How to Improve Your Library Instruction: Assessment in Five

Minutes

Sarah SteinerJanuary 10, 2013

During Today’s Class, We Will…

• Analyze the purpose and benefits of quick assessment in one-shot instruction sessions.

• Draft learning outcomes for a session using Bloom’s Taxonomy.

• Compose assessment questions based on our learning outcomes.

• Select appropriate assessment tools based on your instruction goals and population.

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Our Focus

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• Classroom assessment (versus programmatic or institutional)

• Fast and free assessment tools– Polls– Quizzes/Questionnaires– Minute papers

What Can Quick Classroom Assessment Do?

• It can identify instructional gaps or disconnects.• It can help you determine how you spend class

time.• It can build your confidence.• It can provide evidence of efficacy and impact.• It should be a basis for change.

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What Should I Assess?

• To assess:– Comprehension– Retention– Achievement of learning outcomes

• Not to assess:– Your personal shortcomings– Your speaking mistakes– Your hairstyle– Random things

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Have you ever written learning objectives or outcomes?

• Nope, not yet.• Yes, a few times. • Yes, regularly.• I’m not sure.

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Learning Outcomes

“A Learning Outcome is a statement of what the student should understand and be able to do as a result of what she has learned ... ‘the essential and enduring knowledge, abilities, and attitudes or dispositions’ that enable a learner to practice and apply her learning in the real world.”

-Valencia Community College

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A Good Learning Outcome Will…

• Identify the audience.• Set a time frame and a context.• Be jargon-free.• Be measurable.• Be action-oriented.• Be brief.• Be linked to learner needs.

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Determine the Class Priorities

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• Choose three to five– What must the students accomplish?– What must they know in order to

accomplish it?– What do they already know/find

obvious?

Write the Learning Outcomes

Stem + Verb + Product/Outcome

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Stem

By the end of this class, you will be able to…

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Verb: Bloom’s Taxonomy

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Choose Verbs: Knowledge

Students will…define, describe, identify, know, label, list, match, name, outline, recall, recognize, reproduce, select, state

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Choose Verbs: Comprehension

Students will…comprehend, convert, defend, distinguish, estimate, explain, extend, generalize, give an example, infer, interpret, paraphrase, predict, rewrite, summarize, translate

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Choose Verbs: Application

Students will…apply, change, compute, construct, demonstrate, discover, manipulate, modify, operate, predict, prepare, produce, relate, show, solve, use

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Choose Verbs: Analysis

Students will…analyze, break down, compare, contrast, diagram, deconstruct, differentiate, discriminate, distinguish, identify, illustrate, infer, outline, relate, select, separate

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Choose Verbs: Synthesis

Students will…categorize, combine, compile, compose, create, devise, design, explain, generate, modify, organize, plan, rearrange, reconstruct, relate, reorganize, revise, rewrite, summarize, tell, write

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Choose Verbs: Evaluation

Students will…appraise, compare, conclude, contrast, criticize, critique, defend, describe, discriminate, evaluate, explain, interpret, justify, relate, summarize, support

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Add Product or Outcome

What do they need? • A book on their topic• A thesis statement• Keyword search strategies (basic or advanced)

What is the context?• A class assignment• A real-world scenario

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All Together Now!

Stem + Verb + Product/Outcome

By the end of this class, you will be able to identify a scholarly source.

By the end of this session, you will be able to locate books on your paper topic in the library using the online catalog, GILFind.

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What’s Wrong Here?

Today I’ll talk about…1. The library website.2. Database searching for peer-reviewed

journals using boolean logic and the thesaurus.3. How you can search the catalog, search

the databases, and use ILL.

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Question Time

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Have you ever assessed students’ achievement of pre-

set learning outcomes?

• Nope, not yet.• Yes, a few times. • Yes, regularly.• I’m not sure.

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Today’s Assessment Tools

• Polls• Quizzes (pre and post or post only)• Minute papers

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Polls

Poll Example Questions

• How many of you have had a library instruction class here before?

• Is this an article or a journal? • Is this source peer-reviewed? / Is this

source scholarly or popular?• Who is the author of this book? • Are you confused about topic x?

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Quizzes

Quiz Example Questions

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly

Minute Papers

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Minute Paper Example Questions

Best Practices for Question Drafting

• Convert your learning outcomes to questions.

• Include three to five “meaty” questions, two or three general questions.

• Avoid overly easy or “all of the above” answers.

• Avoid nebulous or complicated questions.• Work in terminology to ensure it’s

understood.

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Best Practices for Question Drafting

• Get a reviewer.• If at first you don’t succeed….

More help with constructing questions: http://ets.tlt.psu.edu/learningdesign/effective_questions/why

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Review Responses

• On the spot? Yes! • Look for…• Percentage of correct answers.• Trends in missed answers.• What to change next time.

• Keep your chin up.

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Verbal Setup

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Survey and Poll Tools

• SurveyMonkey: http://www.surveymonkey.com

• Poll Daddy: http://polldaddy.com/

• Poll Everywhere: http://www.polleverywhere.com/

• Google Forms: http://www.google.com/google-d-s/forms/

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SurveyMonkey

PollDaddy

Poll Everywhere

Google Forms

Review

• Write learning outcomes.• Base your questions on the

outcomes and on your needs.• Review and reflect on the answers

you get.

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Thank you!

Contact me at ssteiner@gsu.edu

Other Resources• “Bloom’s Taxonomy of Cognitive Domain.”

http://classweb.gmu.edu/ndabbagh/Resources/Resources2/bloomstax.htm• Educational Oasis, “Framework of Learning Outcomes.”

http://www.educationoasis.com/instruction/bt/learning_objectives.htm• London Deanery, “Setting Learning Objectives.”

http://www.faculty.londondeanery.ac.uk/e-learning/setting-learning-objectives

• Penn State, “Writing Effective Questions to Promote Learning.” http://ets.tlt.psu.edu/learningdesign/effective_questions/• Utah State University Library, “Assessment.”

http://library.usu.edu/instruct/assessment/index.php• “Virginia Tech Instruction Clearinghouse.” http://www.lib.vt.edu/RIS/clearinghouse/assessments.html