (2005) “Information literacy and learning.” In: Kajberg, L. and Lørring, L. (Eds) European Curriculum: Reflections on Library and Information Science Education. pp65-83. Copenhagen: The Royal School of Library and Information Science. http://www.library.utt.ro/LIS_Bologna.pdf

These are a few more items about this topic:
- Foster, A. E. (2007). Information literacy for the information profession: experiences from Aberystwyth. Aslib proceedings, 58(6),488-501.
- Webber, S. (2008) "Educating Web 2.0 LIS students for information literacy." In: Godwin, P. and Parker, J. (eds) Information Literacy meets Library 2.0. London: Facet. pp39-50. ISBN 978-1-85604-637-4 (prepublication final draft at http://dis.shef.ac.uk/sheila/webber-web2-chapter.pdf
- Virkus, S. (2008) "LIS Education in Europe : Challenges and Opprtunities". In Informationskonzepte für die Zukunft : ODOK '07. Neugebauer Verlag. pp.191-204. This is online at http://eprints.rclis.org/bitstream/10760/14978/1/odok07_virkus.pdf

Student emails

There's a short piece in the Eastern Daily News about how students need to improve the information they give, their literacy, and the tone of what they write, when they email their teachers. We had been discussing this issue at our staff/student committee, and it seems that it would be a good idea to give more guidance about using email when people start at the university. I myself don't follow all the advice in this article (e.g. I sometimes use "lol" and I end most of my emails "best wishes") and I'm not too much of a stickler in this area, but one increasing issue is emails sent via mobile devices, where it isn't clear who is sending the email. The news story doesn't mention information literacy, but I think it is: part of "understanding how to plan for and gather information from other people".
Daily Eastern News. (2012) "Staff Editorial: How (not) to email your professors." Daily Eastern News, 2 February. http://www.dennews.com/opinion/editorials/staff-editorial-how-not-to-email-your-professors/article_c48ec264-4e18-11e1-9da2-001a4bcf6878.html
Photo by Sheila Webber: valentine ballooons, Amsterdam, February 2012

Religious information literacy: article

Gunton, L. (2011) "Religious information literacy: using information to learn in church community." Australian Library Journal, 60 (2), 155-164.
"What informs members of the church community as they learn? Do the ways people engage with information differ according to the circumstances in which they learn? Informed learning, or the ways in which people use information in the learning experience and the degree to which they are aware of that, has become a focus of contemporary information literacy research. This essay explores the nature of informed learning in the context of the church as a learning community. It is anticipated that insights resulting from this exploration may help church organisations, church leaders and lay people to consider how information can be used to grow faith, develop relationships, manage the church and respond to religious knowledge, which support the pursuit of spiritual wellness and the cultivation of lifelong learning. Information professionals within the church community and the broader information profession are encouraged to foster their awareness of the impact that engagement with information has in the learning experience and in the prioritising of lifelong learning in community contexts." http://eprints.qut.edu.au/41943/1/Gunton_Lyndelle_Religious_information_literacy_ALJ_May_2011.pdf
Photo by Sheila webber: Church, Tórshavn, Faroes

The Truth According To Wikipedia

The Truth According To Wikipedia is a 48 minute documentary from the Dutch media company VPRO's current affairs series. It was screened in 2008. It includes opinions from various perspectives. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMSinyx_Ab0. Thanks to Kevin Sheehan for alerting me to this.
Photo by Sheila webber: Ducks on semi-frozen Amstel, Amsterdam, February 2012

Latest issue of Reference Services Review

Reference Services Review, Volume 40 issue 1, 2012. Articles include:
Demystifying the data interview: Developing a foundation for reference librarians to talk with researchers about their data: Jake Carlson
Training Millennials: a practical and theoretical approach: Kathleen Langan Video lectures help enhance online information literacy course: Ed Hahn
Research skills development through collaborative virtual learning environments: Adrian Stagg, Lindy Kimmins
Digital games in academic libraries: a review of games and suggested best practices: Mary J. Snyder Broussard
Empowered library eLearning: Capturing assessment and reporting with ease, efficiency, and effectiveness: George Germek
Still a mixed bag: A study of first-year composition students' internet citations at the University of Mississippi:Alex P. Watson
Incorporation and visibility of reference and social networking tools on ARL member libraries' websites: Leila June Rod-Welch
This is a priced publication: home page at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=0090-7324
Image created from words on the issue home page, using http://www.tagxedo.com/

Arcadia project reports

I have blogged about the recent information literacy currculum project which was part of the Arcadia Programme, but I don't think I have highlighted some of the other outcomes from the prammes. There are still some reports to be published, Student reading in theory and practise by Oszkar Nagy and a report on implementing the information literacy curriculum. As background, "The Arcadia Programme was a three-year programme (2008-2011) funded by a generous grant from the Arcadia Fund to Cambridge University Library. The grant enabled us to explore the role of academic libraries in a digital age, create new programmes and services, particularly for undergraduates -- and also to improve the external environment of the library."
Previous reports/websites include: History uncovered - by Carolyn Keim; Internet Informed Patient symposium website and blogs on the event - by Isla Kuhn; Postgraduate information needs and online tools awareness - by Esther Dingley; IRIS(Induction, Research and Information Skills) - by Lizz Edwards Waller. Go to http://arcadiaproject.lib.cam.ac.uk/publications.html
Photo by Sheila Webber: branch on the icey lake, Sheffield, February 2012

