What makes students tick? Exploring factors that affect learner motivations and challenges when engaging with optional library workshops on data literacy

Abstract

Optional data literacy library workshops often struggle to achieve consistent high enrollment and attendance. In seeking strategies to mitigate these challenges, this qualitative study attempted to gain a better understanding of learner motivations and challenges when enrolling and attending optional data literacy instruction offered by a data library at a large university. Nineteen graduate students were interviewed. This study found four factors involved in motivating graduate students to enroll and attend optional library data literacy workshops. These factors, in the form of questions that graduate students would ask about the workshops, were: does the workshop address my need; does the workshop fit into my schedule; does the workshop satisfy my learning preferences; and are there health, emotional, or social aspects that could affect my workshop attendance. Based on these findings, several strategies to improve motivation and attendance were suggested, such as providing workshops at time of need, holding regular repeated sessions, presenting a mix of online and in-person offerings, and making workshops part of a social or networking event.