Information Literacy & Library Instruction

Building upon the library research skills they have developed through the First Year Seminars, students in introductory level courses will learn:

• How the purpose and characteristics of scholarly literature differ from general interest literature.
• That most databases follow a common structure that facilitates information retrieval through features like controlled vocabulary, keyword searching, Boolean operators, and special search operators.
• How to develop an effective search strategy.
• How to use reference sources such as subject encyclopedias to define research questions and to expand research.
• That the library research process is recursive.

Students working in their major or minor will be introduced to specialized resources in a field of study and gain advanced understanding of the scholarly communication process. They will learn:

• How new information is produced, reviewed, and disseminated in a field/discipline of study.
• How to identify and use major indexing tools in a field.
• How to use advanced search techniques like cited reference searching and field limits.
• How to find and use primary sources as defined by a field, e.g. data sets, government documents, and rare or archival materials.
• How certain factors affect the value of information in a field, e.g., author’s credentials, publisher’s or sponsor’s reputation, and number of times cited in literature.