Conference Agenda

Introduction

For at least two decades the workflow of higher education (HE) institutions in Europe has been driven by the project approach. The European Union (EU) supports HE financially and aims at maximal internationalization and cooperation among European countries.

The European Universities Initiative (EUI) was established in 2017. Its ambition is to strengthen strategic partnerships across the EU between higher education institutions by building networks of universities across the EU. In 2019, EUI opened its first call for HE institutions’ alliances. At the end of 2022, 41 European University Alliances were already gathering 340 HE institutions (European Education Area, n.d.).

Rationale

Members of such alliances are forced to change a lot in their daily work practice and acquire specific project knowledge and skills. For the majority of libraries as members of those alliances, this is the first time they have participated in joint, international (so also multicultural) projects with specific requirements, terminology, and workflows driven by grant agreement requirements and expected outcomes.

Methodology

An in-depth analysis of the skills and competencies rooted in information literacy (understood here as an umbrella concept, thus gathering many related ‘literacies’) needed for successful project management was conducted. It was based on 1) a review of literature on knowledge and project management (e.g., Bartlett, 2021; Mounir, 2018) and on new job requirements for librarians (e.g. Wojciechowska, 2018) as well as 2) the work experience on the TRAIN4EU project, co-lead by the academic librarians from the University of Warsaw Library (Poland), run by 4EU+ universities in the framework of Horizon 2020 (4EU+, n.d.).

Outcomes

The analysis resulted in a map of competencies that are useful and needed to work on international projects funded by the EU. The analysis showed that the skills traditionally associated with librarians’ and information professionals’ jobs, such as fluency in metadata, information literacy, information management, or research data management are crucial while working with EU-funded projects. Hence, on the one hand, librarians and academic professionals may already become important actors on the scene of a project-based workflow; on the other hand, there are some competency gaps that should be filled not only to support the researchers comprehensively but also to be able to conduct projects independently. The map of competencies may be useful not only for the staff of European University Alliances but also for other librarians and information professionals who would like to become members of project teams and for the library management who hire them.

References

Bartlett, J. A. (2021). Knowledge management. A practical guide for librarians. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.

European Education Area (n.d.) Factsheets on the 41 European universities. Retrieved November 25, 2022 from https://education.ec.europa.eu/european-universities-factsheets

Mounir, A. (2018). Project management between waterfall and agile. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press/Taylor & Francis Group.

Wojciechowska, M. (Ed.). (2018). Multibibliotekarstwo. Warszawa: Wydaw, SBP.

4EU+ (n.d.). 4EU+ Alliance. Retrieved November 25, 2022 from https://4euplus.eu/4EU-1.html

Problem Statement

One avenue through which academic librarians may be able to have a significant impact, both in supporting student information literacy learning and shifting the teaching culture at their institutions, is adopting the “teach the teacher” model and taking on the role of educational developer. The model has often been described as an alternative to the one-shot approach to information literacy instruction, which has been significantly criticized as an ineffective method for achieving the integration of information literacy into the curriculum. There are examples of librarians leading information literacy-centered instructor development initiatives, including workshops, courses, and faculty learning communities, and there are some indications that this approach does support changes in faculty teaching practices related to information literacy and research assignment design (Hammons, 2020; Jumonville, 2014; Wishkoski et al., 2019). However, more evidence is needed to establish the effectiveness of this approach. Adopting the “teach the teachers” model as a more primary means of teaching information literacy would require a major shift in thinking and practice for many librarians, so it is vital to better understand the effectiveness of these types of interventions and their impact on faculty teaching practices.

Purpose

In this paper, we examine instructors’ perceptions of a five-module teaching professional development workshop that promotes the transparent and equitable integration of information literacy into courses. The workshop situates information literacy within a common academic practice – the research assignment – and provides a framework for thinking about what equity means within the context of higher education and outlines teaching strategies instructors can use to make their research assignments more inclusive, equitable, and transparent. Upon completion of the workshop, participants should be able to (1) describe the potential relationship between students’ social identity characteristics, research assignments, and overall academic success, (2) describe the information literacy threshold concepts as outlined in the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, (3) apply Decoding the Disciplines and Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT Higher Ed) to their teaching, and (4) identify practical ways in which they can design assignments to increase students’ motivation.

