The Effects of Library User-Education Programmes on the Information-Seeking Behaviour of Brisbane College of Theology Students

ABSTRACT

An increasing proportion of students entering the Brisbane College of Theology (BCT) are adult learners and engaged in theological education for general academic purposes or personal enrichment. In meeting the needs of these students, the user-education programmes conducted by the BCT Libraries endeavour to address the Australian Information Literacy Standards.¹ The literature reveals that information literacy is learned through experience primarily shaped by both librarians and faculty. This case study, which uses an adaptation of Biggs' model of presage, process, and product, looks at the information search process from the perspective of one theological library. As a phenomenographic study, it examines the interconnected theories of students' experience, perception, approach, and learning outcomes in the information search process. It will be shown here that user-education programmes and mediation with the librarian significantly influence the information-seeking behaviour of students.     

READING,WRITING. AND WORD PROCESSING

In the past, reading, writing, and word processing were researched independently. Currently, we see research regarding important connections between reading and writing as well as between writing and word processing. However, critical connections exist between all three areas. In order to have classrooms that promote literacy, we need to use word processing and its accompanying tools as students engage in reading‐writing processes. This paper addresses how word processing, with its prevision, writing, and revision tools, facilitates connections between reading and writing.     

Strategy instruction for writing composition at school and at home

Abstract

The objectives of this study are 1) to analyze the effectiveness of a writing composition intervention program aimed to increase children's writing performance and other personal variables; 2) to analyze whether implementation in the environment (school and home) or responsible figures (parents and teachers) produced different effects in program effectiveness; and 3) to check whether increasing parental involvement in doing homework was sufficient to improve children's outcomes or whether prior family training is required to enable them to be efficient. The sample consisted of 112 students (5th-6th grade) and their families. 26 of them made up the EFP group (mothers implementing a writing program), 25 of them were assigned to the PAD group (mothers increasing help with writing homework), 35 to the PRO group (teachers applying a writing program) and 26 to the OC group (ordinary curriculum). We analyze the results and present and discuss our conclusions.     

“Dream More,Learn More,Care More,and Be More”: The Imagination Library Influencing Storybook Reading and Early Literacy

Abstract

This study examined the free book giving program of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library and its influence upon storybook reading and early literacy within one county-wide setting in the United States. Family literacy and early literacy experiences are known to be critical to young children's literacy development. The study found that childre who received the Imagination Library books were statistically different from those children who did not participate in the free book giving program. This study has implications for the early literacy outcomes for young children and their families, as well as other communities who utilize Dolly Parton's Imagination Library.     

Introducing ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards to Graduate Schools of Theology

Abstract

This paper recommends that the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education of the Association of College and Research Libraries should be endorsed by the Association of Theological Schools' accreditation standards and implemented by theological schools to teach graduate students information literacy and to assess their learning outcomes. Several select theological research guides and the experience of a seminary's research methods course are closely examined in detailed comparison to the Information Literacy Competency Standards, their performance indicators and outcomes.     

Getting Everybody Involved

Abstract

This paper describes a creative approach for training counselor and counselor educators that provides collaborative interactions among students and faculty in several university training programs. Structured around a problem-solving activity and self-reflection questionnaires, undergraduate teachers-in-training were given an opportunity to receive one-to-one consultative counseling from the master's level counselors-in-training, who in turn received structured problem-solving supervision from the doctoral level students. Finally, the doctoral level students received faculty support to facilitate the development of their supervisory skills. The goal of this training approach is to provide students at all three levels with experiences similar to those they will encounter as professionals following graduation from the university, but within the context of scaffolding from faculty and more advanced students.     

