Collaborative Information Literacy Assessments: Strategies for Evaluating, Teaching and Learning

Citation

Weerasinghe, S. (2012), "Collaborative Information Literacy Assessments: Strategies for Evaluating, Teaching and Learning", Library Management, Vol. 33 No. 8/9, pp. 578-580. https://doi.org/10.1108/01435121211279966

This is a third book in a series of Information Literacy by the editors, starting with Information Literacy Collaborations that Work (2007). It was followed by Using Technology to Teach Information Literacy (2008). Both books have presented the faculty – librarian collaboration in information literacy. In this third book, the central focus is also on the faculty – librarian partnerships in forming assessment and evaluation methods for information literacy. The necessity of such collaboration for planning and implementation, and the fact that it is an integral part of educational courses is brought out here explicitly.

This is a very informative and an instructive book giving deeply analysed and well tested work of students/learners to show the importance of information literacy in learning and teaching. The authors have clearly shown how necessary it is for the academics to have information literacy skills to deliver authenticated and reliable assignments. It is also understood that it will help to apply the knowledge gained beyond their educational examinations to their work life as well.

The reader will very easily understand the assessment tools, criteria and application of information literary skills. It also provides the collaboration practices of assessments and how the integrated assessments can be successful, in judging the outcomes of the students' information behaviour, i.e. the types, quality and appropriateness of the sources selected by the students, how information was located, the methods used in searching effects of previous instructions. Faculty‐library team collaboration is a central focus here. How ever no method or tool is given as the best over the others.

How important this publication is as a practical reference source can be judged by the opening lines of the preface of the book: “assessment of learning outcomes is a central consideration for faculty, librarians, and administrators especially as colleges, universities and accrediting agencies mandate this process”.

The aim of the compilation, as stated in the preface is to “promote varied and innovative methods for collaborative information literacy assessment within a context of critical inquiry to guide emerging or established programs.” The contents show how essential it is to evaluate and assess information literacy skills bringing weight‐age and rationality behind library and information services, professionals, teaching, teachers and education and adding value to all these as well. The book presents the nature of assessment efforts and the means of achieving them during a process of defining, experiment and practice. It is a very valuable source giving a cue to adopt such best practices in all university and other institutional education.

The book provides insights into the part played by information literacy skills assessments with the explanation of information strategies adopted in academic institutions of New Zealand, the UK and the US, developed and tested in a practical setting by the faculty‐library teams. Different approaches of these institutions can be compared. The articles offer, as explained in the preface “qualitative/and or quantitative approach to assessment and a detailed examination of a course that incorporates information literacy”. There is a discussion on how these evaluations have yielded results after measuring its success and impact and at the same breadth the difficulties and challenges faced by the academic institutions to promote information literacy projects in campuses are also highlighted.

It is very interesting to follow the types of assessment tools and literacy indicators developed and used by the faculty and librarians such as citation analysis, reports of and feedback from students, survey findings, research essays, annotated bibliographies, instructions, courses, and real time assessment tools for pre and post tests. The book presents assessment models, case studies and out comes to for the reader to critically understand the assessment work. All of these promote well‐structured information literacy programs. In a futuristic perspective, the students have offered valid suggestions and recommendations for improving the processes and tools for future implementation.

The book is organized into three parts in the disciplines of business, social science and education, and humanities with several case studies. The essays in the chapters in each part is a collection of contributions from various authors.

There are two articles in part 1: (business) – “Using Citation Analysis to evaluate and improve information literacy instruction” by Casey M. Long, and Milind M. Shrikande and “A holistic approach to embedding information literacy in the design, delivery and assessment of an undergraduate business program” by Douglas G. Carrie and Lynne M. Mitchell.

The three articles in part 2: (social science and education) are: “Assessing integrated library components to enhance info literacy in political science” by Julie K. Gilbert and Christopher P. Gilbert, “Assessing undergraduate information literacy skills: how collaborative curriculum interventions promote active and independent learning” by Amanda A. Harrison and Angela Newton, and “Collaboration in action: designing and online assessment strategy for adult learners“ by Julie Bostock, Susan Graves and Ruth Wilson. Whilst part 3: (humanities) contains “A model for information literacy assessment: enhancing student learning in writing courses through collaborative teaching”, by Leslie Bussert and Norm Pouliot, “Vampires, philosophers and graphic novels: Assessing thematic writing courses in the big read”, by Deborah B. Gaspar and Pamela S. Presser, “Many voices, one goal: measuring student success through partnerships in the core curriculum” by Becky Cannovan, Anne Marie Gruber, Mary Anne Knefel and Michele McKinlay.

It is a well laid out book assembled in a coherent manner and all the sections have introductions to information literacy in that particular field of study. All the chapters carry introductions to the contents. The detailed literature reviews and conclusions in each chapter are very useful to form pre‐conceived overviews and sum up of the lessons learnt. The foreword by Debra Gilchrist provides the reader with the first point of connectivity to understand the assessment narration and instructions. The preface itself gives a review of the book, which readers must read carefully to understand the faculty librarian team, student and information literacy dynamics. This approach makes the book more practical. The book ends on a high note with an after word justifying the whole product.

The contributions are from information professionals and academics with a wealth of experience and qualifications who have dealt with the theme in a real world context. The reader can gather information about the authors of the chapters and the editors of the book and justify the base of the contents, as biographical briefs are given from pages 217‐222.

A list of figures, tables and appendixes completes the entire work. This book will undoubtedly help the information professional to work towards improvements in learning, teaching and evaluating and keep track of learning and to better understand the courses. It is a book for the future.