Instructional Design for Online Teaching and Learning eCourse

There is 4 week asynchronous online course running from 4 March 2019 to 31 March 2019: Instructional Design for Online Teaching and Learning eCourse, taught by Diane Kovacs. It costs US $175.00, or $157.50 to ALA Members. It is run by ALA Publishing eLearning Solutions. There is more information at https://www.alastore.ala.org/content/instructional-design-online-teaching-and-learning-ecourse
Photo by Sheila Webber: Daffodil in my garden, February 2019

Webinar: Supporting Open Education and Open Knowledge

To celebrate Open Education week, the University of Edinburgh has a free webinar March 5 2019 at 12 noon-1pm UK time: Supporting Open Education and Open Knowledge at the University of Edinburgh. " ... to share our approaches to supporting Open Education and Open Knowledge at the University of Edinburgh. Our panel will include Lorna M. Campbell (OER Service), Stuart Nicol (Education Design and Engagement), Ewan McAndrew (Wikimedian in Residence), and Stephanie (Charlie) Farley (OER Service). Come and join us to talk about supporting open education through digital skills development, playful approaches to copyright literacy, embedding Wikipedia in the curriculum, and open approaches to MOOCs and distance learning at scale." They are using Collaborate Ultra guest . This is the link to the seminar https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/29d997512f684a1a9a892289cd25abe6 and more info at http://open.ed.ac.uk/event/supporting-open-education-and-open-knowledge-at-the-university-of-edinburgh/
Also, for the minority of you who are University of Edinburgh staff members there is an Edionburgh-staff-only webinar Decolonise & Diversify the curriculum with Open Educational Resources with Diva Mukherji and Stephanie (Charlie) Farley http://open.ed.ac.uk/event/decolonise-diversify-the-curriculum-with-open-educational-resources/
Photo by Sheila Webber: first blossom of spring, Blackheath, February 2019

Cfp Information Literacy in Context: Research Informing Practice and Practice Informing Research #infolit

The IFLA Information Literacy Section in partnership with the IFLA Library Theory and Research Section invites proposals for a session at the IFLA World Library and Information Congress (WLIC) in Athens Greece, August 24 – 30th, 2019. The theme is Information Literacy in Context: Research Informing Practice and Practice Informing Research. The deadline is 24 March 2019. "The session aims to connect theory and practice by addressing the challenges of applying theory to practice and the impact of practical work on theory building. We invite critical, analytical and contextual contributions on how theoretical or methodological approaches can be used to inform practice and how practical experiences can inform research to build new models or to modify existing models. Suggested topics are, for example: Frameworks, guidelines and standards for information literacy – Application and adaptation in different contexts; Educational theory and information literacy; The geography of information literacy – the impact of politics, economic prosperity and culture on information literacy and information literacy education; The status of librarians in different societies – the impact on their role as teachers of information literacy and possible strategies for being effective information literacy educators; Building communities of practice among information literacy educators; Contextual models – how they inform practical aspects of information literacy education". Submit your 500 word abstract to: Egbert John Sánchez Vanderkast, Library Theory and Research Section Email: egbert@unam.mx and Zuza Wiorogórska, Information Literacy Section Email: z.d.wiorogorska@uw.edu.pl Please title the email “IFLA WLIC 2019 abstract”.
More information at https://2019.ifla.org/cfp-calls/information-literacy-with-library-theory-and-research/
Photo by Sheila Webber: goslings, Blackheath, February 2019

#Disinformation and ‘fake news’: Final Report published #infolit

The UK Parliament's Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee has published its final report on Disinformation and ‘fake news’. It does not talk about information literacy, but does refer to digital literacy (although that didn't feature in the headlined highlights). They say that "The majority of our witnesses stressed the need for greater digital literacy among users of social media. Ofcom has a statutory duty to promote media literacy, which it defines as “the ability to use, understand and create media and communications in a variety of contexts”. Sharon White told us that their focus on digital literacy is from a research base, “about how children use and understand the internet and similarly with adults”. We cannot stress highly enough the importance of greater public understanding of digital information—its use, scale, importance and influence"

