Kelsey L O'Brien | SUNY: University at Albany (original) (raw)

Papers by Kelsey L O'Brien

College & Research Libraries News, 2021

As technology advances at an unprecedented rate and the job market continually evolves, educators... more As technology advances at an unprecedented rate and the job market continually evolves, educators are challenged with effectively engaging students and preparing them for success after graduation. The current landscape requires a shift from lecture-based, content-focused instruction to hands-on, student-centered techniques that foster lifelong learning competencies. Gamification provides an effective approach for creating exciting, active learning experiences that promote critical mindsets such as collaboration, problem-solving, persistence, and adaptability. These abilities are especially valuable for first-year students who are making the transition from high school to college research and learning. This article provides an example of how the authors have implemented Breakout EDU games to engage first-year students and help them develop skills and mindsets for success in college and beyond.

Conference Proceedings for Learning Information Literacy Across the Globe, Apr 10, 2019

This paper explores metaliteracy, its importance in today’s information environment, the impact t... more This paper explores metaliteracy, its importance in today’s information environment, the impact that it has had on a major model of information literacy, and the flexible open resources that are available for incorporating it in the teaching and learning of any discipline.

C&RL News, 2018

I f you'd walked by Professor Susan Detwiler's Writing and Critical Inquiry (WCI) classrooms at t... more I f you'd walked by Professor Susan Detwiler's Writing and Critical Inquiry (WCI) classrooms at the University at Albany-SUNY on September 7, you would have seen something rather unusual: two teams of students huddled around tables, preoccupied with locked boxes and an assortment of other materials. Engaged in animated, yet hushed, conversations to keep the other team from overhearing, the students puzzled over cryptic messages and secret codes, hoping to unlock the box and reveal what was inside. Some of the materials on the table provided clues, others turned out to be red herrings.

Open Praxis, 2017

This article examines metaliteracy as a pedagogical model that leverages the assets of MOOC platf... more This article examines metaliteracy as a pedagogical model that leverages the assets of MOOC platforms to enhance self-regulated and self-empowered learning. Between 2013 and 2015, a collaborative teaching team within the State University of New York (SUNY) developed three MOOCs on three different platforms— connectivist, Coursera and Canvas—to engage with learners about metaliteracy. As a reframing of information literacy, metaliteracy envisions the learner as an active and metacognitive producer of digital information in online communities and social media environments (Mackey & Jacobson, 2011; 2014). This team of educators, which constitutes the core of the Metaliteracy Learning Collaborative, used metaliteracy as a lens for applied teaching and learning strategies in the development of a cMOOC and two xMOOCs. The metaliteracy MOOCs pushed against the dominant trends of lecture-based, automated MOOC design towards a more learner-centered pedagogy that aligns with key components of metaliteracy.

Presentations by Kelsey L O'Brien

Increasingly, secondary and post-secondary students need to become producers of information in bo... more Increasingly, secondary and post-secondary students need to become producers of information in both academic and quotidian settings that are often collaborative and online. This requires a shift in mindset and a new approach to literacy. SUNY OER Services adapted Lumen's iSucceed "College Success" online course to include a module that focuses on metaliteracy. This course is available SUNY students, as well as in a modified form for anyone interested in applying the metaliteracy model to lifelong learning. This session provides an overview of the iSucceed course and then focuses on how the metaliteracy module can be used to introduce students to the importance of this information and learning framework. As educators transition to fully online and remote learning in response to the COVID-19 crisis, this new flexible, interactive metaliteracy resource provides adaptable content for both K-12 and college settings.

This interactive presentation invited attendees to provide feedback on a developing global MOOC e... more This interactive presentation invited attendees to provide feedback on a developing global MOOC entitled Metaliterate Learning in the Post-Truth World and metaliteracy digital badging system. Participants had the opportunity to offer insights at a critical point in the development process, as we prepare the MOOC and digital badging content for spring 2019.

