LIB120 Introduction to Information Literacy Fall 2010

Jim Kinnie | jkinnie@uri.edu | 401 874-9240

Office Hours Mondays 1-2pm  | Carothers Library room 124

Why Information Literacy?

During your time in college you will be required to navigate a vast sea of information again and again — in order to research course-related topics, prepare for speeches and debates, and support your written opinions. Most likely, you will also need to be able to track down information for more personal pursuits, such as buying a car or a computer, planning a vacation, or looking for a job.

Many of us find the information gathering process to be very stressful. Part of the stress we feel is no doubt a result of the sheer amount of information available — different kinds of information, in different formats, in different places. Where do we start to look? How do we know if we're missing something? How can we tell if the information we have found is any good? Sometimes we might even think to ourselves things like, “Do I really need to know that?” or “I don’t even want to know!” Other times we have the feeling that all the information we’re confronted with is just “too much.”

What can we do about it?

We can become information literate. Introduction to Information literacy is an invitation to study the world of information, to gain an understanding of how information is organized, to know how to gather information, to analyze and evaluate its worth and to use it effectively in your research.

Students will learn to use effective methods and techniques of information gathering, evaluation and presentation. The knowledge gained in this course will prepare you to conduct university-level research, and beyond that, to develop skills necessary for life-long learning.

Student Objectives:

• Understand the organization of information systems
• Recognize and articulate a research problem.
• Develop appropriate and effective search strategies
• Select and use information retrieval tools
• Locate and retrieve information sources
• Analyze and critically evaluate information
• Organize and synthesize information
• Use and apply information.

Requirements:

• URI student ID (This is your library card)
• An active e-mail account - You must use your official URI email account (the one listed in e-campus) or forward mail from that account to one that you use every day
• There is no required textbook for this course

A basic knowledge of using computers and the Internet is expected. In general a typical week will consist of readings (lecture notes and postings on the Discussion Board), an Exercise, and a Homework Assignment. The readings and exercises will help in doing the homework and most of the homework assignments directly contribute to the semester project, the Paper Trail. In addition, there will be two quizzes and at least two presentations.

Grading
Grades for the course will be A-F. Grades should be considered as a way for an instructor to communicate how well students have learned what the course is designed to teach. I will grade Homework and Class Exercises on a check / check plus / check minus basis. This translates into 1, 2, 3, 4, or 0 points for each assignment. (1=not great,, 2=good, 3 or 4 =excellent, 0 = not done at all. Quizzes and projects will be graded traditionally as a percentage of 100 points.

The goal of the homework and exercises is to facilitate your learning through engaging with the material and to provide an opportunity to learn and practice the skills we are covering in class. Homework assignments are expected to be submitted on the date due. It is very important that you submit the assignments on time so that you will not fall behind in the class. Turning assignments in late is highly discouraged.

Grades will be based on the following criteria:

• Class Participation and class exercises - 10%
• Attendance - 10%
• Weekly homework assignments  -  25%
• Presentations -  20%
• Quizzes  -  10%
• Semester Project   25%

The following number of points out of a total of 100 will determine the corresponding letter grade:

A = 93-100	C = 73-76
A- = 90-92	C- = 70-72
B+ = 87-89	D+ = 67-69
B = 83-86	D = 60-66
B- = 80-82	F = Below 60
C+ = 77-79

Class Participation and Exercises

Minute writing exercises are short. I will pose questions on the Discussion Board, review course material, or link to news articles to encourage consideration of information issues. These exercises are designed to help students review and retain course material, to provide practice in applying ideas, to promote understanding of concepts, and to encourage active reading of assigned texts.

Reading responses - Students will submit reading responses for selected readings posted on the discussion board in Sakai. Your written responses will be composed of thoughts and evaluations of the readings based on class discussions and experiences with the assignments, exercises and readings for the course.

Exercises
Exercises allow practice with tools and resources that will be used to complete homework assignments and the semester project. They are generally formatted as worksheets to be completed in class or assigned for completion outside of class.

I will refer those who need help in composition to the URI Writing Center, 874-4690 or http://www.uri.edu/artsci/writing/center/index.shtml

 Attendance
You will probably not do well in this course unless you are in class to share and actively contribute to the learning. As much as I am the facilitator of your learning in this course, it is your responsibility to learn the materials and share your learning with your classmates. In-class exercises cannot be made up. If you must miss a class due to illness or emergency you should contact me immediately. Although I do not set a minimum number of missed classes, I have found that this simple equation works: Missed classes = lower grade.

Homework Assignments
The goal of the homework and exercises is to facilitate your learning through engaging with the material and to provide an opportunity to learn and practice the skills we are covering in class. Most of the homework assignments will be considered first drafts of the elements that make up the semester project, the Paper Trial. There will be opportunities to revise the drafts. Assignments and exercises are expected on the date due. Turning homework assignments in more than a week late will not be graded. It is very important that you submit the assignments on time so that you will not fall behind in the class.

Presentations
There will be at least two group presentations. Teams of 2 to 3 students will explore 1) subject databases and 2) issues of the information age, and report back to the class. Some class time will be available for preparation and summaries will be posted in Sakai

Quizzes
The two quizzes are listed under Tests & Quizzes and in the weekly schedules. They will cover anything covered in the course up to the date of the quiz including the readings, class discussions, lecture notes, presentations and Web sites used in class.

The Paper Trail - Semester  Project
The Paper Trail is due on the last day of class. You will be working on it for most of the semester. It is worth 25% of your grade, so be sure to stay on top of this project. Essentially the Paper Trail is an annotated portfolio or a map of the research process used for a research paper or project. Your Paper Trail project should allow me to follow your research path for a research question that you have developed. It is a map to trace all of your research - the processes that worked and those that didn't work. Homework assignments throughout the semester will directly apply to the Paper Trail project and a personal journal describing your research  experiences will also be included. Journal entries and homework will be evaluated and returned for revision as the semester progresses. If possible, you can use a topic from another course you are currently taking.  The topic idea must be submitted to me for approval before you can begin the project.

There will be no final exam for this course.

Any student needing special accommodations should contact the URI Office of Student Life, Disability Services at (401) 874-2098, TTD (via RI Relay) 1-800-745-5555, or on the Web at http://www.uri.edu/disability_services/

Please read the University Manual sections on Plagiarism and Cheating,  8.27.10+
http://www.uri.edu/facsen/8.20-8.27.html

This course was developed by Joanna Burkhardt, Mary MacDonald and Andree Rathemacher and was adapted forby Jim Kinnie as part of the URI Libraries Plan for Information Literacy - http://www.uri.edu/library/instruction_services/infolitplan.html
 

Detailed Readings and Assignments are included in the weekly files listed on the Sakai tools list.