Critical information literacy is a way of thinking and teaching that examines the social construction and political dimensions of libraries and information, problematizing information's production and use so that library users may think critically about such forces. Being an educational approach that acknowledges and emboldens learners' agency,…

The purpose of this paper is to describe how a series of one-shot or single class library instruction webinars were created for on-campus and distance education students at Virginia Tech, a land grant institution in rural southwestern Virginia. Virginia Tech's distance learning department on campus trained in Centra 7.6 software and the lead…

This article explores student, instructor, and librarian perceptions of chat reference in the context of an introductory composition course. Participants in a mixed-method study responded to an anonymized chat transcript. While student respondents valued speed and efficiency, they were willing to receive instruction and open to questions that…

The research aimed to discover the perceived impact and to identify the value of four information skills teaching interventions within the curriculum in three faculties at the University of the West of England. Faculty and library staff interviews and student focus groups were used to gather evidence about the perceived impact of the…

Libraries are continually changing to meet the needs of users; this includes implementing discovery tools, also referred to as web-scale discovery tools, to make searching library resources easier. Because these tools are so new, it is difficult to establish definitive best practices for teaching these tools; however, promising practices are…

The Attaining Information Literacy Project has focused on identifying first-year college students with below-proficient information literacy skills, gaining an understanding of those students' self-views and perceptions of information literacy, gaining an understanding of their instructional experiences and preferences, and developing an…

As the availability of digital resources increased exponentially over the last two decades, academic libraries have heavily invested in electronic resources and made them accessible via library Web portals. Yet, underutilization of library Web portals is a common concern among academic libraries. According to the information systems (IS)…

This column presents an interview with Nick Baker, Reference and Web Services librarian at Williams College. Baker has produced several films for and about the library profession. In 2007, he won an InfoTubey Award for Outstanding Library YouTube Productions for his work. In this interview, Baker shares his ideas and experiences about this…

In summer 2008, a small group of Santa Clara University librarians were charged with exploring ways of making online library research guides more user friendly and interactive. In order to know how to enhance our guides, we first asked the question, "What makes a research guide useful?" What follows is a detailed process of discovery.…

This research was conducted to investigate the relationships between conceptions and practice of information literacy in academic libraries. To create a structure for the investigation, the research adopted the framework of Argyris and Schon (1974) in which professional practice is examined via theories of action, namely espoused theories and…

This qualitative study examines current community college library practices in developmental education. Based on semistructured telephone interviews with 27 librarians across the United States, analysis of the results shows that there are librarians who proactively integrate basic library skills into developmental education and academic success…

Provides an example of a course integrated library instruction assignment in biographical research for undergraduate journalism students. The assignment is shown to accomplish three goals: development of library skills, knowledge of important living journalists, and a review of interviewing techniques. (EM)

Discussion of occupational mistakes focuses on a study of mistakes in reference performance of librarians, paraprofessionals, and student assistants at an academic library. Topics discussed include technical and judgment errors, redefining the reference process, normative errors, instructional goals of the reference staff, and suggestions for…

Describes orientation programs offered at seven Israeli university libraries and discusses implications for library orientations at University of Missouri Kansas City, including utilizing student tour guides and improving the learning environment for international students. A checklist of questions for interviews with Israeli librarians is…

Reports on interviews with six librarians and one faculty member about their views on what the future holds for the undergraduate library and what it needs to do in order to remain a vital and relevant part of the campus community. Topics include digitization, expanded hours of service, and bibliographic instruction. (LRW)