University at Albany and Skidmore College librarians have experimented with the immersive game pl... more University at Albany and Skidmore College librarians have experimented with the immersive game platform BreakoutEDU to incorporate gamification elements into library instruction. BreakoutEDU toolkits allow educators to create their own escape-room style games for the classroom. Participants will have an opportunity to experience this engaging classroom practice, and will leave the session with ideas for implementing their own BreakoutEDU games.

This presentation examines metaliteracy as a pedagogical model in the design of three Massive Ope... more This presentation examines metaliteracy as a pedagogical model in the design of three Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and a competency based digital badging system (https://metaliteracybadges.org/). Metaliteracy is an empowering pedagogy that promotes metacognitive reflection and envisions the learner as critical consumer and creative producer in social media and collaborative communities (Mackey and Jacobson, 2011, 2014). The initial exploration of metaliteracy in the connectivist (Siemens, 2004) format informed the eventual design of related projects in the xMOOC platforms of Coursera and Canvas, including a recent on-demand version of the Coursera MOOC (https://www.coursera.org/learn/metaliteracy). As these projects emerged, a competency-based digital badging system was developed based on the metaliteracy learning goals and objectives that provided an interactive system with gamification components for learners to pursue quests and challenges leading to digital badges (http://www.metaliteracy.org). At a pivotal intersection of these open learning projects, the MOOC and badging platforms converged to inform a hybrid MOOC design. This reimagined strategy advanced metaliteracy through the original connectivist principles that initially inspired these innovative practices.

The implementation of the Metaliteracy Badging System was presented for LITA's Game Making Intere... more The implementation of the Metaliteracy Badging System was presented for LITA's Game Making Interest Group.

This panel presentation offers a unique perspective from a collaborative team of faculty, librari... more This panel presentation offers a unique perspective from a collaborative team of faculty, librarians, and administrators within SUNY that has experience co-developing four Metaliteracy MOOCs across three platforms. Our five-year iterative journey took us from our very first connectivist MOOC, to xMOOCs in the Coursera and Canvas platforms, and to the current on-demand version of our Coursera MOOC, entitled Metaliteracy: Empowering Yourself in a Connected World. We will present on the best practices gleaned from our experiences, which we have worked to adapt to the self-paced, on-demand environment.

Metaliteracy served as the content focus for each of the MOOCs, and also provided the guiding framework for our course design. Metaliteracy is an empowering reinvention of information literacy

that encourages metacognitive reflection and the production of digital information in social media and collaborative communities. In each of the MOOCs, our goal was to engage participants in a way that would encourage their development as empowered, metaliterate learners, as well as teaching them about metaliteracy.

MOOCs provide ample opportunities for learners to connect with and learn from a global classroom of peers. This connectedness is often lost, however, in exchange for more automated, lecture-centered content delivery. The open and circuitous format of our first connectivist MOOC allowed for a level of flexibility and interactivity that was difficult to replicate in our later xMOOC explorations in Coursera and Canvas. However, components in the xMOOCS such as the peer assessment functionalities and discussion forums provided support structures not present in the cMOOC environment that helped facilitate student engagement.

The pedagogical practices we aimed for and how they fared in each environment will be of interest to others who are creating MOOC-based courses, and who are interested in incorporating components that encourage deep engagement and connectedness, even in the self-paced xMOOC environment.

These projects were largely supported by SUNY Innovative Instruction Technology Grants (IITGs), which provided additional resources for continued collaboration between colleagues at The University at Albany and SUNY Empire State College, for these open learning and competency-based ventures.

Overall, we will describe what worked, as well as what did not, and look forward to engaging in conversation with those who have developed MOOCS themselves, or are contemplating doing so.

Even with a few challenges along the way, and the occasional differences in viewpoints, we kept the band together, and the metaliteracy movie never ends. It goes on and on, and on, and on.