Exploring the information literacy of professionals in safety management

Yang, F. (2012) "Exploring the information literacy of professionals in safety management" Safety Science, 50 (2), 294–299
"With the rapid development of increasingly complex technology and large scale industrial projects, all kinds of safety problems become extremely intricate in daily safety management (SM). It is therefore indispensable to effectively collect, analyze, assess, and synthesize information that is relevant to accident risk. In this paper, the concept of the information literacy (IL) of professionals in SM is proposed, and a conceptual framework is put forward. Further, determinants of the IL of safety professionals are suggested, including individual attributes, safety climate and culture, information infrastructure, information technology (IT) human resources, production technology and management, and national information policy, law and ethics. Of course, further research on the IL of safety professionals should be carried out for effective SM." A priced article
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925753511002372
Photo by Sheila Webber: Snowdrops in the snow, Sheffield, February 2012

How to make Google behave

Excellent new powerpoint from Karen Blakeman, as presented at a seminar for UKeig seminar yesterday, with lots of up-to-date information and tips. http://www.slideshare.net/KarenBlakeman/how-to-make-google-behave

How to make Google Behave

View more PowerPoint from Karen Blakeman

Professor Diane Nahl leads discussion on information literacy article

What: Centre for Information Literacy Research Journal Club, led by Professor Diane Nahl, University of Hawaii, USA (Adra Letov in SL: she is centre in this picture of the January 2012 Journal Club). Everyone is welcome!

When: 22nd February 2012 12 noon to 1pm Second Life time (this is the same as USA Pacific time, 8pm UK time, see http://tinyurl.com/7q9388f for times elsewhere)

Where: In the virtual world, Second Life, http://slurl.com/secondlife/Infolit%20iSchool/106/208/30/ You need a SL avatar, and the SL browser on your computer, to participate.

Details: Diane leads the discussion of:
John D. Shank and Nancy H. Dewald. 2012. Academic Library Administrators’ Perceptions of Four Instructional Skills. College & Research Libraries vol. 73 no. 1 78-93. http://crl.acrl.org/content/73/1/78.abstract (Click the Full Text (PDF) link on the right of the page).

"Instruction makes up a significant portion of academic librarians’ work and administrative support for instruction is critical to a successful instruction program. The authors examined academic library administrators’ perceptions of librarian abilities in four areas of instruction."
Some questions to consider for discussion from your own perspective:
1. How do librarians integrate instructional design into their work?
2. What role does educational technology play in academic librarians’ work?
3. Which skills are most important for librarians in increasingly technological academic information environments (Table 3 summarizes)? Is blended librarianship a useful approach?
4. What sorts of support do academic librarians need from administration to stay abreast and be innovative with technologies in their work?
5. How can front line librarians influence administrators to gain needed support?

Developing your teaching skills: 23 March; Cambridge

A CILIP Career Development Group East of England Division event: Developing your teaching skills; 23rd March 2012 (afternoon); Cambridge University Library, UK. "Take your teaching skills to the next level with this stimulating half-day event. This participative course provides the opportunity to share teaching experiences, develop skills, and ensure you meet users' learning needs" Talks include:
- adapting your teaching to fit different learning styles (by Suzanne Griffiths and Clare Humphries, University of Cranfield)
- engaging users with interactive teaching sessions using the Cephalonian Method (by Isla Kuhn and Clair Castle, University of Cambridge)
- developing practical teaching skills (by Chris Powis, University of Northampton)
- sharing best practice (by Jo Harcus, Cambridge Librarian TeachMeet Team)
Cost: CDG members: £25 + VAT = £30; CDG members early bird special payable by 29 February: £20 + VAT = £24; Non CDG members: £30 + VAT = £36
For more information or to book a place email kathy.teague@rnib.org.uk
Photo by Sheila Webber: "danger, unsafe ice"; pond, Sheffield, February 2012.

LOEX registration open 10 February

Registration for the LOEX (information literacy) conference will open February 10, 2012 at 1PM USA Eastern time. The conference takes place May 3 - May 5, 2012 in Columbus, Ohio, USA and always books out VERY quickly. http://www.loexconference.org/
Photo by Sheila Webber: Duck on ice, duck in the water; Sheffield, February 2012

National Libraries Day #nld12

Today is the United Kingdom's National Libraries Day "a national celebration of libraries, librarians and library staff." There is a website at http://www.nationallibrariesday.org.uk with news about events around the country. The logo shown here,by richhawk57, is available under a Creative Commons License.