There is a recommendation on Digital Literacy, where they observe "As we wrote in our Interim Report, digital literacy should be a fourth pillar of education, alongside reading, writing and maths. In its response, the Government did not comment on our recommendation of a social media company levy, to be used, in part, to finance a comprehensive educational framework—developed by charities, NGOs, and the regulators themselves—and based online. Such a framework would inform people of the implications of sharing their data willingly, their rights over their data, and ways in which they can constructively engage and interact with social media, Disinformation and ‘fake news’ sites. People need to be resilient about their relationship with such sites, particular around what they read and what they write. We reiterate this recommendation to the Government, and look forward to its response. (Paragraph 312)"

Another recommendation which could be linked to information literacy is "We recommend that participating in social media should allow more pause for thought. More obstacles or ‘friction’ should be both incorporated into social media platforms and into users’ own activities—to give people time to consider what they are writing and sharing. Techniques for slowing down interaction online should be taught, so that people themselves question both what they write and what they read—and that they pause and think further, before they make a judgement online."
The report is at https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/digital-culture-media-and-sport-committee/news/fake-news-report-published-17-19/
CILIP has published a response to the report: https://www.cilip.org.uk/page/Fakenewsdisinformation
Photo by Sheila Webber: mist on Blackheath, February 2019

Wakelet from #uklibchat on #fakenews #infolit

The tweets from the #uklibchat about Fake News, held on 4 February 2019, are available as a wakelet at https://wakelet.com/wake/deeebf8e-e6d2-48e3-a050-3ec4760bb6c4 with some interesting discussion and tips.
Photo by Sheila Webber: spring and bud, Blackheath, February 2019

Keeping up with ... implicit bias

ACRL have a Keeping Up with series, and the latest briefing is Keeping up with ... implicit bias. This is, of course, advising how to recognise and guard against implicit bias "Creating inclusive libraries requires intentionally. The unconscious nature of implicit bias makes it impossible to eradicate completely, but when librarians are aware of their biases they can be intentional about minimizing the negative effects.". Go to http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/keeping_up_with/bias The whole series is listed here: http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/keeping_up_with Thanks to Esther Grassian for alerting me to this.
Photo by Sheila Webber: pitcher plants, January 2019

2019 Key Issues in Teaching and Learning

EDUCAUSE have published the results of their annual survey (1,400 members of the Higher Education community - I assume North American members of EDUCAUSE) on key issues in teaching and learning. The issues are:
1. Faculty Development and Engagement; 2. Online and Blended Learning; 3. Instructional and Learning Experience Design; 4. Digital and Information Literacy (hurrah! this was no. 5 last year); 5. Accessibility and Universal Design for Learning (UDL); 6. Competency and New Methods of Learning Assessment; 7. Learning Analytics; 8. Open Education; 9. Evaluating Instructional and Learning Innovations; 10. Academic Transformation (this doesn't mean Minerva McGonagall turning Malfoy into a hedgehog, but it inspired the choice of illustration to this post. Apparently academic transformation requires "actionable insight, compelling stories, and student-centeredness"); 11. Adaptive Teaching and Learning; 12. Learning Spaces (including Makerspaces); 13. Microcredentialing and Digital Badging; 14. Digital Learning Architectures; 15. Integrated Planning and Advising Systems for Student Success (iPASS). More info at https://www.educause.edu/eli/initiatives/key-issues-in-teaching-and-learning
Photo by Sheila Webber: wizarding shack, taken in Second Life, February 2019

