Beyond the Happy Surveys: Library Instruction Assessment

Edit: Transcript available at http://bit.ly/1h31UIt

Evaluation of Library Instruction and Information Management Competencies

Thursday, February 20, 2014

9:00 pm Eastern/6:00 pm Pacific time

#medlibs Twitter chat

Join Marie Ascher (@mascher) for a discussion on evaluation and assessment of instruction and competencies.

We’re teaching but are they learning? Let’s talk about the different ways we are assessing our clientele’s ability to find, assess, use, and manage information. Are we still using “happy surveys” for evaluation or are we looking at outcomes? What works? Are any of us employing strategies at our institutions that might benefit our colleagues elsewhere? Anyone developed local instruments and tools? Are you using standardized instruments? And how do these work in the health sciences library setting? What’s working for you and do you have buy-in from your administration? How do you use the information you get from assessment to influence future sessions? Does assessment data help make the case for more information literacy in the curriculum?

Here are some basic resources worth looking at for this discussion.

ACRL Objectives for Information Literacy Instruction: A Model Statement for Academic Librarians http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/objectivesinformation

ACRL Research Agenda for Library Instruction and Information Literacy
http://www.ala.org/acrl/aboutacrl/directoryofleadership/sections/is/iswebsite/projpubs/researchagendalibrary

Blevens, C.L. Catching up with information literacy assessment: Resources for program evaluation. College & Research Libraries News 2012; 73(4): 202-206. http://crln.acrl.org/content/73/4/202.full