The document outlines the steps for developing and implementing an assessment plan for library instruction at Kennesaw State University. It discusses preparing for assessment by developing goals, identifying what to assess, and creating an assessment process. It then covers executing the assessment through various instruction sessions and tools. The next section addresses calculating results by analyzing data and preparing a report. Finally, it discusses implementing findings by making changes and continuing the assessment process into the future.

1. The Instruction Chronicles
Documenting Initiatives in
Information Literacy
Jennifer Sutcliffe
Kennesaw State University

2. Presentation for
Kennesaw State University
Assessment Librarian
December 20, 2012
jsutclif@kennesaw.edu

3. Prologue
• In recent years, “the call for
assessment in higher education has
gone beyond the standard measurements
of inputs and resources to a broader
need to assess outcomes, or what
students actually learn while in
college” (Hewitt &
Hewitt, 2010, “Literature Review,”
para. 2)
• For libraries, this means that
assessment is a way in which “academic
libraries must prove the value they
provide to the academic enterprise”
(ACRL Research Planning and Review
Committee, 2012, “Communicating
value,” para. 1)

4. Chapters
Preparation
II.
Execution
III.
Calculation
IV.
V. Implementation
The Sequels

5. I. Preparation
Review existing
mission statements
Develop a mission
Review the literature
on best practices

6. I. Preparation
Develop an assessment plan
DEFINE
The specific goals of the plan for library instruction assessment
IDENTIFY
Library services, target audiences, and outcomes to assess
GATHER
Inventory of resources
CREATE
A process for carrying out the assessment
DELEGATE
Tasks to participating librarians

7. I. Preparation
RAILS Program
• Helps librarians create and use
rubrics to assess information
literacy.
– Use existing rubrics
– Edit rubrics
– Share unique rubrics
• Get ideas for the assessment
(Rubric Assessment of Information
Literacy Skills, 2012)

8. I. Preparation
RESULT
An assessment plan that is
ready to be
implemented, and that is
in line with the goals of
the
university, library, and
instruction program.

9. II. Execution
Undergraduate Graduate
instruction instruction
classes classes
Open
Library 101 bibliographic
classes instruction
classes

10. II. Execution
What does the library assess?
(and when?)
Demand for
instruction
Changing needs
of the
academic
community
Past student
and faculty
feedback

11. II. Execution
Instruction sessions in each
major and graduate program
• Large-scale
• Ongoing, one course per semester
When • Throughout the semester
• Select one course of study/major per semester
• Get feedback from faculty & students
• Pre- and post-tests
How • Student bibliographies

12. II. Execution
Library 101 Classes
• Ongoing, as needed
• When changes are made to the instruction
When curriculum
• Randomly select scheduled Library 101 classes
• Get feedback from faculty & students
How • Pre- and post-tests

13. II. Execution
Open Bibliographic
Instruction Sessions
• As determined by committee
• When changes are made to the instruction
When curriculum
• Randomly select Open BI classes to classes
• Get feedback from students
How • Give information literacy test at end of session

14. II. Execution
Additional Assessment
Librarian
LibGuides
peer
review

15. II. Execution
WASSAIL
• An open-source, database-driven
application for creating and
managing customized information
literacy assessments and surveys
• Developed by the University of
Alberta Augustana Library
• Originally designed to assess
library instruction
(University of Alberta Augustana
Library, 2012)

16. II. Execution
Other Assessment Tools
Rubrics for
assessing
student work

17. II. Execution
RESULT
Qualitative and quantitative
data to analyze and create a
report.
• Student scores on
Quantitative assessments
• Numbers from LibGuides
• Student feedback
Qualitative • Faculty comments
• Peer evaluations

18. III. Calculation
Provide Prepare a
Ensure safe
enough Analyze and report on
storage of
time to format data the
data
analyze data assessment

19. III. Calculation
SPSS
• Software used for statistical
analysis created by IBM
• Highly advanced functions and
interoperability with other
statistics software & databases
• Some functions of SPSS can also
be carried out in Excel
(IBM, 2012)

20. III. Calculation
Tools for Analysis
Data!
Documentation
from assessment
Database and library
systems

21. III. Calculation
RESULT
A full report on the assessment
findings.
Stored data to be used in future
assessments.

22. IV. Implementation
Strengths &
Win-win
weaknesses

23. IV. Implementation
Make changes to
the instruction
program
Make changes to
the assessment
process
Decide on where
to release data

24. RESULT
Better library services.
A more effective assessment
plan.

25. V. The Sequels
• “Assessment is an ongoing process
aimed at understanding and
improving student learning.”
(Association of College and
Research Libraries, 2012, para.
3)
• The process may change, but the
core concepts remain the same.

26. the end.

27. References
Association of College and Research Libraries. (2012). Assessment issues. Retrieved from:
http://www.ala.org/acrl/issues/infolit/resources/assess/issues
ACRL Research Planning and Review Committee. (2012). 2012 top ten trends in academic
libraries: a review of the trends and issues affecting academic libraries in higher education.
American Library Association. Retrieved from: http:/crln.acrl.org/content/73/6/311.full
Hewitt, G.J., & Hewitt, R.T. (2010). Ability, assistance, and collaboration in academic library
assessment. Library Philosophy and Practice. Retrieved from: http://unllib.unl.edu/LPP/hewitt.ht
IBM. (2012). SPSS software. Retrieved from: http://www-01.ibm.com/software/analytics/spss/
Rubric Assessment of Information Literacy Skills. (2012). Rubrics – RAILS. Retrieved from:
http://railsontrack.info/rubrics.aspx
University of Alberta Augustana Library. (2012). Augustana Information Literacy – WASSAIL.
Retrieved from: http://www.library.ualberta.ca/augustana/infolit/wassail/

28. Background Reading
Acosta, E., & Gardner, S. (2010, June). Solving the rubrics cube: Using assessment to sharpen
library instruction. Poster session presented at the annual conference of the American Library
Association, Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://works.bepress.com/elisa_acosta/1/
Association of College and Research Libraries. (2012). Standards toolkit. Retrieved from
http://www.ala.org/acrl/issues/infolit/standards/standardstoolkit
Sobel, K.., & Sugimoto, C.R. (2012). Assessment of learning during library instruction: Practices,
prevalence, and preparation. The Journal Of Academic Librarianship, 38(4), 191-204
doi:10.1016/j.acalib.2012.04.004
Schilling, K., & Applegate, R. (2012). Best methods for evaluating educational impact: a
comparison of the efficacy of commonly used measures of library instruction. Journal of the
Medical Library Association: JMLA, 100(4), 258. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3484955/
Zoellner, K., Samson, S., & Hines, S. (2008). Continuing assessment of library instruction to
undergraduates: A general education course survey research project. College & Research
Libraries, 69(4), 370-383. Retrieved from http://crl.acrl.org/content/69/4/370.full.pdf