The Learner's Library: A Library for the Future

MISSION > VOGEL PLANNING DOCUMENT

Introduction

Libraries in liberal arts colleges are faced with unprecedented challenges: the proliferation of technology, the information explosion coupled with high inflation rates of paper materials, and the uncertainty within the profession about the future of libraries. Some colleges are choosing to respond by creating "high-tech, low-touch" libraries, others by excelling as traditional teaching libraries. Wartburg has a different vision: to create the learner's library, a facility intentionally and consistently designed to produce student, faculty, and staff learning.

The key to the success of this vision is a shared commitment to the centrality of what some have called the "Learning Paradigm" (Barr & Tagg 1995). "In its briefest form, the paradigm that has governed our colleges is this: A college is an institution that exists to provide instruction. Subtly but profoundly we are shifting to a new paradigm: A college is an institution that exists to produce learning. This shift changes everything." (p. 13). Wartburg's new library will be designed as a symbol of Wartburg's distinctive approach to learning. It will connect learners to the curriculum (both in the major and in general education) and to one another though the strategic use of space and technology.

The Learner's Library Defined

A library designed to produce learning differs from traditional libraries in a variety of ways. The mission of a learning library is to produce learning by creating powerful public learning environments in which communities of learners discover and construct knowledge. Librarians collaborate with faculty and students in this library to improve the quality of learning. Learning libraries specialize in "just-in-time" services to support the information literacy needs of learners. Faculty and librarians are designers of "deep" learning experiences which begin in the library space and extend into the campus and the world. The learner's library is a library for the future.

Barr and Tagg's chart (Figure 1) compares the two paradigms. The chart has been augmented to include the Traditional Library Paradigm and the Learning Library Paradigm.

The shift from Instruction Paradigm to Learning Paradigm transforms the classroom. Similarly, the shift from Traditional Library Paradigm to Learning Library Paradigm "changes everything" in the library. A library whose mission is to collect, preserve, organize, and provide access to recorded knowledge acts as a warehouse. The library's collection is its most important asset; the staff's mission is to develop and oversee that collection. The tools (books and other materials) are the library's raison d'etre. In a Learning Paradigm library, learning outcomes drive everything. All services and programs are planned to produce learning and to do it more efficiently over time. Experts spend their time designing learning methods and environments and training gatekeepers and triage staff. The just-in-case waiting that commonly occurs at the reference desk is inefficient and must be replaced by initiatives that produce learning more effectively. Tools assume their proper place as support materials to enhance learning. Libraries serve their clients more with "just in time" delivery of information than "just in case" ownership. The information itself may come from anywhere in the world and be delivered to clients electronically or by a paper-carrying courier. The library's service role as information provider becomes ubiquitous, a "library without walls," and the library building becomes a learning laboratory.

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Wartburg's Mission and the Library

Introduction to the College, from the 1994-96 catalog:

"Wartburg College was founded in 1852, when Pastor Wilhelm Loehe of Neuendettelsau, Bavaria, sent Georg Grossmann and eight students to found a teachers seminary in Saginaw, Michigan. The college moved several times before establishing permanent roots in Waverly, Iowa, in 1935.

"The college is named after the Wartburg Castle, a landmark built in 1027 and located near Eisenach, Germany. During the Reformation, Martin Luther took refuge at the castle. While there, he translated the New Testament into the language of the people, thereby contributing to the unity of Germany and to the use of vernacular in religion.

"Throughout its history, the college has steadfastly pursued its purposes:

". . . .Wartburg is a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. This relationship is central to the college's mission. Wartburg affirms the role of values and religion in preparing students for lives of leadership and service. At Wartburg, a feeling of community operates at all levels--from classrooms to residence halls to playing fields."

Connections between the library's mission and the mission and goals of the College show how the library supports institutional priorities: The mission of Wartburg College is "to prepare students for lives of leadership and service as a spirited expression of their faith and learning." The Vision of the College is expressed in five dynamic interactions: 1."rigorous academic expectations and strong personal support"; 2. "the liberal arts and a concern for usefulness and careers"; 3. "a commitment to leadership and a tradition of service to others"; 4. "a spirit of exploration and a foundation of faith and values"; and 5. "a global outreach and Midwestern roots." The Academic Vision Statement further elaborates the College's goals for its students: A Wartburg education educates "the whole person by developing students' intellectual talents, cultivating their personal convictions, and engaging them in active participation in community." In this way, Wartburg "prepares graduates to lead responsible lives as informed, reflective, and active citizens in a rapidly changing world [and] helps them make wise choices and sound decisions for themselves and in service of the common good."

