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Roger Williams University Libraries Information Literacy Mission

Information literacy is the foundation of the Library Instruction Program at Roger Williams University Libraries. The overarching goal of our instruction sessions is to support information competence in our students. The Library Instruction Team has developed a curriculum for information literacy instruction that is developmental and explained below in our Program. The mission of the Instruction Program is to teach students to be accomplished information users and to alleviate the "information anxiety" many students feel when confronted with university level research and information gathering.

Faculty requesting library instruction for their classes should contact Barbara Kenney at 401-254-3559 to arrange a session.  Please read our Instruction Policy below before making a request for library instruction.

Read more about Information Literacy at Roger Williams University

Instruction Program

Modes of Instruction:

• Individual instruction during the reference interview;
• Appointments for in-depth research consultations;
• Electronic and/or print instruction aids (subject and course guides);
• Group instruction in traditional or electronic classrooms;
• Web tutorials;
• Electronic reference and instruction (email, chat)

All group instruction will be user-centered, interactive and assignment-based. The Association of College and Research Libraries' Standards for Information Literacy will serve as the foundation for all instruction. Faculty requesting instruction are expected to meet with the assigned librarian at least ten working days prior to the class in order to collaboratively determine instruction session goals and student learning outcomes.

I. Online Library Tutorial: an orientation to the library, its use and several online resources, as well as an introduction to scholarly resources, plagiarism avoidance, and the ethical use of information.

After completing the Tutorial, students will be able to:

• Navigate the library website;
• Locate and access materials through the HELIN catalog;
• Search a general database (Academic Search Premier and Lexis-Nexis Academic) for scholarly, peer-reviewed articles;
• Understand the difference between popular and scholarly literature
• Understand ethical issues with regard to information resources, such as copyright infringement and plagiarism.

The online tutorial includes a short assignment that asks students to locate a book and a journal article on a common topic, and activate their library cards. It is suggested that classroom faculty require their students to complete the assignment to demonstrate competency in these skills.

The tutorial is designed to meet the needs of the following classes: First-Year Seminar, Expository Writing, Introduction to Academic Writing, and Introduction to Speech Communications.

 

II. Critical Writing for the Humanities and the Social Sciences, Critical Writing for the Professions and Critical Writing for the Sciences.

In order to meet the objectives of the Critical Writing classes, librarians will work closely with Writing Department faculty to design instruction sessions based on a research assignment. These sessions will assist students in developing a research plan and in locating, accessing and evaluating appropriate academic resources. The pedagogy for these classes will be jointly designed by the librarian and classroom faculty.

Objectives:

• Teach students how to evaluate resources based on purpose and audience.
• Teach students effective search strategies.
• Introduce indexes, databases, etc. and how to access the information contained therein.
• Introduce bibliographic citation styles and the importance of academic integrity.
• Teach students the use of bibliographic citation management software for formatting research citations, notes and manuscripts (RefWorks).
  
  

III. Instruction in a course required for majors in each school and department

Instruction will be provided in designated required courses for majors in each school and department. Designated courses will be determined by the academic department or school.

Objectives:

• Introduce students to the scholarly communication process and scholarly literature, as well as appropriate information sources with emphasis on the discipline.
• Introduce students to the language of the discipline by focusing on controlled vocabulary, thesauri, etc.
• Evaluate the reliability and significance of information found within the context of their subject knowledge.
  

IV. Advanced Research Instruction and Consultation

The librarians will design a session in consultation with classroom faculty that will reinforce research techniques, strategies and resources for advanced level classes (Senior Seminar, Graduate-level courses). Individual research consultations with librarians are available by appointment.

Objectives:

• Reinforce different bibliographic styles and formats;
• Advanced functions of RefWorks, including RefGrab-it and Write-N-Cite;
• Become familiar with scholarly digital spaces for publication (pre-prints, etc.) of ongoing and current research in their field -- i.e. SPARC, BioMed Central);
• Introduce additional methods of contacting experts in a field, such as listservs, newsgroups, chat rooms, etc.;
• Continued emphasis on scholarly communication process, including the importance of bibliographies as research sources;
• Focus on advanced research techniques.

 

Approved by the Library Faculty

November, 2007

Instruction Policy

Effective December, 2008

I. Use of the Library Instruction Lab

The main purpose for the Library Instruction Lab is for Library-related instruction.

1. When not scheduled for library instruction, it may be reserved for University sanctioned functions by contacting Barbara Kenney , Instructional Services Librarian, at bkenney@rwu.edu or 254-3559.
2. The library instruction classroom may not be used as the primary classroom space for classes being taught during the semester, as recurrent use limits availability to others.
3. The Library will be staffed by a lab consultant during peak times throughout the week and the scheduled class hours will be posted outside the lab.
4. Generally the lab will not be reserved for special interest groups who do not require Library instruction; exceptions will be made at the discretion of the Library on an individual basis.
5. The room must be cleared 15 minutes prior to a scheduled class.
6. The classroom is no longer available after hours and access during library operating hours will be provided by Public Services staff.
7. Classroom technology assistance will be provided by the Media Services staff who may be contacted at 254-3336.

II. Lab Workstations

1. Workstations will duplicate the software on the workstations in the Learning Commons.
2. Because maintenance of the networked software environment is crucial, configurations will not be changed to accommodate specialized software for temporary instruction, except at the discretion of the Library.
3. Because student funding was used in the purchase of much of the equipment, the primary use of the area will be to support campus constituents.
4. Workstations in the Learning Commons will not be reserved for instructional or class use, to ensure access for others while the lab is being used for instruction.

III. Library Instruction Program

1. The Library Instruction Lab can accommodate 25 students for hands-on instruction. If larger classes need to be accommodated, other arrangements may be made at the discretion of the Library. Please contact Barbara Kenney to discuss arrangements.
2. It is required that instructors accompany their class to facilitate the effectiveness of the session. Should a situation occur in which the instructor cannot accompany her/his class, please inform the Instructional Services Librarian who will try to re-schedule the session.
3. General tours of the library are not available, but an orientation to the library and its resources is provided by the online Library Tutorial.
4. Instruction for off-campus groups will be offered at the discretion of the Library.

IV. Scheduling

1. Classes should be scheduled with the Instructional Services Librarian, Barbara Kenney (401-254-3559).
2. Classes will be scheduled on a first come-first serve basis with a minimum of 10 working days advance notice. Faculty requesting instruction are expected to meet with the assigned librarian at least ten working days prior to the class in order to collaboratively determine instruction session goals and student learning outcomes.

Research Methods Survey