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NTLN May 2018
- 1. Game On! Enhancing engagement, interaction and reflection in library workshops NTLN May 2018
- 3. Looking back
- 4. Librarians and teaching • Ad hoc and add-on • Not relevant • Procedures and process • Didactic and uninspiring
- 6. Inspiration • Less is more • Cloning • Discussion • Learning by doing • Learners, not the taught http://advedupsyfall09.wikispaces.com/Sara+Woodard
- 10. Books What are they: A written or printed work of fiction or fact. May be electronic. Good for: Clear overview. Not so good for: Up to date information.
- 13. Summon MyUniHub > MyStudy > MyLibrary > Summon Abstract Search all MDX print and electronic resources. Use to find information on a subject.
- 14. Google vs Summon http://www.flickr.com/photos/ennuiislife/3450743002/ Google • Easy to use • Information bubble • Search results sponsored • Any source • Pay for access Summon • Easy to use • Finds information • Search results by relevance • Quality sources • Free access
- 16. • Authority • Relevance • Intent • Objectivity • Currency Evaluating information
- 21. DProf by Public Works
- 22. NHS workshop Sept 2014 NHS workshop Sept 2014 British Library Jan 2014 CILIP conference 2015 CILIP SLG Nov 2015 THELMAs June 2014 Wellington School 2016 LISSEE Mar 2016
- 26. Dr. Adam Edwards a.edwards@mdx.ac.uk Dr. Vanessa Hill v.hill@mdx.ac.uk ght Fotolia under Microsoft licence http://office.microsoft.com/en-gb/images/results.aspx?qu=blank+sign&ex=1#ai:MP900442493| http://libguides.mdx.ac.uk/MDXGames
Editor's Notes
- VH Intros. Adam Edwards: Library Liaison Manager for Law, Science and Technology and Collaborative Partners. Vanessa Hill: Service Development Liaison Librarian: Computing, Product Design and Engineering, Maths and Stats.
- VH At Middlesex University we are increasingly using games and other play related activities as a way of enhancing our information literacy teaching In doing so we have moved away from a traditional didactic behaviourist style of teaching much loved by many librarians. When we talk about the use of games, we are not talking Monopoly or Scrabble, but rather we use the language of games e.g. decision making, interaction, teamwork, competition, problem solving etc. This is commonly referred to as Gamification. During this workshop we will: Explain how our pedagogy changed and the principles that now underpin all our teaching in library workshops Provide a brief context to these changes Consider how gamification works in our context and how it enhances information literacy Explore the value of using games as a tool to encourage engagement, interaction and reflection in library workshops You will have an opportunity to try out one of our games. We will also briefly mention our own professional development as a result of the changes we have made to our own pedagogy.
- AE Landscape has changed dramatically in the last 20-30 years. This is what libraries looked like when we trained as a librarian in the 1980s. Librarians were the guardians of information We created indexes and catalogues, through which we controlled access to information. We organised information on shelves in a librarianly way, which was not always logical to the users e.g. We use mysterious names: Quick-reference, reference, oversize, short loan, etc The University of Reading arranged books by size in three sequences ‘helpfully’ labelled Quarto, Folio and Octavo!! We supervised searches and only the librarian could get to the information, especially true of early online searches which cost £1 a minute. Vanessa remembers that only the head librarian had the authority to undertake such searches at the start of my career. Teaching was a small part of what we did and not the main priority.
- AE Teaching was limited to: One-off workshops usually provided at request of academic staff on ad hoc basis With very little thought being given to where library skills should sit in the overall programme or the relevance to student’s academic work This had repercussions for student behaviour as library workshops perceived as unimportant. It was impossible to develop a progressive programme of information literacy training Workshops were: Teacher led, didactic and uninspiring We used lots of demos and worksheets, and focussing on procedures and process e.g. how to borrow a book or find a journal article Provided too much information in a linear fashion Consequently there was little student engagement or interaction And very little learning or development of skills. Why?..................Librarians are not taught to teach and maybe lack the skills and confidence to take risks and innovate?
- VH But now everything has changed: Subsequent developments in technology, the advent of the Internet, the proliferation of information and ease of access has changed everything we knew. Resource Discovery Tools (like Google) have provided easy access to huge amounts of information. Neither academics or librarians have control of the information that they use. Students can go it alone. But do students have the skills to find what they really need? Do they understand the value of academic resources? Do they use the best keywords/search terms? Do they know how to make a value judgement about any information found? Probably not. All of this has had a major impact on the role of the librarian and significant implications for library workshops.
