Information Literacy Stipends 2014

Five Information Literacy Stipends were awarded for 2014. Project descriptions and final reports where available are found below:


John Ruddy, Accounting Faculty Specialist, submitted a proposal to integrate information literacy into the cross listed accounting course Financial Statement Analysis & Research and Financial Reporting and Research (ACC 463/527) offered during Intersession 2014. Students will be required to search Library databases to retrieve peer reviewed articles on a financial topic and apply the financial theories in those articles to the financial data retrieved for a specific company in order to analyze that company’s performance. Students will be required to keep a research log documenting the databases searched, key words used to locate relevant information, modifications to their searches, and a preliminary list of articles considered for review. 

Collaborating Librarian is Betsey Moylan, Associate Professor.
Read Prof. Ruddy’s final report.


William (Clark) Wolf, an adjunct faculty member in the Theology/Religious Studies Department, has invited Librarian Donna Witek to conduct an information literacy session for Introduction to the Bible (T/RS 121) to acquaint students about the questions they might encounter while reading the Bible and to introduce them to some secondary sources, which are designed to answer those questions.  Students will complete several assignments directed towards the comprehension of the secondary material available to them. Each of these papers will be evaluated using rubrics to identify their effective use of appropriate secondary material.

Collaborating Librarian is Donna Witek, Assistant Professor.
Read Prof. Wolf’s final report.


In conjunction with a revision of the general biology laboratory curriculum, Dr. Robert Waldeck is introducing information literacy into the General Biology Laboratory (BIOL 142L). In particular, he is going to collaborate with Librarian Betsey Moylan who will show students how to search for and retrieve a primary research article on a particular topic in a Library database and will discuss the importance of proper quoting, paraphrasing, and citation to academic integrity in the scientific community. At the beginning of the semester, short non-graded quizzes will be given to assess the level of knowledge of information literacy. Students’ progress will continue to be tracked throughout the course.

Collaborating Librarian is Betsey Moylan, Associate Professor.
Read Dr. Waldeck's final report.


Dr. Meghan Rich will revise her syllabus for Sociological Theory (SOC 218), a course that introduces Sociology majors to the idea that sociological theory is created through “conversations,” to include a final group project. This project will be a written literature review that includes at least three primary sources. During an information literacy session, Librarian Donna Witek will provide students with some techniques that will enable them to recognize the difference between primary and secondary sources. Specific criteria will be used to assess the project, including the quantity and quality of the sources used. Student learning will also be assessed through a pre/post-test.

Collaborating Librarian is Donna Witek, Assistant Professor.
Read Dr. Rich's final report.


During an information literacy session conducted by Librarian Bonnie Oldham, students in Introduction to Occupational Therapy (OT 140) will learn how to differentiate popular and scholarly journals and how to effectively search library databases to find peer-reviewed articles on a specialty field in OT. They will then evaluate the articles to determine whether or not there is evidence to support the practice being used. The goal of the proposal submitted by Prof. Christopher Dunbar, Occupational Therapy Faculty Specialist, is for the students to learn the importance of evidence based practice to guide therapeutic interventions in occupational therapy.

Collaborating Librarian is Bonnie Oldham, Associate Professor.
Read Prof. Dunbar's final report.


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