Ethics in Academic Writing Help for International Students in Higher Education: Perceptions of Faculty and Students

International students often turn to various sources for help, including writing center tutors, friends, faculty mentors, online sources such as Google translate, and proofreading and editorial services, among others. While receiving help from these sources is both understandable and somewhat expected, what type and level of help is appropriate or ethical is not always clearly defined. The current research study investigates perceptions of faculty and international students at one U.S. university as to what is ethical in academic writing help for international students in 17 different scenarios. Findings suggest that students, far more than faculty, lacked certainty and agreement on whether certain help they may receive is ethical. The two groups’ views also varied on machine translation and the use of for-pay editors. Faculty, in general, had the least agreement on the use of machine translation and the use of a for-pay editing service for sentence- and discourse-level help and expressed that specific contexts and instructor’s expectations should be taken into consideration. Also, perceptions of students from East Asia showed notable differences. We argue that establishing and communicating clear guidelines concerning writing help should be part of any policy of academic integrity and present an “ethicality index” to help begin conversations as each institution, program, or faculty establishes the boundaries of ethical writing help in a specific context.     

Breaching the Contract: Aggressive Interpersonal Behaviors in Paternalistic Relationships

ABSTRACT

The study examined student evaluations (N?=?221) of frequency and impact of negative interpersonal behaviors by academic faculty and other students. As expected, negative behaviors by faculty was rated as less frequent but as more upsetting than those carried out by fellow students. The impact of such behaviors was not affected by the setting in which they occurred. However, students with a strong power motivation perceived negative behaviors by faculty as more upsetting than did students with a weak power motivation. The findings highlight the importance of covert restrictions on the exploitation of the potential power intrinsic in paternalistic relationships.     

The Efficacy of a Dialogic Learning Environment in Fostering Literacy

This comparative study examines the role of contextual features embedded in a dialogic environment in fostering literacy. The study, implemented by language arts teachers in a middle school setting, investigates the effectiveness of an instructional program designed to create a collaborative dialogic learning environment that imparts literacy. The program is compared to a traditional learning environment in which reading and writing are imparted through direct teacher instruction. Results indicate that embedding literacy instruction in communities of discourse is superior to traditional methods in fostering reading comprehension and writing competence. Findings suggest that a dialogic environment creates the context within which students develop cognitive tools to achieve literacy.     

The Effects of Fast Start Reading: A Fluency-BasedHome Involvement Reading Program,On the Reading Achievement of Beginning Readers

This study tested the effects of a fluency-based home reading program called Fast Start. Thirty beginning first-grade students, representing a wide range of early reading abilities, were randomly assigned to experimental or control conditions for a period of 11 weeks.

Parents and students in the experimental group received Fast Start training, weekly materials packets, and weekly telephone support. Control group parents and students received the parent involvement opportunities typical for their family and classroom. Significant effects for those students most at-risk in reading (as measured by pretest) were found on measures of Letter/Word recognition and reading fluency. Verbal and written survey information collected from the experimental group indicated generally positive perceptions of the program by parents.     

Critical issues confronting the advancement of applied sport psychology

Abstract

Despite considerable progress over the last 10 years, applied sport psychology confronts several persistent issues that continue to limit the growth and development of the field. Specifically, issues requiring more comprehensive and proactive attention and initiatives include: the training of graduate students, the accreditation of graduate programs, the job market, and the establishment of systematic educational outreach programs. Suggestions are offered regarding how enhancements in each of the aforementioned issues can be initiated, and potential benefits gained by students, faculty, and the general public are identified and discussed. Given the climate in many academic institutions emphasizing program downsizing, sport psychology may be approaching and confronting one of the most crucial crossroads in its existence. Without direct efforts to assure academic credibility and public confidence in the standards of training and practice, sport psychology may fail to actualize a meaningful future role in the competitive field of allied health service provision.     

Faith in the Research Process: Information Behavior at Claremont School of Theology

Abstract

Faith significantly affects the educational experience in graduate studies of religion and theology. This study explored the roles of graduate theological students’ religious faith and degree program affiliation in their information behaviors, particularly their degree-related research behaviors at Claremont School of Theology. The purpose was to explore problems in information action inherent to the dichotomy between academic study of theology that leads to Master of Arts (MA) degree and professional study of theology that leads to Master of Divinity (MDiv) degree. The research design incorporated interviews of MA and MDiv students regarding the roles of their religious faith, degree program affiliation and interpersonal information sources in their research processes. Data were collected, coded and analyzed as a lens into the social network of the theological research community. The study found that information behavior does relate to degree program affiliations and students’ religious faith. Degree program affiliation and religious faith background are relevant to graduate theological research processes and may be useful to consider in research consultations and bibliographic instruction in graduate theological education.     