- VH The inspiration for us to change our pedagogical practice came when I attended a workshop in 2010 on ‘Teaching information literacy in HE workshop’ at CILIP facilitated by Sharon Markless. What Vanessa took away from this workshop were 5 learning principles which now form the basis of how we now teach and are always at the back of our mind when designing library workshops. These are: Don’t try and cover too much: We teach 3-5 times more than students will take in, so concentrate on what will make the biggest difference. Everything else can be consigned to the online learning environment. Don’t try and clone your own expertise: It’s not possible to distil your own expertise in to a one hour workshop. Students are unlikely to approach information retrieval in the way that we do. Discussion is powerful: We can learn a lot about their understanding from the questions they ask and the feedback they give. What we hear, what they say, what they don’t say can help guide the content of a workshop. Learning by doing is empowering: Let students discover for themselves…..together, encourage active participation through a variety of activities, learn from their mistakes and find solutions when things don’t work. Students should be learners, not the taught, working together to learn: Our role is to support and facilitate, not to dictate.
- VH With these principles in mind we started to consider what we really needed to teach students. This is what we came up with – 4 key areas to cover in library workshops: Thinking about the value of different sources of information especially in their academic writing Constructing keywords i.e. using the right search terms to find what is needed, refining search results etc Hands-on self exploration of relevant resources i.e. no demonstrations. Evaluating information found for relevance and quality. What we then needed was a vehicle to enable learning to happen……..(next slide).
- AE The inspiration came from a workshop I attended at LILAC 2011 on using games in library workshops. So we started to develop games and activities for 1st year workshops around the four key areas. This has subsequently been rolled out across all levels with different games and activities used throughout. As a basic rule the games should be: Fun and enjoyable – the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines games as an “activity engaged in for diversion and amusement” Quick – no more than about 10 mins Simple – easy and cheap to prepare Easy to grasp and play- no complicated rules Meet a specific need or objective- not playing games for the sake of it In addition Burgun believes that games should also include an element of competition and decision-making and other experts consider that collaboration is a significant factor. The important thing about them is that they enable discussion, collaboration, peer learning, reflection and feedback. So lets try some of them out……
- AE We’re going to let you have a go at some of the games and activities that we use with 1st year computing students. We call their 1st year workshop ‘Better than Google’ which is a direct challenge to the students’ love of ‘Googling it’. As you will see it covers the 4 key areas that we identified: resources, keywords, discovery and evaluation. The first game is designed to get students thinking about different resources available to them and their value (or not) in their academic work. We call it the ‘Thinking about resources’ game. Hand out game and play.
- AE In a classroom situation we would follow this game with feedback and discussion, asking each group in turn to describe each resource in turn and state what they are ‘good for’ and ‘not so good for’. Besides the resource descriptions, there are no right or wrong answers and discussion is encouraged. Feedback enables us to cover various key points if not mentioned.
- AE We then explore the other resources. This is a chance to discuss: What a journal actually is Peer review Authority and relevance of resources Risk of relying on Google or using Wikipeadia
- VH This is an activity that we use to get 1st year students thinking about keywords and is just one of several activities that we use to develop these skills. Its less about games, but does encourage interaction. Run the exercise. This exercise can be run as a whole class activity or in small groups to add an element of competition. Its usually followed by a similar activity based around the project the students are currently working on so that new skills can be immediately applied.
- VH Following the keyword exercise the students have the opportunity to search Summon our resource discovery tool for information for their current project. We don’t demo as Summon is easy to use, but we show them a slide like this which indicates how they get to Summon and some of the key features. We are on hand to answer questions, guide etc as required.
- VH Following the hands-on bit, we have a discussion about how Summon stands up against Google. By this time, the students have usually got the idea.
- AE Finally we tackle ‘Evaluation’ with a simple activity. We use this quote by Abraham Lincoln to get the ball rolling and ask them “What do they think about this quote by Abraham Lincoln on the issue of authenticity”. Only the bravest amongst them question it!! Hand out the activity.
- AE The exercise is followed by feedback and discussion which is the most important thing. Remember the games are only being used as a vehicle to aid exploration, reflection, discussion and so on.
- AE As we mentioned earlier we have developed different games and activities for each key area in our workshops for each year of study, so there are lots of other things that we have not been able to show you. However you can find out more about our games and activities including templates and instructions for use, plus lesson plans on this website. We’ve brought along a few examples of other games and activities that we use in our teaching which you can have a look at over lunch.
- AE Lunch 1-2
- AE In order to avoid the post dinner slump we thought we would get you to try out our Dewey game. This game was developed for our Foundation students who respond well to activities and physically moving about. Understanding Dewey and how books are arranged may not be appropriate to all students, but the principles of the game could be applied to other things such as constructing references.
