Information literacy assessment

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Information literacy assessment

• Sheila Webber, Department of Information Studies,
  University of Sheffield, UK
• September 2003

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It has long been recognised that probably the
biggest influence on a students approach to
their studies is the assessment regime of the
course Rust, C. (2001) A briefing on assessment
of large groups. York Learning and Teaching
Support Network. (p11) http//www.ltsn.ac.uk/embed
ded_object.asp?id17152promptyesfilenameASS012
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the crucial thing, I think, is that you do have
to tie the literacy exercises to application to
the discipline which is assessed in some way,
frankly, because if not, the ones who need it
most will do it less Civil Engineering
lecturer, interviewed for our project
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Information literacy is the adoption of
appropriate information behaviour to identify,
through whatever channel or medium, information
well fitted to information needs, leading to wise
and ethical use of information in society
(Johnston Webber 2002)
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No simplistic model for IL assessment

• Assessment of student learning
• Assessment in context of teaching, learning and
  course design
• Complex assessment as befits the definition of IL

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Learning design
Learning purposes
Information rich
Proactive
Alignment T/L/A for IL
Design of Learning Teaching
Evaluation/ redesign
Constructivist Relational
Developmental
Assessment of learning
Bill Johnston Sheila Webber, 2002
Credit bearing
Complex
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Designing assessment in practice

• Common factors
• Modes of assessmentexpressed by
• Tasks, activities and products of assessment
  individual and group

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4 Common factors

• 1. Assessment should address a blend of purposes
• Diagnosis
• Formative feedback for improvement
• Summative feedback for judgement
• Course evaluation, quality audit
• (but you may need to address different purposes
  through different exercises)

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• 2. Assessment regime should display certain
  conditions e.g.
• relevance, consistency, authenticity,
  practicality
• N.B it might be "practical" but meaningless!

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4 aspects of authentic assessment

• "Assessments sample the actual knowledge, skills,
  and dispositions desired of teachers
  professionals as they are used in teaching and
  learning contexts, rather than relying on more
  remote proxies.
• "Assessments require the integration of multiple
  kinds of knowledge and skill as they are used in
  practice.
• "Multiple sources of evidence are collected over
  time and in diverse contexts.
• "Assessment evidence is evaluated by individuals
  with relevant expertise against criteria that
  matter for performance in the field."

Darling-Hammond Snyder, cited by Elton, M
Johnston, B (2002) Assessment in universities a
critical review of research. York Learning and
Teaching Support Network. http//www.ltsn.ac.uk/em
bedded_object.asp?id17161promptyesfilenameASS
013
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• 3. Recording of assessment should take variety of
  forms e.g.
• transcripts of test results, portfolios, learning
  diaries
• 4. Assessment should address the learners
  concept of, approach to, learning e.g.
• Quantitative/qualitative Surface/deep

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• Be suspicious of the objectivity and accuracy of
  all measures of student ability and conscious
  that human judgment is the most important element
  in every indicator of human achievement
• Ramsden, quoted in Biggs, J. (1999, p159).

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Modes of assessment

• Expert assessment
• Self assessment
• Peer assessment

Need to develop self-critical and reflective
capacity in the student to be able to engage in
self and peer assessment through life
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"Critical self-evaluation and self-assessment of
performance is an essential quality of the
lifelong learner. Unless students are encouraged
to take at least some responsibility for their
own assessment they are unlikely to reach their
full potential as creative, productive learners
in the workplace or community Candy, P.C.,
Crebert, G. and OLeary, J. (1994, p154)
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Example

• Module taken by students on BSc Information
  Management - 25 this year
• Level 1 semester 1
• 20 credits (i.e. a third of what they do in this
  semester)
• 3 hours most weeks 1 hr lecture followed by 2
  hours in computer lab
• WebCT to support class

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SCONUL 7 pillars of information literacy
Recognise information need
Distinguish ways of addressing gap
Basic Library Skills IT Skills
Construct strategies for locating
Information Literacy
Locate and access
Compare and evaluate
Organise, apply and communicate
Synthesise and create
http//www.sconul.ac.uk/
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• (10) Review of a website, article or book
• (50) Reflection on achievement in each of SCONUL
  7 pillars (1,500-1,750 words) plus portfolio of
  evidence including
• Before/after mindmaps
• Bibliography produced for student client
• Presentations
• Feedback from student client
• Anything else (e.g. other classes)
• (40) Examination

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Reflection/ portfolio

• Aims
• To reflect on your understanding of information
  literacy
• To improve your information searching skills by
  carrying out and evaluating a search for a
  real-life client
• To provide the client with relevant information
• To familiarise yourself with specific information
  sources
• Standard coursework feedback sheet individual
  comments

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• What they don't get marks for includes
• Feedback on ppt presentation on infolit
  strengths/ weaknesses in week 2 (from teaching
  staff peers)
• Feedback on ppt presentation of group search task
  in week 6 (from teaching staff)
• Feedback from peer and lecturer on reference
  interview in week 5/6
• Feedback on "bibliography" from student client in
  week 10
• It can be used as evidence in their portfolio

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Exercises identifying evaluating websites in
pairs
ppts of evaluations posted to discussion list,
some presented
Short talk about evaluating information
1
Further material on evaluating, including
"Internet Detective"
2
Examining how other people evaluate or review
Short review of a website, article or book on
information literacy (marked)
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etc. etc.
4
Group exercise searching evaluating information
on MMR vaccine
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I and a colleague play 2 scenes in which a
librarian and information scientist do poor
interviews
Students asked for feedback on what went
well/badly
Short lecture on interviewing techniques
1
Further reading on interviewing given
After each interview, interviewer, interviewee
tutor write down comments, then give verbal
feedback Written comments copied to interviewer
Tutorial Interview a fellow student "client" to
find out what information the client wants
2
Student reflects on interview in portfolio
(marked)
3
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Over to you! (1)

• 10 minutes to think individually about an
  assessment or assessment task you currently use,
  or would like to use. Fill out as much of the
  form as is helpful

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Over to you! (2)

• 20 minutes in groups. Choose a theme for your
  group presentation e.g.
• Ideas for using peer, self and expert assessment
• Bringing more variety into assessment - your
  ideas for particular assessments you have used or
  would like to use
• Collaborating (with teachers, students,
  administrators, IT experts) for changes in
  assessment

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Over to you! (3)

• 20 minutes for (some?) groups to feedback to
  everyone

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Contacts

• Sheila Webber s.webber_at_sheffield.ac.uk
• http//ciquest.shef.ac.uk/infolit/ - weblog
• http//dis.shef.ac.uk/literacy/