In support of these goals, the library's mission is to prepare students to be lifelong learners who can and do solve information problems by answering five critical questions:

The Wartburg Plan section of College assessment plan states that "The Wartburg Plan of general education is designed to insure that our students... are proficient in the essential literacies characteristic of liberally educated people." The College's NCA Assessment Plan recognizes information literacy as a "fundamental academic skill" by calling for students to have "an ability to access and exploit ever-expanding sources of information." In Wartburg Plan courses, the library faculty lay the groundwork which begins the student's information literacy instruction and provides concepts and skills which can be built upon in upper-division courses. The Foundational Studies Tier teaches "the distinctive ways in which scholars in these domains [humanities, social sciences, natural sciences] think about issues and discover or create knowledge." [italics added] Although it is assumed that students may intuit these skills as they develop an understanding of their majors, information literacy has no specific place in the curriculum. The library provides leadership in teaching these skills in a coherent, directed way.

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The Wartburg Library's Five Goals to Produce Learning

The Library's five program goals are designed to produce learning. These goals are being steadfastly pursued in anticipation of the new library building. Progress is already being made in reaching these goals (as described below).

Goal #1. Design methods and environments in which students learn information literacy.

Our primary goal is to be a learning library where students become information literate, where they discover:

Stephen Ehrmann (1993) called for three changes in the way higher education is delivered. The first of these is "more project-centered learning in a tool-rich, information-rich environment" where students work "alone and in teams to frame and work on significant, realistic, open-ended projects" which require "searching, sifting, analyzing, and synthesizing large quantities of information." This is also the concept behind resource-based learning. At Wartburg, the library faculty will lead in the development of project-centered learning, designing and promoting projects in close collaboration with the classroom faculty, and guiding students, both directly and indirectly, to understand the difference between information and knowledge.

The concept of "bibliographic instruction" is being challenged in the profession by "information literacy." The change is more than semantic and requires a radical rethinking of what and how students learn. Information literacy goes far beyond library skills. Teaching discrete skills, like looking in the serials list or pushing certain keys when searching the automated "card" catalog, is shortsighted in an environment of rapid change. Skills alone will not serve Wartburg students even the whole of their student careers, much less throughout their lives. Ehrmann has stated: "Graduates already live in a world that is richer in information, and in the tools for using information, than most of them can exploit in their working, political, cultural, familial and personal lives." Recognizing that, we seek to help students discover enduring concepts of information retrieval and use, which they can apply in many contexts. Hence, the outcome goals of the library's information literacy program are that Wartburg College graduates:

are aware that an information universe exists and understand the functions of at least the following components of the information universe: academic libraries, public libraries, experts, news media, Internet resources.

can identify problems (professional, academic, personal, etc.) which require information solutions.

can design and use a search strategy which is tailored to the need at hand; takes into consideration knowledge about the discipline and the information universe; and makes use of the three types of sources: "overview, fact, and finding."

know when to seek the advice of experts (including librarians) and which experts to ask.

can locate the information retrieved by the search (physically, electronically, etc.).

understand the importance of evaluating the information retrieved and routinely incorporate evaluation into their information-seeking processes.

To move us toward this goal, we hired an Information Literacy Librarian in 1995-96 and have quadrupled the number of information literacy sessions since 1993-94. The Information Laboratory and Information Literacy Classrooms in the new library will give us effective space and better technology to realize this goal. With limited presentation ability and lack of adequate space for hands-on information literacy work in the current facility, we are not able to provide this important service to the numbers of students who need it. Achieving this goal for all graduates is possible only with this new facility.

Goal #2: Use the library building as a learning laboratory.

The Learning Paradigm implies a bold and strategic initiative where physical space is concerned. The library building is a laboratory where the library's learning outcomes may be achieved. To facilitate the teaching and learning structures of the Learning Paradigm, the building will provide a sanctuary where a synergy of people and information may occur. It will provide a harmonious space conducive to meeting the deepest intellectual needs and supporting:

To facilitate the development and use of information technology, the building will house both the library and user support personnel from computing services. These entities will work together in a creative confederation, drawing on the strengths of both sets of professionals to provide expertise to students and faculty.

