CIC Information Fluency Lunch 'N Learn: Goals

Through discipline-specific course instruction and information fluency instruction, we strive to equip our students wtih the knowledge and skills to:

• Survey the literature to see what's out there and what new ideas, questions, problems, etc. need to be explored.
• Formulate a thesis/topic statement.
• Create a search strategy and revise that strategy as needed.
• Select appropriate sources of information.
• Use (synthesize) information to support an argument.
• Use technology appropriately to enhance presentation/argument.
• Know when and how to cite sources / Avoid plagiarism.

1. Identify information fluency skills our JCA students need to develop to successfully complete course assignments, become well-rounded, successful practitioners of their art?
2. What is unique about the information fluency needs of students in each of the JCA disciplines?
3. When should each of the desirable information fluency skills best (i.e. most effectively) be taught and/or when are they necessary?
4. Are we currently targeting the best courses for information fluency?  Doe we need to make adjustments?  If so, what adjustments can we make?  Biggest concern:  consistently meeting freshmen!
5. How can we teach information fluency skills more effectively moving forward? Can we work together to develop better in-class activities and course assignments targeting/employing specific information fluency skills?

Throughout the process, there have been frustrations and setbacks:

• Not all faculty are consistently on board (and some just honestly forget!).
• Students sometimes complain sessions are irrelevant.
• Students complain of repetition (i.e., hearing the same points repeated in several different sessions).
• Difficult to insure that instruction is delivered to all lower divisional and upper divisional students - invariably some students miss out.
• Sometimes different faculty teach different sections of the same course - difficult to insure uniformity.
• Sometimes librarians are not informed of change in faculty (especially of adjuncts teaching targeted course).
• Difficult to identify appropriate courses that ALL students need to take.
• Curriculum changes require adjustments  in terms of which classes get targeted.
• Faculty support is critical.  Presence in classroom and participation in session (or lack thereof) can determine effectiveness. Students know when librarian is "baby-sitting" or when library trip is perfunctory.
• Timing is everything: It doesn't work if timing is off and session is too far removed from point-of need.
• Sessions can be "dull as ditch water' if librarian talks too much -- active learning projects essential.

1. Information fluency instruction MUST be relevant to the class for which it is provided - the infomation fluency frames targeted should be chosen carefully and thoughtfully.
2. Set a date to meet with your librarian before the session to talk about what you want to accomplish and how.
3. Create a relevant follow-up assignment related to the information fluency instruction to reinforce skills learned int he session.
4. Schedule the session as close to the students' "point of need" (i.e., when they will be required to apply the skills learned) as possible.
5. Active learning is key!  Create an activity that the students can do during the information fluency session. 
6. Attend the session and participate with the librarian!  It sends a message to the students that YOU consider the session and information important.
7. The more you do (for students), the less they learn.  Assignments should encourage students to do some exploring on their own ... and maybe even struggle a little.  Ol' Sher does put some stock in the adage:  "No pain, no gain!"