Library Instruction & Information Literacy

• Provide customized library instruction for a particular assignment or course. For some courses, this may work best as a series of instruction/workshops.

• Assist in the design and assessment of a research assignment.

• Design specialized online research guides for your class (these can be easily linked to your Blackboard Courses).  Check out a few examples.

• Students and faculty can ask for research assistance any time -- in-person at the Reference Desk, or by phone, email, IM, or individual appointment. Faculty and students can access databases, search the Library Catalog, and find research guides and tutorials–anytime, anywhere

Our mission is to collaborate across the university to help students discover the nature of information ‒ its value, its creation and curation processes, and its dissemination ‒ so that they can ethically and effectively use information to create new knowledge.

The librarian will need to know:

• What kinds of research your students are doing in class. Please send a copy of your research assignment(s) to your librarian.

• What want your students to be able to do by the end of the session (e.g., brainstorm topics, develop search strategies, identify scholarly sources, evaluate websites, locate company information, find primary documents).

• What stage of research your students will be in at the time of their visit. Library workshops are most effective when the students are in some stage of the research process. Resist the urge to schedule your library session for the first week of classes!

• When you want to bring your class (see above!). A request for an instruction session must be made at least one week before the session is needed. Scheduling of sessions is dependent on the availability of librarians and the library's electronic classroom. Active participation by the course instructor is important (and required)--your participation helps students understand the connection between information literacy concepts and their course content. Faculty are expected to accompany their classes to the library sessions.

• Any needs or accommodations that are particular to your class.

The Library actively supports distance education courses and programs. Librarians will provide instruction to classes in remote locations, including the online environment.