Call for applications for funded PhD places, including one in #infolit

There is a call for applications for two fully-funded PhD places within the Centre for Social Informatics, Edinburgh Napier University, for an October 2019 start date.Closing date for applications is 22 March 2019. "Both opportunities are Skills Development Scotland Collaborative awards offered through the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS)". One is on Work-based learning environments for fostering industry-relevant skills and optimal economic performance, supervised by Dr Laura Muir and Dr Colin Smith https://www.sgsss.ac.uk/studentship/work-based-learning-environments-wble-for-fostering-industry-relevant-skills-and-optimal-economic-performance/ and the other on Career information literacy and decision making behaviours of young people, supervised by Professor Hazel Hall and Dr Pete Robertson - more information here https://www.sgsss.ac.uk/studentship/career-information-literacy-and-decision-making-behaviours-of-young-people/ For further information contact Dr Laura Muir (L.Muir@napier.ac.uk) or Professor Hazel Hall (h.hall@napier.ac.uk).

Digital experience insights surveys

This month JISC has published the latest in their surveys of tertiary education students' preferences and perceptions about the use of digital in learning: Digital experience insights survey 2018: findings from Australian and New Zealand university students a report on "21,095 students in 12 universities in Australia and New Zealand". This adds to their regular report Digital experience insights survey 2018: findings from students in UK further and higher education (the latest published September 2018) and the survey of UK university and college teachers' views (pilot report published in November 2018). For all these go to https://digitalinsights.jisc.ac.uk/our-service/our-reports/
As an addendum, a study at Oregon State University is described in: Stritto, M. and Linder, K. (2019, January 10). Uncovering Student Device Preferences for Online Course Access and Multimedia Learning. https://er.educause.edu/blogs/2019/1/uncovering-student-device-preferences-for-online-course-access-and-multimedia-learning? Considering the emphasis that is sometimes put on use of phones and tablets, a useful finding (which has come up in previous studies) is that "A key finding in this study was respondents' overwhelming ownership and use of laptops. As shown in figure 2, 73 percent of the respondents preferred laptops for accessing their online course via the learning management system (LMS). Majorities of respondents also preferred their laptops for viewing video content and learning with simulations and games."
Photo by Sheila Webber: Buddleia and a winter sky, February 2019

Critical Approaches to Credit-Bearing #infolit Courses; Wikipedia

A new book: Pashia, A. and Critten, J. (Eds). (2019). Critical Approaches to Credit-Bearing Information Literacy Courses. ACRL. ISBN 978-0-8389-8947-0. US $62.00 or $55.80 to ALA Members (or as an e-book at $44.00/$40.00). There is more information at https://www.alastore.ala.org/content/critical-approaches-credit-bearing-information-literacy-courses There is an open access version of the chapter Wikipedia-Based Assignments and Critical Information Literacy: A Case Study by Amanda Foster-Kaufman in an institutional repository: https://wakespace.lib.wfu.edu/handle/10339/93475
Photo by Sheila Webber: Pigeon in the branches, February 2019

Information Literacy’s Third Wave? #infolit

An interesting blog post from Barbara Fister:
Fister, B. (2019, February 14). Information Literacy’s Third Wave: The daunting complexity of becoming information literate today. https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/library-babel-fish/information-literacy%E2%80%99s-third-wave "What’s new is not just that we are constantly connected to the internet, thanks to the computer-formerly-known-as-a-phone that we carry everywhere in our pockets, but our lives are in the pockets of a small number of very large companies that have colonized the internet and any number of industries. They have turned the internet and what we do on it into the engine for a new form of capital..."

Recent articles: Engineering students and practitioners; Latino students and the academic library

