The College of Wooster
Denison University
Kenyon College
Oberlin College
Ohio Wesleyan University
November 1999
Summary
The Five Colleges of Ohio consortium requests a three-year grant of $475,000 from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to strengthen the teaching of information literacy in the curriculum. Recognizing the importance of information literacy as an academic competence, The College of Wooster, Denison University, Kenyon College, Oberlin College, and Ohio Wesleyan University seek to increase students? skills and capabilities in using library and information resources. Our approach, which includes both consortial activities and initiatives at the campus level, focuses on building partnerships between librarians and faculty members and integrating information literacy into courses across the curriculum, with particular emphasis on the development of skills through the complete course sequence for the major.
Faculty and librarians at the member institutions view the development of sound information literacy skills as an integral part of a liberal arts education. Such skills are essential not only for students? academic and professional careers, but also for their participation in a society increasingly reliant on electronic information resources. The fact that students need to master both basic information literacy competencies as well as library research skills at higher, discipline-specific levels suggests that a more structured curricular approach needs to be developed.
Therefore we propose a project that will enable librarians, information professionals, and faculty members to strengthen undergraduates? information research skills. The World Wide Web, advances in electronic database technology, and the availability through high-speed networks of a variety of full-text electronic resources have dramatically increased available resources and the complexity of library research. This new electronic environment offers access to an overwhelming array of materials, yet little guidance about how to find, evaluate, and use relevant information.
The Five Colleges of Ohio consortium seeks to address these needs through consortial and campus-based activities designed to enhance the teaching of information literacy skills. Grant funds will be used to support: (1) a professional development program for librarians, to strengthen their leadership in teaching information literacy skills; (2) a curriculum development program for faculty, who will work in collaboration with librarians to integrate information literacy skills into the curriculum; (3) consortial development of comprehensive resource materials and strategies for teaching information literacy for faculty and librarians; and (4) faculty-librarian workshops to demonstrate effective approaches to teaching information literacy and to encourage further development and collaboration.
Previous grants from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation produced strong consortial relationships and channels of communication that provide a secure foundation for the implementation of the information literacy program. The innovative curricular aspects of this initiative, which emphasize librarian-faculty collaboration, will further promote educational cooperation within and among institutions. The efficiencies and cumulative benefits resulting from this effort may well serve as models for other colleges seeking to support librarians and faculty members.