UC San Diego Library

This presentation was delivered at SCIL Works 2026: Assessment is Constructed and Contextual: Measuring What Matters in Information Literacy, February 2026. 

Instruction librarians rarely have access to the student course work needed in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a workshop or assess student learning as a result of a one shot instruction session. In this session, we will demonstrate how we have effectively gathered actionable student output from a library instruction session in order to make meaningful changes to instruction content (assessment) and/or delivery (evaluation) using Google Forms. We will have examples of how we have done this for tutorial content and curriculum-integrated one-shot workshops, ranging from small capstone courses to large (300+ students) writing program courses.

Presented at the 45th EASL (European Association of Sinologiical Librarians) Conference,  the British Library on September 12, 2025, this presentation provides an overview of a three-year collaboration (June 2023–June 2026) between Cambridge University Library and UC San Diego Library. It describes the project's three components: digitization and metadata, scholarly exchange, and librarian exchange. Both UCSD and Cambridge created the Sally T. WongAvery Digital Collection of Chinese Materials. This presentation focuses on the digital collections UCSD created.

Presented at the 2025 Generative AI in Libraries (GAIL) Virtual Conference. This lightning talk shares the presenter's experience and experiments with using generative AI tools like Microsoft Copilot and Perplexity to create and improve LibGuides text such as database descriptions, guide introductions, and topical overviews. The presenter also shares experiments with using generative AI to identify and locate sources to include on LibGuides.

University of California San Diego Library launched a project to transform health sciences library instruction – traditionally delivered in classroom settings – into a scalable, self-directed learning model that fosters independent research skill development. The project developed a structured search protocol to support systematic literature searches and library resource navigation. It follows a linear workflow, incorporating problem-solving actions, systematic search templates, an information needs taxonomy, and worked examples to support information retrieval. Unlike general library research guides, this protocol helps users apply search heuristics and methodologies to support System 1 (intuitive) and System 2 (analytical) problem-solving for more effective search strategy development. Its modular design enabled the development of instructional content in multiple formats, including videos, web-based guides, infographics, quizzes, and instructor resources, supporting diverse learning contexts. The structured protocol and modular learning content have been piloted in classrooms, where they received positive initial feedback. Beyond modular learning, the protocol serves as a foundation for AI-assisted research support. It was used to configure a custom GPT chatbot, guiding users stepwise through systematic search query development. Initial tests showed promise, but challenges in enforcing workflows and maintaining response consistency highlight the need for refinements to enhance AI-guided research assistance. Future plans include assessing learner engagement and instructional effectiveness through user analytics and feedback to refine instructional strategies. This project establishes a scalable model for library research training and serves as a foundation for broader AI-assisted research support.

Presentation for CNI Spring 2025 Pre-Recorded Project Briefing Series

https://www.cni.org/topics/information-access-retrieval/developing-scalable-library-research-training

This was presented at the LOEX 2025 conference in Pasadena, CA in May 2025. The presentation discussed a study conducted by a librarian research team at an R1 university that began testing the new Ex Libris Primo AI Research Assistant in 2024. The research team created a framework to assess the quality of results produced by this tool by inputting one year of research assistance queries from undergraduate writing program students and further comparing the output of a basic search to a prompt-engineered approach. Study findings will be presented along with a discussion of how librarians adapted their practice to integrate this AI tool into instruction and consultations.

This poster explores how librarians can evaluate students’ perceptions of their ability to apply skills about how to evaluate and use primary sources taught via an online tutorial for a large-scale (250+ students each quarter) writing program course that does not provide access to student work products. We reviewed data from a writing program course taught in two quarters with a combined enrollment of 574 students. Students completed an online tutorial where they learned skills required to analyze primary sources and an evaluation to determine their perception of the effectiveness of the tutorial format to teach these skills. Our data show students preferred the online tutorial format and 75% feel very confident or confident about their ability to analyze a primary source after completing the tutorial. This is significant because only 50% were able to demonstrate their abilities in completing the tutorial activities. While we are pleased students have confidence to proceed with analyzing a primary source on their own, we don’t want them to overestimate their abilities. The analysis of student responses to questions where they applied their learning revealed key areas in which we can focus on improving our instruction. We plan to work with faculty and our librarian colleagues to make revisions to the tutorial content to close this gap. This project revealed the value of having an evaluation of student perception of their ability to complete tasks in addition to an assessment of student work. It provides additional information to librarians about content areas where students are feeling more or less confident compared to their demonstrated abilities. 

This poster highlights the University of California San Diego Library’s development of a Library-wide User Research Hub grounded in UX design principles. Across the library, various programs and units collect data on user interactions with resources and services, as well as preferences and behaviors. However, without a consistent mechanism for sharing these datasets, efforts were often duplicated, and opportunities for collaboration or data-driven decision-making were missed. Our project focused on creating a user-friendly platform for collecting, organizing, and sharing library user research to support informed decision-making across the institution.

2024 Library Assessment Conference, Portland, Oregon, November 6–9, 2024

Presented at the Western Association of Map Librarians (WAML) Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, Sept. 25-27, 2024

At UC San Diego, our Library’s Data & GIS Lab employs between four and six student workers. These students not only serve as the front line to patrons who drop by the lab with geospatial or data analysis questions, they also have them work on Library related projects. We will discuss how we’ve taken Agile principles and applied them to help us manage our Lab and the projects our students work on. While Agile methodologies and principles emerged as a response to challenges and limitations observed in traditional software development and project management practices, we are applying them as a flexible and adaptive approach to managing projects and delivering value to our end users. We leverage weekly standups, a Trello kanban, and allocate time to reflect and make changes to how we operate and can continue to improve as a Lab. Taking these approaches have helped us better manage our patrons' needs as well as our projects.