Training Psychology Graduate Students to Prepare Psychological Affidavits for Political Asylum Seekers

ABSTRACT

The growing population of asylum seekers has created a political and social justice crisis in the United States. It is important that the psychological profession respond to this crisis. This paper describes a program that trains psychology graduate students to prepare psychological affidavits in support of the asylum seekers legal case. We describe how we began the program, its current structure, and the challenges and benefits of the program for both the instructors and the students. Our hope is that other mental health professionals will find our work helpful in setting up programs of their own.     

Changes in the Teaching of Reading

William S. Gray is considered by many literacy authorities today to have been the premier reading educator of the last century. He was most noted for his extensive research and writing in many aspects of literacy. The following interview with Gray was originally published in School and Community, a Missouri state teachers' journal, in 1949. Although the interviewer is not specifically listed, it was probably A. Sterl Artley, then a professor at the University of Missouri–Columbia and a personal friend of Dr. Gray. A number of books and related materials have been written about William S. Gray but as far as this writer knows, the following article has never been listed in any of these references. Thus, the opportunity to read the thoughts of this pioneer in the literacy field provides a rare insight into his thinking.     

Exercising Research Skills: An Information Literacy Boot Camp for Religious Studies Graduate Assistants

Instructional librarians at the University of Dayton collaborated with a religious studies graduate program to offer a three-day information literacy workshop, or “boot camp,” to the program's graduate research assistants. The graduate program had found that the assistants' research skills did not meet the expectations of their faculty mentors, and the workshop sought to address these deficiencies. With input from the religious studies faculty, the workshop focused on catalog and database searching, Boolean logic, primary sources, and the Chicago citation style. The librarians incorporated active learning exercises into each workshop session. Assessment of the workshop suggested that the assistants gained confidence in these information literacy skills. Feedback from faculty also indicated that the assistants' research skills had improved.     

A SURVEY OF WRITING INSTRUCTION IN ELEMENTARY LANGUAGE ARTS CLASSROOMS

Abstract

The purpose of the study was (1) to determine to what extent children, in a large southern state, are given opportunities to engage in process writing, and (2) to determine whether teachers have incorporated activities and strategies supported by current research findings on process writing into their language arts programs. A survey of teachers in randomly selected counties was conducted to determine and analyze the following information: 1. sources of content and instructional materials used in the language arts curriculum.

2. organizational patterns used in language arts instruction.

3. time spent in various types of writing.

4. time spent in each of the stages of process writing.

Data collected from the surveys indicated a textbook orientation to language instruction, small amounts of time spent in prewriting or writing activities, and a preference for teacher-controlled writing processes, such as teacher selection of writing topics and teacher editing of student writing. Factors that mitigate for or against the change process and models for teacher inservice that facilitate new instructional practices are discussed.     

Divine detritus: queer remainders from theological quests

ABSTRACT

This essay investigates how theologians should engage with the “leftovers,” or detritus, of the great theological quests by interrogating the process of doing and writing theology. Posing questions about theology’s purpose and systematic method, along with questions that examine both the object of theology and the subjectivity of the theologian, this essay directs its inquiry to uncovering the very foundations of theology today, which itself must be constructed out of divine detritus.     

Student Agency in Literacy: Validation of the Student Agency Profile (StAP)

Abstract

There have been recent calls to support student agency in the field of literacy. Agency, which we define in the context of schooling, is a multidimensional construct where individuals exert influence and create opportunities in the learning context through intentions, decisions, and actions. We propose highlighting agency as an interconnected construct, which includes self-perception as readers and writers, intentionality, choice-making, persistence, and interactiveness. Elementary students (n?=?1,726) completed surveys of their agency along with standardized literacy assessments. Statistical analyses largely aligned with the hypothesized dimensions of agency. Relationships to student literacy achievement were stronger in grades 3^rd–5^th than in 1^st–2^nd grades. Discussion highlights how elementary students have a voice in their agency as it pertains to literacy. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.