Volume 45 issue 1 (2019) of the priced Journal of Academic Librarianship includes the following article:
- Comparing the Information Needs and Experiences of Undergraduate Students and Practicing Engineers by Margaret Phillips, Michael Fosmire, Laura Turner, Kristin Petersheim, & Jing Lu (Pages 39-49) (extract from the abstract "The results of this study reveal differences between students and engineers and are informative for both academic and corporate librarians. Key findings affirm previous research that novices are more confident in their abilities than experts. Additionally, the findings suggest undergraduates prefer quick, easy to digest content like online videos and news, while engineers are more likely to learn by consulting a colleague or other subject expert, and through reading journals and trade literature."
- Latino students and the academic library: A primer for action by Marta Bladek (Pages 50-57) - pulling out a paragraph focusing on information literacy "Presented in a variety of formats, information literacy instruction, is another initiative libraries should actively pursue to improve Latino students' academic experience. Given Latino students' unfamiliarity with the function of academic library, orientations, workshops, and course-integrated instruction should ideally be offered early in the first year (Green, 2012; Long, 2011). To engage students more directly, Montiel-Overall et al. (2015) urge librarians to seek out opportunities to teach alongside classroom faculty more often. Green (2012) recommends information literacy instruction beyond the library and the classroom; partnering up and training peer mentors is just one strategy worth trying. Molteni and Bosch (2014) suggest that, if possible, libraries develop multilingual learning objects to complement instruction and reference services, including online tutorials, research guides, or supplementary websites."
Go to: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/the-journal-of-academic-librarianship/vol/45/issue/1
Photo by Sheila Webber: Echinocactus grusonii, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, January 2019

Media Education Conference in Lapland #medialiteracy #infolit

Taking place in Sallatunturi, Lapland, on the 24 – 26 April 2019, the Media Education Conference (MEC 2019) "is an informal and friendly conference, which participants attend to exchange ideas and information dealing with media education, educational use of ICTs and learning environments." It is organized by the Centre for Media Pedagogy at the University of Lapland and the theme of MEC 2019 is Media Education on the Top
For more info go to: https://www.ulapland.fi/EN/Events/MEC-2019 Unfortunately it clashes with LILAC, or I would be very tempted to go.
Photo by Sheila Webber: spring flowers, and items from the Information School's celebration of the Chinese New Year today. I made the origami heart

#ILAGO #infolit outcomes and criteria; Open Pedagogy in Library Instruction

ILAGO (Information Literacy Advisory Group of Oregon [USA]), following consultation, have produced a draft Outcomes and Criteria for Transferable General Education Courses in Oregon: Information Literacy which give outcomes and criteria for the ACRL IL Frames. They called for examples related to specific disciplines and plan to "submit these to the Higher Education Coordinating Commission in early 2019". It is interesting as an example of the ACRL Framework adapted to the needs of local standards or accreditation. See https://ilago.wordpress.com/2018/12/11/we-want-your-input/
I found out about this from the recorded webinar on Open Educational Resources for Student Success includes a section presented by Colleen Sanders, Clackamas Community College, USA, on Open Pedagogy in Library Instruction (starting at 23 min 51 secs), including reflecting on the ACRL Framework in relation to the open approach. Go to https://openoregon.org/archived-webinar-oer-for-student-success/. Thanks to Amy Hofer for sharing information on the webinar recording.
Photo by Sheila Webber: Glasgow Botanic Gardens "killer plants" (that's how they labelled it!), January 2019

Registration open for Illinois Information Literacy Summit

Registration is open for the Illinois Information Literacy Summit taking place on 5 April 2019 at the Moraine Valley Community College campus, Illinois , USA. The theme is News, Media and Disinformation: Making Sense in Today’s Information Landscape and the keynote is from Dr. Nicole A. Cooke, Associate Professor and MS/LIS Program Director, School of Information Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Cost is US $45 for attendees or $25 for presenters (includes breakfast, lunch and materials). For more info go to http://informationliteracysummit.org/
Photo by Sheila Webber: Glasgow Botanic Gardens, January 2019

Registration open for: California Conference on Library Instruction 2019 #CCLI2019 #infolit

You can register for CCLI 2019, taking place May 3rd 2019 at the University of San Francisco, USA, with the theme Reimagining Student Success: Approaches That Increase Participation, Representation, and Relevance. Early bird tickets (til March 1st): US $60.00; Regular tickets: $74.50; Student tickets: $45.00 Go to: http://www.cclibinstruction.org/2019-conference/ for the programme and registration.
It is also worth highlighting the fact that presentations from previous conferences are available e.g. from the 2018 conference at http://www.cclibinstruction.org/2018-conference/
Photo by Sheila Webber: powder puff tree, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, January 2019