- VH So what happens during one of these activities? As students take part….. They are engaged and there is increased interest and motivation After all playing games can be a social and communal activity There is lots of discussion……collective and peer learning. What we hear the students discuss is indicative of what they know and what they don’t know. Students appear to be learning……Burgun believes that games teach us how to learn, activating prior knowledge and building on existing skills. This is the constructivist approach to learning which is the foundation of our changed pedagogical practice. Students seem willing to ask questions and voice opinions. Games indeed can alleviate some of the fear that students experience when using a library, what Walsh describes as ‘library anxiety’. Students are able to experiment in a safe environment. We can respond as necessary….challenging misconceptions and filling gaps in their knowledge And teaching is more fun. Thus the use of games in our workshops empowers students to make decisions based on prior knowledge, plan a course of action, consider the outcomes, solve problems, absorb and consolidate new information, and learn from that.
- AE Before we finish we would just like to mention the Joint Doctorate in Professional Studies by Public Works which we were awarded in 2016 and is one of a number of work-based learning qualifications and awards offered by Middlesex University. This came about as a direct result of the changes we made to our pedagogical practice back in 2011 as already explained. What is it? The DProf by Public Works acknowledges at Doctoral level the contribution made to knowledge and practice by innovators who have brought influential thinking and practice into their community of practice. It is aimed at professionals who have a substantial amount of outputs in the public domain which influence practice and contribute to knowledge…….these are the actual public works. It is the professional equivalent to the PhD by published works and has the same rigorous assessment methods and criteria. The focus of it is defined by the candidate’s particular work context and area of activity and their own unique area of interest. In our case this was information literacy…..as you will see later. The value to the individual is an opportunity to develop their thinking and future practice. To others it is a valuable insight into the processes and skills required to transform research into useful outputs that influence thinking, action and practice We carried out a joint DProf which is fairly unusual, but a joint DProf by Public Works was a University first.
- AE So what was our Public work and how did it develop ? Our core public work became Enhanced pedagogy for improved information literacy and was the culmination of changes made over a number of years to our pedagogical practice. The changes we made appeared to work, so we decided to go public and share with others. You can see some examples of this outreach in the photos. We were also shortlisted for a THELMA in 2014. Following requests for more information about our games we made the templates for our games, instructions for their use and lesson plans available in the public domain. We are not trying to show-off, but the point is that people were listening to us: What we were doing was making a significant contribution to our community of practice. Changing the professional practice of other librarians……lots of other librarians had started to use our games Unbeknown to us at the time, we had met the criteria for doing a DProf by Public Works.
- VH So how do you make a DProf? The application process starts by writing a detailed personal reflective statement….about 2,000 words each which was an opportunity to critique our professional careers, question professional norms, and reflect on why and how things had happened. Candidates are allocated an academic advisor, as well as a academic consultant who is specialist in their area……we got one of these each…..the great Dr Sharon Markless who had so influenced the development of our public work and the equally great Dr Jayne Secker, an expert in the field on information literacy and co-author of ‘A new curriculum for information literacy’ (ANCIL). Individual candidates normally write a 20-25,000 word statement rather than a PhD thesis. Again as joint candidates we had to double this and ended up considerably exceeding our limit. The statement is an intense critique of the public works and positions them in a wider context, enabling us to validate our practice through the application of theory. The process is very fluid. We were constantly pursuing new ideas and lines of enquiry. In short it is a very iterative process, not linear like a PhD. Our starting point was very different to the end point for example we had not anticipated exploring ANCIL or the skills and attributes of the librarian of the future. One thing to note about a DProf is that it doesn’t end. You ‘round things up’ with recommendations for further action, rather than coming to any definitive conclusion - for any oldies out there like us it’s a bit like Limahl’s 1980s classic - it’s a never ending story. Our work was finally presented to a viva panel on the 20th November 2015….a date forever etched into our memory, all went well and it became official in March 2016. If anyone is interested in finding out more then please get in touch with us or have a look at the link on the screen.
- VH What have we gained from doing a DProf? We now understand more clearly how and why academic librarianship has changed from what we were trained for. Rather than feeling de-professionalised, we can see how we can unchain ourselves from the past and move forward. While we may have not said anything new about information literacy we have: We have devised practical ways of making a difference in the classroom which has already been widely embraced by colleagues. And thought about information literacy above and beyond our previous understanding. Through our research we are equipped with new insight, ideas, language, and knowledge – all of which can help and feed innovation. All of this has lead to a greater ability to work with academics and bring insight, perspective and knowledge into information and academic literacy discussions. We realise that many of the assumptions that we make as a profession and which are made by others about us are unfounded. And this leave the gates open for new innovation, collaboration and further public work.
- AE The Internet has made searching for information much easier… Therefore we don’t really need to teach library skills i.e. process….how to use databases, e-resources. But we need to teach information literacy The changes we have made appear to have worked and have made an impact on grades. Teaching is more fun for students and for us The End.
- AE