Robert S. Swanson Library and Learning Center
Textbooks Archives
Welcome to Library Instruction, your home for teaching support, instruction tools, and more!
Whatever your library support need, University Librarians are available to provide research instruction to your classes. Librarians are information experts who are uniquely qualified to teach information literacy to UW-Stout students, faculty, and staff using the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education developed by the Association of College & Research Libraries.
Why is Information Literacy important?
In this world of endless amounts of information, how do you sift through resources? Whether it's finding articles for a research paper, buying a house, or sorting through work papers for your job, you need critical thinking skills. Those skills are developed through information literacy.
The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) defines "information literacy" as follows.
"Information literacy is the set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued, and the use of information in creating new knowledge and participating ethically in communities of learning."
A library instruction session will depend on your course needs. Academic librarians and archivists offer several types of classroom instruction and service through the Instruction Leadership Group (ILG):
These sessions typically focus on the following:
Theses sessions allow for some customization to better coordinate with your assignments, provided assignment information is received within the time allotted in the Library Instruction Scheduling Policy.
University Library Instruction Leadership Group (ILG) developed learning outcomes for these sessions that coordinate with the Association of College and Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Library Instruction sessions deliver the following outcomes:
Searching as Strategic Exploration
Learning Outcome: Employ different types of searching language and relevant keywords appropriately.
Scholarship as Conversation
Learning Outcome: Explain elements of resource evaluation and how to apply them.
Research as Inquiry
Learning Outcome: Navigate library databases in order to locate articles and journals their subject area.
Searching as Strategic Exploration
Learning Outcome: Design and refine needs and search strategies as necessary, based on search results.
These sessions allow for some customization to better coordinate with your assignments, provided assignment information is received within the time allotted in the Library Instruction Scheduling Policy.
All Library Instruction requests must be emailed to reference@uwstout.edu at least two weeks in advance. Please include the following information in your request:
● The course number
● Let us know about the type of Library Instruction you need (Undergraduate, Graduate, Archives, EMC, Embedded) and if there is any content you would like covered.
If you are requesting a library instruction presentation, please let us know:
● What are preferred dates and times for your library instruction?
● How much time will you set aside for the library presentation?
● Will the class take place in-person or virtually?
● If it’s in-person, provide an estimated class size to allow scheduling of a classroom
Once we receive this information, a librarian will contact you as soon as possible to confirm the date and time, location, and content of your library instruction. If the library instruction is scheduled to help students with a research assignment, please send the assignment to the assigned librarian instructor at least one week in advance. Please plan to attend the session. Experience consistently shows more engaged students when the instructor participates in the session.
We look forward to working with you and your students!
Our Embedded Librarian service is available for all UW-Stout online courses. With this service, a librarian is on hand for two weeks in your Canvas course to present five research modules on:
In addition to teaching research skills, the modules have 3 library discussions attached where a librarian interacts with the students. The discussion revolves around their research topics, how they're searching for information, and advice about the keywords and databases they're using when doing their research.
These modules can be optional for students or for credit, but we have found that they have a higher level of involvement and impact if they're offered for a minimal amount of credit. If you would like to learn more about this service, or preview the Canvas research modules, contact reference@uwstout.edu.
If an instruction session is not right for you, we provide additional instruction resources, including:
| EMC Instruction | Graduate and Distance Education Instruction | Student Success Librarian |
|---|---|---|
|
Contact Tanya Gunkel |
Contact Laura Tomcik |
Contact Cory Whipkey |
