AI and the Information Searching Process
Institution: University College Cork
Discipline: Information Searching in the Library
Authors: Stephanie Chen, Virginia Conrick, Breeda Herlihy, Ronan Madden, Ben Williamson
GenAI tool(s) used: ChatGPT and Copilot
Situation / Context
University College Cork Library provides a range of supports for learning & teaching within UCC, including digital and information literacy teaching, delivered through open workshops, embedded sessions within course programmes and modules, and through the provision of asynchronous content.
Recently, a small Library team was formed to explore how the Library would address the use of generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) in learning and teaching. As a first step, the team devised and delivered a new workshop (Artificial Intelligence and Searching for Information) open to all staff and students in the University. This workshop focuses on how large language models (LLMs) can be used effectively as part of the information/literature search process. It is an opportunity to discuss the potential uses of AI with staff and students and to consider how the tools might be maximised while also raising awareness of the limitations and the importance of critical appraisal. Importantly, the session is in tune with and complementary to other initiatives in UCC, such as the “Toolkit for the Ethical Use of Gen AI.” Between February and December 2024, the workshop attracted over 120 attendees.
Task / Goal
As this is a new offering from the Library, team members have worked together as a learning group to develop workshop content. Our overall aim is to ensure learners understand how tools like ChatGPT and CoPilot can be used appropriately, effectively, and reflectively for the search process. Attendees will recognise both the potential of tools in supporting their academic work and the caveats that apply. Our goals include:
- Raising our own and our colleagues’ awareness and capability with Gen AI.
- Learning from discussions with the attendees, both staff and students, about their experiences using Gen AI, and through working with them during the hands-on section. This means that we actively encourage input from the attendees, emphasising that we ourselves are not AI “experts”, and that the sessions are a learning process for all.
- Using the insights gained to continue improving the workshops, ensuring the content and delivery are current and relevant, while also helping us understand how the responsible use of Gen AI will become a core element of our overall Library teaching and learning offerings.
Actions / Implementation
To date, we have delivered the workshop to both staff and students within the University. We have also delivered it to Library and University colleagues as part of continuous professional development, and to the public as part of Cork’s Lifelong Learning Festival. The ninety-minute session includes discussion, demonstrations, and hands-on exercises, including approaches like that outlined by the CLEAR framework (Lo, 2023). The workshops have been delivered in person within the Library, and we are currently developing an online offering. For the discussions, we ask learners:
- Have you been using AI tools like ChatGPT?
- What are your views on how AI tools can be best applied?
- What do you see as potential risks?
- Describe in simple terms what large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Copilot are and how they work.
- Describe some of the potential uses, while being conscious of the limitations.
- Apply prompts in a structured way to obtain the best information for your needs.
- Evaluate the information obtained through AI tools.
Outcomes
The discussions and hands-on activities we have facilitated have been an invaluable part of the learning process, both for attendees and for the Library team involved. The range of participants’ familiarity with LLMs has been interesting: many have had very little experience, while some are very frequent users e.g., for language translation, writing code. At the end of the session, we ask attendees to complete a short evaluation form, including:
- overall rating;
- whether or not they would recommend the session to others;
- the strengths;
- areas for improvement;
- any other comments.
Reflections
It is clearly vital that we continue to learn and actively keep up to date on developments in this rapidly evolving area. Even between sessions, the AI landscape changes quickly, and this will continue. We will need to continually adjust our offering as people’s experience of using Gen AI continues to evolve over time. The work we are doing is becoming a basis for additional sessions that we can offer.
We are considering splitting the content into two workshops. One session would provide an overall introduction to appropriate and ethical applications of AI in the information search process, while the other would focus more specifically on effective prompting. As instructors, we have felt that we are compressing large amounts of content into a ninety-minute class. At times, sessions have felt a little rushed.
We can also leverage what we have been doing to create online content that can be made available on the University VLE and the Library website. As AI becomes a regular part of the search process, we need to embed it in all our learning, teaching and research supports. Additionally, the knowledge that we are accumulating has enabled us to participate in dialogue with colleagues in UCC, and with colleagues in other University libraries, who are also seeking to implement offerings in this area.
Further Reading
Kuhlthau, C. C., Heinström, J., & Todd, R. J. (2008). The ‘information search process’ revisited: Is the model still useful. Information Research, 13 (4), 13–14.
Lo, L. S. (2023). The Art and Science of Prompt Engineering: A New Literacy in the Information Age. Internet Reference Services Quarterly, 27 (4), 203–210.
Digital Resources
Selected examples used for prompting exercises:
- Donald’s Problem: General Inquiry (ChatGPT)
- Ireland Housing Policy Overview (ChatGPT 4.0)
- Ireland Housing Policy Overview (ScholarGPT)
- Circular Economy Overview (Consensus)
Author Biographies
Stephanie Chen, Learning & Teaching Librarian at University College Cork Library.
Virginia Conrick (retired) formerly Academic Success Librarian at University College Cork Library.
Breeda Herlihy, Quality and Planning Coordinator at University College Cork Library.
Ronan Madden, Learning & Teaching Team Lead at University College Cork Library.
Ben Williamson, Learning & Teaching Librarian at University College Cork Library.
