Institute for Information Literacy Texas Immersion

About Immersion

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About Immersion
The 2006 regional ACRL Institute for Information Literacy Immersion Program will be held at the University of Houston from July 14-19. The University of Houston and the University of Texas at Austin are co-hosting this nationally acclaimed program.

This program provides instruction librarians with the opportunity to work intensively for four-and-a-half days on all aspects of information literacy. Whether your institution is just beginning to think about implementing an information literacy component or whether you have a program well under way, the Immersion Program will provide your instruction librarian with the intellectual tools and practical techniques to help your institution build or enhance its instruction program.

Tracks Top
Texas Immersion will offer two tracks:

Teacher Track. This track focuses on individual development for those who are interested in enhancing, refreshing, or extending their individual instruction skills. Curriculum includes classroom techniques, learning theory, leadership, and assessment framed in the context of information literacy. Librarians and graduate students in library and information science programs are eligible to apply. Participants selected for the Teacher Track will prepare a description of an instructional situation and a related ten-minute presentation in advance of the Immersion program. During Immersion, participants will revise the presentation based on feedback from colleagues and faculty.

The Teacher Track is for you if:

You have little or no experience as a teacher or if you have experience teaching but would benefit from a focus on the fundamentals.
You want to understand more about learning theory, and how to design lessons and assignments that accommodate different learning styles.
You want an opportunity to practice and receive feedback on your teaching.
You need to understand the role of assessment in improving your teaching techniques and the design of lessons and assignments.
You want to identify and build on your leadership skills.

Program Track. This track focuses on developing, integrating, and managing institutional and programmatic information literacy programs. Participants selected for the Program Track will develop individual case studies in advance of the Immersion program. Change dynamics, systems thinking, institutional outcomes assessment, scalability, and the integration of teaching, learning, and technology will be brought to bear on analyzing the various programmatic challenges presented in the case studies. Immersion participants will be expected to develop the case studies into an action plan for implementation at the home institution, and possible inclusion in a "best practices" report six months after the program.

The Program Track is for you if:

You have some knowledge of learning theory, pedagogy, and assessment.
You have some experience as a teacher.
You currently have (or are soon to have) some program management responsibility.
You are interested in moving your program from a focus on bibliographic instruction to a focus on information literacy.
You need to understand the role of assessment related to a whole curriculum and to gaining campus support.
You want to strengthen your skills as a campus leader for information literacy.

Costs Top
Registration: $1,035
Dorm Lodging: $148.50
For information about hotels, see the Lodging page

Faculty Top
A list of faculty with brief bios.