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Faculty Guide to InfoLit at Azusa Pacific University

This guide helps you incorporate Information Literacy into your courses by using Credo InfoLit which provides high-quality, standards-aligned instructional materials on information literacy and critical thinking skills. They are ideal for supplementing an

What is Credo's InfoLit?

Credo InfoLit is a set of online videos, tutorials, and quizzes covering information literacy. Azusa Pacific University has subscribed to InfoLit and it is free for you and students to use, on-campus or off.

The resource aims to:

  • Help students learn how to find the relevant and reliable library and other research materials
  • Formulate appropriate, workable research questions
  • Synthesize what they learn into a final product such as a research paper, including citations that are apt for their field

Wondering how InfoLit works in real-life classrooms? This brief case study illustrates how Teri Catanio, an instructor and Director of the Career Center at Cairn University (PA) used InfoLit to increase her students' research and writing abilities--the gains were immediate and persisted long-term, making the professors work easier and the students more successful.

With videos, tutorials, and quizzes, InfoLit modules are ideal for supplementing existing lessons, for “one-shot” library instructional sessions, and for addressing gaps in the classroom or online teaching. Developed by educators, instructional designers, critical thinking subject matter experts, and librarians, InfoLit delivers a library of e-learning content with assessment tools to measure and report on student learning outcomes. InfoLit learning outcomes address the ACRL Information Literacy framework that academic institutions need to follow and are part of APU's accreditation requirements.

3 ways to use InfoLit in your class

InfoLit gives you a “low lift” option to start incorporating information literacy instruction in your class and assignments. If your class already focuses on information literacy already, InfoLit can complement what you’re doing through 60+ videos, tutorials, and assessments. You can increase instructional time for information literacy by shifting lecture-based instruction to homework (flipped classroom), allowing for hands-on, high impact learning when students come to class. See the Beyond Google: Foundations of Information Literacy & Research tutorial if you want students to become information literate without doing any of the work. Your students will earn badges that they can turn in to you so that you know they have completed it. 

Here are 3 ways you can utilize InfoLit in your course: 

1. Before Library instruction
Do your librarians have limited time with students to teach them research and information literacy skills?

  • It can be hard to balance teaching students the conceptual knowledge they need and the basic mechanics of research for their assignments in one sitting. Use multimedia to flip your library instruction. Students can go through multimedia on their own time (before or after class) to get basic concepts of information literacy.
  • Benefit: Librarians can focus their in-person time with students on hands-on searching and practice for their assignment, and reinforcing information literacy concepts.

2. Scaffold throughout your Course
Are you concerned about having enough time to cover your course’s content and incorporate research instruction into your syllabus?

  • Use multimedia to flip information literacy instruction throughout several weeks of your course. Students can go through multimedia on their own time to learn basic concepts and practice research skills. Reinforce IL concepts through the research assignments you planned to give as part of your syllabus - like annotated bibliographies, research papers, etc. Relevant multimedia can be shared with students at each step of a major research project.
  • Benefit: Students can benefit from information literacy instruction without a significant impact on your syllabus.

3. As a Remedial Tool
Do some of your students need a refresher or additional help with how to do research (transfer students, non-traditional students, at-risk students)?

  • Use multimedia as a remedial tool for students who need to review basic information literacy skills. By making materials available online, students can get the help they need without significantly impacting your course syllabus.
  • Benefit: Students who need additional help can benefit from information literacy instruction without a significant impact on your syllabus.

For more ideas on how to implement these suggestions, please visit our Help Site for Instructional Aids.