Redesigning Information Literacy Programs and Its Effect on Students’ Library Use European Conference on Information Literacy (ECIL) Turkey, Istanbul 22-25 October 2013  

İlkay  Holt  &  Muhteşem  Önder  

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Higher  Educa9on  in  Turkey    

¨  189  universi9es  ¨  62%  of  them  are  the  state  universi9es  ¨  52%  of  the  universi9es  in  Turkey  were  opened  aGer  2006.    

¨  There  was  a  major  shiG  in  government  policy  to  increase  the  number  of  universi9es  in  the  country.  

¨  Two  years  aGer,  Özyeğin  University  was  opened  in  2008  in  İstanbul.  

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Özyeğin  University  (ÖzÜ)  

¨  A  founda9on  (not-­‐for-­‐profit)  university  ¨  Established  in  2008  ¨  4000+  students  ¨  Both  undergraduate  and  graduate  programs  ¨  North  American  approach    ¨  English  medium  university  ¨  Prep  year  –  English  language  immersion      

ÖzÜ  Library  

¨  «High  tech»  «high  touch»  library  ¨  User-­‐oriented  services  ¨  Offering  collabora9ve  work  spaces  ¨  Suppor9ng  users’  research,  teaching  and  learning  needs  ¨  85%  of  the  collec9on  is  electronically  available  

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Student  Engagement  

¨  Student  engagement  is  about    the  rela9onship  that  the  ins9tu9on  has  with  its  students.  It  is  considered  as  one  of  the  most  cri9cal  aspects  of  universi9es’  strategic  goals  in  order  to  retain  their  compe99ve  edge.    

¨  Australian  Council  of  Research  (ACER)  states  that  ‘All  aspects  of  student  engagement  are  posi9vely  related  to  students’  overall  sa9sfac9on  with  university  study.  More  engaged  learners  are  more  sa9sfied,  and  vice  versa.’  

¨  The  university  pays  agen9on  not  only  to  research  produc9vity,  publica9ons,  grants  and  quality  of  teaching,  but  also  focus  on  enhancing      student  experience,  learning  and  graduate  outcomes.  

¨  The  university  libraries  to  collaborate  with  faculty  and  university  administra9on  by  encouraging  students  to  get  involved  and  urging  them  to  construc9vely  par9cipate  in  their  learning.  Therefore,  informa9on  literacy  programs  are  part  of  student  engagement  process  within  the  higher  educa9on  ins9tu9ons.    

 

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Informa9on  Literacy  Programs  

¤ SCOLA  (curriculum  integrated)  n Based  on  the  English  level  and  requirements    

¤ Course  specific  (syllabus  integrated)  n ENG  101-­‐102    n BUS  101-­‐102  (UG)  n Sectoral  Solu9ons  Program  (UG)  

¤ Orienta9ons  n MBA  &  MA  &  MSc  &  PhD    n Faculty  visits  

¤ Sign-­‐up  sessions  n Student  Development  Workshops  

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Surveying  SCOLA  Students-­‐2012  

•  All  first  year  students  enrolled  in  English  language  classes  •  Beginning  of  spring  term  in  collabora9on  with  SCOLA  faculty  •  57%  response  rate  •  The  survey  aims:      

•  What  kind  of  experience,  if  any,  did  the  students  have  with  libraries,  informa9on  resources  and  research  prior  to  coming  to  OzU?  

•  What  were  the  students’  percep5ons  of  libraries  and  informa9on  resources  prior  to  coming  to  OzU  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  second  term  at  the  University?  

•  How  did  the  students’  rate  their  own  competency  in  using  informa9on  resources  prior  to  coming  to  OzU  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  second  term  at  the  University?  

Source: Gulcin Cribb and Ilkay Holt (2012) Student Engagement and Library Use: An Examination of Attitudes Towards Use of Libraries and Information Amongst Undergraduate Students at a Turkish University Library, http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/iatul/2012/papers/22.

