Information Literacy

in the New
Core Curriculum

Elisa Slater Acosta

Library Instruction Coordinator
Loyola Marymount University
What is Information Literacy?
 Definitions

“Information literacy is a set of

abilities requiring individuals to
recognize when information is
needed and have the ability to
locate, evaluate, and use effectively
the needed information” (ACRL)

“Information literacy empowers

people in all walks of life to seek,
evaluate, use, and create
information effectively to achieve
their personal, social, occupational
and educational goals” (UNESCO)

Image courtesy of Beloit College Library http://www.beloit.edu/library/infolit/

ACRL Information Literacy Standards

http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/informationliteracycompetency
WASC Accreditation
WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION

ORAL
COMMUNICATION

CORE QUANTITATIVE
COMPETENCIES REASONING

INFORMATION
LITERACY

CRITICAL
THINKING

WASC 2013 Handbook of Accreditation, CFR 2.2a

Loyola Marymount University

• Private Jesuit and

Marymount university
in Los Angeles, CA

• 6,087 Undergraduate
• 2,220 Graduate

• WASC visit Fall 2014

WASC Assessment

institution-level assessment
LMU Undergraduate Learning Goals and Outcomes (2010)

Information literacy:

Students will be able to identify information needs,

locate and access relevant information and critically
evaluate a diverse array of sources

http://www.lmu.edu/about/services/academicplanning/assessment/Undergraduate_Learning_Goals_and_Outcomes.htm
7

Sources of Evidence

• Direct Measure: Looks at student work products or

performances that demonstrate learning
• iSkills Testing

• Indirect Measure: Captures students’ perceptions of their

learning and the educational environment that supports
learning
• National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
• 2012 Alumni Outcomes Survey
Powerpoint slide courtesy of the LMU Office of Assessment
 LMU Assessment Cycle
for information literacy outcome

2012 2013
iSkills Testing 2014
Evidence
Alumni
Report Actions for
Outcomes Survey Improvement
NSSE

Massa, Laura and Kasimatis, Margaret. Meaningful Assessment of the WASC Core Competencies (Mini-workshop) 2013
http://2013.wascarc.org/content/meaningful-assessment-wasc-core-competencies-mini-workshop
New Core Curriculum

course-level & program-level assessment

 Core Outcomes (25)

Through the LMU Core, students will be able to…

• collect, interpret, evaluate and use evidence to make arguments

and produce knowledge.

• identify information needs, locate and access information and

critically evaluate sources.
 Info Lit Flag

http://www.lmu.edu/libraries_research/cte/Resources/New_University_Core_Curriculum.htm
First Year Seminar
 First Year Seminar
• Freshman requirement – Fall Semester

• Assign at least 10% of the course grade on the basis of

assessed information literacy, which must include
completion of standardized tutorials prepared by LMU
librarians

Information Literacy Outcomes:

1. Be able to evaluate sources for quality (e.g., by learning to differentiate

between scholarly and popular sources)

2. Acquire research skills including use of the library catalog and

electronic databases to retrieve books or articles, whether in print or
online

http://www.lmu.edu/Assets/First+Year+Seminar.pdf
Lion’s Guide to Research & The Library

Public version of the tutorial

http://library.lmu.edu/research/researchtutorials/
Module 2
Module 2
Module 3
Module 3
Quiz
Overall Average Scores:
FYS Info Literacy
100%

95%
93%

90%
87% Module (across 74
86% courses)
87%
85%
Quiz (across 69 courses)
82% 84%
80%
80%
78%
75%
Starting… Types of Finding & Using Info
Info Evaluating Ethically
Mapping Course Outcomes
to Quiz Questions
 Planned Improvements

Break down content into

smaller, shorter chunks

Create a “handbook” that

includes a summary of key
points/content covered in
tutorials & other supporting
materials

Encourage more integration

of content into FYS course
and provide assignment or
activity suggestions
Rhetorical Arts
 Rhetorical Arts
• Freshman requirement – Spring Semester

• Assign at least 10% of the final course grade on the basis

of information literacy, with a librarian-led workshop and one
or more course-integrated assignments

Information Literacy Outcomes:

1. Conceptualize an effective research strategy and then collect, interpret,
evaluate and cite evidence in written and oral communication
2. Distinguish between types of information resources and how these
resources meet the needs of different levels of scholarship and different
academic disciplines

http://www.lmu.edu/Assets/Rhetorical+Arts.pdf
Course Integrated Assignments
 Assessment

Library Rubrics
• Annotated Bibliography
• Research Diary

Core Assessment Committee

• Collect random sample of
student work
• Modify & calibrate the
rubric
• May 2014?
Information Literacy Flag
 Information Literacy Flag

• All students must take one Info Lit Flagged course to graduate

• Any course at the 200 level or higher is eligible

• No course may carry more than two flags

• At least 10% of the total course grade must assess information

literacy
 Learning Outcomes – IL Flag

1. Select information that provides relevant evidence for a topic.

2. Find and use scholarly and discipline-specific professional

information.

3. Differentiate between source types (differences include primary

vs. secondary vs. tertiary sources; scholarly vs. popular sources;
professional vs. academic) recognizing how their use and
importance vary with each discipline

4. Evaluate resources for reliability, validity, accuracy, authority, and

bias.
 “Assignment as Assessment”
• Poster
• Research Prospectus
• Historical Trace
• Scientific Literature Review
• Podcast
• Research Journal/Blog
• Citation Chasing
• Business Plan http://lmulibrary.typepad.com/lmu-library-news/2012/03/undergraduate-research-symposium.html

• Source Evaluation
• Annotated Bibliography
 Program Assessment

Rubric Resources
• AAC&U VALUE Rubrics
• RAILS - Rubric Assessment of Information Literacy Skills
• Locally developed rubrics
 Librarians can help…

• Designing & Revising IL

assignments
• Instruction - teaching search strategy,
how to evaluate sources
• Custom Research guides/Online
tutorials
• Assessment - rubrics & testing
• Get Help - research consultation
appointments, chat or text-a-librarian, in-
person or phone help

Image created by Jamie Hazlitt, Outreach Librarian

 Additional Information
• PPT Slides:
http://works.bepress.com/elisa_acosta/7

• Contact Information:
Elisa Slater Acosta
elisa.acosta@lmu.edu

All images are from Microsoft Office clip art unless noted.
SIG-2 California Academic and Research Libraries (CARL): Information Literacy Is Core: From
Building Assessment Capacity to Accreditation

April 23, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Atrium 3
This SIG gathering is designed for librarians, teaching faculty, and academic administrators who wish to learn more about what
distinguishes information literacy from other core competencies and how to promote its development on campuses. We will
discuss strategies for creating awareness and building relationships with specific groups and/or units at academic institutions.
Assessment instruments and methodologies will be reviewed, and examples provided of implementation of information literacy
assessment at different levels. The gathering will conclude with implications for accreditation.
• Convener: Les Kong
CARL Executive Board member and Coordinator, Media Services
California State University, San Bernardino
• Panelists: Lynn Lampert
Chair, Research, Instruction and Outreach Services, and Information Literacy Librarian
California State University, Northridge
• Panelists: Catherine Palmer
Department Head, Education and Outreach, UC Irvine Libraries
University of California, Irvine
• Panelists: Elisa Slater Acosta
Coordinator, Library Instruction
Loyola Marymount University
• Panelists: Henri Mondschein
Manager of Information Literacy, Pearson Library
California Lutheran University