Narrative Inquiry as an Online Assessment Tool
In an effort to study assessment as an element in the scholarship of teaching, narrative inquiry was incorporated into two library media courses. Students electronically posted and shared reflections about their life of information for one class and about three course-related critical incidents they experienced that semester for another. Electronic journaling enabled students to: self-assess areas for improvement; and assess peers’ situations and problem-solving approaches. Relationships to information changed from personal and idiosyncratic to objectively abstract onto activist. Central management issues were: human relationships, resource management, and administrative details; main sources of support were administrators and fellow teachers. Journals helped instructors to assess: 1) students’ areas of concern; 2) how students solved critical issues; 3) degree to which course content dealt with the critical events. The activities also fostered a sense of a community of practice, and helped link academic coursework and field experience.
Presider: Philippe R. Richard, Université de Montréal