INLS 500, Spring 2008

Interaction Diary Assignment 1: An information seeking event

Due:  Tuesday, February 5

For this assignment, you will keep a short diary over a period of hours or days that covers an information-seeking experience with an identifiable beginning and end. It does not have to be a unique event and it may or may not have been resolved. You will write up what you thought, felt, and did, and how you understand the experience based upon our readings and discussions in class.

• Start by describing your information need and the specific process you used. (This can be any kind of problem and need not be something you take to an information system. For example, I recently had an information need related to finding a present for my nephew and I took that problem to a local guitar store for ideas). In most cases your problem should be more complex than finding a fact, but there are situations when that type of problem is appropriate. For example, "When did Americans first land on the moon?" is a straightforward question that can be answered easily and it doesn't offer much of a challenge for deciding where, and how, to look. However, "When were the plans and strategy for America's Apollo missions to the moon finalized?" is a more difficult question for most people. It requires some knowledge of NASA's planning and approval process as well as a slightly broader understanding of the space program. For NASA historians and people who follow the space program closely, the second question may be as straightforward as the first one, but for most people, it will require more preparation. 
• Take notes (or record) your experience. How did you know when you needed to look for information? What steps did you take and what motivated you along the way? When and why did you finally stop looking (or are you still looking)?

Write a brief report (no more than 5 pages) that interprets the experience. Concentrate on analyzing what happened instead of recounting each step. For example, it is more important to hear your reactions to what you did than to hear what you did - how important was the information to you? What sources were consulted? What barriers or surprises did you experience? If you consulted other people, describe the interaction and why it worked well (or did not). Why do you think your experience was a successful (or unsuccessful) one? What did you learn that you did not know beforehand?

Be sure to relate your observations to readings and discussions from class. Specifically, it is important that you reflect on your motives, barriers, and your understanding of the need.

Grades will be based upon the quality and depth of your analysis of the experience and how well you relate the experience to the course. A definition of the need, description of what motivated you, any obstacles you experienced, sources used, tasks performed, and results obtained along with your evaluation of those results should be included in the paper.

[based on an assignment prepared by Dr. Verna Pungitore, SLIS, Indiana University, with modifications]