Team Teaching the Internet: The University of Arizona Experience This paper was presented at the 1995 CAUSE annual conference. It is part of the proceedings of that conference, "Realizing the Potential of Information Resources: Information, Technology, and Services--Proceedings of the 1995 CAUSE Annual Conference," pages 7-7-1 to 7-7-10. Permission to copy or disseminate all or part of this material is granted provided that the copies are not made or distributed for commercial advantage. To copy or disseminate otherwise, or to republish in any form, requires written permission from the author and CAUSE. For further information: CAUSE, 4840 Pearl East Circle, Suite 302E, Boulder, CO 80301; 303-449-4430; e-mail info@cause.colorado.edu. TEAM TEACHING THE INTERNET: THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA EXPERIENCE Ann Eagan Science-Engineering/Undergraduate Services Librarian University of Arizona Library Tucson, Arizona aeagan@bird.library.arizona.edu Louise Greenfield Fine Arts/Humanities Librarian University of Arizona Library Tucson, Arizona lgreenfd@bird.library.arizona.edu ABSTRACT The University of Arizona Library has forged partnerships with the Center for Computing and Information Technology and the University Teaching Center to develop Internet training sessions for our own staff, and for University faculty, students and staff. Utilizing both the staff expertise and the resources of each unit, we have developed a dynamic and effective program which assists members of our campus community in understanding how to access Internet tools and integrate Internet resources into their research, curriculum and classrooms. Teaching and learning models have been developed, first for our own staff and then for our users, which are continually modified based on our growing experience. Models are based on a conceptual framework which includes principles of adult learning in a constantly changing electronic environment. All of this has taken place amidst a background of organizational change which has provided a team-based library organization strategically positioned to respond to our academic communities' changing needs and directions. TEAM TEACHING THE INTERNET: THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA EXPERIENCE Why are campus partnerships unique? Shouldn't collaboration among different academic units and departments occur naturally? Shouldn't we mix like peanut butter and jelly, fed by shrinking resources, common goals, shared interests and complimentary expertise? What we have found at the University of Arizona Library is that the actual partnerships, once thought about and formed, are hugely successful. We simply do not think of each other often enough when assessing, planning and implementing programs. Creating partnerships requires a new way of looking at our campus resources, our staffing , our constituencies and our desired outcomes. We abandoned the more familiar, but competitive model. We wanted and needed to share dollars rather than compete for them, to identify common purposes rather than differences, such as preparing our students for an increasingly information-based society. We looked not only within, but beyond our own units and departments for expertise, knowledge and training. We are going to give you a specific outline of how our partnerships evolved. But because context is everything, we are first going to say a little about the University of Arizona Library and how we positioned ourselves for collaborative activities. BACKGROUND AND REORGANIZATION The University of Arizona Library is a large Association of Research Libraries(ARL) Library with a collection of almost 8 million items and a staff of 213 full time employees. We serve a campus community of 34,000 students, 26,000 of whom are undergraduates. Three years ago, we underwent a major reorganization. Existing departments were dissolved, reporting structures were collapsed, our physical layout was reconfigured. Nothing looked the same as it had before. It was an enormous and dramatic change. It was participatory, with most staff actively involved in the planning and implementation process. We are not suggesting that organizational change is a requirement for seeing and doing things differently. There are, however, several assumptions which shaped our reorganization. We think many of these were designed to allow us to be strategically situated to meet changing campus needs. The following are our assumptions: * Continuous Learning is one of the hallmarks of our new organization. It is assumed that being prepared today does not mean being prepared tomorrow. Functions, responsibilities and organizational priorities will change. We value and support a dynamic learning environment. * The organization itself is dynamic and will grow and change. * User self-sufficiency is a goal. It is important to develop helpful interfaces and self-mediated learning opportunities, as well as training and instruction that encourages user independence or helps users develop the skills that will lead to more independent use of our resources. * We are a user-centered organization where needs assessment, evaluation and planning are key. * We are a team-based organization. The organization moved from a hierarchical model to a flatter model with fewer administrators, departments and reporting lines. Within this new structure we created a team-based environment which stresses cooperation, consensus building and team responsibility for decision making and problem solving. Every employee is technically "loaned" to their current team. Ann, for example, is loaned to the Undergraduate Services Team and the Science-Engineering Team, while Louise is loaned to the Fine Arts/Humanities Team. Team leaders are assured their positions for only three years, at which time the positions are open to rotation of staff. Special interlibrary teams, such as mission teams, process improvement teams and strategic tactic teams are ad hoc formations, designed to solve a particular problem, implement a particular plan, or move the library toward one of its stated goals. This structure was designed to increase our ability to bring together the talents, skills and experience needed to get a particular job done, to respond to timely issues, and to give people the tools they need to thrive in a cooperative working environment. It is in this team-based, user-centered, continuous learning, and constantly changing environment that we created our Internet teaching project It is in this environment our partnerships have developed and flourished.. Our Internet Training Program began with two librarians recognizing a window of opportunity and wanting very much to stick our heads through it. We knew that there was a strong need on campus to introduce both students and faculty to new technology and electronic search strategies. We knew the importance of integrating information and computer literacy into the classroom and curriculum. And we knew that our moment had arrived. We formed--what else?