Webbook for Engineers: An interactive information skills programme

• Main Authors: Gulcin, CRIBB, WOODALL, L.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 1997
• Subjects: Digital Communications and Networking; Library and Information Science
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/library_research/100
• Institution: Singapore Management University

First-year engineering students at the University of Queensland used an interactive webbook to acquire information skills. These helped them search information resources for their projects, which they are required to undertake as part of the subject Introduction to professional engineering. The information skills exercise was an integral part of the project and worth 10% of the overall assessment. The exercises were only available on the Web, allowing the students to enter their answers from home or wherever they had access to the Internet. All answers were marked automatically using a database of all possible answers. Students were able to go back to check their answers. Students were assessed on both their responses to the exercises and also their final bibliography which largely reflected the impact of the webbook. The entire process was evaluated. This paper presents the process and the outcomes of the first-year engineering project involving use of WWW for information skills instruction. The webbooks can be found at http://www.library.uq.edu.au/9e105/.