7th Annual International Critical Media Literacy Conference

Probably a bit late to register for this unless you happen to live nearby - but the 7th Annual International Critical Media Literacy Conference takes place on February 22-23, 2019 in Savannah, Georgia, USA. "This multidisciplinary conference is designed to aid current educational leaders, future teachers, youth, and other concerned citizens in their understanding of mass media and its impact on the events that shape our daily lives. Promoting critical media literacy is essential in excavating social inequalities and fostering participatory democracy during the 21st century." More information at https://academics.georgiasouthern.edu/ce/conferences/criticalmedia/
Photo by Sheila Webber: hacked down, Sheffield, February 2019.

Recent articles: #infolit assessment; ACRL Framework; multicultural approaches; rubrics; format confusion; social justice; interdisciplinary collaboration

The latest issue of open access journal Communications in Information Literacy (volume 12 issue 2) has been published. It includes:
- Closing the Loop: Engaging in a Sustainable and Continuous Cycle of Authentic Assessment to Improve Library Instruction by Teagan Eastman, Kacy Lundstrom, Katie Strand, Erin Davis, Pamela N. Martin, Andrea Krebs, and Anne Hedrich
- Navigating Roadblocks: First-Year Writing Challenges through the Lens of the ACRL Framework by Glenda M. Insua, Catherine Lantz, and Annie Armstrong
- Meeting Students Where They Are: Using Rubric-based Assessment to Modify an Information Literacy Curriculum by Brianne Markowski, Lyda McCartin, and Stephanie Evers
- Everything Online is a Website: Information Format Confusion in Student Citation Behaviors by Katie Greer and Shawn McCann
- A Multicultural Approach to Digital Information Literacy Skills Evaluation in an Israeli College by Efrat Pieterse, Riki Greenberg, and Zahava Santo
- Librarians in the Lead: A Case for Interdisciplinary Faculty Collaboration on Assignment Design by Rachel Wishkoski, Kacy Lundstrom, and Erin Davis
- Engendering Social Justice in First Year Information Literacy Classes by Conrad R. Pegues
- Development, Interest, Self-direction and the Teaching of Information Literacy by Steve Black
- Understanding Financial Conflict of Interest: Implications for Information Literacy Instruction by Heather B. Perry
Go to https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/comminfolit/vol12/iss2/

#HarryPotterBookNight2019

As tonight is Harry Potter Book Night, I will celebrate by linking to an old post, in which I (in 2003) examined the pedagogy of Harry Potter. The boy wizard himself practices experiential learning and the Harry Potter books provide ample examples of what not to do in the information literacy classroom (e.g. denying that Authority Is Constructed and Contextual by continually looking for right and wrong answers, or turning your learners into ferrets), and some examples of good practice (e.g. rather a lot of Searching as Strategic Exploration, including most of book 7). Anyway, here is the blog post: https://information-literacy.blogspot.com/2003/06/the-pedagogy-of-harry-potter-5.html

For more Potterism, there is also: Freier, M.P. (2014). The librarian in Rowling's Harry Potter series. CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture, 16(3). https://doi.org/10.7771/1481-4374.2197 "In her article "The Librarian in Rowling's Harry Potter Series" Mary P. Freier discusses Hermione Granger's skills as a librarian and researcher which lead to the defeat of Lord Voldemort. In each novel in the series, Hermione's research provides the necessary information for the solving of the mystery. Throughout the series, Hermione proves to be the only character who can use books effectively without putting herself or others in danger. Hermione begins the series as a child who loves the library, but does not always know how to use it effectively, while Madam Pince begins the series as a stereotypical librarian and disappears entirely by The Deathly Hallows."

