Presented at LILAC 2019

1. Escaping the
traditional:
Transformations of the
library welcome and
orientation activities at
the University of Surrey
Adam Hill

2. The keynote teach meet?
The keynote..
• Surrey Library welcome and orientation activities 2015 – now
• Escape room 2017/18
• Welcome Fair 2018/19
The teach meet..
• What you do at your institutions
• Discussion in groups
• “Teach meet” presentations

3. Timeline
• Transition, staff re-structure
• Decision to move away from
the more traditional ‘subject
librarian’ delivery of welcome
• Aware of potential student
information overload
2015/16
• General LLSS welcome
presentation introduced
• Inclusion of student voice
• Initial session mapping
• Professional services welcome
• Steve the stag video
2016/17 • Building on previous year
format
• New Escape room
• More focus on orientation
2017/18

4. • Building on escape room
legacy
• LLSS Building refurb
• Welcome Fair
• Returners welcome
2018 /19
• To be confirmed..
• ???
2019/20

5. 2016-17

6. Why?
The University of Surrey Library and
Learning Support Services recognised
an increasing need to transform its
‘Welcome’, ‘Induction’ and ‘Orientation’
activities for students.
Feedback from students at Surrey and
evidence from educational literature
suggest that traditional approaches in
the form of lectures, often result in
Library Anxiety amongst students. This
can prevent them from taking
advantage of help available to them
when they need it which in turn can
effect their grades.
How?
Informed by the work of Walsh (2017), a
small team of colleagues across the
different departments of the University
library, created an Escape Room Game.
This activity invited students to solve a
series of themed puzzles in the Escape
Room, introducing them to library
services and information literacy skills to
support their studies.
Testing,
testing,
testing!
• Staff members from across
the University were asked to
complete a timed run-through
of the game
• Three groups of 6-10
• Adjustments were made after
each occurrence based on the
findings.
Results
• Qualitative feedback showed an overwhelmingly positive response
from students of the Escape Room, particularly that they found it
fun, challenging and unique to their other experiences of
university.
• The comments showed evidence of bonding with each other
• There were many requests for further events which displayed an
absence of Library Anxiety and instead the start of a bond
between the student and the Library
• Students from across all years took part and found out about the
event through their friends
• Time intensive for the staff planning and running the event;
however, it increased team collegiality and allowed staff to think
creatively outside of their normal roles
Design
• 30 minute timed game with scoreboard
at the end
• Linear game design
• Run across the first teaching week
• Booking in advance
• Introductory video shown at beginning to
explain the game
• Two staff members acting as facilitators
during each game
Escape the Welcome Cliché
Introducing students to the Academic Library through an immersive Escape Room
Game
By the University of Surrey
Library and Learning Support Services
Laura Barnett, Adam Hill, Julie Lowe, Hannah Wise
Recommendations
• Allocate and dedicate enough staff time to allow for planning, testing
and running the game
• Test and test again. Even on the day of the event – one last run
through wont hurt
• Consider publicity and timing – will you have enough time to make
the students aware its running and allow enough time for word of
mouth to spread
• Create a robust booking system and allow for no shows, late shows
and double shows!
• Reinforce what students learnt – create a takeaway leaflet with
major points or schedule a quiz to test knowledge later
• Give it a go – the results are well worth the effort!
2017-18

7. Escape room impact & outcomes
• LLSS has been able to disseminate good practice, advise and mentor others, ensuring the educational escape
room could be used for wider internal teaching practice. E.g. Surrey Excites symposium, generating interest
from a number of academic departments
• Popularity as a teaching model is apparent in the positive student feedback
• University of Surrey’s Department of Higher Education (DHE), learnt from our experiences to offer
educational escape rooms as a model for other academics to adopt in their students teaching and learning.
Investing in specific equipment for future creation of escape games and producing a guide for academics to
create their own escape rooms for educational purposes
• DHE organised an event exploring the model further ‘Escape The Classroom’ - Learning Lunch - with Liz Cable
• The LLSS escape game has had impact externally to the University of Surrey, Including being contacted by
teaching and learning librarian at Run Run Shaw Library, City University of Hong Kong and Liz Cable at Leeds
who is pursuing a PhD in escape rooms (as of Jan 2019)
• At least 1 department per faculty, as well as in several WPO Outreach events are using the Escape room
model e.g. in the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, involving a series of puzzles and tasks for students
to complete replicating a scenario of working in a hospital ward.
• LLSS Academic Skills and Development team members delivering CPD sessions on escape rooms, in
partnership with Surrey STARS students
• Quiz elements taken forward into the LLSS 2018/19 Welcome fair e.g. answers hidden clues on AV screens
on the website and physical building

8. 2018-19

9. Welcome & Orientation format in summary
• University welcome ‘Get Set for Surrey’ (welcome week)
• Library specific welcome - LLSS presentation to department cohorts
(welcome week)
• LLSS Welcome (flagship event) e.g. Welcome Fair, tea coffee and quiz
(week one & two)
• Library Essentials (Talks) (week one & two)
• Student ambassadors (week one & two)

10. Observations
• Extending activities beyond welcome week allows students greater chance
to find out information about the service in formal and informal settings
• New format of delivery are breaking down and removing barriers
• Different events and methods of delivery suit different learning styles and
personalities
• Changing attitudes of students towards staff and the learning environment
• Greater library staff visibility and inter-team involvement welcoming new
students
• Greater student engagement, interest in library services and feeling of
inclusion and inclusivity
Q&A

11. What’s next..?
???

12. What do you do at your institution?
Discuss in small groups your own Welcome and Orientation activities:
• Good practice you've delivered over the past couple of years
And/or
• A product or innovation that has enhanced the welcome experience
Write them down and be prepared to share your ideas… 

13. Teach meet presentations
Volunteers! Provide a ‘short presentation’ sharing your own
experiences or tell us about a great innovation you’ve just learnt about
in your group:
• Tell us about the welcome event/s at your institution
• Share any innovative, creative, engaging events and their impact
• Consider how your own projects might now evolve and what might be
prioritised

14. Surrey publications:
• Hannah Wise, Adam Hill, Julie Lowe, Laura Barnett, Charlotte Barton;
"Escape the welcome cliché" Journal of Information Literacy, Volume 12,
Number 1 (4 June 2018) http://dx.doi.org/10.11645/12.1.2394
• Adam Hill, Hannah Wise, Julie Lowe, Laura Barnett; Escaping the welcome
cliches (poster). LILAC Conference, Liverpool (4-6 April 2018), Available
online:
https://www.slideshare.net/infolit_group/escaping-the-welcome-cliches-
wise
https://www.lilacconference.com/lilac-archive/lilac-2018

15. Adam Hill
Faculty Engagement
Librarian,
University of Surrey
Email: adam.hill@surrey.ac.uk
Telephone: +44 (0) 1483 682 896