Teaching library skills to ESl students

OnTrack Activity Progress Report Mid Project Fall 2010 - Spring 2011

1. What is the specific target group of under-prepared students you are seeking to assist?

ESL students who are currently enrolled in ESL 106 and Eng 110 courses. Most of them have little library experience. Some need help understanding library sources that are written at the collegiate reading level

2. What particular problem/s (low success rates, high attrition, lack of awareness of resources, non-student friendly interface, etc) are you trying to address for this group?

Teaching library skills to ESL students. Most of them have little library experience which requires self-direction and autonomy. Some need help understanding library sources that are written at the collegiate reading level.

3. What is your activity (proposed solution or stop gap)?

Solution is to provide ESL students with intensive library research experience. ESL student will receive more one-on-one instruction from librarians and library assistants in a series of library workshops. This experience will help them be more successful in Eng 110 courses.

4. How do you predict your activity will positively affect the problem you identified in 2 for the students you identified in 1?

This activity will teach ESL students to select library sources on controversial issues, understand bias in these sources, comprehend these college-level library sources and to complete library research with little assistance.

  5.     What evidence will you collect/have you collected so far to show that your activity is effective in assisting the student group you have identified? (This can be information provided through Institutional Research, from surveys, from focus groups, etc).

In Fall 2010, we pilot tested a new library skills plan. We revised the ESL 106 assignment, added four library workshops per class, added a new e-database and added a librarian assistant to help in the library workshop. Students were encouraged to come to the library for additional help. The feedback from ESL faculty on the quality of the ESL 106 and Eng 110 students written assignments were examined and there seems to be an increase in ESL quality of writing. In Fall 2010, we pilot tested a new database and lesson plan. The results were encouraging but we need to do a lot more revision of library research module and training of library assistants.

6.     Who should you share this data with?

Communciation Arts, Basic Skills Committee and Vice President of Student Services

7. How do you intend to get the information out to those stakeholders you identified in 6?

Working with ESL faculty.

8.     How many students do you anticipate will be/were affected by your activity?
Fall 2010, we were able to work with 100 students. Spring 2011, we will work with 100 students