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Library Instruction Learning Objectives

Contact Person
Sonya Gaither, Dean of Libraries 
Erin Nagel, Assessment & Marketing Librarian    

Program Mission Statement

Library instruction classes are designed to assist the faculty with developing the information-finding, research and critical thinking skills of Clayton State students.  

Learning Outcomes  

As a result of library instruction, the information literate student will be able to:  

  1. Select appropriate search methods for accessing the needed information.
    • Related ACRL Frame: Searching as Strategic Exploration
    • The student will learn to use GALILEO, identify the library's subject databases and use Boolean operators and keywords for searching.
  2. Identify a variety of types and formats of sources for information. 
    • Related ACRL Frame: Information Creation as a Process
    • The student will be able to differentiate between primary and secondary sources, books and journals, understanding that their use and importance vary with each discipline.
  3. Acknowledge their use of information sources through proper attribution. 
    • Related ACRL Frame: Information has Value; Scholarship as Conversation
    • The student will correctly use citations (in style, content and relevance) and demonstrate the ability to locate resources based on citation information.
  4. Retrieve information using a variety of methods. 
  5. Critically evaluate information resources according to applicable criteria.
    • Related ACRL Frame: Authority is Constructed and Contextual
    • The student will be able to distinguish between scholarly journals, trade publications, and popular magazines, and understand what peer-reviewed means.  

Information Literacy & Student Learning Outcomes Assessment 

  • Each semester the library faculty provides instruction classes introducing information seeking and research skills to Clayton State University students. After these classes are conducted, the librarians use the ACRL Project Outcome suite of surveys to measure the impact of instruction on students and “their intention to change behavior as a result.”
  • The survey questions are structured based on the Information Literacy Assessment & Advocacy Project (ILAAP) and have been mapped to the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.  
  • Using the data collected from the surveys, the library administration will annually evaluate the library instruction program to determine successes and areas for improvement to assist the librarians as they continue to provide instruction to the Clayton State University students.