2004 Poster Session
Teaching Users via the Web: Web-Based Training and Instruction in the Sciences
Monday June 7, 2004, 12:15 - 1:30 PM

ABSTRACT:
In addition to offering hands-on classes, printed tutorials and reference service, our library has been seeking a creative method to provide patrons new opportunities for learning library skills.

We have produced several tutorial movies that are aimed at illustrating in real time the use and function of the electronic resources in our library. These movies introduce the patrons, through a vivid demonstration, to new interfaces, provide instructions on improving their search skills, and promote new underutilized features. We have found that these movies have substantially expanded our teaching alternatives. The movies are used in library instruction sessions, library exhibits and they can be easily accessed through the web. The latter is particularly important as it provides 24/7 assistance, specifically to meet the needs of our patrons (busy scientists).

To produce these movies, we utilized software that can record on-screen activity and store it as a video stream. These videos are edited and additional content is incorporated. The ability to export the movies to various formats and platforms allows movies to be incorporated into PowerPoint presentations or produced as Flash streams that can be played in any internet browser. Creating animated graphic displays utilizing these technologies, has enabled us to make available on-demand training which appeals to the visual learners of the younger generation.

ABSTRACT:
Considerable attention has been paid in library literature to Web tutorials as an efficient means of delivering instruction on the use of online databases and other resources, yet libraries lag behind database producers and other online vendors in the development and use of online tutorials. Librarians, who must master the technology and software needed to produce such tutorials, face many challenges, including time and resource constraints. This poster traces the development of a tutorial for chemistry students at Texas A&M University in College Station. It was developed using Camtasia software by the chemistry librarian and an instructional services librarian. The poster provides information on the resources needed to develop the tutorial, examples from the tutorial, as well as a list of useful tools and aids.

ABSTRACT:
Increasing numbers of libraries are using instructional web pages to assist their patrons in using library resources. Because the web is often the main (or only) method of accessing many library resources (including catalogs, article indexes, and electronic journals), web instruction provides a number of advantages over print handouts and other traditional forms of instruction. These advantages include: direct interaction with the resources being taught, ability to combine or isolate relevant resources, and 24-hour access to instructional materials. This poster outlines the advantages of web instruction, offers guidelines to use in creating effective instructional web pages, and provides a list of resources (both commercially available and free on the web) that you can use to develop instructional web pages that work for your library.

ABSTRACT:
Given the task of incorporating a 20-minute information literacy component into an organic chemistry lecture to students waiting to take a quiz I opted to create an online tutorial with an accompanying assignment. The instructor requested that the tutorial include resources to determine physical properties of compounds, SciFinder Scholar, ACS Journals and Web of Knowledge. Dreamweaver was used to create the website and Adobe Photoshop used to create images. Animation was excluded to eliminate accessibility as a problem and because the site had to be completed within two weeks. The tutorial was designed to teach on two levels; to students familiar with library resources and to those students who have never used the resources of the library.

A recurring complaint students make about organic chemistry is that it is not relevant to their lives – except for being a required course. To address this a current events article was used to connect the different components of the tutorial (physical properties, SciFinder Scholar, etc.) and turn it into a story. Food chains had been sued by a consumer group for not labeling farm-raised salmon “dye added”. Dyes are actually added to salmon feed. One of the dyes, canthaxanthin became the focus of the tutorial by asking the questions: what is it; what are its physical properties; and what studies have been conducted showing the effects of the dye on humans. Students found the topic "interesting".

ABSTRACT:
This poster details the use of Blackboard to present and conduct a course at LSU entitled, "Information Retrieval in the Sciences", a mandatory, for-credit course for Biochemistry majors. I will illustrate some of the tools available in Blackboard for course use and how I employ them within the scope of this particular course. Among the questions I will address are the following: How does the instructor decide what to put on Blackboard? How are the materials actually created and uploaded, and how are they used by students and instructors? Are students able to submit homework electronically via Blackboard? Are there online discussion facilities? What are some of the positive and negative aspects of using this system?

