1.
MU Library &
Critical Skills
Working with the Critical
Skills Programme to foster
Information Literacy at
Maynooth University.
Niall O’Brien,
Teaching & Learning Librarian
CONUL Teaching & Learning Seminar,
1st November 2018

2.
The Critical Skills Programme at MU
• Piloted for students in 2016 as part of the new
undergraduate curriculum, ‘A Maynooth Education’, and
made permanent in 2018.
• Designed “to help first year students to learn, experience,
practice and develop various essential skills that will
support their learning”.
• These skills include:
1. Analytical thinking 3. Making balanced judgements
2. Evaluating evidence 4. Communicating ideas clearly

3.
Teaching and Learning at MU Library
• Aim to make our teaching
more impactful and
sustainable.
• Our teaching and learning
strategy becomes more
interdisciplinary in focus.
• Interventions are now based
on fostering key skills
applicable to students of all
disciplines. MU Information Literacy Framework (2016)
https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/sites/default/files/assets/docume
nt//MU%20Information%20Literacy%20strategy%20%282016%29.pdf

4.
A basis for partnership:
The MU Information Literacy Framework
• Both Critical Skills and MU Library work towards similar
aims as articulated in MU’s Information Literacy
Framework.
• Creating critical thinkers with evolved practices for finding,
using and managing information is at the core of what we
do.
• We work together closely to ensure that the Library’s
teaching and learning strategy for undergraduates informs
the content of the Critical Skills programme.

5.
Working together
• MU Librarians teach on key Critical Skills courses.
e.g. Critical Skills for Science and Critical Skills for Social
Science.
• We convey the importance of efficient and ethical
practices in searching for, managing and using information
in the context of critical thinking.

6.
Sharing our skills
• We work closely with Critical
Skills tutors to encourage them
to inculcate the effective
searching and information
management practices into the
Universal Critical Skills
Programme.
CC BY
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Working_T
ogether_Teamwork_Puzzle_Concept.jpg

7.
Future plans for collaboration
• Information Literacy Quiz – Currently collaborating to
host an online quiz to foster information literacy.
Outcome: Employ quiz as an online learning resource to
support the learning aims of the both the Library & Critical
Skills.
• Poster Symposium – Hope to contribute to the annual
showcase of presented work by Critical Skills students.
Outcome: Work with students to improve the presentation
of their reflective posters.

8.
niall.obrien@mu.ie
Niall O’Brien
Teaching and Learning Librarian,
Maynooth University Library