Amplifying value: Assessment of asynchronous embedded library instruction and the influence of faculty endorsements

“Embedded” librarian programs can take many different forms. At Royal Roads University, librarians embed asynchronously in research-intensive courses via a hosted online forum. Over three to five days, the embedded librarian presents a series of posts on key information literacy topics and invites student questions and comments. This research project undertook to investigate both the general effectiveness of this embedding approach (in terms of student learning and engagement) and the relationship that may exist between instructors’ promotion of the forum and student engagement and/or learning. Quantitative data on student learning and engagement was collected through a pretest/post-test and qualitative data was collected from instructor comments within the LMS course shell. The results of this study indicate that embedding is moderately effective at increasing student knowledge, and that robust instructor encouragement of student participation correlates positively with both student engagement and student learning. We conclude that embedding is an effective information literacy instruction method that can be made more effective through increased relationship-building with faculty and program staff.