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Incorporating Research in Your Course

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Faculty Library Services: Library Instruction

Information Literacy Instruction

Information Literacy Curriculum Overview

Information literacy skills focus on the student’s ability to assess their information needs and then locate, evaluate, and use the information they need effectively. In each course, students must utilize information literacy skills to meet the outlined learning outcomes. Strong information literacy skills can be utilized in nearly every course and serve to promote lifelong learning.

The goal of library instruction at LSC-Montgomery is to teach the skills needed to support the development of information literacy in each student.  The methods and curriculum developed by LSC-Montgomery for this purpose are aligned with the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education developed by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL).  The ACRL Framework guidelines are considered the professional standard for developing student learning outcomes for information literacy instruction.

The Framework is based on six foundational ideas or threshold concepts that are key to navigating the modern information environment.  These thresholds are:

  • Authority is Constructed and Contextual | Authority is constructed in that various communities may recognize different types of authority. It is contextual in that the information need may help to determine the level of authority required.
  • Information Creation as a Process | The iterative processes of researching, creating, revising, and disseminating information vary, and the resulting product reflects these differences.
  • Information Has Value | Information possesses several dimensions of value, including as a commodity, to influence, and as a means of negotiating and understanding the world.
  • Research as Inquiry | Research is iterative and depends upon asking increasingly complex or new questions whose answers, in turn, develop additional questions or lines of inquiry in any field.
  • Scholarship as Conversation | Communities of scholars or professionals engage in sustained discourse with new insights occurring over time as a result of varied perspectives and interpretations.
  • Searching as Strategic Exploration | Searching for information is a nonlinear process that requires the evaluation of a range of information sources and the mental flexibility to pursue alternate avenues as new understanding develops.

For each of these thresholds, the ACRL has listed two sets of markers that determine a student’s mastery of a particular threshold.  First are the Knowledge Practices which demonstrate a student’s practical application of information literacy skills, and second are the Dispositions that demonstrate the presence of an informed mindset or critical analysis of available information.

Librarians play an important role in developing the information-literate student with library instruction sessions at LSC-Montgomery being specifically developed to align with the Framework.  Librarians have identified goals and learning outcomes that are anchored in the Framework’s thresholds and assessed against the markers associated with each.  These learning outcomes have been divided into modules that reflect the level of threshold mastery that students should be achieving at different points in their academic career.  Each module’s learning outcomes are designed to be flexibly integrated with the professor’s course learning outcomes.

While the learning outcomes for library instruction sessions differ from the course learning outcomes, each session is customized to support the student in meeting the outcomes of the course. These sessions also aid future academic success because students can take the skills, they learn in a library session for one course and apply them to another course.

Customized Library Instruction to Support Course Learning Outcomes and Assignments

All information literacy instruction sessions are customized to meet course-specific learning outcomes and assignments. Sessions can be designed to provide a basic introduction to library services, basic research skills, or advanced research skills. 

Instruction is available for your courses in several different formats:

  • In-Person and Hybrid Classes: The librarians offer either an in-person session (in your classroom or the library's instruction lab) or a live WebEx session.
  • Fully Online Classes (Synchronous): The librarians offer to host a live WebEx session with your students.
  • Fully Online Classes (Asynchronous): The librarians can send you links to a variety of pre-recorded tutorials that can be uploaded to D2L.

If you are interested in including an information literacy session in your courses, reserve your spot now by filling out the Library Instruction Request Form.

Program Student Learning Outcomes

LSC-Montgomery Library has identified the following program-level student learning outcomes for the Information Literacy curriculum. Students who receive information literacy instruction will be able to:

  • Identify resources and services offered at LSC-Montgomery Library
  • Utilize the skills learned to complete an assignment
  • Demonstrate higher completion, success, and retention rates than those that do not receive information literacy instruction

Module Overview

Description: This module provides an overview of the skills necessary to find, evaluate, and apply information in an academic or professional environment.
Course Alignment: EDUC 1300
Sessions are tailored to meet one or more of the following learning outcomes:

  • Define the ways in which authority is assigned to an information source.
  • Determine how the intended application of information influences the level and type of authority required.
  • Describe the iterative nature of the information creation process.
  • Identify the various ways value is assigned to information, both in the production of and access to information.
  • Recognize how the value of information is protected through intellectual property laws.
  • Identify sources of research help, including librarians, research guides, and database help tools. (Reiterated and built upon over each Module)
  • Recognize the research as a process for identifying major ideas and varying perspectives that define the current conversations occurring among communities of scholars, professionals, and laypeople around a specific topic and how the conversation may have evolved over time.