Teens, Virtual Environments and Information Literacy

In the new issue of the ASIST bulletin (free online): Beheshti, J. (2012) "Teens, Virtual Environments and Information Literacy." Bulletin of the American Society for Information Science and Technology. 38(3). http://asis.org/Bulletin/Feb-12/FebMar12_Beheshti.pdf
"EDITOR’S SUMMARY: As digital natives, the vast majority of teens are used to cellphones, text messaging, social networking sites and other forms of electronic communications and technologies. Though rooted in the digital world for many of their daily activities, teens lack basic information literacy skills for academic tasks and other demands. Specific instruction through the educational system may not be feasible, but it may be possible to build teens’ information competence through interactive virtual learning environments. Game-style virtual environments are highly motivating and engaging, providing opportunities for repeated practice and reward for persistence and achieving goals. A virtual reality library, VRLibrary, was constructed, collaboratively designed by young teens and adults, based on the metaphor of a physical library. Teens could wander the virtual space and browse links to age-appropriate websites presented as virtual books. VRLibrary was very positively received and succeeded at engaging teen users. A librarian avatar could be incorporated to provide help as needed with a user’s information seeking"
Photo by Sheila Webber: Winter tree, Blackheath, January 2012

Information literacy meets E-learning: Let’s talk about interconnections and outcomes: deadline extended

The Call for papers for IFLA Information Literacy Section and E-learning Special Interest Group Joint Open Session is extended. This is a session at the IFLA conference to be held in Helsinki, Finland, 11-17 August 2012. The new deadline for proposals is 15th February. Proposals must focus on one or more of the following topics :
- Is there any evidence to show that E-learning effectively promotes self-paced and sustainable learning in the area of information literacy skills?
- Has E-learning enabled libraries to extend their reach to new populations, or provided their existing population with new services and fresh possibilities for learning?
- While online tutorials are mainly used in the academic environment for large populations of students, what strategies have been introduced in public libraries to encourage lifelong E-learning?
- Are there any advantages in teaching information literacy skills using a virtual learning environment (VLE) or course management systems (such as Moodle, Blackboard, WebCT) in a blended learning context?
- Can information literacy education benefit from collaborative learning through forum, chat and distance learning class experiences?
- What aspects of information literacy (eg information skills instruction, research process education…) are significantly enhanced by the E-learning experience? What elements of the E-learning have the greatest value in information literacy training?
- Many tutorials focus specifically on information seeking and citing sources; can E-learning go beyond this to address a wider range of information literacy outcomes?

Proposals should include an abstract of paper approximately 500 words; a summary of the author(s) details (name, institution, position) and brief biographical statement of no more than 50 words. Email proposals to infolitelearn@gmail.com no later than February 15, 2012 and indicate “IFLA proposal” in the subject line.
Photo by Sheila Webber: quizzical cat, January 2012

My 2000th blog post! I celebrate with Toonway and Xtranormal

This is the 2000th post on this weblog, which started in September 2005. In fact the total for the Information Literacy Weblog is more than this, as it ran in a similar form under different software from April 2003, until the server it was on got hacked into in 2005.

I have celebrated this milestone by using two cloud-based applications I just came across. The first one allows you to create animated cartoon frames easily (Toonway, a French application that is targetting the English-speaking market, although some fragments of French remain).
I am not sure whether this has been used much for information literacy, but the second one, Xtranormal Movie Maker certainly has. There has been a recent discussion on the North American ili information literacy discussion list about videos for explaining Boolean Operators, and one of them was made using Xtranormal. When I played it, loads of other Xtranormal information literacy videos popped up.
The speech is synthesised, and I think this means that anything serious swiftly starts to sound like a parody of itself, but some people have used this to good advantage. Just as examples, these four all deal with evaluating websites: http://youtu.be/dKVL1ehDQB0; http://youtu.be/5No4TOu5v84; http://youtu.be/TVh6dma6vJ0; http://youtu.be/kO3dOD6-UAY.
When you sign up, you start with 300 points and then pay points for using characters and sets: you are bound to run out of points after doing a couple of videos unless you use the same characters and sets all the time. It is easy to do a video quickly (you type in the dialog, and it synthesises it immediately) - it is also very easy to do rather bad videos. Below is my own celebratory effort, in which Bruce asks what Information Literacy is, and Sheila tells him. It is only 40 seconds long.



By the way, the above isn't my main Youtube account (that's http://www.youtube.com/user/sheilawebber)

Short articles: PBL; Twitter; Discovery tools; QR codes

A new issue of SCONUL Focus (Number 53, 2012) has, as usual, numerous short and readable articles about academic libraries. These include:
- 'Twitter ye not?' by Emma Cragg (aka 'ekcragg') & Antony Brewerton (aka 'librarian boy')
- Focusing on students' discovery tool preferences by Sarah Elsegood
- Introducing problem-based learning into one-shot information literacy instruction at Waterford Institute of Technology Libraries by Alan Carbery & Nora Hegarty
There is also an item by one of the students currently on our MA Librarianship programme, written about the library where he was a trainee: Using QR codes in the library at Leeds Metropolitan University by John Bottomley
http://www.sconul.ac.uk/publications/newsletter/53/
Photo by Sheila Webber: birch and winter sky, January 2012