Information Literacy Orientation (Fall, 2011)

Contact a Librarian: Sasha Bishop (Beaufort) · Call: 843-525-8236 · Email: sbishop@tcl.edu Amy Grimm (New River) · Call 843-470-6003 · Email: agrimm@tcl.edu Text a Question: 843-256-2247 Information Literacy & the Research Process

The Importance of Good Information
SITUATION:
Your brother just made his college football team. You plan to be there for his first game.
What information do you need?

The Facts You Need:
Date & time
City
Stadium location
Directions
Ticket information
Weather forecast

Possible Sources of Information
Your brother
Newspaper
Printed game schedule
Sports fan friend
College or coach
Online
Map website
College webpage
Weather forecast site
Are all of these sources of information equally reliable? Are they equally accurate?
What might go wrong if you get bad information?

What other situations call for good information?
School assignments
Job-hunting
Work
Learning a new skill
Traveling
Medical decisions
Finding good information for all of these situations requires INFORMATION LITERACY skills
Image used under a CC license from http://www.flickr.com/photos/chicagogeek/4006101093/sizes/l/in/photostream /

Information Literacy:
The ability to
FIND,
EVALUATE,
and USE
RELIABLE INFORMATION
Ethically and Legally
Image used under a CC license from http://www.flickr.com/photos/kharied/4128848123/

The Research Process
Today we will look at Information Literacy and the Research Process. Use these steps to help you organize your ideas and information as you prepare your assignments
Step 1 : IDENTIFY your information need
Step 2: USE BACKGROUND INFORMATION to learn about your subject and develop your topic
Step 3: DEVELOP a research strategy
Step 4: FIND and EVALUATE information
Step 5: WRITE and REVISE your paper
Step 6: DOCUMENT your sources

Step 1: Determine Your Information Needs
What do you need to know about the assignment?
Number of pages
What subjects to cover
How many resources to use
Is a bibliography or works cited page required?

Step 2: Develop a Topic Using Background Information
Look at background information to develop your topic
Look at books and websites to get ideas
Reference books, such as encyclopedias, are a good place to find background info
Once you know a little about your subject, you can come up with a specific topic
Try to make your topic BROAD enough that you will be able to find information on it, but NARROW enough that you will be able to cover it in a paper

Broad and Narrow Topics
Too broad :
Sports
A narrower topic:
Steroid use and sports
Even narrower :
Steroid use and Olympic athletes
Probably too narrow :
Steroid use and javelin throwers in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics

Step 3: Develop a Research Strategy
Once you decide on a topic, review the list of required sources for your assignment
Do you need books? Websites? News articles? Scholarly articles? Multimedia?
Think of KEYWORDS you can use in your search
You will use your keywords to search library catalogs and databases

Keywords
Sample topic:
Should Olympic athletes be penalized for using steroids?
What keywords could we use for our search?
Olympics, athletes, sports, steroids, doping, drugs, drug abuse, performance-enhancing drugs
Coming up with several keywords is important because one catalog or search engine might find many articles under the word “steroids,” but another might find more under “doping”

Step 4: Find Information
Now that we have a topic and keywords, we are ready to begin our search
In this step, we will find info using LRC resources
LRC homepage
Online Catalog
PASCAL Delivers
eBooks
Databases (articles)

Starting Point: The LRC/Library Website
On the homepage :
The Online Catalog, eBooks, and Databases, accessible 24/7
Research and citation assistance with LibGuides
IM a librarian
Access FAQs
Take the information literacy tutorial ( TILT ) to improve your research skills

Find info: the LRC Catalog
Use the catalog to find books and other materials in our library, as well as ebooks that can be read on your computer
Search by title, author, subject, or keyword (e.g., “steroids”)

Can’t find a book in the LRC? Use PASCAL Delivers
Use PASCAL to order books from other libraries
This is a free service, and books usually arrive in our LRC within a week
After you do a search in the LRC catalog, click the PASCAL icon at the side of the screen
Search for your book
Click “Request item”
Select TCL as your school and put in your name and library ID
Note: Your library ID is the school code (00991000) and your 7-digit TCL ID #, separated by an underscore. If your ID# is only 6 digits, add a 0 after the underscore
Examples:
If your TCL ID is 2345678, your library ID is 00991000_2345678
If your TCL ID is 123456 , your library ID is 00991000_0123456
Click here if you do not have a TCL ID

Find Information: eBooks
Read electronic books on your computer
Click “eBook full text” to read
Use the tools menu to search within a book and retrieve citation information
Off-campus access : Username: TCL ID number located on your TCL ID card. (If you do not have a TCL ID, click here .) Password: first initial of your first name + last three digits of your SSN

Find Information: Databases
Databases let you search many different newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals at one time
Try using TCL’s databases instead of websites; the information you find through the databases will usually be more reliable
Select a database from the alphabetical list , or from the subject box
For English classes, try the “English and Writing” databases
Off-campus access : Username: TCL ID number located on your TCL ID card. (If you do not have a TCL ID, click here .) Password: first initial of your first name + last three digits of your SSN

Database: Gale Opposing Viewpoints in Context
Use Opposing Viewpoints to research controversial topics
A good resource for persuasive essays
Browse the list of controversial topics, or search by one of your keywords

Database: Academic Search Premier
Academic Search Premier covers many subject areas
Search by your keywords
Use the “Limit your results” option to narrow your results
Select “full text” to find only full text articles
Search Tip:
Select “Scholarly/Peer Reviewed Journals” to find information in the most reliable sources. A scholarly or peer-reviewed journal is one that has been reviewed by experts in the field prior to publication.

