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[hidetoc]Mission
The University Library's Instruction program aims to educate all members of the Stout Community in information literacy skills. These include the abilities to:
- ascertain information needs
- access and evaluate information
- organize, synthesize and apply the information.
Following the UW-Stout mission, the program combines theory, practice and experimentation to teach information seeking skills and concepts for immediate research needs, and to support lifelong learning.
The guiding framework for the program is based on
- Information Literacy Competencies and Criteria for Academic Libraries in Wisconsin
- Association of College and Research Libraries Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education.
These standards determine the design of instructional methods and materials.
Program Goals
- The Instruction Program seeks to serve all members of the Stout community: students, faculty, staff and administrators; and secondarily, reaches out to the wider public, as requested, to serve community or school groups with information literacy needs.
- Instruction librarians promote information literacy by teaching group sessions to classes and by designing web, print and media publications for individual learners, including distance education students.
- The Instruction Program attempts to address the diversity of learning styles, levels of current knowledge and specific needs of each group. Every attempt is made to provide hands-on learning opportunities.
- The Instruction program for classes promotes an increasing sophistication with information literacy as students progress through their years at Stout. Introductory courses in Stout's program areas and the academic skills classes receive the most basic level of instruction and orientation to the library's tools and services. Freshman English and Speech classes explore a wider variety of general research tools with added search strategies. Junior, senior and graduate level classes incorporate tools and strategies for advanced searching in specific disciplines, as well as preparation for lifelong professional research needs.
- Librarians collaborate and cooperate with other members of the campus community (teaching faculty/staff, computer staff and trainers) to promote the overall package of information literacy at the university level.
Last Updated: 05/07/2008 and Last Revised: 5/7/2008
Contact Denise Madland for more information or help on this topic.