Flip the Library: Introducing Digital Instruction Tutorials

Academic research strategies and methods are critical to students being engaged and successful in their scholastic efforts. Librarians at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (UHM), Hamilton Library attempt to support students with learning research strategies and methods through instructional sessions modeled after elements of the “Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education” (Association of College & Research Libraries, 2015). The first of the instructional sessions orients learners to library resources, basic research strategies, and database searching. The established approach covers a vast amount of information. Yet, students’ apathy towards the library and their diverse research abilities are evident in their lack of engagement, leaving their subsequent learning in these sessions as questionable.

This presentation focuses on the results of an action research study that explored the impact of new instructional materials delivered using a flipped-learning approach. The new materials consisted of online videos and forms students viewed to create a working artifact for use during in-person library research sessions. The effectiveness of their learned research abilities was evaluated through librarian observations. The goal of this study was to better prepare students for the in-person library instructional sessions.

Participants were evaluated by their classification of research topics issues and their effectiveness of use in the research process. Action research strategies were utilized in this process for its noninvasive approach in the classroom and the holistic approach it brought to the instructional design process when librarians engaged with students in conversation to gauge learning. This presentation explores the insights and lessons gained from this process.