For our examination, we analyze data collected through pre- and post-workshop surveys administered to nine cohorts of participants between August 2019 and August 2022 (n=61, 75% response rate). This study provides insight into how instructors perceive information literacy and how librarians can strengthen their understanding of information literacy through faculty-focused professional development programming.

References

Hammons, J. (2020). Teaching the teachers to teach information literacy: A literature review. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 46(5), 102196.

Jumonville, A. (2014). The role of faculty autonomy in a course-integrated information literacy program. Reference Services Review, 42(4), 536–551.

Wishkoski, R., Lundstrom, K., & Davis, E. (2019). Faculty teaching and librarian-facilitated assignment design. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 19(1), 95–126.

A few years after the publication of the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education (Association of College and Research Libraries, 2016), its impact has been studied at different levels and in several regions (Guth et al., 2018; H. Julien et al., 2020; H. E. Julien et al., 2020). However, it was only very recently that this main document was Portuguese-translated (ACRL et al., 2022), which poses a challenge for information professionals in Portugal. Regardless, this shift has brought renewed energy and a new level of discussion around the training provided by academic information professionals, who pay increasing attention to teaching and learning methodologies. The pedagogical role of librarians becomes more pressing as teaching becomes more researched, with pedagogical methods, constructivist learning, multiplying research techniques, and information literacy as fundamental learning elements (Caffrey et al., 2022). How do Portuguese professionals react to the opportunity to know it deeply and objectively and to the possibility of applying the orientations emanating from this document? This study is part of a national project on information literacy applied to academic students and aims to analyze the perceptions of LIS professionals about the knowledge and practical applicability of the six conceptual frames that make up the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education. From an extensive literature review and the creation of an online survey of academic librarians’ perceptions of the ACRL Framework, conducted in January 2023, the survey used a 5-point Likert scale on aspects of understanding the frames, knowledge practices, and dispositions that students can develop in an academic context with the support of LIS professionals. The results show librarians’ initial knowledge of the topic but a solid will to proceed with actions regarding it. Therefore, based on the translation of the Framework into Portuguese, a set of activities associated with each of the frames and the creation of pedagogical materials (e.g., open PowerPoints) and training spaces (e.g., webinars, conferences), to support the informal training provided by the LIS professionals, were promoted. As information literacy programs continue to be integrated, implemented, reflected, and reviewed in libraries (informal education) and integrated into academic curricula (formal education), the Framework is a reference document on which information professionals and teachers can find and support inspiration. In this context, and if we want more and better information to pass through higher education, we need to optimize and make valuable access to it. Given the proliferation of (dis)information, librarians must urgently assume the task of training in this area, developing their skills at the pedagogical level.

References

ACRL, Sanches, T., Antunes, M. L., & Lopes, C. (2022). Referencial da literacia da informação para o ensino superior (tradução portuguesa). BAD. Retrieved from https://bad.pt/formacao/projetos/combater_desinformacao/

Association of College and Research Libraries. (2016). Framework for information literacy for higher education. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/acrl/files/issues/infolit/framework.pdf

Caffrey, C., et al. (2022). Library instruction and information literacy 2021. Reference Services Review, 50(3), 271–355. https://doi.org/10.1108/RSR-09-2022-0035

Guth, L. F., et al. (2018). Faculty voices on the Framework: Implications for instruction and dialogue. Libraries and the Academy, 18(4), 693–718.

Julien, H., et al. (2020). Information literacy practices and perceptions of community college librarians in Florida and New York. Communications in Information Literacy, 14(2), 287–324. https://doi.org/10.15760/comminfolit.2020.14.2.7

Julien, H. E., Gross, M., Latham, D., & Baer, A. (2020). The information literacy framework: Case studies of successful implementation. Rowman & Littlefield.