Findings  

¨  Comparing  to  their  high  school  9mes  ¤  increased  use  of  e-­‐resources    ¤ slight  decline  in  selec9ng  the  web  as  the  star9ng  point  for  research  compared  to  the  figures  whilst  at  high  school  (80.3%  at  high  school  and  71.5%  at  the  university)  

¤ appearance  of  the  ‘ask  a  librarian’  op9on    ¤  transi9on  from  dependency  on  their  own  resources  to  increased    usage  of  library  resources    

Source: Gulcin Cribb and Ilkay Holt (2012) Student Engagement and Library Use: An Examination of Attitudes Towards Use of Libraries and Information Amongst Undergraduate Students at a Turkish University Library, http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/iatul/2012/papers/22.

Curriculum  Change  in  2012-­‐13  

¨  Changing  learning  porrolio  in  SCOLA  ¨  Finding  ar9cle  not  required  ¨  Academic  wri9ng  not  required  ¨  Reflec9on  on  the  content  design  of  SCOLA  library  sessions  ¤ 2  type  of  library  session  instead  of  having  it  every  module.    

¤ 1st  as  introductory  session  to  the  library  in  every  level  ¤ 2nd  includes  search  techniques,  reference  e-­‐resources.  Finding  ar9cle  was  only  given  in  upper  levels.  

 

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Surveying  SCOLA  Students-­‐2013  

¨  The  same  survey  conducted  in  spring  2013  ¨  47%  response  rate  ¨  Decline  in  awareness  and  percep9on  of  the  library  ¨  Findings  comparing  to  2012  survey  

¤  73%  decrease  in  using  in  e-­‐resources    ¤  79%  decrease  in  consul9ng  librarians    ¤  10%  decrease  in  ability  to  find  journals    ¤  13%  decrease  in  ability  to  find  databases    ¤  23%  decrease  in  ability  in  how  to  use  library  resources    

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Reflec9on  in  Usage  Sta9s9cs  11  

(Jan-­‐Aug  /8  months  average) 2012 2013 % Academic  Search  Complete   2803 1626 -­‐72% Credo  Reference   1762 1091 -­‐62% ELL  Reference  Center 42 4 -­‐950%

ESL-­‐  subject  guide 457 75 -­‐509%

Euromonitor 3229 3061 -­‐5%

Fac9va 1991 86 -­‐2215%

Redesining  the  IL  Programs  

¤ SCOLA  (curriculum  integrated)  n LIB  101:  Introductory  sessions  on  every  module  

¤ Course  specific  (syllabus  integrated)  n ENG  101-­‐102    n BUS  101-­‐102    n Sectoral  Solu9ons  Programs  

n  SEC  401    

¤ Collabora9on  with  non-­‐academic  units  n Student  Development  Workshops  (Sing-­‐up  sessions)  

n  Evalua9ng  Internet  Resources:  Criteria  and  Tools  n  Advance  Use  of  Library  Resources    n  How  to  Cite  resources  

 

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Conclusion  

¨  Turkish  youth  come  from  different  background,  different  library  culture  to  the  university.  Therefore  they  all  need  different  level  of  library  instruc9on  but  usually  an  introduc9on  to  the  basics  of  a  university  library  is  needed.    

¨  IL  skills  has  to  be  taken  account  not  just  for  academic  purpose  but  also  a  life  long  learning  needs  by  academics.    

¨  Requirements  within  the  curriculum  and  syllabus  iden9fy  how  student  approach  to  the  library  and  library  resources.    

¨  Awareness  of  instructors  and  faculty  about  the  library  services  and  resources  make  a  difference  on  the  usage  of  the  library.    

¨  Librarians’  proac9vity  make  a  difference  on  how  faculty  design  their  curriculum  and  syllabus  

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The  Way  Forward  

¨  The  awareness,  the  percep9on  and  the  usage  will  be  monitored  in  2014  and  the  redesigned  programs  will  be  re-­‐evaluated.    

¨  Credit  course  is  considered  for  the  coming  years.  Just  in  9me  vs.  just  in  case  approach  to  the  IL  programmes  create  an  hesita9on  in  this  mager.    

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