A grant-funded collaboration between two fields, literacy studies and metaliteracy, and individua... more A grant-funded collaboration between two fields, literacy studies and metaliteracy, and individuals from three State University of New York institutions (the University at Albany, Empire State College, and the System Administration) provided an opportunity to adapt and scale an existing metaliteracy badging system to meet discipline specific curricular needs, and for its first-time use with graduate students. This rich, multi-tiered badging system has been used at the University at Albany for several years with undergraduate students in a wide range of courses, and it also served as the basis for Coursera and Canvas MOOCs. The current project advances this initiative even further, allowing the presenters to create a resource that will introduce graduate literacy students to two important educational tools: digital badging and metaliteracy, with an emphasis on its digital citizen badge. The project has spurred the expansion of content within the existing badging system, but has also motivated the creation of new content, an educator’s overlay on the Digital Citizenship badge, and a customizable suite of resources targeted to higher education faculty and K--12 educators interested in metaliteracy and digital badging. These newly created educator preparation resources will ultimately enhance students’ ability to successfully and responsibly participate in today’s online living and learning environment. The project builds upon links and collaborations between departments within and across SUNY institutions and foregrounds the exciting disciplinary overlaps between literacy studies and metaliteracy. Drawing from deep expertise as co-creators and researchers in initiatives such as the new ACRL Information Literacy Framework and the Connecting Credentials and Global Learning Qualifications Frameworks (funded by the Lumina Foundation), we have worked together to create a robust resource that will be available to every SUNY institution, and, ultimately, to interested institutions beyond SUNY. In the spirit of enhancing the pillars of the EXCELS framework, this project also supports access, success, inquiry and engagement.

In 2012 a collaborative team of librarians, faculty, and instructional designers across SUNY inst... more In 2012 a collaborative team of librarians, faculty, and instructional designers across SUNY institutions began the initial work on a badging system that aligns with the metaliteracy framework (metaliteracy.org). This interactive, multimedia resource provides a scaffolded suite of exercises that help students develop competencies for self-reflective and lifelong learning, particularly concerning their roles as consumers and creators of information. The system has continued to evolve over the last few years as a flexible and multipurpose teaching resource. At the University at Albany the Metaliteracy Badging System has been used to integrate information literacy components into the general curriculum, with over 2,000 users registered to date. It has also served particularly well as a visual map when lesson planning with disciplinary faculty, helping information literacy librarians communicate about what we teach. We are currently in the process of incorporating a new feature into the system for customized learning pathways, which will facilitate instruction around specific course themes. This poster presentation will provide an overview of the Metaliteracy Badging System, which we hope to scale as an open resource for use across SUNY institutions, and will focus on how we have used this tool to promote collaborative teaching models.

Faculty from a 2016 Innovative Instruction and Technology Grant team shared research and practice... more Faculty from a 2016 Innovative Instruction and Technology Grant team shared research and practices with local school teachers and administrators for the University at Albany's School of Education Day.

Librarians and faculty members from three institutions collaborated to adapt a metaliteracy Digit... more Librarians and faculty members from three institutions collaborated to adapt a metaliteracy Digital Citizen badge for use with graduate literacy education students. The multi-faceted goal is not only for these students to affirm their roles as digital citizens, but also to actively teach and model such citizenship to their prospective students. This grant-funded project, which adapts content from an existing metaliteracy badging system, incorporates mechanisms to encourage a community of users, and serves as a model for collaborations with faculty across various disciplines.

In this session, project collaborators will briefly introduce metaliteracy (metaliteracy.org), provide an overview of the badging system (metaliteracybadges.org), and discuss the components added for this project, including rubrics for assessment, and mechanisms that worked well for collaborating. We are not only concerned with collaboration within the grant team; we also built components that will encourage educators to create open access learning objects for an Educators Corner and an Educators Conference.

Drawing from expertise as co-creators and researchers in initiatives such as the new ACRL Information Literacy Framework and the Connecting Credentials (connectingcredentials.org) and Global Learning Qualifications Frameworks (funded by the Lumina Foundation), we have worked together to create a robust resource that will be available to every SUNY institution, and, ultimately, to interested institutions beyond SUNY. We encourage participants to actively engage in the presentation by contributing ideas for badging opportunities based on your own professional development and curricular goals to an open forum in the Educators Corner.

