Designing Specialized Online Information Literacy Courses for Higher Education
An ACRL Online Seminar
October 19 - November 6, 2009
Registration is now open!
Course Description:
Designing Specialized Information Literacy Courses in Higher Education is a three-week course which will provide you with the information needed to design and teach an online, subject-specific information literacy course for your institution. While our experience is in the health sciences field, the same principles apply to creating “designer” courses for other disciplines. The course includes three distinct learning modules:
Learning Module 1:
• Nature of online learning
• Information Literacy basics
• Specialized information literacy
Learning Module 2:
• Student technology guidance
• Building course content
• Embedding learning objects into courseware
Learning Module 3:
• Textbook selection
• Student assessment
• Course assessment
• Student assignments
Learning Objectives:
Librarians and other information specialists who are interested in developing or expanding specialized information literacy courses at their institutions are encouraged to enroll. Some experience teaching information literacy skills or concepts at the college level is assumed. By the end of this seminar, you will be able to:
• Identify ways to customize information literacy course content to a specific discipline
• Identify ways to convert information literacy content to the online environment
• Analyze the challenges associated with teaching students in the online environment
• Develop specialized information literacy courses to support academic programs
Course Requirements:
The course will require approximately one to three hours per week:
• Weekly online podcasts
• Weekly threaded discussion forums
• Weekly written assignments
• Seminar evaluation form
Prior to starting the course it is recommended that participants read the following:
• Association of College and Research Libraries, American Library Association. "Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education." Chicago, IL: ACRL, 2000. Web. 29 July 2009.
Access at: www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlstandards/informationliteracycompetency.htm
• Badke, William. “Ten Reasons to Teach Information Literacy for Credit.” Online Nov-Dec. 2008: 47-49.
• Cohen, Vicki L. “Distance Learning Instruction: A New Model of Assessment.” Association for Advancement of Computing in Education (2002). ERIC. Web. ED476989. 30 July 2009.
• Pollack, Thomas A. “Preparing a Course for Distance Education Delivery.” Association of Small Computer Users in Education: Proceedings of the ASCUE Summer Conference (1998). ERIC. Web. ED425726. 30 July 2009.
Instructors:
Beth Stahr
Beth Stahr is an Associate Professor and Head of Reference and Instruction at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. Beth received her MLS degree from Syracuse University in 1999, and first worked as a full-time instructor of the library’s one-hour credit course, Library Science (LS) 102: Introduction to Information Research. She was then hired as the library’s Distance Learning Librarian. In that capacity, she developed the first online version of the course, and later worked with the Health Sciences Librarian to develop a special online course for students in the University’s RN-to-BSN program. Both courses are taught via Blackboard. In 2008, Beth was hired to head the eight-librarian Reference Department. In addition to teaching the specialized online information literacy class, Beth serves as administrator of the library’s 24/7 “chat” reference service and SMS text message reference service. She also serves as the campus-wide administrator for the plagiarism detection software and on Louisiana’s statewide Digital Reference Committee.
Angela Dunnington
Angela Dunnington is an Associate Professor and Library Science 102 Coordinator at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. Angela has been serving as coordinator for the library’s one-hour credit course, Library Science (LS) 102: Introduction to Information Research for six years, which provides instruction to approximately 2000 undergraduate students per year and is required by 50% of the majors. She provides a leadership role among members of the Reference Department in the development of course materials and assessment tools. Within Louisiana, she participated and chaired the Louisiana Academic Library Information Network Consortium (LALINC) Information Literacy Committee, which is charged with articulating learning outcomes and suggesting assessment measures for the Louisiana Board of Regents information literacy requirement. Angela participated in the inaugural ACRL’s Institute for Information Literacy (ILL) Assessment Immersion Track: Assessment in Practice program in 2008. After receiving her MLIS from Louisiana State University, Angela has held Reference/Instruction Librarian positions at Louisiana State University in Shreveport and the University of Texas at San Antonio prior to joining Southeastern Louisiana University’s faculty in January 2002.
Registration fees:
ACRL member: $135
ALA member: $175
CACUL member: Can$195 (charges will be made in U.S. dollars)
Nonmember: $195
Student: $60
Registration is now open!
- You will need to log in with your ALA ID & password. If you do not have an ALA ID & password, you will be asked to create one in order to register.
- Download and complete the PO registration form.
- Submit the form along with your actual PO to ALA registration (fax or mail; see form for details).
- You will not be considered registered for the course until both your PO and the registration form have been received and processed by ALA registration.
Member rates apply to personal memberships only. Want to join ACRL or ALA? Complete the online membership form, available on the ALA Web site. If you join ALA/ACRL within five days of registering, we will adjust your fee (please fax a copy of your completed registration form to ACRL at 312-280-2520).
Payment may be made by credit card or purchase order (PO) only.
If paying by PO, the PO number is required at the time of registration.
Class size is limited to 60 participants. Full refunds will be granted up to 14 days prior to the start of the seminar.