I.L. Class Catalog: General Classes

Assignment-Specific
Contact a librarian to adapt any of our general classes to a specific assignment.  Also consider the following class enhancements:
-Diversity/Multicultural: (Resources providing different perspectives and biases; Databases: Ethnic Newswatch, Informe, Directory of Open Access Journals; Search strategies and terms)
-Interactive Displays: Customize an interactive display for a class or unit: e.g. Civil War, poetry, etc.
-PBS Videos: Consider using our PBS video screenings and discussions to enhance your class, unit, or project

Stages of Research
Discuss the following research steps and the resources available to assist you in the process of research:
-Define the need for information
-Initiate the search strategy
-Select appropriate resources for information
-Locate the information
-Assess and comprehend the information
-Evaluate and interpret the information
-Organize the information
-Synthesize and document the information
-Consider various search process models and tutorials

CLICnet
Explore features of CLICnet's (Cooperating Libraries in Consortium's online catalog) interface:
-Create personalized bibliographies and accounts
-Find books, journals, electronic books, and non-print resources
-Request books
-Learn general search strategies
-Use keywords, subject headings, Boolean terminology, and call numbers
-Limit search results

NetLibrary
Maximize the results of this electronic book resource (especially beneficial for education, religion, popular culture, and business studies) by utilizing its special features:
-Create an account
-Designate favorites
-Add notes and bookmarks
-Use the dictionary
-Access high-interest and current topics

Curriculum/Children's Collection
An introduction addressing the following topics:
-subject areas included
-call number interpretation
-types of materials available

The Reference Collection: Print and Electronic
Discover the reference resources available throughout the library. Examples include subject encyclopedias, bibliographies, and directories; employment resources; Bible commentaries; annual reports; almanacs; and Concordia's Electronic Reference Shelf.
-Understand the organization of library resources
-Dewey Decimal and Library of Congress classification systems
-The differences between circulating and reference books--locations and policies
-Utilizing specialized reference collections within the CLIC system
-Discern the purpose of the reference collection

eReserves/Reserve
For Faculty:
-How to place materials on electronic reserve and shelf reserve according to the Concordia library policy
For Students:
-How to locate and use electronic and shelf reserves

Non-Print Resources
-Accessing non-print resources: location and usage policy and types available (videos, DVDs, sound recordings, Special Collection artifacts)
-Using the PBS database: resources available (videos, lesson plans, sound clips, and images, primary and secondary resources)

Finding Journal Articles
A. Databases:
Features: choosing a database, exploring a record, reviewing the characteristics of a database
Searching Methods: natural language (keywords) and controlled vocabulary (subject headings), scholarly and popular, precision vs. recall, Boolean operators, truncation, false drops
B. Finding Full-Text Articles:
Learn how to use Journal Finder with Article Linker (Serial Solutions), CLICnet, and interlibrary loan to find full-text articles with only the citation or abstract

Getting the Most Out of Search Engines
-Compare and contrast search engines, metasearch engines, web directories, the deep web, and Internet II

Evaluating Web Resources
-Determine the reliability of a web resource
-Evaluate a resource using five criteria: Accuracy, Authority, Objectivity, Currency, and Coverage
-Explore the supplementary websites available via the Concordia Virtual Library
-Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using web resources for research

Evaluating Print Resources
-Review the type, use, location, and suitability of print resources
-Address scholarly versus non-scholarly resources
-Evaluate a resource in terms of bias, scope, audience, currency, authority, and purpose
-Discuss the suitability of various print resources for different types of information gathering

Intellectual Integrity
-Address the need for citing resources: plagiarism, copyright, citation methods, research strategies

Listservs, Blogs, eFolios
-Define listservs, blogs, and eFolios
-Discuss their educational and professional value/usefulness

Library Webpage Basics
-Tour the major sections of Concordia's Library website