Members of the Information Literacy Department at the University at Albany Libraries have begun t... more Members of the Information Literacy Department at the University at Albany Libraries have begun to work on a digital badging system that will introduce students to the Framework. Several members of the department have experience with the Metaliteracy Badging System (metaliteracybadges.org), and began to envision the benefits of a flexible set of topics with linked activities that will allow learners to follow their own individualized path. Librarians and other instructors will be able to have students explore the frames, and they would issue badges to students whose culminating activities that have undergone review.

In 2012, a collective team from several SUNY institutions received an Innovative Instruction and ... more In 2012, a collective team from several SUNY institutions received an Innovative Instruction and Technology grant to explore and develop a SUNY-wide Metaliteracy Learning Collaborative. Over the past two years, as part of this ongoing initiative, this evolving group of librarians, disciplinary faculty members, and instructional designers has developed three MOOCs on three different platforms. While all of the MOOCs were built around the same metaliteracy framework, each differed in design and presentation, which resulted in an interesting opportunity for comparison between each of these unique learning experiences. In this workshop we will discuss our process for creating learning materials for each of the platforms, and the ways in which we leveraged the strengths of each.

The driving goal for this Tier 3 IITG project was the integration of the Open SUNY Metaliteracy B... more The driving goal for this Tier 3 IITG project was the integration of the Open SUNY Metaliteracy Badging System with Coursera’s MOOC platform. We proposed that merging these two innovative and flexible learning models would provide an exciting prospect to implement metaliteracy competencies across a wide and diverse audience. Coursera’s analytics also provided the opportunity to gather valuable data about the impact of the badging system on the learning experience, especially in regards to student motivation.

As we set out to build our MOOC, however, we encountered both technological and pedagogical barriers to our original course design. The first of these barriers was that full integration of the badging system in the way we had envisioned was not possible with Coursera's current functionalities.

The other barrier we encountered was related to the incompatibility of our original assessments with
the automated nature of MOOCs. The assessments we had designed for the badging system are mostly open-ended, reflective assignments that cannot be automatically graded, but rather must be reviewed by an instructor. While we wanted to maintain the integrity of the original assignments, instructor
grading of massive numbers of submissions was not possible. We decided to adapt the assignments to a peer-review model, which involved careful construction of rubrics and explicit instructions for student reviewers to follow as they graded their peers.

These challenges presented an important turning point in our project. Do we modify our content according to the platform, or do we push the limits of the platform in order to accommodate our content? Our ultimate solutions involved a little bit of both.
We discovered that Canvas, another major player in the MOOC world, provides tools that enable a more robust integration of the badging system. However, we didn’t want to give up the opportunity to host a MOOC on Coursera, due to their high profile in the MOOC arena, and their selection as the platform of
choice for SUNY. We decided to proceed with the creation of two MOOCs, which would be offered in succession on the two different platforms, and would allow us to take advantage of the unique strengths offered by each.

This panel will offer insights about the collaborative development and facilitation of both the Coursera and Canvas MOOCs and the extent to which we were able to integrate the digital badging system. We will discuss the process of deciding how to incorporate the Metaliteracy Badges, how determinations were made about video production and use, and the unanticipated challenges and strengths of this combined model that featured structured modules and competency based learning. We will also discuss
completion rates, and offer student feedback on both MOOCs. The development of MOOCs in both Coursera and Canvas presented the unique opportunity to compare the advantages and drawbacks of both platforms. We will review both of these learning environments and discuss how each was used to realize the original goals we had for creating an engaging and meaningful learning experience.

College & Research Libraries News, 2021

Conference Proceedings for Learning Information Literacy Across the Globe, Apr 10, 2019

C&RL News, 2018

Open Praxis, 2017

Metaliteracy served as the content focus for each of the MOOCs, and also provided the guiding framework for our course design. Metaliteracy is an empowering reinvention of information literacy

Overall, we will describe what worked, as well as what did not, and look forward to engaging in conversation with those who have developed MOOCS themselves, or are contemplating doing so.

