El Centro College Library

El Centro College Library Instruction Competencies

Library Instruction or Information Literacy refers to the competencies for acquiring, understanding, manipulating, and presenting information. These skills are identified in collaboration with various academic programs. This collaboration continues in the development of activities and the measurement of successful attainment of these skills.

Standard One
The information literate student determines the nature and extent of the information needed.

Performance Indicators
1.1) defines and articulates the need for information
Outcomes:

identifies a topic
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to select an appropriate topic
  - Learning Activities: consults with the instructor and/or librarian to develop a focus for the topic - instructor approves research topic
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to select a career goal
  - Learning Activities: HDEV library and class assignments
develops a thesis statement
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to write a thesis statement
  - Learning Activities: consults with instructor to develop a thesis statement - instructor approves thesis statement
identifies potential information sources
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to use the library catalog to locate books and determine their availability
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise and class assignments
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to use databases to locate articles
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise and class research assignments
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate articles and determine if the articles are full-text or not
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate websites on a topic
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, speeches, class/research assignments

1.2) identifies a variety of types and formats as potential sources of information
Outcomes:

identifies potential resources in a variety of formats (books, articles, web)
- Assessment: demonstrate the ability to list a variety of information sources in draft outlines
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
  - Learning Activities: speech and research drafts
identify and select relevant images for PowerPoint
- Assessment: demonstrate the ability to locate relevant images
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Powerpoint presentations

Standard Two
The information literate student accesses needed information effectively and efficiently.

Performance Indicators
2.1) selects the most appropriate methods or retrieval systems for accessing needed information (books, databases, web)
Outcomes:

identifies location of materials
- Assessment: use location information in the bibliographic record to successfully identify materials by DCCCD campus when using the Library Catalog
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
  - Learning Activities: submitting ICL’s for materials at other campuses
- Assessment: use location information in the bibliographic record to successfully retrieve books in the El Centro Library
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
selects appropriate sources based on topic
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to distinguish between books, the web, and online databases as potential resources for a topic
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, speeches/class/research assignments
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant websites (based on established evaluation criteria) as potential resources for a topic
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
  - Learning Activities: speeches, research papers

2.2) constructs and implements effective search strategies
Outcomes:

identifies keywords, phrases, synonyms
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to list relevant search terms based on topic and/or thesis statement (e.g., keywords, synonyms, broader/narrower terms or phrases)
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to construct a search strategy utilizing, phrasing, Boolean (and, or, not) and truncation
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
understands field searching (author, title, keyword, subject)
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to select the appropriate field (author, title, subject, keyword, call number) when searching the library catalog
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
utilizes search features for more effective results
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to identify databases that provide listings of topics suitable for speeches
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Speech bibliography/work cited
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to identify and select databases that most closely cover their topic
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, speeches, class/research assignments
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to retrieve relevant articles from online databases
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, speeches, class/research assignments
uses help from the reference librarians to improve search results
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to ask library staff for help
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Reference/Ask a Librarian statistics

2.3) retrieves information online or in person using a variety of methods
Outcomes:

searches and finds books in the library catalog
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to search and find books in the library catalog
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, class/research papers, speeches, career research, fashion projects
able to find books on the library shelves via the Library of Congress classification system
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate a book at the El Centro College Library
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, class/research assignments
searches and find articles in the online databases
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to search and find articles from the online databases
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, class/research papers, speeches

2.4) refines search strategies as needed
Outcomes:

assess the relevance of search results to determine if search strategies are effective
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to revise search strategies based on the quantity and quality of search results
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, drafts for speech and research papers

2.5) extracts, records, and manages the information and its sources
Outcomes:

selects efficient and effective approaches to accessing the information needed
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to select appropriate methods for saving or recording information (e.g., printing, saving to a disk, emailing, photocoping, taking notes)
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
utilizes the information found in an appropriate manner
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to write a research paper or report
  - Learning Activities: research papers
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to present a speech
  - Learning Activities: speeches

Standard Three
The information literate student evaluates information and its sources critically.

Performance Indicators
3.1) demonstrates understanding of main ideas from information gathered
Outcomes:

selects relevant information based on thesis statement
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to create a list of the main points relevant to the topic
  - Learning Activities: Speech outline and presentation, English research paper draft
identifies appropriate quotes
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to credit sources when using a direct quote
  - Learning Activities: Speech presentation, English research papers

3.2) applies criteria for evaluating information and its sources
Outcomes:

evaluates reliability, validity, accuracy, authority, bias
- Assesssment: lists criteria used to evaluate information sources
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate and evaluate books, database articles and websites
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, speeches, research papers
distinguish between popular magazines and scholarly journals
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate scholarly articles
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, Psych/Health Occupations assignments

Standard Four
The information literate student, individually or as a member of a group, uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose.

Performance Indicators
4.1) applies new and prior information to the planning and creation of a speech or research project
Outcomes:

organizes information, outlines, and drafts
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to create a topical outline
  - Learning Activities: Speech outline, English research paper draft
manipulates text, images, and data to a new context
- Assessment: organizes the content to support the thesis and outline
  - Learning Activities: Speech presentations, research papers
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to write an abstract
  - Learning Activities: Psych article abstracts
- Assessment: creates and/or presents an effective PowerPoint presentation
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorials/ppt tutorials
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Speech, Humanities, HDEV presentations
- Assessment: creates a model or portfolio
  - Learning Activities: Fashion/Interior Design assignments

Standard Five
The information literate student understands many of the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and accesses and uses information ethically and legally.

Performance Indicators
5.2) follows laws, regulations, institutional policies, and etiquette related to the access and use of information resources
Outcomes:

uses approved passwords and other forms of ID for accessing materals
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to access online database articles on-campus or off-campus
  - Learning Activities: Library video tutorial
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation

5.3) acknowledges the use of information sources
Outcomes:

locates information about documentation style
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate documentation examples
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation (website and handouts)
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
identifies citation elements from information sources for a variety of formats (e.g, books, articles, web)
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to locate relevant citation elements/bibliographic information for books, databases, and the web
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise
uses an appropriate documentation style (APA, MLA) consistently and correctly to cite sources
- Assessment: demonstrates the ability to use the citation elements/bibliographic information to create a bibliography from resources used in APA or MLA format
  - Learning Activities: Library orientation
  - Learning Activities: Library exercise, bibliography/work cited created for class assignments

Based on:
Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education (ACRL, 2000)
Objectives for Information Literacy Instruction: A Model Statement for Academic Librarians (ACRL, 2001)

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©2006 El Centro College Library Dallas, TX
Last Updated: January 3, 2007