ABSTRACT:
Much debate in the library literature has focused on the effectiveness of web-based or online instruction versus traditional face-to-face library instruction. While both forms of library instruction have their strengths and weaknesses the poster will present a hybrid or blended learning approach to information literacy that we believe offers students and instructors the greatest benefit by addressing diverse learning styles, encouraging active participation, providing 24/7 access, utilizing technology and fostering student contact with librarians. The poster will outline the above experiences in developing a web-based library tutorial for Chemistry and Biochemistry students.

These sessions were delivered in a hands-on library-lab setting and were led by a team of librarians with facilitators.
Using the web as a platform has resulted in more interactive and flexible sessions, with the result that students have shown increased engagement, participation, and focus on task as they pursue their individual research tasks. The web has also allowed for the accommodation of different learning styles and increased access to the materials after the class. The platform also enables students to follow the lecture more closely. This will be of interest to those instructing in the sciences, those instructing in large-class environments, those using the web as a teaching platform and those involved in team teaching. The poster will present examples and discuss the creation and benefits of the tutorials.

ABSTRACT:
Content management systems (CMS) are receiving increased attention in the library world for managing the content of web sites. In the e-learning field, the development and use of reusable learning objects (RLOs) is intended to help manage a wide array of online instructional materials and systems. The combination of a CMS and RLOs offers advantages in terms of streamlining the maintenance and development of web-based materials, including developing and maintaining instructional content, in a variety of formats, for information literacy instruction in the sciences. For example, concepts such as the scientific information cycle and scholarly communication apply to many scientific disciplines. Other concepts, such as the use of Registry numbers in chemical searching and basic database search concepts, also lend themselves to incorporation as RLOs. One of the advantages of CMSs in this context is their use in managing these digital assets

The research described here uses the example of information literacy in chemistry and related disciplines (e.g., toxicology, biochemistry, pharmacology) to demonstrate how a CMS, RLOs, and science information literacy concepts can be integrated to develop a suite of online instructional tools, whether in the form of online tutorials, subject guides, course pages, or database guides. While the system described involves RLOs, it also offers flexibility and is customizable for use with separate tutorials or other materials. Details of scientific content and the technology of these systems are provided.

ABSTRACT:
The move to serve a global population with centrally provided corporate information services has broadened the way we develop training for our customers. The poster will cover the traditional methods of training and what they've morphed into. We currently create and use remote instructor led sessions, remote one on one(s), on-line guides, on-line tutorials using screen captures, on-line seminars with web broadcast/web video and "sandbox" training areas.

ABSTRACT:
Students and faculty at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) are blessed with a rich variety of information resources, but often struggle selecting the right resource to use when they have an information need. In 2002 the library administration requested the libraries’ instruction and web development committees to collaborate in the development of a web-based resource guiding users through the maze of licensed and free information resources. The two committees created the “Getting Started” website, guiding students of all disciplines, including science and engineering, to appropriate resources for common information needs, as well as providing basic instruction in using these resources. Our training in information science, as well as common sense told us that the Getting Started website should be easy to use. To ensure this, the librarians responsible for creating the website conducted extensive usability studies of the website as it was being developed. At every step, the findings of these usability studies forced us to reassess the effectiveness of the website we were creating, and even led us to question if the website should be released to our users. This poster will describe the development of the Getting Started website, and will show how getting input from our users helped us to create a much more useful resource.

ABSTRACT:
Chemistry literacy and information literacy can go hand in hand as evidenced in this project involving University of South Florida faculty, graduate students and a local community middle school. The project was a pilot plan for enhancing science and information literacy in middle school students along with their families. The project introduced eighth grade students and their families to the use of scientific information to make decisions about socioscientific issues--specifically, global warming. Integrated into laboratory activities about gases and global warming was an online tutorial for information literacy. The tutorial is an adaptation of TILT, the Texas Information Literacy Tutorial, that focuses particularly on searching the web and evaluating the information found there. 

