Kathy L. Guthrie and Sara Thompson
As leadership educators we aim to provide students with opportunities necessary to gain knowledge and appropriate leadership skills. Valuable opportunities developed through…
Abstract
As leadership educators we aim to provide students with opportunities necessary to gain knowledge and appropriate leadership skills. Valuable opportunities developed through Student Affairs and Academic Affairs collaborations which enhance learning through co-curricular and curricular experiences in leadership education will be explored. Present in these intentional environments are opportunities for students to have meaningful leadership learning when comprised of education, experience, and reflection. Specific examples from two institutions will be highlighted.
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David James Brier and Vickery Kaye Lebbin
– The purpose of this paper is to explore drawing as an instructional method to teach information literacy.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore drawing as an instructional method to teach information literacy.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors describe their work using Collaborative Speed Drawing with students in a collection of information literacy workshops for students enrolled in English 100 (first-year composition). Examples of student drawings from the workshops are examined to demonstrate the benefits and problems of this teaching method.
Findings
Drawing is an excellent low-tech teaching method that helps students demonstrate their competence (or ignorance) of information literacy concepts. This method enables librarians to clarify, reinforce, challenge or change the pictures in student’s heads that underpin their understandings of library instruction and information literacy.
Practical implications
This article provides ideas on how to use drawing in information literacy sessions or credit courses. Many of the ideas shared can be copied, enhanced or tailored to meet the needs of diverse lessons and students taking face-to-face instruction sessions.
Originality/value
This is the first paper in library literature that focuses on and promotes drawing as a teaching method. In doing so, it challenges the high-tech instruction imperative and invites librarians to explicitly consider the images behind the words and concepts used in information literacy and library instruction sessions.
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Being a director, regardless of the size or nature of the enterprise, is different to being an employee, manager, shareholder or customer. It is not size or dollar value that…
Abstract
Being a director, regardless of the size or nature of the enterprise, is different to being an employee, manager, shareholder or customer. It is not size or dollar value that makes the responsibilities of a board member different from those of an executive. Some, for instance ethical responsibilities, are common regardless of size. One key issue is to do with personal integrity and another to do with the integrity of decision making by the board. The chapter looks at who should be responsible for training the board, and provides a conceptual framework on which training could be based. Practice and example are the key ways in which ethics is learnt, and examples are provided of the way in which case studies can be used to enhance personal integrity and moral courage, and to develop and entrench decision processes in the board which enhance the integrity of its decision making.
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Rebecca Halpern and Chimene Tucker
– The purpose of this paper is to apply adult-centered learning theories to online information literacy tutorials.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to apply adult-centered learning theories to online information literacy tutorials.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a conceptual paper that examines the application of adult learning theories to online information literacy tutorials. The application is supported by examples from the literature of libraries and higher education, and from the writers’ own experiences with designing online tutorials informed by adult learning theories.
Findings
As online learners continue to be a growing population on our campuses, and as those online learners continue to be older than our traditional students, librarians must be prepared to design information literacy objects tailored to the unique learning styles of adults. Building from Knowles’ theory of andragogy, online tutorials that are informed by adult-centered strategies can be powerful tools for engaging with the adult online learner.
Practical implications
This article gives a useful and comprehensive overview of adult learning theory as applied by education and library researchers. It also provides a specific example of how those theories can be implemented in online tutorials through the Information Literacy Toolkit the authors created.
Originality/value
While there is literature on applying adult learning theory to library environments, little of it addresses how to do so in an asynchronous, self-paced tutorial. This is a contribution to the literature on asynchronous learning environments and suggests concrete ways to incorporate an adult-centered approach to digital learning objects.
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The purpose of the paper is test whether what property companies say they do with respect to corporate social responsibility (CSR) in general and the environment in particular has…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is test whether what property companies say they do with respect to corporate social responsibility (CSR) in general and the environment in particular has an impact on corporate value as expressed by their return on assets (ROA).
Design/methodology/approach
The annual report for any UK‐listed company is a statutory document with its contents prescribed by legislation. This paper is concerned with a comparison of how real estate companies present themselves in their annual reports with their actual performance. To extract that information systematically, word frequency analysis (WFA) was undertaken on the contents of the annual reports of the top 20 UK‐listed property companies by value using a CSR vocabulary of words and phrases. The frequency of each of these was established in each annual report between 2001 and 2010. Two indices were created: a general CSR index based on the occurrence of a CSR vocabulary; and a green index based on the environmental vocabulary. These indices were then modelled against the ROA for each company.