-- a team of four librarians and set out to develop instructional materials and sessions which would effectively help train our own staff, capture the interest of faculty members, and be effective learning and teaching sessions for our students. We developed sessions which could be given by trained librarians. Because we developed models for each session, we were able to use them to train our own staff and also adapt them to our different campus audiences. We will describe the development and design of these sessions in more detail later. At about the same time the University's Center for Computing and Information Technology (CCIT) weathered a sizeable staff cut. Because both the library and CCIT were developing Internet training sessions, we decided it was time to join forces. What could we offer each other? The Library had two Electronic Learning Education Classrooms equipped with 12 workstations and a demonstration station. The design of these classrooms made them more effective teaching facilities than the classrooms at CCIT. We had complimentary expertise and teaching experience. As librarians, we could draw on our past experience in developing and teaching the online catalog, database searching, and CD-ROM technology. We saw ourselves as the experts in understanding how information is organized, how to help users identify and locate appropriate resources, and how to help them think critically about the information they found. CCIT personnel had the technical experience and expertise our users were demanding. They answer questions such as, "How do I set up an E-mail account or a Listserv for my class?" and "What kind of equipment do I need for remote access?" Interestingly enough, we discovered we all were moving more toward understanding adult learning theory and instructional design. Working together to create the instructional models, develop the supporting materials and team teaching the sessions was an ideal collaboration. CCIT had also perfected month-by-month online calendars of training opportunities and we had a mailing list of all the departments, both of which enhanced our public relations efforts. During this same time the University had embarked on a mission to "transform" Undergraduate Education. Faculty were being given both opportunities and resources to enhance their teaching skills. While teaching students was our ultimate goal, we knew that partnering with faculty members was also critical. If we taught them, they could then encourage students to make use of these resources and bring them into the library for instructional sessions. In support of the University Mission, the University Teaching Center developed a series of five-week courses for faculty to help them improve teaching and introduce new technology into the classroom. They taught classes on issues such as learning theory, cognitive development and presentation software. They asked the Library and CCIT to team teach sessions on the Internet. This was an opportunity for us not only to teach Internet skills, but introduce examples and ideas for integrating electronic access and critical thinking skills into the classroom. We also asked that the Teaching Center critique our work. This request led to some significant changes in our instructional format. We invited the University Teaching Center staff to develop a series of sessions for librarians and CCIT personnel on such topics as adult learning and instructional design. Based on our work with the Teaching Center and CCIT, we were asked to participate in a two day retreat on Teaching and Technology for University faculty. Here a blending of faculty from many academic disciplines, the University Library, CCIT and the University Teaching Center came together, and through workshops, demonstrations, brainstorming sessions and discussions, explored methods of teaching. This was a very key development for the library, because here were the people in the University interested in, invested in and motivated around using technology to enhance teaching. PROGRAM DESIGN In the fall of 1994, the Center for Computing and Information Technology (CCIT) and the University Library teamed to design and create a series of Internet workshops. By combining the strengths of the members of each unit, both CCIT and the Library hoped to reach more students in a more effective manner and have a larger pool of instructors to draw upon. This workshop would be offered in the library's electronic classrooms and be taught by two people working together, one from CCIT and the other from the Library. The collaboration began when a group of four librarians and three of the staff from CCIT met to compare current class designs, methods and handouts. The librarians also brought examples of handouts from other libraries. From this material, the group chose the most relevant, adding local information, discarding duplicate materials and combining the rest into a coherent whole. One of the CCIT people created a slide show using Powerpoint; the librarians created handouts detailing features of Gopher, Veronica, the World Wide Web, File Transfer Protocol(FTP), Listservs and Accessing Online Catalogs. These handouts were designed not only for participants to take for use after the workshops but also for instructors to use as outlines for their presentations. The first session designed was an overview of the Internet, an introductory workshop where participants would get a taste of what could be found "out there". It began with an introduction to the Internet, including a brief history, the concept of the Internet as a virtual community and a realistic picture of what is available. The ideas that we are all learners and teachers who should be approaching the Internet with the spirit of discovery were emphasized. This portion was designed to be about 15 minutes long. Short demonstrations with brief descriptions of each program or concept took up another 30 minutes. These demonstrations at first consisted of why and how to subscribe to Listservs, connecting to online catalogs and using Gopher and Veronica. The World Wide Web, FTP and WAIS were mentioned if there was time. Once participants had been introduced to various aspects of the Internet by listening to the introduction and watching the demonstrations, the tactile learners were addressed by allowing about 30 minutes for practice. To guide participants, they were given the option of trying some practice exercises or exploring on their own. Presenters changed roles, becoming monitors, to assist hands-on learners. Also in the initial design, 10 minutes were reserved for discussion on how the faculty in particular might use these resources in their research, curriculum development and/or teaching. Issues such as gender bias on the Internet and ideas like building your own Web site were to be