MyRI - a bibliometrics toolkit (LILAC2011)

I was already aware of the existence of MyRI, but it was interesting to hear Ros Pan and Eleen Breen talk about how they developed it. MyRI is an open access bibliometrics toolkit of RLOs, comprising slides, videos and pdfs which can be edited and customised. It's very timely, high quality and is going to save us all lots of time!

Using games to enhance IL (LILAC 2011)

orchids again

I really enjoyed Susan Boyle's workshop at LILAC on using games creatively. Susan made the point that pedagogy should be focused on arousing students' imagination and engagement. Games are a great motivator and give participants a sense of accomplishment and confidence and I was surprised at how some very simple games can be used to bring a group together. It's all about "EDUtainment", surprising folks and making workshops memorable. Susan used this "do the big rocks first" video to illustrate her point - a very simple demonstration of time management which certainly sticks in your mind!
Even IL lends itself to games - we discussed games which help students with off campus access, evaluation, citation, database choice, search techniques and more. I'm certainly inspired to try using some.
Susan's tips: games should be fun, quick, simple, easy to play, designed around a specific objective, followed up with correct play.

LILAC 7 Pillars slides

There were so many excellent presentations at LILAC. I'm going to add a few blog posts about some of the talks I attended, starting with my own! Ruth Stubbings and I officially "launched" the new SCONUL Seven Pillars model to quite a large audience. We've had  a lot of feedback and some requests for our slides, so here they are

New Vitae booklet: the Informed Researcher



The Seven Pillars

 The RIN and Vitae have commissioned a new booklet in Vitae's researcher series, called the Informed Researcher. As with the other booklets, the emphasis will be on practical tips, illustrated by quotes and comments. The consultant, Pat Gannon-Leary, would like to conduct a short survey amongst researchers, using the "one thing" technique I've mentioned before. She's looking for contacts amongst researchers - if you are a researcher, or know of someone who might like to help, please can you let me know. We're hoping the booklet will be published in September.

The new Seven Pillars of Information Literacy model

Recently, I've been working with Ruth Stubbings to "rebuild" the seven pillars model on behalf of SCONUL. We have developed it as a core model for HE, to which a series of lenses can be applied and we are officially launching it at the LILAC conference tomorrow. The new model is not linear or step driven – it is iterative and recognises attributes as well as skills – individuals can start their development any where and be expert on different pillars at different times. The model draws from the IL Landscape, recognising how this impacts in IL development. Consequently, it emphasises attributes of awareness and understanding as well as skills and competencies.

All the documentation is available on the SCONUL website 

NE Network Meeting report

another orchid

I mentioned a while ago that we had a meeting in Newcastle aimed at anyone who is involved in supporting researchers in data and information handling. The workshop was attended by delegates from a dozen institutions across the region, including librarians, researchers, data specialists and trainers and there was a consensus about the value of such a group. We felt it could be used to share of good practice and exchange views between different professional groups. It might also provide a mechanism for joint responses to consultations and reduce duplication of effort. It was good to have such a mix of folks in the room and I felt that we all took the opportunity to listen to other perspectives and learn from each other. RIN sponsored the event, so you can find more details on their website

Seven Pillars around the world

I know from my blog stats that there are people reading the blog in different parts of the world - if that's you, then I need your help please! The SCONUL IL Group is gathering information about the use of the 7 Pillars model in different countries. If you are aware of it being used in your country, or can spend a little time looking for examples for us then we'd be very grateful. It would also be helpful to know where it is not being used and if an alternative model is preferred. You can respond by adding a comment to this post, or emailing me directly: moira.bent@ncl.ac.uk


I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

LILAC 2011

Orchids

Only a week before the LILAC conference, which is being held in London this year. As usual, the programme looks really interesting and I'm looking forward to coming away with lots of new ideas, as well as networking and catching up with old friends. My colleague, Lucy Keating is giving a paper on her use of web 2.0 with researchers- she's been using social software in a  variety of ways - and Ruth Stubbings and I will be launching the new SCONUL Seven Pillars model. We've spent some time developing a core model and research lens and I'm keen to see how folks respond to them. They will be available on the SCONUL website from next week and we'll  have printed copies available at the conference. I'm also participating in a symposium organised by Geoff Walton and Drew Whitworth in which they will be challenging the use of IL models in learning. It promises to have some fascinating debate! Sheila Corrall and Stephane Goldstein are running a session baseed around the Researcher Development Framework and how IL maps into that, using our SCONUL research lens as an example.

Plagiarism advice

Just wishing I was back in Meze!

I see that the HEA Academic Integrity Service have published a new report on university policies for managing plagiarism. It's called Policy Works: Recommendations for reviewing policy to manage unacceptable academic practice in higher education. I haven't read it yet but it's written by Erica Morris and Jude Carroll so it's bound to have some good advice!