Instruction Committee Meeting with Instruction Coordinators

-Welcome
-Overview of Instruction Committee charge and activities
-What can the Instruction Committee do for you?
-Future Instruction Coordinator meetings
-Demonstration of registration system
-Actively pursuing Faculty to offer instruction and other promotion activities

Attending: Camille Andrews, Bonna Boettcher, Suzanne Cohen, Tony Cosgrave, Thad Dickinson (recorder), Angela Horne, Mihoko Hosoi, Jane Irwin, Deb Lamb-Deans, Thomas Mills, Jill Powell, Katherine Reagan, Leah Solla, Jacie Spoon, Susanne Whitaker

Introductions
The meeting began with introductions and a brief look at the committee’s website, including the charge and current members.  The goal of the meeting was to engage instruction coordinators in what the committee has been doing since its inception, and specifically, what it can do to support the coordinators.

Activities and Accomplishments
Tony presented the committee’s activities and accomplishments to date:

• Consulted with the CUL Priority Objective #3 Implementation Team on Information Fluency.
• Hosted a RefWorks training session, conducted by a RefWorks trainer.  Local RefWorks administrators met with the representative after the workshop for additional training.
• Met with Jesse Koennecke to learn about and provide feedback on WebBridge
• Coordinated CUL’s participation in Educator Professional Development Day, which had close to 1,500 registrants.  Olin, Uris, Adelson, and Mann libraries offered workshops that included approximately 70 participants.
• Tony has been serving on a CUL and CIT committee which has been working on the integration of library resources and services into Blackboard.  Links to the Library Gateway, Ask a Librarian, and RefWorks are likely to be a standard feature of Blackboard starting in Fall 2006.   The Instruction Committee members have provided feedback, suggestions and encouragement for these activities.
• Leah discussed actions the committee is taking with regard to training for instructors, including a panel during Professional Development Weeks entitled, “Instruction Construction,” and a potential retreat during the summer on information technology.
• Organized the current meeting for CUL instruction coordinators

What can the PSEC Instruction Committee do for instruction coordinators?
Tony then opened the discussion up to ideas and/or concerns the coordinators might have for the committee.

• Jill asked if anyone was aware of a source for online quizzes, specifically quizzes that can score students on what they just learned and allow them to provide feedback.  Technology of this kind is being used by faculty around the country and could be more helpful to library instructors than standard paper-based evaluations.  This is a potential topic for the summer retreat and the committee can investigate further.
• Angela brought up the issue of training for instructors.  New librarians or librarians new to instruction are often asked to conduct instruction sessions with little formal instruction themselves.  There is currently no formal training for new instructors.  The possibility of bringing in David Way from the Center for Learning and Teaching was discussed.  The committee will investigate other training options for instructors.
• Mihoko expressed an interest in learning more about assessment, such as some of the general philosophies behind as well as specific techniques used in other units.  Tony noted that there is also a larger interest on the part of the PSEC Executive Committee in assessment.

Online Registration System
Camille demonstrated the updated E*Vents instruction registration system currently used by Mann, Olin and Adelson libraries.  There was significant interest in the system, but price may be a barrier for some units.  The potential for central funding is being explored.

Frequency of Coordinators/PSEC Meetings
Group discussed the frequency and nature of future instruction coordinators and PSEC Instruction Committee meetings.  The consensus was that meetings only need to happen once a year, and that late spring (after finals) was a good time to hold the meeting.  It was suggested that the meetings not be limited to instruction coordinators and that they include all level of instructors.  The number of broader instruction-related retreats will be scheduled as needed.