Publishing Literacy in the For-Credit Classroom: Assessing Indiana University Journal of Undergraduate Research Student Editors

Abstract

Library publishers are in a unique position to educate undergraduate students on publishing and scholarly communication concepts. In addition to being experts in ethical publishing practices and open access funding models, library publishers often offer a publishing platform that is open to everyone affiliated with their institution, including undergraduate students.

In Fall 2017, the Scholarly Communication Librarian at Indiana University took undergraduate outreach a step further by developing a one-credit hour course for the student editorial board of the Indiana University Journal of Undergraduate Research (IUJUR). The course attempted to balance practical fundamentals—for example, learning OJS and evaluating submissions using IUJUR-specific rubrics—with larger concepts, including understanding and critiquing various peer review models, comprehending the value of open access, and grappling with ethical dilemmas.

This presentation, given at the 2018 Library Publishing Forum, discusses how including undergraduates in library publishing outreach efforts can promote a publishing program while also furthering the library’s information literacy goals (ACRL, 2015) and the institution’s student retention ambitions (Council on Undergraduate Research, 2017). It also describes the readings, case studies, and discussion prompts used throughout the course. While not every librarian will be able to create a for-credit course, these active-learning materials are modular and can easily be integrated into other outreach endeavors.

Finally, the session discusses the instrument used to assess student learning. The presentation will build upon other work on assessing undergraduate publishing literacy and student confidence before and after library outreach (Weiner & Watkinson, 2014) to present formative and summative assessment strategies participants can adopt.

References ACRL. (2015, Feb 2). Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework

Council on Undergraduate Research. (2017). Fact Sheet. Retrieved from https://www.cur.org/about_cur/fact_sheet/

Weiner, S., & Watkinson, C. (2014). What do students learn from participation in an undergraduate research journal? Results of an assessment. Journal of Librarianship and Scholarly Communication, 2(2).