Students can simultaneously learn course content and research skills. Consider putting your objectives on the assignment. Students need to see relevance of assignments to the course. They also need to understand that information skills learned now will be helpful to them in future courses and in real life.
Library faculty may have some helpful ideas or spot potential problems with an assignment. They can determine whether the library has the needed materials to support the assignment and can help you keep abreast of changes in the information world that may affect your assignments. Some ongoing assignments may lend themselves to creating a library Course Guide.
Traditional research papers are one way students use and demonstrate research skills, but there are many other types of assignments that help students learn and practice information skills. Consider assigning presentations, posters, persuasive speeches, annotated bibliographies, source reviews or evaluations, etc. Try to promote critical thinking too—doing something with information—not just looking it up! Consider assignments that provide practice in a specific information skill rather than the whole gamut that is required by a research paper. Add links to library resources where appropriate, such as Citation Help: http://guides.stlcc.edu/citation_help.
Breaking down a big research assignment into a series of smaller, graded assignments helps students learn the research process. This can also help keep students on task, help you check their progress, and can help avoid plagiarism.
Ask someone to read your instructions and determine if they are clear, complete, and error-free. Be sure to define technical library and discipline-specific terminology.
The librarians can better help your students when they are alerted to upcoming assignments. This also helps the Libraries build a stronger curriculum-centered collection.
Make sure your students understand the importance of academic integrity and the avoidance of plagiarism. Expect proper source citations.
Can you complete the assignment with the resources that are available to your students?
Sending a large group of students after the same resource or to research the same topic at the same time may make it difficult for students to find the information they need to complete the assignment. Consider placing heavy-demand items on Reserve or giving students broader choices in topics/sources.
These often frustrate students (and librarians) and do not require the same research skills students should develop for their academic work.
Dissect the assignment and analyze the skills needed to complete it. Do your students have these skills? You might want to work with a librarian to design needed instruction, handouts, tutorials, etc.
Beware of restrictions such as, “You may not use the Internet” or “No encyclopedias.” Such limitations must carefully match the assignment, the topic, and the modern information world. Examples of such problems include:
St. Louis Community College Libraries |
Florissant Valley Campus Library |
Forest Park Campus Library |
Meramec Campus Library |
Wildwood Campus Library |
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