NOLA INFORMATION LITERACY FORUM 2022
The NOLA Information Literacy Collective (nolaILC) fosters the development of information literacy instructors, reference librarians, and library professionals in all kinds of libraries (academic, public, school, archival, and special) throughout the Greater New Orleans area. The nolaILC guides the NOLA Information Literacy Forum which was first held in 2012.
The nolaILC presents
THE INFORMATION LITERACY FORUM
Monday-Thursday, August 1-4, 2022
10:00 – 11:30 a.m.
The Board of the NOLA Information Literacy Collective is dedicated to providing a safe and healthy conference environment. After the success of the 2020 and 2021 virtual conferences, the 2022 Forum will again be 100% virtual, making it accessible to attendees from around the world.
The New Orleans Information Literacy Collective’s annual Forum will be held Monday-Thursday, August 1-4, 2022, from 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. CST* with two back-to-back presentations followed by Questions and Answers. Session details are listed below. *Monday, August 1 will run from 10:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.
Additionally, please join us for our SPECIAL event back by popular demand:
On Thursday, August 5, immediately following the last presentation, stay online with the NOLA ILC for a virtual picnic lunch. Bring your own food and beverage and join us for networking, some online games, and informal informational literacy discussions. There will be some door prizes!
MONDAY, AUGUST 1, 10:00a.m.-11:30 p.m. CST
Opening Keynote–Sally Reeves
After fifty years as an architectural historian-turned archivist, Sally Reeves finally retired in December from the Notarial Archives Division of the Orleans Parish Office of the Clerk of Civil District Court. She received her post-graduate degree in Archives and Records Management in 1980, after a long career researching records at the Archives on behalf of clients. Over the years she has seen many changes in the office, which evolved from a 14-person agency without professional support and overseen by a largely absentee custodian, into a division of the Office of the Clerk, with 170 employees and I-T, personnel, publicity, filing, archival, and bookkeeping departments, all closely managed by a hands-on clerk.
Sally’s remarks at the conference will focus on her own evolution with the office where she spent her career, along with her observations about the essential nature of the collection; its long history, and its own evolving use as society changes.
Preparing Your Public Library for Emerging Technology
Ricardo G. Mesa, Jefferson Parish Library
Keeping up to date with technology in your library requires your library team to be current with technology skills, aware of current trends, and prepared for the technology challenges that public libraries face.
Not everyone is a technologist, but having an understanding of how technology can be used to solve problems will go a long way in your library environment. One of the finest and worst parts of working as a technology librarian is that we are consistently working to stay in touch with an ever-expanding universe of technology and tools. The best way to keep on top of new tech tools as they emerge is to approach this process with a clear strategy. This requires you to evaluate the needs of the library community, communicate with your library staff, evaluate tools, and share them with everyone to determine if the tool is right for your library. Developing a strategy will make the process more methodical and manageable, which in turn will help you stay ahead of the curve so you can find that hidden diamond in the rough as they emerge. Area of discussion about technology tools include: Big Data, Data Analytics, AI – Artificial Intelligence, Block Chain, Library Internet of Things, Augmented Reality, Drones, Wearable Technology, Digital Literacy, and Cloud Technology.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 2, 10:00-11:30 a.m. CST
“Escaping the Mundane” with an Escape Room!
Erin Ware, LSU Health Shreveport and Sarah Jackson, LSU Health Shreveport
Co-authors: Julie Esparza, Montie Dobbins, David Duggar, Elliott Freeman, Christopher Schmoutz, Rachel Barlow, Ashley Barras, Carol Crochet, Kyah Dowell, Robert Klazynski, Rachel Parks, Wybra Price, and Colton Toups
This spring a group at LSU Health Shreveport began a study to test a new method of active learning. They created a virtual escape room for second year students reviewing biostatistics and epidemiology prior to taking STEP 1 to complete as part of their Fundamentals of Evidence-Based Medicine II class. The activity will be repeated in 2025, 2026, and 2027. All second-year students were required to complete the escape room as part of their class assignment. However, students were given an option to decline taking part in the study. Informed consent was obtained from the students who agreed to take part. The project was determined to be exempt by the LSU Health Shreveport Institutional Review Board (IRB). The investigators involved were comprised of library faculty, third and fourth year medical students who volunteered to be the advisory board, and a Pharmacology and Toxicology faculty member who acted as the statistician. A virtual format was used. The presentation will discuss the software (Deck.toys) used to help create an engaging, feature-rich, virtual escape room. The software needed to be free or low-cost and included features to accommodate larger class sizes, more classes, and more deck “toys” that were critical for the project. Between Deck.toys, and free photos from UnSplash, the team created an attractive and engaging activity. Attendees will learn more about the theme of the escape room, discoveries made through the process, collaboration between students and faculty, and the pros and cons of the application and format used.
