WASSAIL exists for the purpose of assessment. In 2007 a group of Alberta college and university libraries participated in a pilot project to assess the usability and usefulness of WASSAIL. Feedback was gathered via a blog created specific for this purpose and all suggestions were accommodated in the development of the specifications for the new software. Following the pilot a grant was secured to further develop WASSAIL to meet a broader set of assessment needs. WASSAIL will be presented at conferences in 2008 with an invitation to institutions to use it in their Information Literacy assessment initiatives. The pilot project demonstrated that access to a resource such as WASSAIL gave a meaningful structure to instruction data gathering and analysis resulting in new and substantial research, publication and presentation opportunities to academic librarians.
Gather data to analyse the application of information literacy skill development from the application of a pre-test until the post-test.
Generate reports related to demographic criteria such as gender or year of study and their relative responses to assessment questions.
Review qualitative responses to questions … student responses to questions “in their words”.
Give students fundamental knowledge of doing research and using library materials for it.
Provide convenience of learning (students can complete the course at their own pace, at suitable time and at location of their choice) and also to reach distance education students.
Foster the usage of new technologies in the Information Literacy education.
The url is http://wassail.augustana.ca but it is password protected. If access is required for this purpose please contact for a username and password: nancy.goebel@ualberta.ca
The video It Changed the Way I Do Research - Period: Augustana Talks Information Literacy was developed by the Augustana Faculty Library in 2006 to examine the effects of their Information Literacy initiatives on academic life at Augustana. Over 75 people participated in the project, which examines Information Literacy from a variety of perspectives. This 30 minute video (DVD) documents and promotes the vision of Information Literacy at Augustana and the various components of Augustana's Information Literacy Program. These components include 21 for-credit discipline-specific Information Literacy courses embedded into the curriculum, a variety of assessment practices, an annual Information Literacy workshop for faculty and librarians, and Information Literacy Awards for students and faculty. In It Changed the Way I Do Research - Period: Augustana Talks Information Literacy, students, librarians, administrators, and teaching faculty speak about the influence of Information Literacy at Augustana. From the Website: “This 30 minute video (DVD) documents and promotes the vision of Information Literacy at Augustana and the various components of Augustana's Information Literacy Program. These components include 21 for-credit discipline-specific Information Literacy courses embedded into the curriculum, a variety of assessment practices, an annual Information Literacy workshop for faculty and librarians, and Information Literacy Awards for students and faculty.”
http://www.augustana.ualberta.ca/library/infolit/video.html
This includes the ability to order, InterLibrary Loan or view the video online.
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