Presented at LILAC 2008

1. Integrating information
literacy into degree
programmes in UCD
Challenges that success brings
Ursula Byrne Lorna Dodd
Head of Academic Services Liaison Librarian
Humanities & Social Sciences Health Sciences
UCD Library. UCD Library

2. What this session will cover….
• UCD – an overview
• Changes in Education
• Information Skills Steering Group
• What exactly do you do? – Marketing
• Example of a programme
• Challenges

3. 5 libraries
3000 study places
100,000 information queries a year

4. Library budget €11m (4% of University budget)
140 staff (FTE) – (17 Liaison Librarians)
Resources budget €3.35m

5. 13,962 attendances at IS sessions
= 561.5 Hours
= 707 attendances at EndNote

6. 1.3m volumes
(80% on open access)
Access to:
50,000 journals
340 databases
500,000 e-books

7. Changes in Education
• Increasing gap between 2nd
and 3rd
level
• Shift toward semesterisation &
modularisation
• Inter-disciplinary approach
• Emphasis on development of life-long
learning skills

8. Changes in Education
• New approaches to teaching
– Collaborative work
– Group project
– Self-directed learning
– Evidence-based learning
– Problem-based learning
• Shift away from didactic teaching means
changing role for libraries & librarians

9. Information Skills Steering Group
– coordinating IS function
– Setting targets
– Identifying resource needs
– Advising senior management

10. Information Skills Steering Group
4 SUB-GROUPS
– Library wide Induction group
– Online Information Skills Group
– Information Skills for Academics and
Postgraduates
– Information Skills for Undergraduate &
Taught Postgraduate **

11. Information Skills for Undergraduate &
Taught Postgraduates
Provide skills that enable students become self-
directed in their learning
– Appreciation of range of information resources
– Ability to create a research strategy
– Develop skills to exploit information effectively
– Ability to critically evaluate the information
found
– Ability to record references effectively &
ethically – Bibliographies; EndNote

12. “What exactly do you do?”
• Increasingly difficult to teach all information to
students
• Need to teach students to be able to find and
evaluate information themselves
• Need for students to learn about ethical use of
information
– Plagiarism
– Evaluation
– Interpretation vs. repetition
– Referencing

13. Delivery of IS within programmes:
Methodology
Similar approach in terms of layout and language used
within the academic Community
• Programme Overview
• Learning outcomes/competencies
• Lesson plans
• Worksheets
• Power-point presentations
• Evaluation and Review

14. IS Programmes 2006/2007
School of Economics Undergraduates 10 x 1hour
School of Economics Postgraduates 4 x 1hour
SILS Postgraduate 6 x 1hour
SILS Undergraduate 9 x 1hour
College of Business & Law – Quinn 12 x 2 hour
College of Arts & Celtic Studies 4 x 2hour
UCD Centre for Teaching & Learning

15. IS Programmes 2006/2007
Co-ordinator for each programme
Developed “expertise” in different areas
Share drive for storing all programme
overviews, lesson plans, worksheets,
presentations etc

16. Information Skills Web-pages
Same information in a different
medium
Support Virtual learners
Examples:
- Start your assignment – research
question
– Evaluating Websites
– Citation Styles in UCD
– Plagiarism

18. Example of Programme:
School of Economics 2006/2007
3rd year undergraduates
10x 1hour
Laptop trolley – Carter
25 Dell D600 laptops
Compatibility in rooms
Data projector availability
Availability

19. Example of Programme:
School of Economics 2006/2007
53 students registered
Average attendance - 80% (High 93% - Low 60%)
Worksheets
Assessment strategies:
Attendance/participation – 15%
Worksheets 40% -
Detailed Project outline: 45%

20. Example of Programme:
School of Economics 2006/2007
Worksheets :
Booklet
Built up references to add to EndNote Library
98% submitted worksheets
Average mark achieved = 37/40

21. Example of Programme:
School of Economics 2006/2007
Evaluation: 68% Response from feedback forms
Of those who responded:
Worksheets - 75% helpful
11% too difficult – 3% too easy
Well thought out/organised - 87% strongly agree
Now use Library resources more effectively: 94%
Apply what they learned to other courses: 75%

22. Challenges
• Numbers: 19* Librarians
61 hours IS delivered in Programmes
20,181 undergrads/taught post grads
• TIME
• Time-tabling / Venues
• Correction of assessments
*17 Liaison Librarians

23. Challenges
• Traditional Librarian vs. Teaching Librarian
• Commitment to other Groups
– PBL; Large Class Project
• “Expertise”
• Problem of visibility !
• Sustainability

24. Questions?
ursula.byrne@ucd.ie
lorna.dodd@ucd.ie