Twice as Nice: A Team-Teaching Approach to Research Instruction
Jessica Hawkes, LSU Shreveport; Abigail Desoto McCoy LSU Shreveport; Kay Slattery LSU Shreveport; Kaci Wilson LSU Shreveport
Everyone knows that teamwork makes the dream work! Join four librarians from Louisiana State University Shreveport as they outline how they are making the most of the strengths of each librarian with a team-teaching model for research instruction. Through this collaborative model, LSUS is able to build on the diverse skill sets of the Research and Instruction Services Department librarians to create research instruction classes that are packed with activity and valuable information literacy skills. This session will discuss the process of building a team-teaching model, putting that model into action, as well as the successes and challenges of a team-teaching model.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3, 10:00-11:30 a.m. CST
New Faces, Old Materials: Engaging First Year Students with Primary Sources
Hali Black, University of Southern Mississippi
Significant research has documented the benefits of using primary source materials in the classroom. However, archival and special collections materials are often underutilized in freshmen seminars and general education curriculum courses. Therefore, it is often not until a student’s sophomore, junior, or, even, senior year before they have the opportunity to experience working with special collection materials. This presentation will share the efforts of an instruction librarian and course instructor to provide unique experiences using archival and special collection materials in a freshmen seminar course. These experiences offered students the unique experience of seeing how these collections are preserved, stored, and organized, as well as the opportunity to interact in-person with archival and special collection materials. The session will also discuss how engaging students with special collections imparts the value of primary documents, teaches proper research methods and practices, and empowers students as knowledge-producers. In addition to discussing the benefits of engaging students with archives and special collections materials early in their academic career, this session will also share ideas for creating course assignments and student experiences that utilize primary source materials.
Bring History Alive With LDL Subject Guides
Caitlin Cooper, Delgado Community College
The presentation will focus on the Louisiana Digital Library’s subject guides. They help bring history alive through primary sources. Louisiana institutions can help history teachers by joining the LDL and adding collections to it. Subject guides can also be suggested. Learn about LDL resources and subjects guides as well as the Delgado Library’s primary sources v. secondary sources libguide. At the Community College as well as the K-12 level, history teachers will ask students to use primary sources, and the LDL and the subject guides can help with the discovery and use of primary sources.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 10:00-11:30 a.m. CST
Graphic Medicine: What Comics Bring to the Health Information Table
Matthew Noe, Countway Library, Harvard Medical School
While libraries have a fraught history with comics, things have improved greatly in recent years. One area that continues to see significant growth is the genre/field of graphic medicine – that is, comics that involve the experience(s) of health and illness. These comics offer an opportunity to present firsthand accounts and evidence-based information to audiences in an engaging, empathy encouraging format. In addition, the act of creating works of graphic medicine can offer patrons a chance to share their own experiences – and what better place for this programming than the library?
Closing Keynote: Authentic Assessments in an Online Environment
Amanda Rosenzweig, Delgado Community College
Alternative or authentic assessments help determine what students can and cannot do, not just what they know or do not know. With the pandemic forcing students and teachers to approach learning through a new lens, using unique assessments allows students to showcase their abilities, not just knowledge. Learn about freeware tools to incorporate in online instruction while keeping accessibility at the forefront of the creation and implementation process.
NOLA Information Literacy Collective 