Library Instruction

Instructional librarians use learning spaces at the library, visit campus classrooms, and participate in hybrid and online learning to teach research skills at all levels. We provide basic orientations, subject specific lessons, and graduate-level research skills.

• Schedule a session tied to an assignment or provide a hands-on task for them to do as part of the instruction time. Sharing this with us beforehand is important. We can also help craft activities and offer input on research assignments.
• Be with the class. Questions always arise about the assignment.
• Resources/interfaces are always changing, and sessions are highly customized. Students benefit from library sessions throughout their college careers.
• Consider scheduling more than one session in a semester to allow information to be presented in smaller segments and provide students extended work time in the library.

Subject librarians create self-service research assistance by organizing resources specific to a discipline. Best bets offer starting places in a discipline, advice to locate subject specific library books and ebooks, and contact information to the subject librarian.

Additionally, research guides can offer broad advice on citation managers or specific types of material such as dissertations and theses, DVDs, or data sets/statistics. There are also course guides that are made to directly support student success for specific assignments, such as MGMT 408: Human Resource Management Issues. Contact us if you would like to locate a helpful research guide, offer feedback on an existing one, or collaborate to make a new one.

We use hands-on tutorials and videos to create helpful how-to learning modules from basic to advanced level research tasks. These learning supports can be linked in Blackboard courses, used as assignments both in and outside of class time, and can be assigned points. Quizzes and certificates of completion can be embedded into the learning objects, such as we've done with our Introduction to Scholarly Articles tutorial. Contact us if you would like to locate a helpful tutorial, offer feedback on an existing one, or collaborate to make a new one.

Encourage your students to take our basic tutorial linked in the Student Resource Course. Additionally, all course shells have a link to the library and we encourage faculty to include it, but that's just a start. Consider linking to specific subject research guides; specialized, interactive, online tutorials; and direct contact information for your subject librarian. Additionally, librarians can have a presence in courses which could be helpful for extended project assistance or graded library assignments/activities.

In addition to reaching specific courses, we collaborate across campus to offer general workshops for topics such as organizing and managing research, in-depth searching for a literature review, publishing strategies, data management, and open educational resources. Contact us if you would like to collaborate on current or other workshops. Additionally, we sometimes sponsor visits and hands-on trainings from database vendors.

Faculty’s efforts to connect students to us and to develop research skills have value when assignments and activities are graded. Collaboration on developing these is beneficial, and at the least, sharing these activities beforehand support students’ success in accomplishing them. We can prepare for scavenger hunt activities and other low-stakes library interactions. However, the learning benefits will increase if we are able to provide input into these activities.

Learning Space 301

Provides a room to facilitate group learning with wireless internet access for 30 students. There are five tables with attached dual monitors and plug-ins for power; whiteboards are mounted on walls near each table. An instructor station/podium transmits the instructor’s computer screen to each display monitor and students have the ability to plug into the display system.  An instructor wireless mic will capture voice recording for hybrid teaching as well as transmit to room speakers. Students need to bring their own devices or check one out from the UIT help desk on the library first floor.  

Learning Space 108

Provides a room to facilitate group learning with wireless internet access for 28 students. There are a variety of standing and seated height tables with plug-ins for power. Whiteboards are mounted on the walls. A laptop cart can be wheeled in for an instructor station; currently there is no projection setup. Students need to bring their own devices or check one out from the UIT help desk on the library first floor. 

Please visit the Room Policies page for more details.