Don't Get Left Behind: Moving Library Instruction Online

Christina R Hillman,Katie Sabourin

doi:10.1080/1533290x.2016.1219205

Christina R Hillman, Katie Sabourin

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1080/1533290x.2016.1219205

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Abstract

ABSTRACTWith the growing number of online courses and programs across the higher education spectrum, the need to train faculty to effectively design and deliver online courses has become essential to many institutions. However, many professional development options do not include information or support in order to transition the same library services and resources faculty might use in their face-to-face classes to this new environment. The following case study describes professional development for faculty preparing to teach online at one small, private, doctoral-granting institution; how library resources and services were incorporated into the professional development experience; and the overall impressions from faculty who have participated.

Highlights

Faculty are increasingly moving towards online formats to deliver instruction, but are often unsure of the best ways to organize, create, and deliver course content in this new environment. Allen and Seaman (2013) found 6.7 million students are taking at least one online course, and nearly 70% of academic administration see online learning as strategic to their institution’s mission
How do we offer library services, including library instruction, to faculty when they may no longer be physically present in our libraries, classrooms, and offices? At one small, private, doctoralgranting institution, the Assessment and Online Program Librarian and the Educational Technologist teamed up to showcase the spectrum of services librarians can offer in support of the design and delivery of a fully online course
The addition of the library module to the Fundamentals of Online Teaching course has been well-received by both faculty and librarians alike as a method for promoting and teaching faculty about library services

Summary

Introduction

Faculty are increasingly moving towards online formats to deliver instruction, but are often unsure of the best ways to organize, create, and deliver course content in this new environment. Allen and Seaman (2013) found 6.7 million students are taking at least one online course, and nearly 70% of academic administration see online learning as strategic to their institution’s mission. The main objectives for using an online method of professional development include: the ability for faculty to experience what it is like to be an online student; an introduction to a variety of best practices, strategies, and technologies faculty may adopt in their own course design; and an exposure to current literature and practice with asynchronous communication among their peers This online professional development opportunity was first offered in the summer of 2011 and has been offered ten times with over 100 faculty from across the institution completing the course experience. With the growing number of online courses offered at the institution, the part-time Assessment and Online Program Librarian position was created in the summer of 2013 This role was designed, not as the direct liaison and sole support for faculty teaching online, but as support for the current liaison librarians collaborating with online faculty. Through a partnership between the Assessment and Online Program Librarian and the Educational Technologist, the model used in the Fundamentals of Online Teaching was extended to the role librarians can fill for online information literacy instruction (ILI)

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