Guides and Tutorials: Library Instruction Program: Liaisons & Info Lit Instruction

Alemany Library Instruction Program

Mission

It is the mission of the Alemany Library Instruction Program to teach practical and conceptual information literacy skills to our students. We ensure students are able to critically and ethically explore, access, evaluate, and apply information both in their academic careers and as lifelong learners.

The Library Instruction Program supports the University mission and educational aims by working collaboratively with faculty, academic support and advising, and the administration, to engage students in the development of their information literacy skills and provide opportunities to learn more about the world in which they live. Librarians actively create learning opportunities in the library, in the classroom, and in the university community.

Vision

The Library Instruction Program provides students with comprehensive information literacy instruction and personalized research help at each step in their academic careers

Librarians foster information skills at all levels, integrate information skills within the curriculum as much as possible, help cultivate a strong grounding in the literature of each discipline, engage students in the research process to develop them into self-directed and critically aware information seekers and creators, and ensure high-quality student research as exemplified by their culminating experiences.

Outcomes

By the end of their college experience students will be able to:

Effectively locate and access information in numerous formats using a variety of appropriate search tools, depending on the subject and need,
Critically evaluate and select relevant, credible, and high-quality information sources,
Synthesize information from various sources and diverse perspectives, and ethically use that information in a product,
Apply these skills across disciplines and beyond the academic environment, drawing on them in their careers and lives.

Embed Information Literacy in Your Classes

Librarians are available to provide custom information literacy and research skills instruction sessions to individual classes throughout the year. Sessions usually run one hour and can be conducted in your classroom.

What Your Librarian Can do for You

Liaisons are the librarians that work most often with individual departments and are most familiar with the subject matter.

Library liaisons can:

Keep you updated about library services, resources, and policies
Convey your concerns and requests to the University Librarian
Support your research interests by locating and recommending relevant information resources
Provide you with resource guides tailored to your course(s) including books, journals, online databases, audio/visual material, and internet resources
Work with you to expand the Library collection to make it more pertinent to the learning and teaching needs of your program.
Offer one-on-one consultation
Help you in identifying resources needed for your course(s)
Collaborate with you to integrate information literacy into your coursework
Provide in-class lectures to introduce your students to basic information literacy skills
Provide tailored training sessions based upon discipline or course to your students

Some things to Remember about Guest Lectures

Contact your liaison at least 1-2 weeks prior to the session, when developing your class syllabus, for in-depth Library collaboration on courses and assignments; in doing so you may not need to take time from class.
The primary instructor must attend the session. Students take the need for good research techniques more seriously if the instructor is present and engaged.
Avoid requesting a session for the first week of class. Students need to understand the course requirements and assignments before launching into research.
Connect the session to the information literacy outcomes for a particular assignment.
Please remind students to bring a laptop, tablet, or at least a phone to do hands-on searching.