Heidi Gauder

Engaging undergraduates in discipline‐based research

Purpose – This article aims to describe the standards‐based approach used to build the International Studies Research Methods (INS250) course, a discipline‐specific, credit‐based class taught by librarians. This writing‐intensive course emphasizes information literacy and critical thinking skills, which were developed using written assignments, class presentations, multiple assessment methods, and web‐based applications.Design/methodology/approach – This paper will review the literature about discipline‐specific, credit‐based information literacy (IL) courses and outcomes. It will also analyze the INS250 course structure and map ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education to learning outcomes for the course.Findings – The paper finds that, in the absence of discipline‐specific information literacy standards, the ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education can serve as a starting point for International Studies course outcomes and assessment. Other assessment...

Undergraduate Research Needs: Faculty-Librarian Collaboration to Improve Information Literacy in Policy Papers

Abstract To improve the quality of semester-long policy projects of upper-division political science students, a faculty member and research librarian collaborated to reframe the assignment in hopes of improving students’ research skills and information literacy, revising the traditional one-way model of faculty sending students to the library to get information. The outcomes over the course of two semesters have been promising. Citations in two sets of student papers showed a remarkable increase in the number and quality of sources used. This suggests that when faculty work with librarians throughout the semester, such collaboration can improve students’ information literacy and thus their coursework and overall learning.

The Hunt for Plagiarism: Using the Right Tools for the Right Job

ABSTRACT The Internet and other online resources make researching easier, but they also provide a more conducive means to plagiarism. Products like Turnitin and PlagiServe are beginning to harness the Internet for detecting plagiarism, in a similar fashion to what search engines such as Google and ProFusion have long been doing. It remains to be seen, however, if detection services perform better than the search engines. This paper examines the advantages and shortcomings of four online plagiarism detection measures, including detection services and search engines, as well as testing the products for their ability to accurately detect plagiarism.