Last Thursday, I attended a very interesting focus group. Do you think it was about getting a spark from the library? It actually was not. It was about the upcoming Virtual Learning Commons project known as SPARK, which stands for “Student Papers and Academic Research Kit.” SPARK is, quite simply, a 24/7 eLearning resource for students that need help with any aspect of completing an assignment.
Basic concerns such as how to start an assignment and where to look for the right materials for an assignment are all addressed by the SPARK modules. Most students including myself don’t know where to start. I am usually bombarded by ideas and I don’t know which one to use! SPARK addresses all these issues.
Its 3 major categories of “Getting Started”, “Exploring” and “Pulling It Together” are broken down into 13 excellent modules. Many of these modules contain short videos to demonstrate the needs. Can you believe there is an “essay editing” module under the “Pulling It Together” tab? Wouldn’t you love that? Most importantly, SPARK can be accessed from anywhere and anytime from multiple devices.
There were other students who attended the focus group to share their ideas and how they see SPARK making a difference in their academic career. In their words, they saw SPARK as: intuitive, helpful, a time-manager, guide, like Google but more efficient, not overwhelming, easy to navigate, etc. The modules are not just limited to writing papers, but any kind of assignment. They encourage you to ask different questions to yourself to find out what you actually need to complete the assignment as well as how to manage time between assignments.
To share with you, I am quite excited to use this service. Are you as excited as me? What do you think about this service? Do you think students would rely on SPARK when they are on the verge of breaking down due to overwhelming assignments?
I’m not too sure I understand exactly how the modules work. Are they strictly videos or help guides a la Wikihow? Regardless, it is nice to see how all these resources are being moved to one place for confused students.
Almost wish I was part of the focus group so I could get a better picture of what kind of information is provided. The only thing I fear from projects like this is that, while all the information is in one place, the information is simplified and less detailed than something that isn’t spread so thin. There are disadvantages to being a jack-of-all-trades.
Take for example editing. I’m sure the module in SPARK is full of great information but there is also a long list of accredited style guides, grammar guides and the writing centri. These resources are discipline specific, tried and true and (arguably) only a little less flexible.
I suppose my question is this: Will SPARK point you towards other resources (like a fancy helpful links page), try to do everything on its own, or is it better described as somewhere in-between?
Hi Jessia,
You wished you had been part of the SPARK focus group? You have another opportunity later in August. At that point we will conduct concept testing for the marketing campaign we’re designing to promote SPARK to students. If you or anyone else is interested, please participate.
And thank you for taking an interest in the virtual learning commons, SPARK. To answer your questions, the modules are a combination of useful information, step-by-step guides, embedded resources as well as “test your knowledge” quizzes and embedded videos. You’re right there is a challenge in providing a balance between general information and more discipline specific information. SPARK is meant to be a starting point that can then lead you to more in depth resources such as the Library Subject Guides or the Writing Centre. At certain points in the modules for certain questions/issues it also suggests consulting with the appropriate resource person such as a librarian, making an appointment with the Writing Centre, attending a Learning Skills workshop or dropping by the Learning Commons at Scott Library.
I hope this answers your questions and once SPARK is launched if you have further feedback please don’t hesistate to email us at askspark@yorku.ca
Cynthia
I will keep my ear to the ground and try to be in the next focus group. Thank you for the clarification. I look forward to seeing its implementation.
- Jessia
Sobia,
My understanding is that students may need to work on assignments anywhere and anytime. Therefore a measure of good library service is how many services we can “effectively” deliver to you while riding a bus or working at your dining room table or sitting in a café. The new online SPARK modules are designed to give you an opportunity to learn library, writing and learning skills just in time or when you need them. None of us were born knowing how to cite references according to the American Psychological Association but SPARK can explain it. Most of us did not have a high school library with extensive electronic journal collections. But SPARK can introduce you to the library’s online resources. Sarah Coysh, our E-learning librarian who helped create SPARK, will be assessing this tool during her sabbatical in 2014. I hope you give her lots of feedback when SPARK launches. We’ll want to know what works well and then we won’t change it. Or what did not work well so we might improve it?
You can send your SPARK feedback by replying to this blog or sending a tweet to @yorkulibraries.
Cynthia
I just want to mention that I really appreciate that this video is subtitled. Thank you!
I was going to attend that focus group but I didn’t get to see my emails on mymail. Somehow I didn’t know there was another page where my emails went. SPARK sounds like a really great initiative for students to be able to use.