 

Description: This module is designed to help students identify various sources of scholarly information, as well as select and use the available research tools to locate appropriate sources in accordance with legal and ethical standards.
Course Alignment: ENGL 1301 and other introductory courses
Sessions are tailored to meet one or more of the following learning outcomes:

  • Assess the authority of a source by critically evaluating the expertise and credibility of the creator.
  • Identify sources of authoritative information relative to their information need.
  • Select authoritative information sources relevant to their research need. (LSC Shared SLO)
  • Recognize that a realistic timeframe is needed to accomplish research goals.
  • Explain the importance of complying with institutional polices on access to information resources (e.g. the use of approved usernames and passwords to access information resources through ez proxy).
  • Identify sources of research help, including librarians, research guides, and database help tools.
  • Explore general information sources such as reference materials and resources guides, to increase general familiarity with the research topic.
  • Identify a wide range of sources that would produce authoritative information about the topic.
  • Use institutional resources in order to locate information (e.g. librarians/faculty, ILL, catalog/databases, research guides, etc.).
  • Select the appropriate research database for their information needed.
  • Apply search tools, such as controlled vocab and Boolean operators, to control the amount of information in their search results.

 

Description: This module expands on basic college research skills to include organizing and defining research within the context of a specific discipline.
Course Alignment: ENGL 1302 and other courses requiring in-depth research
Sessions are tailored to meet one or more of the following learning outcomes:

  • Recognize how information is produced and disseminated may impact how it can be applied.
  • Define how the creation process may impact the currency and accuracy of information.
  • Determine the appropriate format for information used or created relative to their information need.
  • Distinguish between copyright, fair use, open access, and the public domain and their applications.
  • Write clearly defined research questions.
  • Adjust the scope of their research and refine their research the question(s) based the information collected.
  • Identify sources of research help, including librarians, research guides, and database help tools.
  • Apply strategies for collecting and organizing their research.
  • Identify the various formats and venues used to make contributions to academic conversations and how they impact an author's ability to join the discourse.
  • Review the works cited by an author to understand the context in which the work is placed and find related resources.
  • Utilize multiple research methods and tools to investigate a research question relative to their research need.
  • Refine the scope of their research in response to search results.

 

Description: This module focuses on understanding how information is created and disseminated, as well as how the student can both access and contribute to the body of information within a specific discipline or profession.
Course Alignment: Upper-level or workforce courses, including Bachelor or Honors courses

Sessions are tailored to meet one or more of the following learning outcomes:

  • Explain how authority is defined and challenged within a specific discipline.
  • Recognize that they may be viewed as an authority and the responsibilities associated developing and maintaining an authoritative voice in an area.
  • Explain common approaches for information creation and dissemination within a specific discipline.
  • Outline a plan for creating and disseminating new information [information they have created].
  • Use a range of information technology applications in creating the product or performance.
  • Identify the appropriate citation style for crediting sources within a specific discipline.
  • Distinguish between copyright, fair use, open access, and the public domain and their applications.
  • Recognize their intellectual property rights and responsibilities when creating new information.
  • Identify sources of research help, including librarians, research guides, and database help tools.
  • Evaluate the body of information gathered to draw conclusions or identify gaps in the research.
  • Recognize gaps or conflicts in the research as an opportunity to explore further and contribute new information.
  • Recognize that their work represents an opportunity to make meaningful contributions to scholarly conversations.
  • Recognize that citing sources allows an author to place their work within the context of an existing conversation.
  • Identify specific expectations related to sources of evidence and research methods that define the conversations in a specific discipline.