The new library will be home for the Pathways Center and the Center for Faculty Learning. The College's initiative to bolster pathways to student success is embodied in the Pathways Center. The Career Development Center and the Writing Center have moved into the current library, creating the prototype of what will become the Pathways Center. A new building with dedicated space for the Pathways Center will connect the services provided in that center to student learning, an important institutional priority. The proposed Center for Faculty Learning is a special space for faculty members to develop themselves as learners and teachers in an information-rich environment. The Center is a visible sign of the College's commitment to invest in faculty development and rewards by providing space and tools for faculty to consult with local experts on pedagogy, advising, and the integration of technology into learning and teaching. This is also the "home" of the Faculty Development Committee, a collaborative work space where professors can consult with their colleagues on teaching, develop classroom materials, and share information on pedagogy.

The Center for Faculty Learning does not yet exist; we have, however, been building a collection on pedagogy for the past several years and will be installing a computer lab with multi-media design and production facilities in 1996-97. This is the genesis of the Center for Faculty Learning. A new building with dedicated space for the Center for Faculty Learning draws faculty members into the library and provides significant rewards to encourage faculty-student interaction and project-based learning. The CFL also provides "safe" public space for faculty to work together on improving teaching.

The current library is not set up as a lab! In a lab, learners must have space to work together on projects using the tools they need. The vision for "library as learning laboratory" means different configurations of space. We have modified the reference area in the current building to emulate the lab environment we hope eventually to create, but it is not as effective as space designed originally on the metaphor of the lab. The learner's library, which integrates the Pathways Center and the Center for Faculty Learning with the information literacy program, symbolizes Wartburg's distinctive commitment to value-added learning.

Goal #3: Provide information resources to connect learners to the curriculum.

Students will be able to get many of the materials they need at the library; access from other sources will supply the rest. The ratio of access to ownership may well change as access becomes easier and assumes greater importance. The library staff will encourage the use of public libraries for most extracurricular information needs. Technology in the library will support the Wartburg community's information-seeking, teaching, and learning in the following ways:

Individual learning and information-gathering applications: viewing, listening, searching. All applications will be delivered through the campus network, and all the library's public work spaces will have the capability (conduit) to provide access to the network for the increasing numbers of students who will be bringing notebook or laptop computers to the library.

Small group learning and information-gathering applications: The value of collaborative learning has been conclusively proven. Students will need viewing, listening, and searching stations where they can work together in groups of two or three without disturbing other learners.

Large group learning and information-gathering applications: performance and display spaces and equipment (classrooms). There will be a need for both large- and small-group interaction in the same room. For example, an instructor could demonstrate an application and then have groups of students practice it using the small-group stations.

The building will also serve as the warehouse of library materials in physical formats. The warehouse will feature a unified, integrated collection of all physical materials (making it possible for learners to find information in a variety of formats shelved in sequence).

We are now moving toward collection policies tailored to the needs of learners. Electronic tools such as Ariel and UnCover are allowing us to provide "just-in-time" delivery. A new building that is organized more effectively (with all the tools in the same place) will make it easier for students to find what we hold in the collection. A unified collection (integration of print and non-print sources in call number order) enhances the value of our current collection as well as its utility. In a very real sense a "one-stop" approach to the warehousing of information tools in physical formats increases the effectiveness of what we already have!

Goal #4: Educate student workers.

Library work-study jobs prepare students for lives of service by:

inculcating the work habits and interpersonal skills needed by people who "contribute and commit to their families, their local communities, churches, and the larger society." (Academic Vision Statement)

giving them experience in a public service occupation.

teaching them more advanced skills in finding and using information than those included in the information literacy curriculum and giving them the opportunity to tutor other students in those skills.

teaching concepts of classification and organization that can be transferred to many other activities.

giving them an appreciation of the complexity and value of libraries as information sources and encouraging them to be ambassadors for libraries on campus and throughout their lives.

encouraging them to consider librarianship as a career option.

We have created student manager positions to help us to move more strongly to achieve this goal. In a new facility, where library and computing students are intermingled, the opportunity exists for students to gain more meaningful, relevant experience in information literacy. Students will be critical to the success of the information laboratory, and they will benefit from knowledge of its use in their studies.

