Library News for the Faculty

Information Literacy in Action: Faculty/Librarian Panels on Academic Success

As part of the campuswide Celebrating Undergraduate Education week last fall, the UCLA Library organized a symposium entitled "A Competitive Edge in the Information Society." Some forty faculty members attended the event, held in the Powell Library, at which a panel of faculty and librarians showcased collaborations and projects that enhance the critical-thinking and research skills undergraduate students need to compete academically and professionally.

Attendees learned about innovative approaches that have created successful partnerships for instructional development as well as how they can take advantage of the Library's rich resources to develop their own projects.

Roberta Malmgren, adjunct assistant professor in epidemiology, and Esther Grassian, reference and instruction librarian in the College Library, talked about their collaboration in support of the general education cluster "Frontiers in Human Aging: Human, Social, and Policy Perspectives." Following a consultation with Grassian, Malmgren decided to have her present in-class instruction, create a Web page of information resources, participate on the discussion board, and offer one-on-one consultations. Students were also encouraged to take advantage of the Library's online, real-time reference assistance; online, interactive tutorials such as "Road to Research"; and the one-unit, Fiat Lux course "How to Stop Just Googling...and Find the Really Good Stuff!"

Peter Hammond, professor emeritus of anthropology, and Patti Caravello, librarian for anthropology and sociology in the Charles E. Young Research Library and director of the Library's Information Literacy Program, talked about how they integrated research skills development into three cultural anthropology upper-division seminars. In the course syllabi, instructors clearly stated the critical-thinking and information-seeking skills that they expected students to gain from the courses. Caravello presented instructional sessions, attended classes, and offered individual consultations; and assignments were tailored to build students' research skills. Caravello also contributed to the students' grades by reviewing their research portfolios and the quality of the research for their final papers.

Jan Reiff, associate professor of history, and Libbie Stephenson, director of the Social Science Data Archives, described their collaboration on the GE clusters "America in the Sixties: Politics, Society, and Culture, 1954-74" and "LA - The Cluster." Incorporating the archive's survey data and online data analysis tools into class assignments benefited undergraduates by offering active learning opportunities that used new technology, and the Los Angeles data resource that their research is helping to build will have a long-term impact on student learning and achievement.

The event concluded with "Reaching Students Where They Are," a YouTube video showing ways to reach students using technology.

PowerPoint presentations, handouts, and the video are linked from the symposium Web page. If you have questions about the symposium or would like to talk about how to integrate research and critical thinking skills into a course, contact the appropriate subject specialist or Alison Armstrong, director of undergraduate initiatives, by phone at extension 56522 or by email.