cfp: What’s Grit Got to Do with It? New Approaches for IL Instruction #infolit

There is a call for proposals for the 2019 Connecticut Information Literacy Conference, taking place on June 14, 2019, at the University of Hartford, Hartford, USA. The theme is What’s Grit Got to Do with It? New Approaches for IL Instruction. The deadline for submission is March 8 2019, and the sessions are 45-50 minute breakouts, including Q & A. The conference keynote is Eamon Tewell. "Grit is defined as a mix of persistence and passion. It is a virtue often attributed to academic and career success. Join us for a full exploration of grit: its benefits, limitations, and applications for Information Literacy Instruction." The application form is at https://goo.gl/forms/UQkMvvaqcz1iaovi2 and more info at https://ctlibraryassociation.org/ctinfolit_about
Photo by Sheila Webber: Cacti, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, January 2019

Recent articles: #IBL; assessment; research; transfer students; outreach #infolit

The latest issue of open access publication College and Research Libraries (volume 80, No 1, 2019) includes the following:
- Library User Education as a Window to Understand Inquiry-Based Learning in the Context of Higher Education in Asia: A Comparative Study between Peking University and the University of Tsukuba by Qianxiu Liu, Bradley Allard, Patrick Lo, Qingshan Zhou, Tianji Jiang, Hiroshi Itsumura
- Authentic Assessment of Student Learning in an Online Class: Implications for Embedded Practice by Jessica Alverson, Jennifer Schwartz, Sue Shultz
- Research is an Activity and a Subject of Study: A Proposed Metaconcept and Its Practical Application by Allison Hosier
- Instruction and Outreach for Transfer Students: A Colorado Case Study by Lindsay Roberts, Megan E. Welsh, Brittany Dudek
- Visual Literacy in Practice: Use of Images in Students’ Academic Work by Krystyna K. Matusiak, Chelsea Heinbach, Anna Harper, Michael Bovee
The table of contents is at https://crl.acrl.org/index.php/crl/issue/view/1120/showToc
Photo by Sheila Webber: Pitcher plants and moss, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, January 2019

#uklibchat on Fake News #misinformation #infolit

Today (4 February) #uklibchat will be discussing Fake News via Twitter 7pm – 8.30pm UK time (which is, e.g., 2-3.30pm US Eastern time). You participate by using the hashtag, and there is an agenda for the meeting here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Yx7QQD2XOaRBCiEbo3JQc107qSR3cr0V9teEWUcTFzo/edit and Wakelets of previous chats are available here: https://uklibchat.wordpress.com/
Photo by Sheila Webber: Ferns, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, January 2019

Student bursaries for the #LILAC19 conference #infolit

Applications from students of Information Science/ Librarianship/ Information Literacy are now being accepted for the Rowena Macrae-Gibson Award which enables two students to attend the LILAC (UK information literacy) conference in Nottingham, April 24-26 2019. Students must be registered at UK institutions. The closing date for applications is March 1 2019. Details at https://www.lilacconference.com/awards/student-sponsored-places
Photo by Sheila Webber: lilac

Lie detectors #misinformation #infolit

I came across the project Lie detectors via an article in the Financial Times online (Kuper, 2019), which, as good sources should, had a link to the project itself. "Lie Detectors works to improve news literacy, increase awareness of misinformation and further the general public’s understanding of the mainstream media industry. It promotes positive and non-political contact between young people and journalists. It does this by sending working journalists into schools to deliver interactive classroom sessions." So far they have worked in Belgium and Germany, and plan to extend to Austria this year. They have connections to the European Commission’s High Level Expert Group on Digital Disinformation and Fake News and other organisations ("European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, First Draft News and EAVI Literacy for Citizenship among others"). Unfortunately librarians don't seem to be identified as relevant to the campaign, which is rather a missed opportunity.... (particularly as the exercise described below is a pretty standard "spot the fake articles" one). Their website is at: https://lie-detectors.org/
Reference: Kuper, S. (2019, January 31). How schools are fighting fake news. Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/0fa3ab8a-2412-11e9-8ce6-5db4543da632
Photo by Sheila Webber: Canary Wharf from the O2, December 2018