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An increasing amount of coursework, both at the secondary and postsecondary level, is being conducted online. This shift in the delivery method of education which began at the college level is now occurring throughout the K-16 continuum. Because many of the students in these classes and programs will never set foot into the host institution, this transformation has necessitated a great deal of change in all aspects of library services, including information literacy instruction. This conference program will spotlight some innovative ways that libraries are conducting and delivering instruction to this new cohort.

<p>The aim of this Master’s thesis is to investigate Umeå University Library’s provision for its visiting international students. Questions addressed include: whether this library considers its international students to have specific needs which are different from those of domestic students; what kind of provision is offered to international students; and whether and what kind of affective barriers international students experience in this academic library.</p><p>For this case study two semi-structured interview questionnaires were designed, one for librarians and the other for international students. Three contact librarians and five international students were interviewed. The students differ as to nationality, gender, and level of education. They are non-native English speakers and have stayed in Sweden longer than six months.</p><p>The theoretical framework for this study is partially based on Budd’s library instruction model and partially on Bostick‘s five dimensions of library anxiety: barriers with staff, affective barriers, comfort with the library, knowledge of the library, and mechanical barriers.</p><p>The empirical findings are that apart from a library introduction and a library tour the library does not provide any special services for international students. The library appears to work on a one-size-fits-all assumption, sprinkled with a feel-free-to-ask-me attitude, rather than offering course-integrated library instruction sessions. At best, international students might get one timely library instruction opportunity. At worst, they use the library only for studying in it rather than for information searching. The study confirms the findings from the literature that the international students experience library anxiety. In order to overcome this anxiety, this thesis proposes that library instruction sessions are introduced into all international programmes and courses; that a liaison librarian should be appointed; and that a library website tailored to the needs of international students should be designed.</p>

The United States is experiencing a socio-demographic shift in population and education. Latinos are the fastest growing segment of the population on the national level and in higher education. The Latino student population growth rate and Latino college completion rate are not reciprocal. While Latino students are the fastest growing demographic group in higher education, they continue to have the lowest persistence and retention rates. Latino students are more at risk for dropping out of college than any other ethnic group. Latinos decreasing persistence rates have caused an academic achievement gap in higher education (Long, 2011). Literature has correlated the gap with Latinos limited IL competency and low library usage (Long, 2011).This quasi-experimental research examined the effects of a targeted information literacy (IL) instructional method on Latino community college students IL skills and library usage. The study also introduced the idea of using a connectivism based targeted instruction to influence Latinos IL skills and library usage. The intent of the study was to investigate the development of information literacy instruction (ILI) which targets Latino students and uses the principles of connectivism. Connectivism posits that students' learn by connecting to information along their personal learning networks (Siemens, 2005). Connectivism helps position the library within Latino students' personal learning networks. This positioning may increase their library usage and by extension their IL skills. Specifically, this quantitative study assessed the effect of the instruction on IL skills and library usage behavior of Latino community college students. A pretest/posttest control group design was used for this study. A sample of 92 Latino male and female students completed the pretest and posttest. They were recruited from a diverse population of community college students who were registered for Introductory English classes. Data was collected through instrumentation that included an Information Literacy Rubric, an Information Literacy Skills Test, a Library Usage Survey/Demographic Identification Form, and a Citation Analysis Form. Though two of the hypotheses were not supported, the data collected allowed the researcher to accomplish two of the purposes of this study, to design and assess a targeted ILI that increases Latino students' IL skills and library usage, and to advance the research that grounds the emerging learning theory of connectivism. The more connections students made to information sources the higher their overall IL skill score were. This data suggests that as students make connections to information resources they are learning IL skills and the more sources they connect to, the more they learn. Though TI did not emerge as the more effective method, it is effective at increasing library usage and IL skills in Latino community college students'. The results of this study may lead to a better understanding of how students acquire IL skills. Instruction has become increasingly important in librarianship and recently has even eclipsed traditional reference service. (Grassian & Kaplowitz, xix, 2009). More and more academic libraries are being held accountable for their contribution to student learning. The findings of this study provide evidence that the instructional efforts of the library are influencing student learning outcomes.

