Carbery, Alan

Hegarty, Nora

WIT Repository

Alan Carbery & Nora Hegarty, Waterford Institute of Technology LibrariesLearning By Doing: Redesigning the First Year Information Literacy ProgrammeLearning is an active process and the Institute is committed toensuring that the learner is at the centre of the learning experienceWIT Strategic Plan 2007‐2010Aims & ObjectivesWe identified a need for a pro‐active approach to teaching first years, engaging the students towards becoming confident, competent library users Project DescriptionProject Cycle:• Restructure existing programmeAim: To redesign the First Year Information Literacy Programme as a predominantly hands‐on workshop Objectives: • Design a library workshop, facilitated by the librarian, working with  students developing transferable skill‐sets for ‘learning how to learn’If transportation may be likened to learning,the goal of education is not to move learners• Design and develop engaging learning objects• Testing & piloting• Launching the revised programme• Formal evaluationI would recommend library training to future first years,               • Develop customised learning materials, actively engaging students, andstimulating group workInnovation Impactpassively from point to point but to help themlearn to drive themselvesGunderman & Wood, 2004Using the library used to make me nervous. Now I feel confident about using the libraryThe Workshop Approach:• Learning by doing• Learner takes centre stage• Librarian as ‘Guide on the Side’• Independent, self‐directed, active learning Our Observations• Reinvigorated Information Literacy Team & Programme• High levels of student satisfaction and confidence• Self‐directed learners with transferable skill‐setsKey Findings:The Worksheet Approach:• Customised learning objects• Problem‐centred activities• Subject‐specific• Themes of popular culture • Student surveys administered throughout 2008/2009 & 2009/2010I enjoyed getting involved in the worksheet activities44% 44%40%45%50%20%29%29%21%5% 4%5%10%15%20%25%30%35%What the student does is more important in determining what islearned than what the teacher doesShuell 1986Learning is not a spectator sport. Students do not learn muchb l l h h b bbl i l d i d i h d2% 2%0%2008/2009 2009/2010Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly DisagreeThe 1st Year WIT Student, just y sitting in c asses istening to teac ers, memorizingpre‐packaged assignments, and spitting out answers. They musttalk about what they are learning, write about it, relate it to pastexperiences and apply it to their daily lives. They must make whatthey learn part of themselvesChickering & Gamson, 1987Going Forward:• Integrate the student‐centred, active learning model into our range oftraining programmes for undergraduates, postgraduates and staffReferences:• Chickering, A. W. and Gamson, Z. F. (1987) ‘Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education’, AAHE Bulletin, 39(7), pp.3‐7.• Gunderman, R. and Wood, B (2004) ‘Trusting the student: learner centred education’, Journal of the American College of Radiology, 1(12), pp.897‐900.• Shuell, T.J. (1986) ‘Cognitive conceptions of learning’, Review of Educational Research, 56, pp.411‐436.• WIT (2007) Strategic Plan 2007‐2010 [Online]. Available at: http://www2.wit.ie/AboutWIT/StrategicPlan/FiletoUpload,19822,en.pdf  [Accessed 18/03/10]Secondary Image copyright Google ImagesSpeec   u es conta n actua  stu ent comments as rece ve   n t e stu ent surveys

Learning by doing: redesigning the learning support programme at WIT Libraries poster presented at LILAC (Library Information Literacy Annual Conference)

http://repository.wit.ie/1519/1/LILAC_Poster_for_printing.pdf

Learning by doing: redesigning the learning support programme at WIT Libraries poster presented at LILAC (Library Information Literacy Annual Conference)

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