The tutorial addresses the following student learning outcomes:
- Students will identify keywords, synonyms and related terms for their information need.
- Students will construct search strategies using appropriate commands for the system selected.
- Students will consult a variety of search systems to retrieve information in a variety of formats.
- Students will identify specialized services to retrieve the information needed.
There are several suggested means of integrating the English 110 Library Tutorial into students’ coursework:
Assigning the tutorial as a whole
The tutorial can be assigned to students in its entirety as a homework assignment. The tutorial will take students about 30 minutes to complete, and is designed to introduce students to the library research skills necessary for the completion of English 110 assignments. Instructors can assess student mastery of the tutorial’s learning outcomes by assigning the quiz included in this tutorial, or by incorporating research exercises into class after the tutorial has been assigned. Students will automatically receive a copy of their quiz responses via email. You can ask them to share the email with you as proof of completion. Find an answer key here (this is also an example of the automatic email students receive.
The tutorial will be most effective if it is assigned when students have been introduced to a specific assignment requiring research. Depending upon your syllabus, this may occur early in the semester (as in the case of an exploratory essay assignment) or at the point of topic selection for the research paper, or before students are required to submit an annotated bibliography. The tutorial’s relevance will be clear to students if they approach the tutorial with a concrete understanding of their upcoming research tasks.
Using the tutorial to reinforce skills taught in class
If a student has not adequately mastered library research skills after attending a library instruction session or after learning these concepts in class, sections of the tutorial may be used to reinforce learning. For example, if a student expresses considerable difficulty in using the DELCAT Discovery, an instructor may suggest that the “Finding Books” section of the tutorial be consulted if the student does not prefer to ask a librarian for assistance.
Assigning segments of the tutorial throughout the semester
Depending upon your syllabus, it can be most effective to assign sections of the tutorial at different points throughout the semester as concepts are emphasized in class. For example, instructors may choose to assign the “Researching” and “Getting Help” sections early in the semester, when students are becoming familiar with academic research, and to assign “Finding Books” and “Finding Articles” later in the semester, as students begin to gather sources for their research papers. Instructors can thus encourage immediate application of library research skills to students’ actual research tasks.