Library Instruction

The Salmon Library at UAH is committed to its information literacy instructional efforts and goals. Information literacy is a key concept which focuses on understanding information and how this can benefit the students’ academic and lifelong pursuits.  Information literacy through library instruction is a key component to academic success and Salmon library takes a holistic and embedded approach to this crucial educational element.  For students to learn information literacy it must be deeply embedded in their subject of interest and need. Our informed learning viewpoint and stance is the pedagogically sound method of imparting this important concept onto the students.

For students to learn information literacy it must be embedded. This means every class, instructional session, and work shop synchronous or asynchronous will be designed around the subject at hand and built specifically for the information needs of the particular class and student. Our philosophy does not mean stand-alone workshops and presentations are not helpful and of use, but means that they are the starting point of information literacy and not the end.

With this in mind Salmon Library focuses on student centered learning and sticking to complete instructional design methods and active, collaborative learning theories. Students will have active hands on assignments as well as collaborative practice, in addition to theory to help ground the information literacy practices in intellectual pursuits as well as practical knowledge. Every class and session will be built around learning outcomes that are aligned with the students, teachers, and information literacy goals. The UAH Salmon Libraries philosophy will succeed in supporting our mission of reinforcing the goals of the great UAH academic purview, as well as integrating lifelong learning into the curriculum. The information literacy is more than just a lecture of pointing out different resources. Each session the students will leave with something substantial. And that includes a solid start on their research project and an understanding of how to find information, analysis information and synthesize this for their research needs.

Active, informed learning of information literacy produces many positive outcomes for students and faculty. Successful integration of information literacy leads to benefits such as better-developed research assignments, use of library’s collection, understanding of access and evaluation of information, and most importantly lifelong learning.

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) established this set of core tenets to inform information literacy pedagogy for 21st century learners. The focus is on six tenets of information literacy, mastery of threshold concepts to demonstrate fluency with those tenets, and establishing outcomes to place learners in the proper disposition for said tenet.