INFORMATION LITERACY
DEVELOPED SPECIFICALLY  FOR  YVCC INSTRUCTORS and  STUDENTS

Definition | Plan | Projects, Rubric Use Examples, and Sample Assignments | Related Links | Rubric | Tutorials | Workshop Descriptions | Workshop Schedule
 

What is Information Literacy? 

        The ability to:      

1.    Determine the nature and extent of the information needed
2.    Access needed information effectively and efficiently
3.    Evaluate information and its sources critically and incorporate selected information into one's knowledge base
4.    Use information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose
5.    Understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and access and use information ethically and legally

Why do we need Information Literacy? 

Information competent people have learned how to learn.  They know how information is organized, how to find information, and how to use information in such a way that others can learn from them.  They are people prepared for lifelong learning because they can always find the information needed for any task or decision that presents itself.

Information literacy is a critical skill for student success.  Research indicates that students who are information competent will have greater success in completing their degrees.  It will help to ensure that students will be able to function successfully in our Information Age.

Utilize the YVCC Information Literacy Rubric when preparing and evaluating assignments.  Provide students with meaningful assignments that require locating, retrieving, evaluating and utilizing a variety of information resources.  Consider the library as an extension of the classroom through collaboration between the classroom faculty and the faculty reference librarians to develop and assess Information Literacy related assignments and activities. Provide opportunities for students to attend library sponsored workshops or participate in online information literacy tutorials

To this end, the faculty reference librarians developed the following Information Literacy plan:. 

YVCC FACULITY REFERENCE LIBRARIAN INFORMATION LITERACY PLAN *

1.    Strive to incorporate Information Literacy in the mission of the college. 

The acquisition of Information Literacy should become an integral part of learning in all subjects across the curriculum.  Without a "buy-in" by faculty, librarians, students, and administrators, Information Literacy cannot become a reality.  The faculty can use all opportunities to build into their courses the teaching of information skills and devise assignments that require students to locate, retrieve, analyze, and manage information.

2.     Strengthen the partnership between faculty and librarians.  Faculty/Library collaboration may include the following:

Provide a copy of the assignment to the librarians.

Schedule consultation between librarian and faculty:     

    -         if students become frustrated with the assignment

    -         upon successful completion of assignment

 Update or revise assignments, based on library acquisitions and services.

Schedule library instruction and hands-on experience tailored to specific assignments and courses.

Update or revise instruction and hands-on experience based on library acquisitions.

3.     Increase opportunities for faculty and staff to update Information Literacy skills.

Provide Information Literacy related workshops specifically developed for faculty & staff

Encourage faculty reference librarians to participate in division/department meetings to promote Information Literacy

Develop Information Literacy handouts for classroom/library distribution

4.     Strive to insure that YVCC students develop the following Information Literacy skills:

Recognize when information is needed and formulate clear concise questions based on information needs.

Match information needs to information resources and organize an effective search strategy/plan, including Boolean logic.

Select and use appropriate information retrieval tools in print and electronic formats, including the online catalog, periodical databases, Internet, print indexes, and reference books.

Synthesize and organize information for various applications.

Apply information to critical thinking and problem-solving situations.

Communicate or "publish" research ideas electronically in textual or multimedia forms.

Appreciate that being an information-competent individual requires ongoing involvement in learning and evaluating emergent technology so that lifelong learning is possible.

Understand how knowledge is generated, organized, stored, and transmitted.

Understand some of the major ethical, legal, economic, and socio-political issues surrounding information and information technology.

*Developed by the Yakima Valley Community College Reference Faculty

YVCC's Information Literacy WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS and schedule

The following workshops are offered in R219 in Raymond  Hall during weeks 3-6 of Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters.  For additional information about the schedule, please click schedule, phone the Faculty Reference Librarians at 574-4991 ext.2 or visit Raymond Library.  For additional information about a specific workshop, click on the workshop title (in burgundy).

COPYRIGHT	Learn basic copyright principles applicable to college coursework.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE	Explore methods of searching for information on virtually any criminal justice topic.
EBSCO	Uncover the wealth of information available through EBSCO databases, including Academic Search Complete and ERIC.
ELIBRARY	Explore full-text and multimedia material, including TV and radio transcripts, maps and over 2,000 magazines.
FACTS ON FILE	Investigate world news articles back to 1940, science articles, issues in American history, and issues and controversies about today’s hot topics.
HISTORY RESOURCE CENTER - US AND WORLD	Explore American History through primary documents, reference articles and full-text journals.
HEALTH AND MEDICAL SOURCES	Discover the many online and print sources providing information on health-related topics.
ONLINE PUBLIC CATALOG (OPAC)	Effectively utilize the YVCC online catalog (OPAC) and Wayfinder (the catalog of other library collections in Washington and throughout the world).
PLAGIARISM	What it is and how to avoid it!
PRIMARY SOURCES	Learn to distinguish between primary and secondary sources of information and discover the many ways to find primary sources.
PROQUEST	Discover how to uncover the vast periodical resources available through this significant database.
RESEARCH SKILLS - INFORMATION SOURCES	Identify the basic steps to locate appropriate information resources.
RESEARCH SKILLS - TOPIC DEVELOPMENT	Identify the basic steps essential to select a topic & develop a thesis.
STATISTICS	Discover the many resources available to find statistics for your research paper.
WEB EVALUATION	Explore important ways to select relevant and credible web sources.
WORD BASICS	Learn how to format research papers using MS Word 2007

RELATED LINKS

American Library Association - Association of Research Libraries (ACRL)

ACRL Information Literacy Competency Guidelines - These standards were reviewed by the ACRL Standards Committee and approved by the Board of Directors of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) on January 18, 2000. ACRL IL Standards, excluding the guidelines

ACRL Instruction Section - The ACRL Instruction Section supports and develops librarians as teachers.  Their Education Committee sponsors a Continuing Education Calendar and  BI-L is a great place to share tips and tricks and to learn about information literacy efforts across the country.

Resources for Instructors - Bibliography of resources

PRIMO: Peer-Reviewed Instructional Materials Online- a means to promote and share peer reviewed instructional materials created by librarians to teach people about discovering, accessing and evaluating information in networked environments.

Information Literacy in Six Dimensions (pdf) - Library & IL profile for Richland College in Dallas Texas.

Washington Library/Media Directors Council  (LMDC) Information Literacy Website - Describes IL in Washington State Community Colleges and and Library Services and Technology Act  (LSTA) grant awarded to LMDC.

IRIS - Information and Research Instruction Sheet developed for two year colleges.

CORE - Comprehensive Online Research Education) was developed by Purdue University Libraries. It will guide you through the process of developing an effective information strategy. The tutorial suggests actions and strategies to help you work through each step of the research process, from formulating your topic idea, to searching databases effectively, to critically evaluating what you find. Key concepts are presented and reinforced with interactive exercises and links to related resources. As you proceed through CORE, you can measure your own mastery of the concepts through quizzes and self-evaluations. Your instructor may ask you to submit a printed copy or to email them the results.

Please note:  YVCC uses Dewey for our call numbers.  The second line is generally up to 8 characters of the author's last name.