Distributed learning is becoming an increasingly common method of further education in postsecondary institutions and programs across Canada and internationally. Academic libraries are not immune to this trend, and many are reviewing and revising their teaching methodology. All learners require information literacy instruction that is relevant, engaging, and embedded in curriculum; in a distributed learning environment, however, the design and delivery of that instruction may need to be adapted to respond to the challenges of instruction to distributed learners. Through a literature review of distributed learning models in academic libraries and consultation with faculty and librarians at the University of Saskatchewan, this research will assist in determining distributed learning models and instructional design best suited for the provision of information literacy instruction within this environment.
Online learning refers to instruction that is delivered electronically through various multimedia and internet platforms and applications. It is used interchangeably with other terms such as "online learning," "web-based learning," "e-learning," "computer-assisted instruction," and "Internet-based learning" (Ruiz, Mintzer, & Leipzig, 2006). This chapter includes a review of the literature published between 2010 and 2015 on online learning in information literacy instruction in academic libraries. Information about the landscape of online information literacy instruction is presented including summaries about the technology used to create online instructional resources and the technology used to present and access online instruction. Both limitations and best practices relating to online instruction for information literacy are discussed.
This case study describes the use of flipped teaching for information literacy instruction in a new course, Drill, Blast, and Excavate GeoE 49: within the mining option for geological engineering (GeoE) students. These students will enter the mining industry with less discipline-specific knowledge than a student that graduated with a degree in mining engineering, yet on-the-job training provided by the employer will fill in most of the technical gaps. Engineers in the workplace can connect to information sources online and do not need to rely solely on co-workers, short courses, and conferences for upgrading their knowledge. With this in mind, we developed a flipped teaching assignment to teach students how to effectively and efficiently access electronic information on topics faced by geological engineers in the field. The course included a research project that allowed the students to practice these information retrieval and evaluation techniques so as to better prepare them for the working world. Student feedback revealed a high level of engagement in the discovery of these research strategies and the instructor noted that these techniques were applied successfully in the students written reports and oral presentations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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