In an earlier blog post, I explain that I’ve figured out my teaching style. In this one, I prove that I didn’t and don’t really know much about teaching yet. (That’s the first step in learning, isn’t it?) I’m only just recently starting to use active learning techniques. This is an explanation of my first and very successful attempt at it.

Earlier this week I taught a class of new undergraduate students about the research tools that are available to them. It was one of my best teaching experiences to date, and it was totally different than my usual teaching style.

A little background about this class: they are required to learn about the research tools available to them, but they usually have no research assignments in the quarter they take this class. As a result, the instruction can’t be applied to anything they are currently working on—so they tend to, understandably, zone out.

I knew what I had to teach, but I had reservations about doing it the usual way. In the past I would give them an overview of the websites they would (hopefully) be using and demonstrate how to use them. This time I wanted to do something different.

I decided to break the students into teams. I made signs for each website I wanted to go over: RefWorks, OhioLINK, Academic Search Complete, Google Scholar, and WorldCat. I taped each sign to a monitor in each group of computers. When the students arrived, I asked them to choose a website and a seat. Once we were ready to begin, I had each row work together to fill out a handout that asked what the website was for and how it should be used. When their handouts looked filled in and their conversations were starting to go off topic (about 10 minutes later), I asked them to present their findings. Each group presented about their website, and I added any useful information they missed.

If a presentation covered topics that were too vague to imagine, I performed a brief demonstration. The Academic Search Complete group went before the OhioLINK group, so when OhioLINK came around I was able to draw the connection between them. OhioLINK is the website through which we access Academic Search Complete, but students often misunderstand OhioLINK as the database itself. After all the presentations were completed, I provided a handout that included how to log in from off campus and all the URLs to the websites we discussed. Then we took a break.

After the break, I asked the students to write down what kinds of people get tattoos. I had the students to talk with the others in their row to come up with one answer. After a couple minutes, I asked for their ideas and drew a mindmap with “people who have tattoos” in the center and their examples stemming from that. I explained that they had just brainstormed more specific examples of an idea, something they will want to do when they search for information for their research. They loved that!

I then explained linking words (Boolean operators without the scary name) and had them to try it out on Academic Search Complete using another handout as a prompt. We went over the handout and I asked them why they had more results for OR than for AND. It really seemed to help them understand.

When the class was over, I requested that they write down one thing they learned and one thing that still confused them. (I used to provide questions like, “How likely are you to use this information?” and “How much did you know previously?”—more evaluation of me than assessment of their learning.) I got some great information from that.

The whole thing was a combination of other people’s ideas. The part before the break was inspired by Erin Dorney. It was based on my understanding of her library instruction style. She splits her students into groups, asks them to explore a website, and has them report back to their class about it. The part after the break was from Michael Lorenzen on LibraryInstruction.com and worked like a charm. The assessment at the end was inspired by Catherine Pellegrino‘s ACRL webcast on July 19, “Classroom Assessment for Information Literacy Instruction.”

I’m trying to use more active learning techniques in my instruction. In this class, I used think-pair-share, recasting, minute papers/freewriting, and scanning. It worked fabulously for this level class, and I think it will work well for higher levels too… Now I’m trying to figure out how to do that.

Do you use active learning techniques in your instruction sessions? If so, what activities do you plan?

I learned something about my teaching style this week. I taught library instruction for two sections of the same course (Style & Argument).

The first instructor asked me not to prepare. His idea was that showing the research process in action would teach the students that research takes time — it’s not easy, even for an expert. Demonstrating without any notes went well this time, but I would prefer at least an outline if I do it again. As someone new to instruction, I still need notes!

The other instructor wanted me to emphasize specific topics: the concept of scholarly research, objectivity vs subjectivity, and how to evaluate information. With those goals in mind, I designed a presentation for her class. Luckily I had recently done one presentation on the research process and another on evaluating information, so I mashed them up. The result was this presentation:

I think this presentation on The Basics of Research was just what the students in this class needed. They seemed to understand the whole idea of research much better as we went through, especially during the part on evaluating sources. After we went through the slides, we brainstormed thesis questions, turned those into keywords, and I demonstrated how I would search some databases with those words.

I am definitely more comfortable with presenting, though I appreciate the value of live demonstrations. It’s much easier for me to stay on topic with slides — during demonstrations I sometimes lose my place.

What strategy for library instruction works for you? Do you demonstrate, present, or both?

My handouts from this presentation are available on SlideShare:

• The Research Process
• Scholarly vs Popular Periodicals

I’ve been working at my new job as Reference & Instruction Librarian at a small liberal arts college for a little over 3 months so far. It’s hard to believe. So far I’ve been busy designing and presenting instructional sessions, writing a white paper, meeting with students for reference interviews, meeting with faculty to discuss their needs, creating LibGuides and tutorials, and prototyping a new website.

On top of the diversity of projects and responsibilities I have, I feel so lucky to be working with such awesome people. The library is very small and staffed with a handful of delightful federal work study students, another part-time librarian, and a radically militant (and just plain rad) library director.

Thus far, my biggest challenge has been designing instructional sessions for nontraditional students. When I took a workshop on instructional design through Simmons Continuing Education last summer, I learned that one of the first things an instructor should do is consider their students and how their students learn best. It sounds so obvious, but it’s easy to ignore. At the small liberal arts college where I work, our average student is 38 years old. Depending on the class, I could have students that use computers all the time mixed with students who are unfamiliar with the use of a mouse. I’m struggling to understand how to reach the lowest common denominator without losing the attention of the more advanced students.

Got any tips or tricks for library instructional design? What’s your biggest challenge?