Download - IOL Conference 2012
Digital Learning: Teaching Information
Literacy through Online Research Guides
Innovations in Online Learning 2012, San Antonio, Texas
Jody Bailey, Reference and Instruction Librarian
Rafia Mirza, Reference and Instruction Librarian
Gretchen Trkay, Information Literacy Librarian
University of Texas at Arlington
Overview
History of research guides.
Literature review.
UT Arlington usability studies.
Problem: Students need research help,
especially distance-ed students.
Solution: Add information literacy (instructional)
content to online research guides so that they
will be more useful.
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Synonyms
Bibliographies (annotated, subject, biographical, topical, etc.)
Reading lists
Readers’ aids
Pathfinders
Information portals
Webliographies
Resource lists
Study guides
Subject guides
Topic guides
Research guides
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Detail from Annotated Syllabus for the Systematic Study
of Librarianship, page 4. Note that this 1904 study guide comprised only 27 pages.
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Transition to Digital Form
Started in 1990s
Basic transfer: print
digital
Little/no thought
given to hypertext
environment
Guides remain
fairly linear with
long lists of links http://web.archive.org/web/19971024115756/http://www.lib.lsu.edu/hum/lit.html
Example of a research guide on Literature
from 1997.
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(Vileno, 2007)
Assessment of Online Research Guides: Literature Review
Themes
Most students do not use research guides.
Paucity of user-centered data.
“One size does not fit all.”
“Students do not relate well to subject guides” and find them “difficult to use.”
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(Adebonojo, 2010; Ouellette, 2011, pp. 442, 436; Reeb & Gibbons,
2004, pp. 123-124; Staley, 2007, pp. 119, 126; Vileno, 2007, p. 436;
Vileno, 2010, p. 1).
Assessment of Online Research Guides: Literature Review
Students want . . .
A “simple and clean layout”
“Search feature”
“Succinct annotations to resources”
“Limited page scrolling”
“Embedded instruction”
“Librarian contact info”
Clear navigation
Faculty recommendations of guides and librarian recommendations of resources
Content customized to their needs
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(Hintz et al., 2010, pp. 40, 45-46; Ouellette, 2011, p. 443-444, 448; Stitz, Laster, Bove, & Wise, 2011, p. 191; Vileno, 2010, p. 19).
Assessment of Online Research Guides: Literature Review
Students don’t want . . .
Jargon and unclear, confusing labels
Cluttered, crowded sites
Web 2.0 functionality: user-generated “rating systems, discussion forums, student recommendations, and . . . personalization features”
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(Hintz et al., 2010, pp. 45-46; Ouellette, 2011, p. 444; Reeb &
Gibbons, 2004, p. 127; Stitz et al., 2011, p. 191; Vileno, 2010, p.
19)
UT Arlington’s Research Guide Platform: LibGuides
Produced by
Springshare
Content
management
system
Widely used by
academic libraries
Easy to learn
Superb tech support
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LibGuides: Functionality
WYSIWYG and point-and-click editing.
No experience with HTML needed.
Content types: links to resources (e.g., books, databases, podcasts), embedded video and images, RSS feeds, polls, various search boxes.
APIs and widgets.
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UT Arlington Usability Study: Methodology
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Our interpretation of University of
Washington’s recommendations
for LibGuide design
Our baseline design
UT Arlington Usability Study: Methodology
Graduate Students Undergraduate Students
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&
UT Arlington Usability Study: Methodology
Infrequent users Frequent Users
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UT Arlington Usability Study: Methodology
Tasks: Each User Completed One Task
Task 1 You are writing a paper on high-stakes testing in education. Where can you find a resource to give you a brief overview of this topic?
Task 2 You are writing a 10-page research paper for English about depictions of women in Shakespeare's Hamlet. You must find reliable, scholarly sources that will help you better understand this topic. You are uncertain what makes a source reliable and/or scholarly. Use the LibGuide to find out the characteristics of reliable and scholarly sources.
Task 3 You need to write about an issue related to a home based nursing. Locate one peer-reviewed article.
Task 4 Using the Subject Guide for electrical engineering, find a paper on the topic of wireless sensors in biological research.
Task 5 Locate this article: Burke, E. (2009). Islam at the center: Technological complexes and the roots of modernity. Journal of World History, 20(2), 165-186.
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UT Arlington Usability Study: Methodology
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-Question Survey
UT Arlington Usability Study: Methodology
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/samdogs/3253791356/
Round 1 Findings: Contextualized Content
Students want guides contextualized to their
assignments
“Where is the tab for my
assignment?”
“Why are there so many
tabs?”
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Round 1 Findings: Jargon
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Students found some of our language to
be confusing.
“What are reference resources?”
“What is interlibrary loan?”
Round 1 Findings: Landing Page Confusion
Students found the home page insufficient and the amount of content overwhelming
Students partially scanned text instead of reading and searched using only the keywords provided in an assignment prompt.
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Round 1 Findings: Search Box Confusion
Students equate ALL search boxes with Google-like search.
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Basic Principles of Web Design
Define a target audience.
Articulate the site’s purpose.
Use targeted navigation.
Choose readable font size and colors.
Include white space.
Avoid walls of text.
