Research Guides: For Faculty: Library Instruction & Information Literacy

Library Instruction

Library faculty are committed to providing quality, up-to-date information literacy instruction. We provide hands-on introductions to research strategies and tools including how to use library services, the library catalog, reference works, periodical databases, and search engines. Some instructors prefer a walking tour, while others prefer a specific focus. We always tailor instruction to your needs. Our Bremerton classroom is equipped with a teaching workstation and 32 student computers. Librarians can also teach remotely, in Poulsbo and Shelton computer classrooms, or make presentations in classrooms around campus.

Scheduling

To schedule a session, please contact us at librarians@olympic.edu. In addition, please...

let us know your preferred date and time.
send us your syllabus and a description of the research-related class assignment/s at least one week in advance.

With your cooperation, library faculty are able to incorporate your course learning objectives into their instruction and design a unique session that is immediately relevant to students’ research needs.

Faculty Attendance & Participation

When you attend and participate:

Students benefit from the combined knowledge of the librarian and the faculty member.
You can provide definitive answers to questions about assignment requirements.
The value of the library and scholarly research are reinforced.
You can keep abreast of what your students are learning.

Information Literacy Assignments

Research assignments can be designed to encourage students to actively seek information, retrieve it successfully, assess it critically, and apply it in thought-provoking ways. If you don't have an assignment, library faculty are happy to work with you to design one. Or, consider the information literacy assignment sites below.

Community of OnlineResearch Assignments (CORA)
(CORA) is a collaborative space for adapting and experimenting with research assignments. The database contains reliable and reproducible research assignments enhanced by user feedback in order to build a rich corpus of best practices. Assignments can be used or adapted under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0.
Designing Meaningful Library Assignments / Concordia University
Integrating Information Literacy into your Classes / Gettysburg College
Term Paper Alternatives: Ideas for Information-Based Assignments / University of Newfoundland

Information Literacy

Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education (2000)

Information literacy is often described as a set of abilities requiring individuals to "recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information." In 2000, The Association of College & Research Libraries published the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, which has been used by academic librarians and their partners in higher education to incorporate information literacy concepts and skills into their curricula. At Olympic College, “Information Literacy and Technology” is a Core Ability:

Graduates use strategies to search for information that enhance the acquisition of knowledge.
Graduates evaluate and appraise sources.
Graduates access and use information and/or technology ethically, legally and/or responsibly.
Graduates use various inquiry tools and different formats of information e.g. media.
Graduates use technology and information appropriate to field or discipline, synthesizing information to formulate insights and create knowledge.

Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education (2016)

In 2016, the ACRL adopted the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. The Framework expanded the definition of information literacy to emphasize dynamism, flexibility, individual growth, and community learning in higher education:

Information literacy is the set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued, and the use of information in creating new knowledge and participating ethically in communities of learning.

The Framework is organized into six frames, each consisting of a concept central to information literacy, a set of knowledge practices, and a set of dispositions. The six concepts that anchor the frames are presented alphabetically:

Authority Is Constructed and Contextual
Information Creation as a Process
Information Has Value
Research as Inquiry
Scholarship as Conversation
Searching as Strategic Exploration

The Framework aims to open the way for librarians, faculty, and other institutional partners to redesign instruction sessions, assignments, courses, and even curricula; to connect information literacy with student success initiatives; to collaborate on pedagogical research and involve students themselves in that research; and to create wider conversations about student learning, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and the assessment of learning on local campuses and beyond. Explore the full text of the Framework!