Assessment and Information Literacy

Carole HinshawUniversity of Central

Florida Librarieschinshaw@mail.ucf.edu

Kristy PadronUniversity of

West Florida Librarieskpadron@uwf.edu

Part I: AssessmentDefinitionsBuilding FoundationsAuthentic AssessmentFive Questions for Assessment DesignOutcomes (a.k.a. SLOs)Strategies

Part II: Assessment InstrumentsACRL StandardsAssessment TestsWho is assessing IL/IF?

Assessment and Information Literacy

Assessment

Definition:

• gathering and interpreting information about students’ achievement, and using that information to make decisions about lessons, course structure/content, grading, or program.

What is Assessment?

• Assessment is looking at what students are learning more than what the instructor is doing.

• Enriches understanding of how students are learning

• Assessment is about measuring what is most valued.

• Assessment is an ongoing process (aimed at understanding and improving student learning

More on Assessment

• Can be formal and informal• It reaffirms• It is not extra to the learning process or

an “add-on”• It is to be used as a compass: look at

direction

More on Assessment

• Not about data (gate counts, number of sessions) but evidence.

• Don’t wait for the perfect assessment plan! Step forward and try things!

Building Foundations for Assessment

Foundation/First Level: Philosophy

Second Level: Mission

Third Level: InfoLit Definition

Fourth Level: InfoLit OutcomesReference ServiceCourse-RelatedCredit-Course

What is Authentic Assessment?

How students apply their knowledge to real time tasks.

It measures not only what students know through information literacy / library instruction, but also how learning is incorporated in their actual work.

Five Questions for Assessment Design

1. What do you want the student to be able to do?

2. What does the student need to know in order to do this well?

3. What activity can facilitate the learning?4. How will the student demonstrate the

learning?5. How will I know the student has done this

well?

Five Questions for Assessment Design

1. What do you want the student to be able to do?

Outcomes:• A good outcome is measurable and can be

judged.• It is not too general (though it may depend

on the situation: they can be at institutional level and more specific at course level)

Five Questions for Assessment Design

2. What does the student need to know in order to do this well?

Curriculum, Prior Knowledge

Five Questions for Assessment Design

3. What activity can facilitate the learning?Pedagogy, Learning Activities

4. How will the student demonstrate the learning?

What will the student be able to do to show they got it?

Five Questions for Assessment Design

5. How will I know the student has done this well?

Examples:• Standards of measurement or judgment

(professionally, locally, or personally developed)

• Expression of your values• Rubrics

Outcomes (a.k.a. Student Learning Outcomes)

Characteristics of Outcomes:• Measurable, can be judged• Clear to the student, faculty and librarian• Integrated, developmental, transferable• Uses ACRL Standards as a basis and not as

an end• Matches the level of course, program, and

students• “In order to” get to the uniqueness of learning• Uses a variety of levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy

How to Draft Outcomes / SLOs

Outcomes Formula

Verb or Action Phrase

+ Impact Phrase

= Outcome

Verb or Action Phase

+ “In Order To”

= Outcome

How to Draft Outcomes / SLOs

Outcomes Formula

Verb or Action Phrase + Impact Phrase = Outcome

Verb or Action Phase + “In Order To” = Outcome!

Examples:

•Student distinguishes general and specialized databases in order to select the most appropriate database and maximize relevancy.

•Student uses a thesaurus or controlled language list in order to select topic relevant vocabulary.

•Librarian states several concepts of assessment in order to apply it as a viable information tool.

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Knowledge: list, define, label, name, recall, recite, select, memorize, identify

Comprehension: describe, discuss, summarize, distinguish, indicate, explain

Application: apply, construct, interpret, solve, experiment

Analysis: arrange, compare, contrast, classify, order, infer

Synthesis: formulate, estimate, integrate, propose, predict, create, develop

Evaluation: recommend, assess, measure, select, persuade, verify, conclude

Basic

Advanced Levels of Reasoning

Check & Balances for Outcomes

• Are any verbs used?• Does it involve a variety of levels of

Blooms Taxonomy?• Does it use different and specific “In

Order To’s”?• Is the language clear?• Is it generally the same scale or scope?

How many outcomes should be used?

• Use what is most important.• Three (3) outcomes are plenty for a

one-shot, 50-minute class.

Assessment Strategies

• Tackle portions at a time; not every outcome needs assessing (or, prioritize what is needed most).

• Decide what objectives are most important.• Make assessment practical and meaningful

for your students.• Collaborative work with faculty yields the best

integrated assignments.• Manage your assessments to they can add

up to a complete picture.

Assessment Instruments

•ACRL Standards•ETS-ICT•Project SAILS

ACRL Standards

• “IF Competency Standards for Higher Education provides a framework for assessing the information literate individual.”

• Competencies include five standards and twenty-two performance indicators.

• The standards also list a range of outcomes for assessing student progress.

• More Information:

http://www.acrl.org/ala/acrl/acrlissues/acrlinfolit/informationliteracy.htm

ACRL Standards

• Standard OneThe information literate student determines the nature and extent of the information needed.

• Standard TwoThe information literate student accesses needed information effectively and efficiently.

• Standard ThreeThe information literate student evaluates information and its sources critically and incorporates selected information into his or her knowledge base and value system.

ACRL Standards

• Standard FourThe information literate student, individually or as a member of a group, uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose.

• Standard FiveThe information literate student understands many of the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and accesses and uses information ethically and legally.

More information:

ACRL Research Agenda. Research agenda for library instruction and information literacy. ACRL IS Research and Scholarship Committee. Library & Information Science Research 25 (2003) 479-487.

Information Literacy Assessment Instruments. Compiled by Dr. Penny Beile, Head, Curriculum Materials Center, University of Central Florida Libraries. 6/2006.

University of Central Florida Quality Enhancement Plan. Information Fluency Document http://iaaweb.ucf.edu/qep/UCF_QEP_document.pdf

More information: http://www.if.ucf.edu

Educational Testing Service (ETS) Information & Communication Technology

Literacy Assessment (ICT)

• Measures cognitive & technical skills in an authentic, technology intensive environment, based on ACRL & ISTE standards.

• $33 per student per test• 75 minutes• More information

http://www.ets.org/ictliteracy

Project SAILSKent State University

Standardized Assessment of Information Literacy Skills

• Targets a several information literacy skills and is based on ACRL standards. Measures IF skill levels of groups (cohorts) of students.

• $3 per student per test with a cap of $2,000 per institution.

• 35 minutes• More information: http://

sails.lms.Kent.edu/index.php

JMU Information Literacy Test

• Designed to assess knowledge and application of knowledge and address ACRL standards 1,2,3, and 5.

• $5 per student per test• 60 minutes • More information at James Madison

University http://www.jmu.edu/assessment/wm_library/ILT.pdf

Who is assessing IL/IF?

• James Madison University

• Kent State University http://sails.lms.Kent.edu/index.php

• KSU Libraries & Media Services. TRAILS http://www.trails-9.org

• King’s College. Contact Terry Mech tfmech@kings.edu

• UCF QEP http://www.if.ucf.edu• Assessment plans are underway.

• Many individuals are designing library self-efficacy scales and library anxiety scales.