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Students’ Information Seeking Behavior
Carol Kuhlthau’s
Information Search
Process
Project Information
Literacy’s (PIL) Model of
the Undergraduate
Research Process
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Information Search Process
(Kuhlthau, 2012)
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Model of the Undergraduate Research Process
Big Picture Language
Information Gathering
Situational
Contexts
(PIL, 2009)
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Changes Made After Round 1
Original Guide Design
Redesign After
Round 1
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Mapping Content to Information-Seeking Behavior
(Herzog, Huddleston, & Trkay, 2012)
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Adaptation for Subject Guides
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Testing the Redesign
9 Participants.
Infrequent users of subject guides.
Each completed 5 tasks.
Answered 8 open-ended survey questions.
One committee member facilitated in person
while another member remotely observed and
coded.
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Task 1 — Gather Background Information
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Average task score – 0.40 points
Average time on task – 6.54 minutes
Average task score – 2.33 points
Average time on task – 4.26 minutes
Comparative Results: Task 1 Errors
Statistically significant decrease in errors made
using the redesigned guide
Inappropriate use of search box
Inappropriate use of resource
Deviation from expected path
Total errors
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Task 2 — What is a Scholarly Source?
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Average task score – 1.20 points
Average time on task – 11.51 minutes
Average task score – 0.22 points
Average time on task – 2.86 minutes
Comparative Results: Task 2 Errors
Statistically significant decrease in errors made
using the redesigned guide
Inappropriate use of resource
Language confusion
Deviation from expected path
Total errors
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Task 3 — Find a Peer-Reviewed Article
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Average task score – 1.60 points
Average time on task – 5.54 minutes
Average task score – 1.63 points
Average time on task – 4 minutes
Task 4 — Find a Primary Source
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No round-1 comparison
Average task score – 1.78 points
Average time on task – 3.22 minutes
Task 5 — Find an Article from a Citation
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Average task score – 2.0 points
Average time on task – 6.33 minutes
Average task score – 2.5 points
Average time on task – 2.34 minutes
Comparative Results: Task 5 Errors
Statistically significant decrease in errors made
using the redesigned guide
Inappropriate use of search box
Inappropriate use of resource
Deviation from expected path
Total errors
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Next Steps
Refining instructional content.
Creating content that can be used throughout
all the guides.
Adapting content to individual subject guides.
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References
Adebonojo, L. G. (2010). LibGuides: Customizing subject guides for individual courses. College & Undergraduate Libraries, 17, 398-412. doi: 10.1080/10691316.2010.525426
Brown, J. D. (1904). Annotated Syllabus for the Systematic Study of Librarianship. London, United Kingdom: Library Supply Co. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?id=aspvMHvmOSoC&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false
Head, A. J., & Eisenberg, M. B. (2009, December 1). Lessons learned: How college students seek information in the digital age. Project Information Literacy. Retrieved from http://projectinfolit.org/pdfs/PIL_Fall2009_finalv_YR1_12_2009v2.pdf
Herzog, A., Huddleston, B., & Trkay, G. (2012, February 23). Digital learning: Teaching information literacy through LibGuides. Poster session presented at Educause West/Southwest Regional Conference, Portland, OR.
Hintz, K., et al. (2010). Letting students take the lead: A user-centred approach to evaluating subject guides. Evidence Based Library And Information Practice, 5(4), 39-52. Retrieved from http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP
Kuhlthau, C. C. (2012, January). Information search process. Retrieved from http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~kuhlthau/information_search_process.htm
Literature. (1997). LSU Libraries webliography. Retrieved from http://web.archive.org/web/19971024115756/http://www.lib.lsu.edu/hum/lit.html
Ouellelte, D. (2011). Subject guides in academic libraries: A user-centred study of uses and perceptions. Canadian Journal Of Information & Library Sciences, 35, 436-451. Retrieved from http://www.cais-acsi.ca/journal/journal.htm
Pathfinder (Library Science). (2012). Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathfinder_(Library_Science)
Reeb, B., & Gibbons, S. (2004). Students, librarians, and subject guides: Improving a poor rate of return. Portal: Libraries & The Academy, 4(1), 123-130. Retrieved from http://www.press.jhu.edu/journals/portal_libraries_and_the_academy/
Reitz, J. M. (2012). Pathfinder. ODLIS: Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science. Retrieved from http://www.abc-clio.com/ODLIS/odlis_p.aspx#pathfinder
Reitz, J. M. (2012). Research guide. ODLIS: Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science. Retrieved from http://www.abc-clio.com/ODLIS/odlis_R.aspx?#researchguide
Staley, S. M. (2007). Academic subject guides: A case study of use at San Jose State University. College & Research Libraries, 68, 119-139. Retrieved from http://crl.acrl.org/content/68/2/119.full.pdf+html
Stitz, T., Laster, S., Bove, F. J., & Wise, C. (2011). A path to providing user-centered subject guides. Internet Reference Services Quarterly, 16(4), 183-198. doi: 10.1080/10875301.2011.621819
Vileno, L. (2007). From paper to electronic, the evolution of pathfinders: A review of the literature. Reference Services Review, 35, 434-451. doi: 10.1108/00907320710774300
Vileno, L. (2010). Testing the usability of two online research guides. Partnership: The Canadian Journal Of Library And Information Practice And Research, 5(2), 1-21. Retrieved from http://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/perj/
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