GSLIS students, staff speak at Information Literacy Summit

GSLIS students and staff spoke last week at the fifteenth annual Information Literacy Summit, held on April 29. The theme of the conference was “Shifting Perspectives: Developing Critical Approaches in Information Literacy.”

Lisa Hinchliffe (MS '94), GSLIS affiliated faculty member, presented a session titled, “Can a Constellation Be Critical? The Position(s) of the ACRL Framework and ACRL Standards for Information Literacy.”

The ACRL Board recently recognized that practitioners are beginning to achieve what it intended – the Framework and Standards (as well as other documents including the Best Practices, Guidelines, and Proficiencies) serve as a constellation through which practitioners shape their programs. This session will share models of how libraries are addressing the Framework and adapting their programs, as well as the challenges emerging as they do so. Using an appreciative inquiry approach, the session will propose a set of promising practices for librarians who are stepping up to the challenge “to be imaginative and innovative in implementing the Framework.”

GSLIS master’s students Alexander Deeke, Jennifer Saulnier, and Teagan Eastman presented, ”When Assignment Timing Doesn’t Line Up: Creating Instruction Activities for First-Year Students.”

Do you struggle with engaging students when library instruction does not align with the timing of their research assignment? This interactive presentation will highlight the importance of designing evaluation activities that are relevant to students regardless of when their assignments are due. The Undergraduate Library at the University of Illinois has developed activities that engage students in a conversation about evaluating information while teaching them transferable skills. Attendees will participate in an activity that demonstrates how we get students to critically examine information sources found using Google and databases, an activity you can adapt for your library regardless of your institution’s size.

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