Marquette University

Marquette University is a private research university with a student population of almost 12,000. Academic research and writing can be challenging for students in today’s world. While search engines provide a wealth of information on any topic, finding credible and reliable sources takes time and effort. First-year students often aren’t prepared to navigate online research and must learn research skills and develop effective strategies to produce high-quality academic writing.

When the university needed an effective way to create short modules on research skills for a foundational information literacy course, Storyline 360 provided the perfect solution. The university leveraged Storyline’s user-friendly interface and interactive multimedia capabilities to create engaging and effective training materials that met students’ needs. Additionally, the tool enabled data collection that provided valuable insights into the effectiveness of the training materials, helping improve the program over time.

THE CHALLENGE

Marquette needed a scalable to help new university students achieve academic information literacy

• Marquette University needed a scalable way to provide comprehensive, self-paced, accessible training on library resources and services to new students. 
• Their goal: to increase student proficiency with electronic search tools to research and draft high-quality academic papers. Ultimately, they wanted to empower students to become confident and independent library users by developing their research skills.
• They needed to ensure that their training modules were relevant and timely to capture student interest and encourage learning. They also had to adapt to changing landscapes of electronic search tools and students’ academic research abilities, and faced limited time, resources, and librarian availability to participate in introductory classes.

THE ANSWER

With Storyline 360, Marquette delivers comprehensive student training while saving library staff hours

Marquette University chose Storyline 360 as part of a blended learning solution to teach information literacy to new students. The university created short modules for a foundational course that all incoming first-year students take. Marquette staff designed these modules to introduce students to research skills for academic writing. Students can access the modules anytime providing a self-paced and flexible learning experience.

Choosing Storyline 360 helped the university deliver vital skills to first-year students while saving librarians time. Administrators also collect valuable data to determine the most effective for improving student research skills. Moreover, the program provides students with an engaging experience through multimedia and interactive content. This approach has proven beneficial in providing a consistent and practical training program for students. 

Overall, Articulate 360 has enabled Marquette University to deliver a comprehensive and effective training program on research skills to new students while providing librarians with valuable feedback to improve the program over time.

UNLOCKING HUMAN POTENTIAL

Marquette is advancing academic literacy across universities with its accessible courses

• Marquette’s team uses Storyline 360 to advance academic skills by creating interactive modules that introduce research skills and information literacy to incoming first-year students.
• The Articulate 360 Content Library characters become friendly and relatable guides through training modules. Storytelling with the avatars makes the material relatable, so students can feel more comfortable seeking assistance and guidance.
• Marquette University released its Storyline 360 training modules to other universities through GitHub. This collaborative resource sharing helps advance student information literacy beyond the university and promotes innovation in the field.
• A hybrid approach of classroom instruction and Storyline 360 modules has saved librarians countless hours of classroom time.

By sharing their Storyline 360 modules with other universities, Marquette University empowers countless students with the skills and training for a lifetime of high-quality research.