Brave or naive, but aware of the research, teaching and play potential, the authors plunged into teaching part of an employee communication course at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Nova Scotia in Second Life, a virtual environment. Using the analytical tools of observational protocols, and discourse analysis of rhetorical accounts found in student and teacher reaction logs, discussion transcripts and focus group interviews, we situated ourselves among the learners to explore the threshold concept of information literacy in our classroom in Second Life.
Since 2009 librarians at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Nova Scotia have been teaching a fully weighted (half-unit/three credit) course in information literacy (IL), LIBR2100: Introduction to Research in the Information Age. Course sections are capped at 30 students with classes offered on campus in a traditional classroom/lab environment, and via distance using multimode technology. Now firmly established in the University's curriculum, required in three programs and an elective in all others, the course is in demand with growing wait lists requiring that multiple sections be offered each term.While the literature supports the positive outcomes of IL credit courses for both the students enrolled and the librarians teaching, few universities or colleges currently offer such an opportunity. Based on our positive experience at the Mount, accomplished with a professional librarian compliment of only five, we strongly recommend other universities and colleges consider seriously their ability to offer their own IL course.This article reflects on the steps taken by librarians at Mount Saint Vincent University to get a credit course in IL on the books, how we managed course implementation, and negotiated the inevitable workload demands. While we also briefly discuss course objectives and curriculum, and their evolution over time, these are not our primary focus. Because the literature is largely silent on the mechanics of getting an IL course Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research, vol. 12, no. 1 (2017) 2 mainstreamed in a university or college curriculum, this article focuses on outlining the phases of credit course development and traces an IL course from conception to reality.
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