Goal #5: Outreach.

As an integral part of the College's academic enterprise, the librarians will be active partners with classroom faculty in the academic life of the College, teaching information literacy, advising students, supporting faculty and staff learning through information-seeking, participating in college activities and organizations, and teaching regular college courses as appropriate and depending upon qualifications and needs. As a complement to a building which invites people in to interact with information, library services and resources will be available across campus as well ("library without walls"):

The library will serve the wider community by making its collection available to citizens of Waverly and the state of Iowa through Open Access and to library users everywhere through interlibrary loan.

We have already started a delivery service and instituted a World Wide Web page. The Web page will be continuously updated. Providing office space to librarians and computer staff in proximity to the Information Laboratory will enhance the outreach capabilities of the learning library by creating a functional staff core where the experts can serve the information needs of learners.

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The New Wartburg Library Building

The new Wartburg library symbolizes Wartburg's distinctive approach to learning. It is a welcoming, user-friendly learning library, designed to foster learning outcomes in the major and in general education. Although it includes quiet areas for solitary reflection, its tone is of the liveliness and excitement that accompany "deep learning," as described by Ehrmann: "learning that develops fuller understanding of ideas, as evidenced by the student's ability to go beyond specifically what was taught and, for example, to apply what's been learned in unfamiliar, real world situations." (Ehrmann 1996) It is not a warehouse! The library is a building that does for the campus intellectually what the Chapel has done spiritually, and in doing so it gives the distinct impression of Wartburg. This library could not be at any other college.

The conceptual framework for the library building program draws on "The Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education" and the theory of multiple intelligences,both of which support the learning paradigm. The Seven Principles assert that good practice: "encourages student-faculty contact; encourages cooperation among students; encourages active learning; gives prompt feedback; emphasizes time on task; communicates high expectations; and respects diverse talents and ways of learning" (Hatfield 1995). Gardner (1983) postulated seven kinds of intelligences, by which he meant "the ability to solve problems, or to create products, that are valued within one or more cultural settings." The seven multiple intelligences are: Logical/Mathematical; Visual/Spatial; Body/Kinesthetic; Musical/Rhythmic; Interpersonal; Intrapersonal and Verbal/Linguistic" (Lazear 1991).

The key consideration, then, in designing the new library, is to create "powerful learning environments in which communities of learners discover and construct knowledge." These learners will have different learning styles and abilities in multiple intelligences, a fact to be considered in the design of the building. We will capitalize upon the synergy of technology and collaboration to produce learning. The three key components of the building are learners, tools and experts (see Figure 2). There are some spaces where only one component is found and others where the components combine and the functions associated with them interact. But what makes this library distinctively Wartburg is that learners, not tools, are at the center.

Conclusion

We have higher aspirations for the new library. Library study space should be focused on actual learning, not serving only as a study hall or a warehouse. We want to de-emphasize just-in-case services and emphasize just-in-time planning. The library should not be a lowest-common-denominator space. We need to know more about the kinds of learning styles and educational diversity represented in Wartburg students and the library needs associated with meeting their learning objectives. Clearly we are interested in supporting a variety of learning styles and intelligences, perhaps providing auditory and visual stimulation at different places in the library, and by having different types of tables and carrels for solitary and group learners. The learning library must provide more support for diversity of learning styles than merely passive access. Learners, not tools, must be at the architectural and functional center of the facility.

This vision document will develop and grow as the library planning process proceeds. We hope that these thoughts will become the philosophical foundation for the library building as it is presented to potential funding sources and others who might wish to incorporate some of its ideas into their own library programs.

References

Barr, R. B., & Tagg, J. (1995, November/December). From teaching to learning--A new paradigm for undergraduate education. Change, 13-25.

Ehrmann, S. C. (1993). U.S. higher education in 1988: Using technology to meet the triple challenge. Washington, DC: Annenberg/CPB Project, Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Ehrmann, S. C. (1996, February 12). What good is a campus today? AAHESGIT [Internet discussion list message]. Available E-mail: AAHESGIT@list.cren.net.

Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind. New York: Basic Books.

Hatfield, S. R. (1995). The seven principles in action. Bolton, MA: Anker Publishing.

Lazear, D. (1991). Seven ways of knowing. Palatine, IL: Skylight Publishing.