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Instruction Guidelines for Instructors

In a library instruction session, subject librarians collaborate with faculty to provide point-of-need instruction on disciplinary research skills and specific resources available through the library. To design an effective library instruction session, a librarian may request an initial consultation with you. During that consultation, we hope to discuss the following:

Student Learning Goals

Librarians specialize in teaching discipline-specific information literacy, data literacy, digital literacy, and academic integrity. We modify our approach to accommodate the student learning goals for your specific course. For more information about library learning goals, please review our NUL instruction rubric.

Syllabus/Assignment

Please provide us with the course syllabus or a research assignment description so we can best tailor the library instruction session to your course content, modality, and policies. We aim to teach students how to find and evaluate the most appropriate set of resources.

Timeline

Please plan to provide us with at least one week to prepare for a library instruction session, and if possible, multiple dates on which we could meet with your course.

Session Length

We need adequate in-class time to address your student learning goals for the instruction session. Faculty often provide at least 50 minutes for library instruction. Depending on your learning goals, the library instruction session length can vary. We can visit your class multiple times, or depending on the size of the course, meet individually with students outside of class time.

Instructor Presence/Participation

Students are more engaged if the instructor is present and engaged for the session.

Accessibility Needs or Accommodations

If students in your course have accessibility needs or require accommodations, please let us know.

Information Literacy Library Instruction Rubric

See rubric instead on Northwestern Sharepoint (requires login with NetID).

This table presents definitions and learning objectives for digital literacy, data literacy, information evaluation, information retrieval, and academic integrity, categorized by instruction level (beginning, intermediate, and advanced).
Definitions i With advanced instruction, students will be able to: With intermediate instruction, students will be able to: With beginning instruction, students will be able to:
Digital literacy: Digital literacy is the ability to work effectively and ethically in a networked digital environment.
  • Create, find, and/or use software and applications most appropriate for a given task.
  • Seek support from offices across campus or elsewhere based on needs.
  • Can use and evaluate training materials to independently complete work.
  • Evaluate available software and applications to choose the most appropriate for a given task.
  • Use self-service production tools available in the library and on campus.
  • Evaluate existing files.
  • Organize files and personal and academic data based on preference.
  • Select and use library accounts, applications, and university software as appropriate.
  • Print, save, send, and share files.
  • Seek help appropriately from the IT Helpdesk and/or the Libraries.
  • Understand basics of digital and data privacy and can explain how to keep personal information safe.
Data literacy: Data literacy is the ability to read, write, analyze, communicate, and reason with data. We encourage individuals and organizations to make data-driven decisions. ii
  • Create, find, and/or use new datasets.
  • Use quantitative or qualitative methods to analyze and visualize data gathered through research.
  • Understand basics of data management and ethical use of data.
  • Able to participate in the broader conversation about generative AI technology training, use, and access including legal, social, ethical and technological aspects.
  • Evaluate datasets for appropriateness for a given research question.
  • Can use integrated tools to do basic data analysis or visualization.
  • Evaluate and use generative AI models and tools effectively.
  • Interpret fully processed and analyzed datasets/summary statistics, existing data visualizations, consider whether data is appropriate for a given research question.
  • Can accurately interpret statistics and research methodology.
  • Understand the capabilities and limitations of generative tools.
Evaluating information:
All information is the result of ongoing exchange between authors and sources. We encourage students to understand and evaluate sources in systematic ways. iii
  • Create original criteria to evaluate sources, to choose those that are best for a given research question, relying on a range of primary, secondary, and reference sources.
  • Relying on a wide variety of sources, students can develop a research plan and can create and investigate original research questions.
  • Critically evaluate sources within a discipline to choose those that are most appropriate for a given research question, considering authorship, audience, and disciplinary perspectives.
  • Relying on primary, secondary, and reference sources, students can evaluate primary and scholarly sources to answer original or assigned research questions.
  • Evaluate sources using basic criteria to choose those appropriate for a given research question, including context and content.
  • Relying on secondary sources and reference sources, students can correctly interpret primary and scholarly sources to answer assigned research questions.
Finding information: Research is a process of inquiry that requires moving laterally across physical and digital platforms. We encourage students to be flexible, curious, and creative throughout the research process. iv
  • Create an original search strategy using keywords and controlled vocabularies in a variety of indexing and abstracting databases to find primary sources (including archives and special collections), available full-text, and unique sources only available through interlibrary loan or visiting other locations.
  • Use keywords and controlled vocabularies in disciplinary abstracting and indexing databases to find relevant sources of information.
  • Relying on metadata, citation tracking, and secondary and reference sources, students can find additional sources independently.
  • Understand how to access relevant sources of information using the library’s NUSearch tool and multidisciplinary full-text databases such as JSTOR, Academic Search Complete, and/or Project Muse.
  • Relying on library research guides or subject-specific databases, students can find secondary and reference sources that provide additional background information on a research topic.
Academic Integrity: All information is the work of authors. We encourage students to participate ethically in academic culture by correctly quoting and citing information. v
  • Demonstrates and practices a full understanding of the ethical and legal restrictions on the use of published, confidential, and/or proprietary information.
  • Understands contextual integrity, recognizing that authors may not have intended for information to be shared.
  • Can use multiple citation styles depending on discipline.
  • Identify and appropriately use paraphrasing, summary, or quoting of sources, and can distinguish between common knowledge and ideas requiring attribution.
  • Can one or more citation styles depending on discipline.
  • Explain why plagiarism, including copying and/or sharing text, files, or other works without attribution, is not appropriate in personal or academic contexts.
  • Can use citation tools and style guides to appropriately cite library and other sources.