“Down the Up Staircase”: First-Year Students Discover the Archives
Type of Presentation
Individual paper/presentation (20 minute presentation)
Target Audience
Higher Education
Location
Room 218/220
Abstract
“What makes you think you’re so special? Just because you’re a teacher? What he was really saying was: You are so special. You are my teacher. Then teach me, help me, Hey, Teach, I’m lost—which way do I go? I’m tired of going up the down staircase.” ― Bel Kaufman, Up the Down Staircase
First-year students coming to the library may be introduced to services and attend information literacy sessions, but how many venture downstairs to the archives? This presentation describes the sustained collaboration between a composition professor and a special collections librarian who have designed a community-focused, inquiry-driven course that builds academic writing proficiency and information literacy. Within their first year at Auburn University, our students discover the rich resources lying beneath the main library in Special Collections and Archives. When students experience this welcoming, productive space first-hand, they have the opportunity to hone their research and writing skills while discovering the little-known human and material resources that special collections and archives affords.
Scaffolded assignments give practice in generating meaningful topics, practicing and selecting methods, selecting and integrating sources, solving problems, and reflecting on progress. Students have cited benefits such as authority, relevance, engagement, serendipity, professionalism, and project management. In addition to bridging archival intelligence, composition and information literacy, the authors are guiding lower- and upper-division students in designing and curating a digital archive showcasing student work and archival holdings, portraying archives as spaces for deeper student understandings of self, school, and society.
Presentation Description
This presentation describes the collaboration between a composition professor and a special collections librarian who have designed a course that builds both academic writing proficiency and information literacy. Within their first year at Auburn University, our students discover the rich resources in Special Collections and Archives. Students experiencing this welcoming, productive space first-hand have the opportunity to hone their research and writing skills while discovering the little-known human and material resources that special collections and archives affords.
Session Goals
Show to attendees that undergraduate engagement with the archives and special collections is feasible, rewarding, and aligned with information literacy goals.
Publication Type and Release Option
Presentation (Open Access)
Recommended Citation
Schmidt, Greg and Eidson, Diana, "“Down the Up Staircase”: First-Year Students Discover the Archives" (2018). Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy. 63.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gaintlit/2018/2018/63
“Down the Up Staircase”: First-Year Students Discover the Archives
Room 218/220
“What makes you think you’re so special? Just because you’re a teacher? What he was really saying was: You are so special. You are my teacher. Then teach me, help me, Hey, Teach, I’m lost—which way do I go? I’m tired of going up the down staircase.” ― Bel Kaufman, Up the Down Staircase
First-year students coming to the library may be introduced to services and attend information literacy sessions, but how many venture downstairs to the archives? This presentation describes the sustained collaboration between a composition professor and a special collections librarian who have designed a community-focused, inquiry-driven course that builds academic writing proficiency and information literacy. Within their first year at Auburn University, our students discover the rich resources lying beneath the main library in Special Collections and Archives. When students experience this welcoming, productive space first-hand, they have the opportunity to hone their research and writing skills while discovering the little-known human and material resources that special collections and archives affords.
Scaffolded assignments give practice in generating meaningful topics, practicing and selecting methods, selecting and integrating sources, solving problems, and reflecting on progress. Students have cited benefits such as authority, relevance, engagement, serendipity, professionalism, and project management. In addition to bridging archival intelligence, composition and information literacy, the authors are guiding lower- and upper-division students in designing and curating a digital archive showcasing student work and archival holdings, portraying archives as spaces for deeper student understandings of self, school, and society.