The aim of this Master’s thesis is to investigate Umeå University Library’s provision for its visiting international students. Questions addressed include: whether this library considers its international students to have specific needs which are different from those of domestic students; what kind of provision is offered to international students; and whether and what kind of affective barriers international students experience in this academic library. For this case study two semi-structured interview questionnaires were designed, one for librarians and the other for international students. Three contact librarians and five international students were interviewed. The students differ as to nationality, gender, and level of education. They are non-native English speakers and have stayed in Sweden longer than six months. The theoretical framework for this study is partially based on Budd’s library instruction model and partially on Bostick‘s five dimensions of library anxiety: barriers with staff, affective barriers, comfort with the library, knowledge of the library, and mechanical barriers. The empirical findings are that apart from a library introduction and a library tour the library does not provide any special services for international students. The library appears to work on a one-size-fits-all assumption, sprinkled with a feel-free-to-ask-me attitude, rather than offering course-integrated library instruction sessions. At best, international students might get one timely library instruction opportunity. At worst, they use the library only for studying in it rather than for information searching. The study confirms the findings from the literature that the international students experience library anxiety. In order to overcome this anxiety, this thesis proposes that library instruction sessions are introduced into all international programmes and courses; that a liaison librarian should be appointed; and that a library website tailored to the needs of international students should be designed.

The purpose of this qualitative study is to contribute knowledge on how students in an academic setting conceptualise information literacy, how they interact with information and library provided resources to meet their information needs, as well as to examine how the academic library supports students with their studies as a facilitator and its role in information literacy instruction. Taking a qualitative approach, the study used semi-structured interviews to gather the necessary data. To collect the empirical data, twenty-six students of the University of Cyprus (UCY) who actively use the library of the institution were interviewed. After the interviews, several themes emerged concerning how students conceptualise information literacy, as well as their opinions on the role of the library as a facilitator for their studies. The findings showed that students relate information literacy mainly to information seeking activities and the appropriate use of information. Concerning the use of library resources, students tend to use both printed and electronic material in order to meet their information needs. The findings also revealed that students are satisfied with the library collection as they find it quite sufficient in helping them accomplish their studies. As far as the teaching of information literacy is concerned, most interviewed students believe that a stand-alone credit information literacy course would be more beneficial and efficient for students, rather than an information literacy course embedded in one of their classes. The importance of an active mode and the compulsory nature of these courses against a passive mode and non-mandatory nature has also been stressed by the students.

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In this edition of Practitioner Panel, we share comments from the graduate librarian community about key research skills librarians cover when providing course instruction, workshops, and research consultations; types of training offered for new faculty, adjuncts, and graduate teaching assistants; and some AI tools librarians are currently using and strategies for discussing AI use with graduate students. (Some responses have been very lightly edited for typos or clarity.) After the questions and answers, we present overviews of two notable resources, adapted from responses to our Spring 2024 call for information about conference presentations pertinent to graduate librarianship. While we did not receive enough submissions to warrant a standalone “conference roundup” issue, we are pleased to share these two contributions as part of this issue’s Practitioner Panel.

Introduction: Academic liaison librarians play a pivotal role in supporting graduate students with their scholarly endeavors, particularly research dissemination. Researcher profile systems (RPSs) are important for promoting academic work; they ensure name attribution and facilitate research distribution. Academic librarians are advocates of these systems and provide support and instruction for them. This article reports on a pre–post survey evaluating a library workshop on RPSs for graduate students, as well as the changes made to the workshop based on the results of the survey. Methods: The authors co-taught a workshop about RPSs six times between 2021 and 2022. Pre- and post-surveys were distributed to all registrants and attendees. Based on the results of the surveys, the authors updated the workshop in Fall 2023. Discussion: Changes to the workshop included a broader discussion of the linkages among RPSs, less discussion about profile setup, and the inclusion of a self-reflection exercise to help students decide which tool(s) to use. The changes led to a refreshed workshop reflective of graduate students’ needs. Conclusion: RPSs are important tools in creating researchers’ online identities. Librarians play an important role in guiding graduate students through these tools to help them promote their work. Using a mixture of asynchronous and synchronous instruction encourages uptake of these tools at a scholarly institution and supports graduate students in their academic development. Further, ongoing workshop assessment is important to keep the material relevant to students. Data Availability: All research data, worksheets, and workshop presentations are available at https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/F6KAR

This study presents the results of a usability test of reusable learning objects currently in development in the Instructional Services Department of the UNC-Chapel Hill University Library. The learning objects are Web-based learning modules that are part of a new project, Stories of the American South, and they aim to make digital primary source material more accessible by breaking it into manageable units and providing contextual information. Seven undergraduate students viewed three prototypes, each focused on a unique theme related to the history of the American South. The results suggested that the learning objects are generally usable in design and function, and participants’ responses to design and content were positive. Several changes are suggested to optimize the usability of the learning object prototypes, and further usability testing with other audiences is recommended.