Information Literacy Program

Program instruction addresses the needs of all community populations, while highlighting those beyond the first year. This includes but is not limited to, sophomores, juniors, seniors, graduate students, returning adults, distance learners, faculty, and staff.

Three components feed the instruction of community members for success in their research endeavors:

All undergraduate and graduate years of instruction focus on sessions covering tools and concepts to assist students with coursework/assignments.

They are...

• Requested by and created in collaboration with faculty
• Created for a specific audience, field of study, course, or assignment
• Scheduled during class time or offered as separate sessions outside of class
• Offered in a variety of formats: orientation/library tours, in-class sessions, or online sessions through tutorials or video platforms

Research Guides are an instructional tool created in collaboration with faculty members by the library liaison to assist in conducting research. Department and specific course/assignment guides provide guidance for research through the identification of the best resources in the field.

They…

• Explain library processes and procedures
• Instruct on research concepts or processes
• Outline the resources for a course project
• Can be specific to a community population

Questions are answered by our professional staff during library hours of operation. Service is continued 24/7 (during closed hours) with the use of a World Co-op program as part of our LibAnswers research services system. In support of instruction, we provide reference services via text, chat, email, and face-to-face interactions.

Each school has been assigned an information services librarian for the purpose of collection development, research assistance, and information literacy instruction. These relationships allow librarians to work with individual faculty members and assist the library in acquiring appropriate resources for the library collection. This collaboration is instrumental in designing information literacy instruction for all levels of students.

The Library Liaison...

• Serves as a department's primary contact
• Collaborates with faculty in planning instruction for the students that will foster critical thinking, information literacy, and lifelong learning skills
• Assists with ordering books for the library collection to support courses
• Offers in-depth assistance with library resources through consultations to students writing theses or major papers
• Keeps faculty up-to-date on new services and resources
• Responds to feedback from the department about the collection and other library concerns

Zotero: A Citation and Research Management Tool                     

SLO: Recognize the importance of recording research activity and the value of a citation management tool (e.g. Zotero) towards that end, in saving, organizing, and formatting citations.

SLO: Store a book, an article from a journal and a website in Zotero, completing the bibliographic data with 80% accuracy.