explored. Five minutes were reserved for a summary of what was learned, mention of current trends and issues and announcements of future sessions. An evaluation survey which asked for feedback on the amount and type of material covered as well as suggestions for future sessions was also included. This is not how it usually worked out in reality. IMPLEMENTATION Staff training is the most important element in implementing any new service. Veteran instructors from both CCIT and the Library teamed to teach the initial sessions. Other CCIT staff and librarians attended sessions to familiarize themselves with the flow of the session and to gain confidence in their own teaching abilities. The first workshop was actually piloted by presenting it to library teams and asking for feedback. To foster the sense of discovery and the realization that we are all learners, librarians were encouraged to assist by keyboarding and being available during the practice sessions. It was hoped that many more librarians would gain the confidence to join the ranks of the instructors. This has yet to be realized in full measure, though the number of instructors from both CCIT and the Library has grown. With the speed of change on the Internet, the original concept for the Internet Overview changed as well. By the spring of 1995, based on returned evaluations, the Listserv and accessing online catalog demonstrations had been relegated to the introduction. The new standard Introduction to the Internet session now consisted of the introduction and alternating brief demonstrations with hands-on practice sessions. The demonstrations included Gopher, Veronica and connecting to the World Wide Web using Lynx and Mosaic. A separate session on Listservs also debuted that semester. The Teaching Center critique of an Internet session for faculty also brought dramatic changes to the way we taught the workshops. A better understanding of learning theory and learning styles drove these changes. The introduction, which had turned out to be closer to 20 minutes than 15, was slashed to less than 10 minutes. The demonstration/hands-on practice sometimes became guided exercise with explanation after the exercise and much more time was reserved for hands- on practice. The Internet sessions for faculty alone are now geared toward how the faculty can use the technology in their classes and research. The open Internet sessions, which have a more varied clientele, concentrate on accommodating different learning styles, fostering a spirit of discovery and instilling the concept of critical evaluation of resources. All variations of the Internet sessions are designed to build on the existing skills of the participants and to guarantee each participant will leave having had at least one successful experience during the workshop. CONTINUOUS LEARNING AND TRAINING Other changes have also occurred. Gopher and Veronica are no longer emphasized; Netscape has replaced Mosaic; concepts are taught using Netscape rather than Lynx. Sessions on creating your own homepage and an advanced Internet workshop debuted this fall to overflow crowds. For each change, the combined CCIT-Library team gathered together to design and create the new workshops. Team teaching is an expected and welcome aspect of this collaboration. Our partnerships and programs continue, and continue to grow. This past summer, a librarian requested that librarians be appointed to the CORE Curriculum Planning Committees which were being formed to help revise curriculum in the University's foundation courses. A common core curriculum will replace several general education programs. These courses will be formed around the themes of Traditions and Culture, Natural Sciences and Individuals in Society. The charge to the individuals developing the courses includes designing a significant writing component for each course. Teaching critical thinking skills in each course was also an element in the initial charge. Librarians, CCIT and Writing Center staff sat on these committees to provide resource assistance in the development of the core courses. The librarians also presented four Internet workshops for these faculty. As a direct result of librarians' involvement, one committee changed its charge to include introduction of new technology into the curriculum. FUTURE PLANS Two new developments take us into the present and the future. One very exciting collaboration is the Faculty Partnership Fund. This is a $940,000 grant award which is being shared by the Library, CCIT, the Teaching Center and the Triestman Center for New Technologies. This partnership "functions under the umbrella concept of Faculty Development, an initiative that aims to provide a structure for assisting faculty who wish to adopt innovative interactive teaching techniques and procedures." [1] It emphasizes the use of multimedia, networking, simulation and exploration in the development of learning-centered education. Money is going to personnel, equipment, software and operations. The Library has received money to create a prototype information commons in our Main Library reference area. It will invite students to explore graphic, text, and multimedia software programs to support their own interests. Ethernet connections will be provided and the furniture will foster collaboration. We will also be able to upgrade one of our electronic classrooms with multimedia-capable workstations, color scanners and a variety of software programs . The classroom will be open in the evenings to faculty who are working on innovative teaching projects. This brings us closer to our goal of being a truly learning library. Finally, the library has mounted a strong program to enhance librarian and faculty partnerships. These partnerships will create research programs and assignments which integrate information literacy, with an emphasis on new technologies, into the classroom and the curriculum. Each Integrative Services Team, which contains the bulk of our public service librarians, is expected to develop at least seven new partnerships this year. A team of librarians and career staff are working to ensure the success of this project by creating a foundation of support services. Individualized assistance to improve skills in use of technology is available to our staff. Workshops on learning theory and instructional design are being planned. Resources both on campus and beyond are being offered. A variety of opportunities are being planned from shadowing effective teachers, to videotaping instructional sessions, to sharing effective models. We feel that with this last initiative we have made a complete circle. We have identified our own needs and interests, found colleagues who share these goals, combined expertise, resources and creative efforts to develop programs to meet present needs and future goals. [1] _New Learning Technology Spending Plan_ (Tucson: University of Arizona, 1995) (10/31/95 AE)