The University of Oslo Science Library launched an initiative to provide more support to local high schools. They conducted a survey of high school students, teachers and librarians to determine needs for information literacy (IL) skills. Preliminary results found that students overestimate their IL abilities, and that IL is not sufficiently taught in high school. Student teachers and teachers feel they need more IL training to teach these skills. The Science Library plans to develop a more formal collaboration with high schools and the Department of Teacher Education, including IL training for students and teachers, and providing access to scientific databases and materials.

1. Launching high school teaching support atLaunching high school teaching support at
the University of Oslo Science Librarythe University of Oslo Science Library
Anders Mattias Lundmark and Jessica Lönn-Stensrud
Science Library, University of Oslo, Norway

2. ““What can we do for our local high schools?”What can we do for our local high schools?”
Anders Mattias Lundmark and Jessica Lönn-Stensrud
Science Library, University of Oslo, Norway

4. Basic Information
and Science Literacy
High school (VGS)
Levels
PhD students
Step 3: Masters (advanced)
Step 2: Bachelor (intermediate)
Step 1: Bachelor (basic)
Orientation week
Goals
«42»
Why?
How?
What/where?
Welcome!
Teaching @ Science Library

5. You say jump...
niversity

6. Londsale and Armstrong (2006).
• 43% of the responding UK university libraries (36% response ratio)
had some form of link with local secondary schools facilitating IL
skilling
• Information skills training was offered to pupils (60%); teachers
(28%); and school librarians (16%)
UK University Libraries and IL in
Secondary Schools

7. 3 years of optional schooling for ages 16-19, >95% public schools
• a general programme leading to university admissions certification
• a vocational programme that leads to vocational competence
• lacklustre PISA and TIMSS performance despite 3d
highest £ /
student aged 6-15 of all 65 PISA participating countries (2012)
Svalbard, 78°N, the northernmost high school in the world?
Vidargående Skole (VGS) –
Norwegian high school

8. Svalbard, 78°N, the northernmost high school in the world?
Vidargående Skole (VGS) –
Norwegian high school
Examples of information literacy goals in Norwegian high schools
• Extract and interpret information in physics texts, brochures, newspapers,
popular magazines and books, and internet
• Find, process and present Earth Science information using digital tools
• Find and present examples of chemistry related research
• Explain the use of the scientific method in chemistry
• Find information in different media relating to biology and evaluate it’s
merit

9. Present collaborations include…
• High school (VGS)
– Visits from classes
– Visits from students seeking help with essay assignments
– Invitations to Science communication events from the Science library
– Sporadic collaboration with VGS librarians
• Dept. of Teacher Education and School Research
– similar offer as to other institutes
Ad hoc
Aimed at needs as students –not at needs as teachers
The Oslo Science library and VGS
Not aimed at teachers

10. • Our point of view
– Resource intensive (reinventing the wheel, prevents planning ahead)
– Competes with our primary responsibilities as a research library
– Inefficient (we reach relatively few pupils)
• High school (VGS) point of view
– Dependent on teacher initiatives
– Presupposes that the teachers know what the library can offer
– Physical library visits are difficult (don’t fit time tables)
• Dept. of Teacher Education point of view
– Lacks properly contextualised and suitably tailored library offer
The Oslo Science library and VGS

11. The method
• We approached Dept. of Teacher Education and VGS, suggesting a
small survey as a way to establish cooperation and a common
understanding of problems and potential solutions
• The survey intends to gauge the views of pupils, teachers (and VGS
librarians) on IL skills in high school…
• …and form part of a funding bid (-s)
Our aims
• Is there a need for better collaboration?
• What do VGS pupils, student teachers, VGS teachers want/need?
• Obtain funding to develop better offers for our local high schools
The Oslo Science library and VGS

12. Information literacy
The [LILAC] conference defines information literacy as: “the
ability to find, use, evaluate and communicate information.”
Science literacy
Welborn and Kanar (2000) emphasise “the ability to access
information of a scientific nature and to analyze it critically.”
Datagrowth
Time

13. can teach can’t teach
isourjobIsn’tourjob*
Limitations
*presently
Student
teachers
High school
teachers
High school
librarians
High school
pupils
• Teach-the-teacher
• Seek funding
UK IL training (2006):
- pupils (60%)
- teachers (28%)
- school librarians (16%)

14. can teach can’t teach
isourjobIsn’tourjob*
Limitations
*presently
The survey
– 15 year old pupils applying for
VGS (10 grade)
– VGS students
– VGS student teachers
– VGS teachers (in progress)
– VGS librarians (starts today)
Student
teachers
High school
teachers
High school
librarians
High school
students

15. Questions
1. I can find loads of information on any subject you’d like
2. I can tell correct information I find from incorrect information
3. I am better than my peers at finding and evaluating information
4. I know everything I need to know about finding and evaluating
information
5. School has taught me how to find and evaluate information
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Response(average)
Question nr
Are you information literate?

