This was presented at the Konstanz Workshop on Information Literacy, Konstanz (Germany) 9th November 2007. In it I a) describe a "search/teach" activity undertaken with taught Masters students at the University of Sheffield and b) introduce Second Life (which I am using with undergraduate students).

1. Information Literacy education for
Masters students
Sheila Webber
Department of Information Studies
University of Sheffield
November 2007

2. Structure
• Context and aims for Information Literacy
• Blended learning as approach
• Focus on an extended activity in a core module
• Second Life

3. “4. Demonstrate the core capabilities and skills of
Character- information literacy, interacting
istics of a confidently with the nature and structure of
information in their subject and handling
Sheffield
Graduate information in a professional and ethical manner;
(University
5. Explore the history of and challenge the
Learning,
processes of knowledge creation, applying
Teaching and
creativity, enterprise and innovation, to push
Assessment
Strategy) against the boundaries of current
practicequot;
http://www.shef.ac.uk/content/1/c6/04/83/65/lta-strategy2.pdf

4. My aims
• Students become self-aware (critical and confident)
about their own information literacy and information
behaviour
• Students understand value of information literacy in
their lives and work
• I adopt a pedagogic approach which facilitates this,
using whatever tools, techniques etc are
appropriate

5. Student context
Evidence from some student research studies & audit e.g.
• Some students feel have had no IL training in 1st degree
• Most of rest recall it being in 1st year
• Students report variety of pedagogic approaches to IL by
previous lecturers, but mostly that of facilitating access to
resources, or seeing it as someone else’s job
• Different aspects of IL brought into focus by different types
of task/assignment
• Mix in: disciplinary backgrounds, nationalities, future career
goals

6. Blended learning
Review observed 3 ways in which term being used:
1. Supplementary resources on a VLE
2. “Transformative course level practices underpinned by
radical course designs”
3. “Students taking a holistic view of the interaction of
technology and their learning, including the use of their
own technologies”
Sharpe, R. et al (2006) The undergraduate experience of blended e-
learning: a review of UK literature and practice. York: Higher Education
Academy.

7. Blended
• Lecture and seminar rooms; office; Labs
• Tools in rooms: computers, whiteboard, flipchart,
copycam, post-its, data projector, video etc
• Virtual Learning Environment “MOLE” (aka WebCT)
inc discussion boards & journals
• Email, conversations in corridor or after classes
• [students peer-to-peer] Facebook, texting, phoning
• Second Life…….

8. Information skills module (Library)
covering searching, evaluating,
avoiding plagiarism etc. – all
students can access
Includes Departmental-specific
material
May be incorporated into subject
courses in whole or part

11. Will focus on an extended
activity in a core module

12. Learning objectives
Information resources and information literacy
• By the end of the module inf6350 students will:
– understand key aspects of information literacy and information
behaviour including: the nature of information needs, information
seeking strategies, and the complexities entailed in satisfying
information needs;
– understand organisational issues relating to the satisfaction of
information needs and developing clients’ information literacy;
– will be able to demonstrate and evaluate their information
literacy, for example expertise in accessing, using, comparing
and evaluating information resources such as Web of Science,
the Internet and DIALOG.
Slide used in
Theoretical & practical side
week 1

13. Assessment
1. Annotated bibliography
2. Literature review based on 1.
3. Reflection on achievement in information literacy using
SCONUL 7 Pillars model
Each lecturer in Dept. sets topics (& then acts as client and
marks assignment), students select from list posted to VLE
c.60 students – Information Management & Librarianship
FAQ, discussion board and scheduled session on what
assignment is about

14. Educating others in IL.
Focus on information needs
Reference services.
Dialog etc.
Search/
teach
Individual search exercise
Bibliography
Abstracting
Slide used in
Literature review week 1

15. Search/
Teach Exercise
“For this task you will produce a brief guide to
searching a specific database, and publish a
short list of other resources providing training
and advice”
(Not assessed: formative)

16. Search/Teach Exercise
By the end of the activity you should:
• Have better knowledge and skills in using WoK, Google
Scholar, Emerald Library, LISA
• Have created a guide to WoK, Google Scholar, Emerald
Library or LISA
• Know more about the skills and knowledge needed to produce
and evaluate support materials to help people search
• Have increased knowledge and skills relating to Squidoo or a
weblog
• Be aware of how these activities relate to information literacy
and be able to reflect on your own strengths and weaknesses
in these areas. This is relevant to the assignment for this
module and for lifelong learning. [Also given a document “How
this task relates to the SCONUL 7 Pillars of IL…”]

17. 1c. Examination of resource,
1b. Students sign up in searching
groups 2-3, examine/
1a Briefing, Between classes: Students, mostly
evaluate resource,
linked to individual. Questions to lecturers
determine way group
session on posed in various ways
should function
evaluation
Students: In lab f2f; 2a. Short presentations on guidelines
Lecturer
using VLE (sign up and for learning & differences in learning &
F2f + material
group discussion board cognitive styles
posted to VLE
if wanted)
Lecturers: F2f + material posted
to VLE
4a.Groups paired to evaluate each
others’ guides and give feedback 2b. Auditing
Students: In
Students: In lab f2f progress, posing
lab f2f
questions, working
on task
3b. Lecture on
3c. Post guide
3a. Completing guide and blog/lens
IL work in
& link to blog/
4b. Feedback
practice Between classes: Creating blog or
lens
on exercise
Speakers Squidoo; No f2f lab in week between
Students
Everyone from Open 2b and 4a. Questions to lecturers
: to VLE
f2f Uni and posed in various ways
Unilever

19. Blog
examples
from last
year

20. Second Life: virtual world
• July onwards lent office by Eduserv for Centre for Information
Literacy Research: started discussion series
• Successful bid to Centre for Inquiry Based Learning for the
Arts and Social Sciences to fund island for a year
• Island delivered early October
• Compulsory activity (feeding into assignment) for 1st year BSc
Information Management students in Information Literacy
class (20 students) starting 22 October
• Aim is for students to undertake critical incident interviews
with SL residents (a time when they had an information need
relating to a SL activity) in SL itself
• Work with 2 librarians: in Sheffield (Lyn Parker) & St Andrews
(Vickie Cormie)

22. Observations
• SL a learning (and play) space – more like a
classroom space than a website – with new
possibilities
• Has to be pedagogic rationale or is just faffing about
in SL
• Students won’t automatically be engaged & there is
a learning curve, even for gamers
• Transmissive approaches even duller in SL than in
Real Life – need activity rather than content

23. Sheila Webber
s.webber@shef.ac.uk
http://information-literacy.blogspot.com/
Sheila Yoshikawa
http://adventuresofyoshikawa.blogspot.com/