Dear All,

In February I asked for some information from those University libraries
using electronic information skills and I promised to feedback the results
to the list.  I would like to apologise that it has taken me so long.
Thanks to all the comments and feedback I got.

I am also sorry that I did not take part in the discussions that Matt
Holland started on computer mediated packages being a displacement
activity.  I think Claire Ryan, Jenny Brook and Ian Winship but my views
forward very well.  And yes Matt, you are right to make us question - just
to make sure that good practice rather than technology is pushing the way
forward.

Ruth

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Now onto the summary of the feedback - I received six replies, but two were
in the process of developing their systems and therefore could not answer
all the questions.

1a.  Did the Library develop the package themselves?
3 yes
1 amended an existing package produced by another organisation (Pilot from
QUT).

1b.  How long did the development take?
6 months, 2 staff days a week (but it really took slightly longer than that)
6 months
18 months


1c.  How many staff were involved in the development and what type of staff
were they?
2 Information specialists with support from the Teaching and Learning
Technology Specialist
10 staff approximately - web developer, temp member of staff, plus a number
of information Advisors and other LIS staff.
Library staff wrote the content and Web developers.
No response

2.  How long have you had the package?  (Bear in mind this question was
asked in February so should add another four months onto these figures.
6 months
18 months
5 months
couple of months

3.  Do you update it on a regular basis and who is responsible for this?
1 on a regular basis
1 Annually
1 No, but we should

4.  How is the package used?
For example is it embeded into a module, used with face to face teaching or
a stand alone / voluntary package?
All of the packages have been designed to be used in a module, with face to
face teaching or stand alone.  The usage varied depending on what is
required by the departments.  Comments were:

*It has been designed to be used either as a "work through" module or as a
"dip in" facility so that users can access just the bits they need at that
time. It is designed for independent study so that students who are
distance learners or part-time, who miss the face to face sessions or who
want to recap etc. can use it, but also it was designed to be used to help
with the face to face teaching by LIS staff of information skills and is
there for academics to use in their teaching too. It is also seen as a tool
for referral either by academics in their tutoring role and/or Library
staff who see people on the Enquiry desk or who receive emails etc.  Thus
it depends how the Schools wish to use it.
*Individual basis and recommendation to course directors and in some
Library training sessions.
*The information skills section is used on a stand alone basis although
plans are being developed to develop this further.

5.  Does the package include assessment and is this added to the students
record?
1 No
Rest of the responses said that quizes were included, but there was no
formal assessment that was added to a student record.  Comments were:

*The package does not include formal assessment as this was not appropriate
at this University.  Mostly, information skills is undertaken as an add on
(optional) rather than being obligatory. However the tutorial does include
quizes to test knowledge and is designed to be as interactive as possible
so that they undertake a search in a live window e.g. on the Internet or
Library catalogue etc.  The self marking tests are created using Castle.
*There is some assessment but this is just for student information only and
is not geared to specific student responses to given questions, but
guidelines as to the response which should have been forthcoming.

6.  Do you have figures on how often it is used?
Only one insitution was at present able to collect reliable statistics on
how often the course was being utilised, although they had not had an
opportunity to review them.

7.  Any comment you would like to add?
*We looked at various examples before embarking on the project to decide
what would work for us. We decided that we were doing it on a shoestring
and therefore would try and keep it simple and not reinvent the wheel where
information was already available on our site or on others and so used
links to other info where ever possible. We also avoided using a VLE, as
there are various ones being used in the University and opted to use
straight Internet instead. We wrote it using Front page and Castle Toolkit
software and with a little technical backup from our TLT specialist to help
with frames, navigation setting up quizzes etc.
*We need to get it embedded more into units on courses. We know that
voluntary methods are not enough.  One of the other hard tasks is to get
commitment from all LIS staff to use it in sessions. There is the same
danger from librarians that there is from academics about using generic
material.
*We are currently looking in to breaking it down into modules which our
librarians can contextualise for subject teaching and which can then be
embedded into WebCT.




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Ruth Stubbings
Academic Services Manager
Pilkington library
Loughborough University
Loughborough
LE11 3TU

Telephone:  01509 222345
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