Libraries at University of Nebraska-Lincoln

 

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2009

Citation

College and Undergraduate Libraries 16:2–3 (2009), pp. 107–121.

doi: 10.1080/10691310902958616

Comments

Copyright © 2009 Catherine Fraser Riehle; published by Routledge/Taylor and Francis. Used by permission.

Abstract

There is an old proverb, “If the mountain will not come to Mohammed, then Mohammed must go to the mountain.” It can be a challenge to reach out to incoming undergraduate students who are often overwhelmed by the high expectations of scholarship at the college level and the complexities of the modern information environment. Unconventional and creative approaches are needed to reach millennial learners where they are, both physically, in terms of where they reside on campus, and pedagogically, by employing innovative and engaging teaching methods that they can appreciate and understand. In the fall of 2007, two librarians with rather unique positions at Purdue University coordinated, developed, and implemented an instructional pilot program to reach out to and engage undergraduate students. Strategic partnerships among librarians, residence hall staff, faculty fellows, and the students themselves led to effective and well-attended educational sessions that were conducted in the study lounges of campus residence halls and addressed major concepts pertaining to research, information literacy, and critical thinking.

Share

COinS