17. 1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Questions
1. The higher up the hits are on the Google list, the more reliable they are.
2. Only 1 of the 23 top hits was negative, so the method most likely works.
3. I want to visit the sites before passing judgment - I can determine the
quality of the information from the quality of texts and figures.
4. This search gives no information about the scientific basis for the method.
Response(average)
Question nr
Are you information literate?

18. => Crystal healing

19. Were given a talk on information and science literacy.
• Why does society fund research?
• Science, opinion and pseudoscience; how can you tell them apart?
• Google – what you get, and what you don’t get…
• Evaluation – science in media and on the net.
Student teachers and information literacy

20. Response(average)
Question nr
Questions
1) I’ve never really thought about
IL.
2) It’s important to stress IL skills
in high school.
3) There’s enough stress put on
IL in high school
4) I have enough IL skills to teach
IL in high school
5) I expect to have enough IL
skills to teach the subject in
high school when I graduate
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
[n=16]
Science student teachers…

21. 1. Additional IL schooling is important for teachers
2. IL education for student teachers is important
3. Access to scientific databases is important for VGS teachers
4. Access to scientific databases is important for VGS pupils
5. An IL network for science teachers is important
6. The University Library should develop material for IL teaching in
VGS
7. Today's lecture on IL was relevant for my education.
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Response(average)
Question nr
Science student teachers…
[n=16]

22. 1. It’s important to stress IL in high school
2. There’s enough stress put on IL in high school
Very preliminary (at this point n=5)
Science teachers…
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Response(average)
Question nr

23. 1. The pupils are proficient at evaluating the reliability of
information from different sources.
2. The students rate themselves as proficient at evaluating the
reliability of information from different sources.
Science teachers…
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Response(average)
Question nr

24. 1. IL teaching should be distinct from subject teaching
2. IL teaching should be integrated into subject teaching
Science teachers…
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Response(average)
Question nr

25. 1. Additional IL schooling is important for teachers
2. A network for science teachers in IL would be important
3. Access to scientific databases for VGS students is important
4. Access to scientific databases for VGS teachers is important
Science teachers…
1=totally wrong
5= totally right
Response(average)
Question nr

26. 1. Overestimation of ones own IL capabilities
2. Not enough IL taught in high school
3. Student teachers lack the IL skills required, but expect to be taught
these skills at the university!
4. IL schooling, an IL network and access to scientific databases and
material is on the wish list.
Half way survey summary

27. • We have established cooperation with Dept. of Teacher Education
and high schools
• Preliminary survey results indicate need for better IL training,
supported by student teachers and high school teachers
The present…

28. • Proposals for a more formalised collaboration with the Dept. of
Teacher Education and high schools include
– Teach-the-teacher: “IL for high school teaching” for teaching students
– Teach-the-teacher: additional IL schooling for hihg school teachers
– Build IL component in the Network for University schools
(collaborative effort w. faculty and the Network for University schools)
– Set up an “menu” of offers for VGS - “educate the buyer”
– Make searching and e-material available
– Build relations with VGS libraries
• The Dept. of Teacher Education and VGS have agreed to support
a bid for funding
The near (?) future…
go ahead
explore licensing
deals
seek funding
go ahead
let’s get to work!

30. References
Lonsdale, R., and Armstrong, C. 2006. Role of the university library in supporting
information literacy in U.K. secondary schools. Aslib Proceedings . 58 (6). 553-569.
OECD, 2012. PISA 2012 Results in Focus. Accessed 21-04-2014
http://www.oecd.org/pisa/keyfindings/pisa-2012-results.htm
Rockman, I. 2004. Successful strategies for integrating information literacy into the
curriculum. In integrating information literacy into the higher education curriculum:
Practical models for transformation, ed. I. Rockman and Associates. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.
Welborn, V., and Kanar, B. 2000. Building websites for science literacy. Issues in
Science and Technology Librarianship 25. Accessed 21-04-2014.
http://www.istl.org/00-winter/article2.html
Acknowledgements
Pictures provided by Fredrik Juell, Live K Håndlykken and others.Thanks to all the
students and teachers have contributed to the survey.