Faculty Guide to Library & Archives Services

WHY INFORMATION LITERACY? 

Would you like your students to write better papers and use higher quality resources in their research?
While many Holy Cross students report confidence in their research skills, the HEDS Research Practices Survey results indicate that they often lack the skills necessary to conduct research at the college level:

• 45% did not realize that a personal web page is a less appropriate source than a book published by a university press, an encyclopedia, or an academic journal article. 
• Only 38% realized that sources like Time and Newsweek are not scholarly.
• When asked about ways to refine and expand their searches for locating relevant resources, many students had little knowledge about how to construct effective searches.
• Many students could not identify if a given citation was for a book, book chapter, or journal article.

What we can do:

• Provide a customized library instruction session for your class.
• Create an online library research guide, tailored for your students’ research needs. 
• Meet with your students individually to discuss their research, as part of the library’s Personal Research Session Program.
• Help you design a research assignment that engages students with a wide range of library resources.

For more information about ways that we can provide research and instructional services for your classes, contact your department's librarian.

WHAT DOES INSTRUCTION INVOLVE?

Some topics we frequently cover include: 

• Academic integrity
• Distinguishing between scholarly journal articles and articles from popular publications
• Evaluating the quality and credibility of sources
• Library services, like interlibrary loan
• How to search CrossSearch and subject-specific databases
• Citing sources properly
• How to locate and use primary and secondary sources

Specific examples from previous semesters: 

• Guiding students in locating images, books, and articles about Day of the Dead altar construction so that groups of students could construct their own altars; 
• Three sessions focused on different aspects of the research process: Choosing a topic, research techniques, and analyzing resources; 
• A workshop on locating primary and secondary sources supporting different sides of a topic for a class debate
• An introduction to working with scholarly articles and where to find them, paired with required Personal Research Sessions in which students had to locate an academic article to supplement class reading/discussion for a given week. 

Instruction Menu: 

To help faculty consider the options available to them, the Libraries produce an Instruction Menu on an annual basis: 

However, we are always happy to work with you to customize something beyond these options for your course! 

INFORMATION LITERACY ASSIGNMENT BANK

The Information Literacy Assignment Bank is designed to support collaboration between librarians and faculty by providing a concrete, but flexible, framework for integrating information literacy in the curriculum . 

The Assignment Bank consists of a series of 1-page template assignments designed to teach students a specific information literacy skill or skills in the context of an existing course.  

Each 1-page assignment includes:

(1) A step-by-step description of the tasks involved;

(2) Appropriate skill level(s);

(3) Relevant frames from the Association of College & Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy. 

ACADEMIC SERVICES & LEARNING RESOURCES

The Office of Academic Services & Learning Resources (ASLR) provides a range of academic supports for students, including tutoring, skills workshops, and class visits. Librarians and ASLR staff regularly cross-refer students and collaborate on other initiatives. 

ASLR is located on the 2nd floor of Dinand Library. For more information about academic supports offered, visit the Office of Academic Services & Learning Resources website. 

CENTER FOR WRITING 

In addition to hosting the Writer's Workshop, the Center for Writing offers a variety of services geared at supporting faculty in their teaching and research, including in-class workshops on topics relating to writing and communication. Librarians and Center for Writing staff regularly cross-refer students and collaborate on a variety of other initiatives, including the popular Citation Frustration Stations held during exam periods. 

The Center for Writing and Writer's Workshop are located on the 2nd floor of Dinand Library. For more information and support with writing-related instruction, visit the Center for Writing website or contact centerforwriting@holycross.edu.

EDUCATIONAL DESIGN & MEDIA SERVICES

Educational Design & Media Services staff visit classes and provide training for web site design, digital imaging, video editing, geographic information systems, statistical software, and Google Apps. Additionally, the department can provide individual support for students, including helping students design and print posters for class assignments and conference presentations.

Librarians communicate frequently with Educational Design & Media Services staff and are always happy to collaborate with them in supporting your student projects! 

For more information and support with using GIS technology, SPSS, R, Moodle, Dreamweaver, Panopto, Photoshop, course design, and more, contact the Educational Design & Media Services staff. 

CROSSWORKS

CrossWorks is an Open Access publishing service of the Holy Cross Libraries. As the institutional repository of the College, CrossWorks provides permanent and global access to scholarly and creative works produced by members of the Holy Cross community.

For more information, visit http://crossworks.holycross.edu and/or contact crossworks@holycross.edu.