Even with a few challenges along the way, and the occasional differences in viewpoints, we kept the band together, and the metaliteracy movie never ends. It goes on and on, and on, and on.

This workshop describes the development and implementation of a collaborative, multi-institutiona... more This workshop describes the development and implementation of a collaborative, multi-institutional badging system. This system has been developed by a team including librarians, faculty members, and instructional designers from several State University of New York (SUNY) institutions. The Metaliteracy Badging System (metaliteracy.learningtimes.net), originally funded by an Innovative Instruction Technology Grant program, is a robust collection of quests, challenges, and badges based on metaliteracy learning objectives (metaliteracy.org). Metaliteracy is an enhanced form of information literacy that emphasizes the need for metacognition, and is updated for today’s collaborative, networked environment.

The metaliteracy learning objectives are grouped under four goals, each leading to a shareable badge: Master Evaluator, Producer and Collaborator, Digital Citizen, and Empowered Learner. The range of abilities, knowledge, and dispositions contained within these goals are essential in today’s information environment, and instructors in a number of departments at the University at Albany have recognized the need to address these competencies. Initially, the quests were integrated into information literacy courses, but within the last year instructors have been implementing pieces of the system into their own discipline-specific courses. Many faculty members are interested in discussing how the badges might fit in with a new university requirement that information literacy be taught in the majors.

During the workshop we will discuss the successes and challenges of developing the Metaliteracy Badges System, offer our suggestions for those hoping to create a similar system, and discuss our ultimate hope to offer the badging system as an open educational resource for any interested institution or individual learner. Both speakers have implemented the badges in our own courses, and have experienced the shift that occurs not only in demonstrated learning, but also in the ability to better understand our student and their unique strengths. Through quests and challenges, students have the opportunity to explore class topics independently, and to receive individual feedback as they progress through the exercises. Likewise, as instructors we have seen students, who may have otherwise remained quiet in a traditional or online classroom setting, open up in their responses and engage with the materials in refreshing ways. Through multimedia content and hands-on application exercises, the game-like structure of the system is designed to both challenge and motivate students.

The final portion of the workshop will allow participants the opportunity to explore the Metaliteracy Badging System and to earn a badge by progressing through a series of practice exercises.

With a rapidly shifting information landscape, teachers struggle to remediate students for whom d... more With a rapidly shifting information landscape, teachers struggle to remediate students for whom digital literacy is a struggle and maintain the interest of students for whom this knowledge comes more easily. Furthermore, higher education is under broad criticism for not preparing graduates for the 21st-century workplace. Badging allows educators to meet students at their level. Learn how the State University of New York Metaliteracy Learning Collaborative developed an open badging resource to hone students' research and literacy skills and applied it broadly in credit-bearing courses and as the key coursework for two MOOCs.

It’s never been easy to discern exactly what a person knows just from looking at their transcript... more It’s never been easy to discern exactly what a person knows just from looking at their transcript, and students often struggle to effectively showcase what they’ve learned to potential graduate programs or employers. Digital badges, also known as micro-credentials, offer a way to recognize students’ mastery of individual skills and competencies—and information literacy skills are no exception.

As part of its efforts to support IL programming, Credo’s InfoLit Learning Community is hosting this webinar for librarians looking to implement innovative and effective practices at their institutions.

Join University at Albany librarians Kelsey O'Brien and Trudi Jacobson as they discuss the digital badging program they’ve implemented at their library, and outline tips and best practices regarding badging. The presenters, editors of Teaching with Digital Badges: Best Practices for Libraries (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018), will provide attendees with lessons learned and advice on how to launch your own micro-credentialing effort and make it a success.

Presented as part of the SUNY Center for Professional Development Micro-Credentials Spring webina... more Presented as part of the SUNY Center for Professional Development Micro-Credentials Spring webinar series.

