Session F: The Auburn Curriculum

Michelle Sidler and colleagues presented on curriculum reforms at Auburn; they were forced to abandon their vertical curriculum and develop a horizontal curriculum. Key elements: scaffolded assignments, themed sections, information literacy replacing library visits, tabet pcs classrooms.

Scaffolding: analysis and evaluation of a single argument, compare and contrast two arguments, create and argument synthesizing 3 sources, extensive argumentative research paper.

Themes: business, cultural diversity, health & medicine, liberal arts, science and technology, sustainability.

Why tablets: flexibility, mobility, OneNote, actual writing. Stocking a lab with tablets is an unusual move, as they point out. No projectors; a conscious decision to emphasize collaboration and work around a teacher-centered classroom.

Information Literacy: reviewed 5 principles of ACRL. Did some information literacy tutoring with the writing center staff; good idea.

Assignments + Information Literacy: second assignment in sequence was supported by two IL sessions with library. Focused on key word search strategies. Comparison exercise: which of two articles is more scholarly. Academic search premier: get students to limit to full text and scholarly review. Nice assignment prompt: "Should the UN add "regular, efficient, and effective access to the Internet" to its list of basic human rights?" Moved into sociological abstracts, not all full text: opened up teaching of how to get non full text material.


Instructors are pretty satisfied with instruction; consistent with what folks at NDSU found when they surveyed instructor satisfaction with information literacy skills. Teach IL, and students will get it; assign but don't teach; they don't get it.