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Library Instruction Department Guide

Instruction and Info. Lit. Resources for Librarians

Scaffolded Instruction Objectives

These objectives define your goals for student learning, helping learners to understand the research principles from the selected ACRL Frames.

      1. Introduce core library services and resources.
      2. Emphasize the library’s role in academic research.
      3. Outline basics of keyword searching within a variety of library resources.
      4. Highlight subject-based resources.
      5. Explain attributes of advanced keyword searching.
      6. Show ways to evaluate resource quality.
      7. Discuss academic honesty and plagiarism.
      8. Demonstrate characteristics of an effective research strategy.

Be careful not to pick too many and overcommit. Here are basic suggestions: if given a whole class period, pick 4-5 objectives. If given 45 minutes, pick 3. If given 30 minutes or less, pick 2. Just  try your best to pick your preferred objectives in sequence since they follow a scaffolded (gradual) format. We also advise that you speak with the professor to inform your choices. If the professor tells me that their students largely know about library services and our role at the university, then I know not to focus on the first two objectives. If you don’t get a lot of info from the professor, you can assume some things. It’s generally best practice to start your sequence for 1000/2000 level classes with objective #1. You can consider starting off with objective #3 for 3000/4000 level classes. Again, let me emphasize that these are pillars for your lesson plan. You should pick the objectives that you want to highlight. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t introduce or briefly cover all of them. Even though I don’t highlight objectives #1/2 for seniors, I still refer to those ideas at the beginning of the presentation. I understand that scaffolding isn’t very straightforward to implement during one-offs. Please come talk to Instruction if you need any guidance.

Student Learning Outcomes w/ Emphasized Concepts

These outcomes help to assess the effectiveness of instruction by providing clear criteria for evaluating student learning, ensuring that the skills gained are aligned with the objectives. Bullet points under each outcome give an idea about the concepts each outcome emphasizes.

      1. Students recognize the importance of the library in their academic journey.
        • Library services and resources
        • Our academic success role
      2. Students explore how information is created, shared, and accessed through various tools and platforms.
        • Information creation and dissemination
        • Different source types
      3. Students develop questions and problems that guide their research topics.
        • Research questions and hypotheses development
        • Topic selection and narrowing
      4. Students evaluate search results and adjust their search strategies as needed.
        • Effective search techniques
        • Adjusting search strategies
      5. Students understand the social nature of the information landscape and how connections are made.
        • Navigating online information
        • Recognizing misinformation and disinformation
      6. Students use effective search techniques and appropriate language for different information needs.
        • Specialized databases
        • Boolean operators
      7. Students analyze information to identify gaps and generate further research questions.
        • Synthesis of information
        • Basics of literature review
      8. Students assess different types of authority and learn to check sources for credibility.
        • Evaluating credibility
        • Different authority types
      9. Students credit sources appropriately using proper citation methods.
        • Academic transparency
        • Citation methods and styles
      10. Students interpret assignments to determine research requirements.
        • Assignment literacy
        • Research planning
      11. Students match their information needs to the right search tools.
        • Matching information need
        • Identifying academic sources
      12. Students identify and avoid plagiarism.
        • Understanding plagiarism
        • Strategies to avoid plagiarism

Usually, we like to pick around the same number of outcomes as objectives, but this is just a rough guide. You can get more complex with this lesson plan by mapping multiple objectives to a single outcome. If you want to keep things more simplified, stick with a straight 1:1 outcome/objective ratio.