Problem-Based Learning at University

College Dublin

Lorna Dodd

Liaison Librarian

Human Sciences

University College

Dublin,

Belfield, Dublin 4,

Ireland

Lorna.dodd@ucd.ie

Supporting Information Literacy in different educational

approaches

Ursula Byrne

Head of Academic

Services,

Humanities & Social

Sciences,

University College Dublin,

Belfield, Dublin 4,

Ireland

Urusla.Byrne@ucd.ie

Background

• Largest university in Ireland

• Problem-Based Learning (PBL) currently in practice within several programmes

• Government funding (SIF) to support development of further initiatives across campus

What is PBL?

• Centres on the student

• Work in small tutorials

• Presented with complex, real-life ‘problems’

• Identify what they know from their existing knowledge

• Identify gaps in their existing knowledge

• Formulate ‘learning issues’ for next session

The flashy trainers

Why is Information Literacy important in PBL?

• Self-directed learning

• Development of life-long transferable skills

• Critical and reflective thinking

Identify an information

need

Convert Learning Issues

into search strategies

Identify most

appropriate source

Identify kind of information &

resource

Effectively retrieve relevant

information

Evaluate reliability, relevance, currency

& appropriateness

Use the information

in an ethical way

Apply information to problem &

integrateinto existing knowledge

APPLYING INFORMATION LITERACY TO

PBL

• Anatomy of the lung Factual Information –

Textbooks

• Allergens and treatment Current Research – Journal

Articles or Websites

• Is the information reliable?

• Is the information relevant to problem? Location Availability of treatment

The Coughing Horse

Information Literacy Instruction in PBL

• Traditional lectures clashes with philosophical foundations of PB L

• Usefulness of traditional workshops

• In PBL context students need to use a range of information resources in order to find a range of information types

• Often need to explain to academics that a change in educational approach requires ALL aspects of student instruction to change

Workshop approach

• Keep students in their PBL groups

• Identify common “Learning Issues” across all groups

• Let students search for information without any guidance or instruction

• Each group reports back Which resources they used Why they chose each resource How useful each resource was What strategy/language they used

Workshop approach

• Librarian then looks at “Learning Issue” Identify which ‘type’ of information is required Identify appropriate sources Think about language, keywords, alternative terms

• Students then repeat exercise and report back

• Students also asked how the information they find applies to the problem

Using a ‘problem’ approach

The M50 - Europe’s Largest Car park?

Using a ‘problem’ approach• Psychology/sociology

Research on stress associated with long commutes

• Environmental Studies Comparative literature on impact of new motorways on

developing countryside

• Planning & Policy Government reports in infrastructure planning

• Economics Current Irish & European statistics

Conclusion

• Information Literacy is increasingly consciously developed encourage students to think about information they

need challenge students to critically evaluate the

information they find and the source

• Information Literacy is often: Included as a learning outcome An assessment criteria

• Librarians are more involved in curriculum development: Ensure there are sufficient resources Help students develop necessary skills

Conclusion

• Introduction of PBL can dramatically change library & librarian’s role

• Librarians often act as group facilitators in PBL Significant departure from their traditional role New skill set

• Information literacy essential component Many academics begin to understand the importance of

IL and librarian as a result of PBL This often leads to a ‘spill over’ effect

How do we strike the balance between taking advantage of new opportunities and managing growing workloads?