Information Literacy Skills and Ideas for Library Related Assignments

What Is An Information Literate Student?

Information literacy is the ability to recognize the need for information, and the ability to locate, evaluate, and use information effectively to solve problems. As part of the CSN General Education Core, acquiring information literacy skills provides students the necessary intellectual framework for successful progress in a variety of academic and professional workplaces. (An Information Literacy Competency Exam is available to test the information seeking and research skills students are expected to obtain while at CSN).

Effective Research Assignments

One of the best means for imparting information literacy skills is through the use of effective research based assignments in the classroom. Consequently, teaching faculty play a vital, integral role in this process. When creating research based assignments, please keep in mind the following points:

Clarity: Describe all the specifics of your assignment including the length, citation format, acceptable types of sources - in detail. Also, be specific in your assignment objectives (what do I want my students to learn?) - so outcomes can be easily measured.

Try Your Assignment: Put yourself in your students place and test drive your research assignments. Do our campus libraries have the resources needed to meet your needs by the deadline?

Teach Research Strategies: Never assign scavenger hunts or random research because looking for trivia is seen as busy work and ultimately frustrates students. Good assignments always reinforce real research skills and the stated objectives of your assignment.

Teach Ethical Use of Information: Discuss the importance of academic integrity in research. Make sure your students understand the whole range of issues related to plagiarism.

Information Literacy Skills

The following skills are based on the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Competency Standards for Higher Education. The ACRL standards serve as the national standards for information literacy.

Skill 1: Planning a Path to Success

   Students determine the nature and extent of the information needed by:

• Choosing and refining a research topic
• Identifying key concepts and terms related to the topic
• Developing an awareness that information exists in various formats (print, electronic, visual, etc.)

   Library Research Assignment Ideas - Skill 1

Skill 2: Carrying Out the Plan

   Students access needed information effectively and efficiently by:

• Identifying the most appropriate information resources (journal database, reference sources, etc.)
• Choosing keywords, synonyms and subject headings relevant to the research topic (brainstorming)
• Creating and implementing effective search strategies (using Boolean operators, truncation, etc.)

   Library Research Assignment Ideas - Skill 2

Skill 3: Evaluating Search Results

   Students evaluate information and its sources critically by:

• Determining the origin of the information
• Identifying the author and their qualifications
• Identifying validity, accuracy, and potential bias

   Library Research Assignment Ideas - Skill 3

Skill 4: Putting It All Together

   Students use information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose by:

• Organizing the information logically for its intended purpose
• Integrating information from a variety of media, if necessary
• Communicating the information effectively to the intended audience

   Library Research Assignment Ideas - Skill 4

Skill 5: Giving Credit Where It's Due

   Students use information ethically and legally by:

• Understanding fair use of copyrighted material
• Understanding what constitutes plagiarism
• Selecting an appropriate documentation style and using it consistently to cite sources

   Library Research Assignment Ideas - Skill 5