ABSTRACT:
Undergraduates in engineering and the sciences are being called upon to have greater involvement in research activities than ever before. The ability to efficiently and effectively locate, evaluate, and use information resources is crucial to their success, particularly at a time when these resources are increasingly varied and sophisticated. Specifically, use of chemical information is a significant factor for not only chemistry majors but chemical engineers, materials engineers, and those working in other allied fields as well. While chemical information courses have existed for graduate students, it is time to extend this kind of instruction to those undergraduates with the greatest need.

We propose that chemical information instruction be incorporated into the curriculum for chemistry, chemical engineering, and materials engineering students. This can best be accomplished via online chemical information modules integrated into an existing undergraduate chemistry courses. Online modules provide instantaneous customization of examples and exercises to suit the varied interests and requirements of each student’s specific field.

It is possible to take existing chemistry assignments and seamlessly integrate chemical information components into them. This means there would be no additional burden of work on the students. This approach would also not infringe significantly on the instructor’s class time. Assignments would be administered as online modules, completed in a progression throughout the course, and include automatic assessment and tracking of students’ progress.

In 2002 we reported on the first module, Scientific Communication. We propose to report on the further development of module 2, Disciplinary Resources, of this prototype tutorial designed for an undergraduate chemistry course that chemical engineers are required to take.

ABSTRACT:
Librarians from NC State University, UNC-Chapel Hill, Duke University, and NC Central University are creating a modular, Web-based library tutorial for introductory biology courses. This cooperative effort involves collaboration both within libraries and across campuses. Subject specialist librarians are writing the content, and instruction librarians are providing feedback on pedagogy and best practices related to online library instruction. Web librarians and computing staff are looking at content structure and systems, including standards and best practices, portability and shared use, and systems-related issues. All four participating universities will share some of the tutorial content, while some sections are being customized for each campus, to accommodate institutional differences in class assignments, library holdings, and systems requirements. Technological elements of the tutorial will also be shared or customized as needed. For example, all four universities will include reusable learning objects such as the Citation Builder, an application developed at the NCSU Libraries, but only NC State has plans to include Viewlets to demonstrate database or catalog searching. This collaborative approach can serve as a model for creating tutorials in other subject areas; for example, the campuses’ chemistry librarians are considering a similar project. In this poster session, we will present an overview of the project’s evolution, explore issues to consider when planning a collaborative instructional project, and provide a preview of current and future features of the tutorial, including a planned migration to a content management system (CMS).

ABSTRACT:
At the University of Rochester librarians have long worked with Chemistry faculty to tailor library instruction to support the chemistry curriculum and to select resources that best work for students. The authors wanted to make it easier for our students in the large (200+) organic chemistry labs to find the information that we provided in a 20-minute class presentation and to include more details than could be managed in a handout. To this end, the chemistry librarian developed a web-based guide that leads students into the relevant organic chemistry literature for identifying their unknown compound. This guide is always available and easy for students to locate because it is hosted on the Libraries Course Resources System that students embrace early in their academic careers. Overall, the new guide was a success as measured by the strong request of second term students for access to the guide’s resources and heavy use as indicated by web statistics. We also discovered that not only were more students able to readily find the resources that they needed for their lab, but that some students came to the Reference desk better prepared to discuss the nuances of finding the needed information than previously.

ABSTRACT:
Our Library has worked with the College of Extended Education to record our university's televised classes. Previously we provided VHS tapes for students to view, however, starting in Fall Semester 2003, the Library converted to videostreaming. Students no longer needed to come to the library to check out a tape; they could view their recorded class from any computer with Internet access. Over the past 10 years, I've been showing the 2nd semester organic chemistry students how to research their synthesis paper. The organic class is offered 3 times each year - once in each semester (Fall, Spring and Summer). Currently the instruction session is taught in the library's classroom, an instructional lab with 20 terminals holding 40 students, 2 at each terminal. With the growth of the bio-related disciplines, the number of students in each class section has grown from 25 to 60, with a possible 80 students per section in the near future. During the Spring 2004 semester I taught over 320 students in 6 sections, cramming in 50+ students in a room designed for 40. Could videostreaming present me with other options for teaching this class? As the library already had the technology and staff in place, perhaps the cost would be low enough to make it viable in these tight budget times. I decided to find out; this poster will summarize my efforts (or should I say, adventures?).