As part of Open Education week, the presenters discussed our experiences with open education init... more As part of Open Education week, the presenters discussed our experiences with open education initiatives, including authoring Open SUNY Textbooks, creating a digital badging system, and developing three MOOCs on metaliteracy: a connectivist MOOC, the Coursera course Metaliteracy: Empowering Yourself in a Connected World, and a Canvas course on Digital Citizenship.

Over the last several years, the Metaliteracy Badging system has developed from a glimmer of an i... more Over the last several years, the Metaliteracy Badging system has developed from a glimmer of an idea to a robust tool used by hundreds of UAlbany students. Many of us remember badges from our connection with Boy and Girl Scouts—but what are digital badges doing at a university? Join us to learn more about digital badges, how they can be shared with others, the metaliteracy system, and why instructors from a range of disciplines want their students to engage with the system. And we’ll let you know about professional development opportunities for earning badges yourself.

The Information Literacy Department recently completed a MOOC (massive open online course) togeth... more The Information Literacy Department recently completed a MOOC (massive open online course) together: Creativity, Innovation, and Change, taught by faculty members from Penn State University. They learned about their creative styles and acquired valuable methods for brainstorming and developing action plans (while having a good time along the way!). The Information Literacy Department would like to share some of what they learned, and provide examples of how they have applied the ideas in their project planning, teaching, and group work.

Come learn about digital badging and its use in higher education and in libraries. Why is this ne... more Come learn about digital badging and its use in higher education and in libraries. Why is this new trend in micro-credentialing gaining in popularity? You’ll have a chance to take a behind the scenes look at the Metaliteracy Badging System (metaliteracybadges.org) and find out how this project went from a gleam in the eye to a robust system being used by hundreds of University at Albany students. There will be an opportunity to engage with other participants about badging examples and ideas you might have for creating a program.
Participants are strongly encouraged to bring laptops or other portable devices.
Learning Objectives:
At the end of this session, participants will be able to:
*Share information about the background, value, and issues connected to digital badging in higher education
*Contribute to an assessment of the potential value of digital badging in their work situations
*Demonstrate knowledge of resources that provide additional information about digital badging

This guest blog post for AcademicLibraryMarketing.com discusses how a team of librarians and inst... more This guest blog post for AcademicLibraryMarketing.com discusses how a team of librarians and instructional designers created and implemented a badging system to integrate metaliteracy into a variety of learning environments.

The post-truth world is a divided and partisan environment in which factual information has been ... more The post-truth world is a divided and partisan environment in which factual information has been displaced by subjective and biased viewpoints. Facts and expertise no longer matter when isolated communities deny truth and scientific reasoning in favor of whatever information suits their needs or aligns with their beliefs. Social media and emerging technologies have the power to connect global participants in a meaningful way; yet, they have also led to disconnected communities that fail to communicate past their own self-imposed boundaries. In this course, you will gain insights to recognize your own biases and identify preconceptions in today’s dynamic social information environment. Through metaliteracy, you will practice self-reflective, metacognitive processes and reexamine fixed mindsets. Together, we will consider the importance of facts and expertise in reinventing a truthful world based on inclusive communities of trust. This course will empower you to be a reflective consumer and a creative, responsible producer of information, and to raise and share your voice in this post-truth milieu.

Participants in this course will be on a quest to earn a Digital Citizen badge! Accept the challe... more Participants in this course will be on a quest to earn a Digital Citizen badge! Accept the challenge and learn how to navigate an ever-evolving information landscape as both consumers and creators of information. Learn how to use and remix information ethically, and how to create and share an online social identity. Those who successfully complete a series of quests and challenges will earn a digital badge demonstrating their achievements as responsible and empowered digital citizens.

This course will prepare participants to be active digital citizens who locate and evaluate infor... more This course will prepare participants to be active digital citizens who locate and evaluate information in 21st century social environments, including Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), while making individual and collaborative contributions to these spaces as self-reflective and empowered learners.

A podcast recorded for the University at Albany Libraries about badging, workshops, and the benef... more A podcast recorded for the University at Albany Libraries about badging, workshops, and the benefits of opt-in learning.

Rowman & Littlefield, 2018