Search for Information Online
Pros
Search engines are user-friendly and usually return lots of results
Information comes from a wide range of cultures and perspectives
Some online info is very up-to-date
Cons
You often find inaccurate information
You often find irrelevant information
You often get too many search results

A WARNING about Online Info
Web sites can be created by ANYONE
Unlike books, web sites can be published very quickly, and are not always edited or checked for accuracy
Not all teachers allow online sources for every assignment; make sure you ask before using webpages as sources
Used under a CC license from http://www.flickr.com/photos/marcobellucci/3534516458/

Evaluating Information
All sources of information should be evaluated
When you find a source, ask yourself . . .
How reliable is this source? Who wrote it? Is he/she an expert?
Is the information given by this source accurate? Can key facts be checked in other reliable sources?
How old is this source? Is it current enough for my paper?
Does the source cover my topic?

Evaluating Websites
Evaluate websites carefully before using them as sources
Ask yourself . . .
Who created this website? Who published it? What are their credentials?
Is the information accurate? Can it be verified in other trustworthy sources?
When was the site updated? Is the information current enough for my assignment?
Does the site offer complete coverage of my topic?
For more tips on evaluating websites, check out our Evaluating Web Resources LibGuide

STEP 5: Now that you have your sources, you are ready to Write and Revise your paper
If you need writing practice, try the LearningExpress Library database
Visit the Tutoring Center website to schedule an appointment with a tutor
Try Smarthinking, the 24/7 online tutoring service. Click here for more information

STEP 6: Document Your Sources
Remember, information literacy means using information ETHICALLY and LEGALLY
Documenting your sources helps you avoid PLAGIARISM and COPYRIGHT LAW VIOLATION
Image: jscreationsz, freedigitalphotos.net

Plagiarism and Copyright Law
PLAGIARISM
Copying someone’s work and pretending it is your own
Using ideas, quotes, or facts that are not yours without showing where you found them
COPYRIGHT LAW
Ensures that authors are compensated for their work
Be careful when copying: making copies of your textbook for another person’s use is a violation of copyright law
Downloading copyrighted works without permission is a violation of U.S. law and TCL policy. Click here for more information

Document Your Sources
Use citations to show where you found all facts, quotes, and ideas
For this class, use current MLA style guidelines
If you paraphrase part of an author’s work, or put it into your own words, you must still credit the author by citing your source
When you have questions about plagiarism or copyright law, ask a teacher or librarian

Resources for MLA Documentation
Handbooks and manuals in the LRC
MLA Citation Guide ( http://libguides.tcl.edu/MLA )
View examples of Works Cited page entries for books, articles, websites, and more
NoodleTools (citation assistance)
Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab: MLA Style

NoodleTools for Documentation:
NoodleTools is an online citation manager. Use it to . . .
Create citations
Generate your Works Cited page
Format in-text citations
To get started
Visit NoodleTools (Off-campus, enter name and TCL ID number when prompted)
Create a free account
Check out our NoodleTools guide for more information

Information Literacy Review
Information literacy means . . .
Finding,
Evaluating, &
Using Information Legally and Ethically
It is important for school, work, and any activity or situation you encounter that requires good information

Research process review
Let these steps guide you through your assignments
Step 1 : IDENTIFY your information need
Step 2: USE BACKGROUND INFORMATION to learn about your subject and develop your topic
Step 3: DEVELOP a research strategy
Step 4: FIND and EVALUATE information
Step 5: WRITE and REVISE your paper
Step 6: DOCUMENT your sources

LRC Resources
The LRC has books, DVDs, videos, newspapers, magazines, and reference materials
Check out the TCL Information Literacy Tutorial (TILT) for more information on the research process and LRC resources
Can’t find information on a topic? Don’t despair! You can order books from other libraries , read eBooks , or find articles in the Databases

LRC Resources: Laptops
The LRC checks out laptops to TCL students for up to four weeks at a time
Click here to learn more about our laptop program

LRC Resources: Kindle eReaders
The LRC checks out Kindle e-Readers to TCL students, faculty, and staff for two weeks at a time. Click here to learn more about Kindles and to put one on hold.

LRC Resources: Ways to Get Help
For information on using our resources, see our LibGuides page
Visit our Frequently Asked Questions + Answers page
Text the library: 843-256-2247
Send us an instant message via the chat window on this page
For more help, contact the LRC

Library News
Want to find out what’s new in the library? Check out the Library Blog for news, book reviews, Kindle information, and more!

LRC Hours and Contact Information
Beaufort Campus (Building 12, above the Student Center)
Mon.-Thurs. 8am–8pm, Fri. 8am– 11:30am
Call or email: Sasha Bishop, 843-525-8236, [email_address]
New River Campus
LRC open for study/lab use Mon.-Fri. 8am – 10pm, Sat. 8am–5pm
Librarian hours: Mon. –Thurs. 8am-5:30pm, Fri. 8am-2pm
Call or email: Amy Grimm, 843-470-6003, [email_address]

Information Literacy Orientation (Fall, 2011)

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Information Literacy Orientation (Fall, 2011) Presentation Transcript