Findings
As expected, ROA is positively related with both indices and is statistically significant in the GREEN equation, suggesting the firms with good performance are likely to invest more in sustainability. The size of firms is positively associated with both indices, indicating larger firms have better defined CSR. Return has a significantly positive coefficient with both indices, suggesting that the “greener” companies outperform others in the stock market.
Originality/value
The research uses new content analysis techniques to identify the relative commitment of property companies to CSR and the environment. The documents analysed are statutory and therefore less likely to be used to present aspiration rather than action. Overall the paper addresses only one aspect of corporate activity and will be best viewed in coordination with other approaches.
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The purpose of this paper is to investigate which learning targets can be achieved by using Wikipedia as a tool for teaching information literacy within the context of brief…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate which learning targets can be achieved by using Wikipedia as a tool for teaching information literacy within the context of brief one-shot library instruction sessions.
Design/methodology/approach
In this case study, a Wikipedia-editing activity was incorporated into 2-hour one-shot instruction sessions. A variety of qualitative data were collected during these sessions: Student reflections during a facilitated discussion, student responses to exit-survey questions and instructor observations about the extent to which students completed Wikipedia-editing tasks.
Findings
Students found Wikipedia-editing activities and Wikipedia-related discussions engaging, and as a result they seemed to learn valuable lessons about research and writing. Students participating in this project effectively identified gaps in Wikipedia entries, critically evaluated and used sources to address those gaps and appropriately documented those materials. Students were easily encouraged to be critical about information sources, including Wikipedia and the more traditionally scholarly resources alike.
Originality/value
While a great deal of attention has been paid to teaching with multi-week Wikipedia assignments and coursework, evidence from this project suggests that Wikipedia-related activities can be used effectively within much narrower time constraints, including during brief one-shot library instruction sessions.
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This paper aims to demonstrate how a librarian at a liberal arts college partnered with a professor of rhetoric and media studies to teach students methods to classify sources…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to demonstrate how a librarian at a liberal arts college partnered with a professor of rhetoric and media studies to teach students methods to classify sources using Bizup’s BEAM.
Design/methodology/approach
Students in rhetorical criticism, read the Bizup article on BEAM. The library instruction included a discussion of the article and an application exercise where students classified cited references in a peer-reviewed journal article using BEAM.
Findings
BEAM was a valuable addition to the rhetorical criticism course. The application exercise used in the library instruction session introduced BEAM as a tool to be used in reading and evaluating sources. Students were able to apply what they learned as they selected, deciphered and interpreted sources of information for use in their academic writing.
Practical implications
Librarians teaching in a variety of academic disciplines may use or adapt BEAM as a tool for helping students learn to critically evaluate information sources, as they read texts and as they engage in research-based writing assignments.
Originality/value
This work showcases how librarians using BEAM can extend library teaching beyond traditional bibliographic instruction and into the realm of critical inquiry. It also demonstrates how librarians can use BEAM to initiate conversations with academic faculty about information literacy. It also contributes to an emerging area of scholarship involving the use of BEAM to teach source evaluation.
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Jody Nelson, Joan Morrison and Lindsey Whitson
This paper aims to describe the MacEwan University Library’s successful pilot of a fully blended information literacy (IL) instruction program for first-year English courses…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to describe the MacEwan University Library’s successful pilot of a fully blended information literacy (IL) instruction program for first-year English courses. Development, implementation and assessment of the pilot prior to full implementation are discussed.
Design/methodology/approach
The new sustainable blended model for the English Library Instruction Program reduced duplication of content and effort, incorporated online and in-person instruction and promoted self-directed learning opportunities through a new Learning Commons. This model places essential instruction online while maintaining personal relationships for students with the English Librarian and the Library through multiple points of interaction. Face-to-face instruction efforts were concentrated on developing critical thinking skills through a hands-on source evaluation activity and on providing point-of-need support. Librarians worked closely with English faculty to encourage early voluntary adoption of the new model for the Fall 2013 pilot.
Findings
The voluntary early-adopter model worked well for garnering and maintaining support from the English department: the authors had 42 per cent of English sessions piloting the new model for Fall 2013, surpassing the initial target of 25 per cent. Students scored well on an assessment of their ability to identify scholarly sources. Librarian preparation time has been greatly reduced.
Originality/value
Many academic libraries are looking to asynchronous online tutorials as a more sustainable model for delivering IL instruction. This case study demonstrates that it is possible to move some instruction online while maintaining the personal relationships librarians have forged with students and faculty.