Creating Effective Research Assignments

Teaching Students How to Learn and Creating Life Long Learners

Why assign research? What is information competency? Suggestions for effective research assignments Alternatives to the term paper The role of the librarian
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Why assign research?

 In order to succeed in school and in our information economy, students need practice locating, evaluating, and using information.    Research indicates that many college students, though extremely confident in their ability to use the Internet, actually have limited information skills,¹ have difficulty discerning fact from misinformation,² and rarely attempt to verify the information they find.³  By assigning research, you help students to develop information competency. 

What is Information Competency?

Effective research assignments promote critical thinking and the exploration, evaluation, synthesis and application of information.  Students develop an awareness of the research process and learn to be life long learners. 

An information competent person⁴:

• understands their information needs,

• accesses information effectively and efficiently,

• evaluates information critically,

• uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose,

• understands the economic, legal and social issues surrounding information and uses it ethically and legally.  

The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges requires that general education provide students with information competency skills.  (Standard II A.3.b.)

Suggestions for Effective Research Assignments

• Try the assignment yourself before asking your students to do it.

• Give clear instructions in writing to reduce confusion.

• Use correct terminology - Students interpret assignments literally and are understandably reluctant to deviate from the instructions even at the suggestion of the librarian.  Be sure to clarify what you mean by "online sources" and be consistent with terms like "periodicals," "journals" and "magazines."  If you limit the use of web sources, make sure students know the difference between the web and the library's databases.

• Keep your assignment current - the library changes often.  Be sure to verify that things are still were they were last semester.  

• With difficult assignments, it is a good idea to give a copy of the assignment to the librarians at the reference desk so the librarians are prepared.   

• Appropriate time frame - give enough time to complete the assignment, especially if you expect them to use document delivery and interlibrary loan.

Common Pitfalls in Designing Library Assignments⁵

The best assignments teach lasting skills that can be applied in future assignments, future academic endeavors, and even well beyond school.  On the other hand, ill-designed assignments frustrate students and reinforce negative attitudes about research and the library.  

• Assuming students know the basics - many students have never set foot in a library and academic libraries tend to be even more intimidating.  Bring your students in for an orientation or suggest that they make a research appointment with a librarian.

• "Elusive Topic" - assuming students will be able to select a manageable topic without faculty guidance.  Often, picking a topic is the most frustrating part of writing a paper.  Example

• "Not All Libraries Are Created Equal" - be sure that the library has the resources for the assignment.  If the library does not have what you need, talk with your librarian; we'll see if we can't get what you need.  If you are expecting them to use resources outside of this library (CSUS, UCD, SPL) be sure to tell them.  Example

• "Shot in the Dark" -  specifying incorrect or incomplete citations in the assignment.  Librarians move things around, replace sources with better ones, and preside over a vast amount of material.  Verifying a citation will reduce frustration.  

• "The Mob Scene" - giving the entire class the exact same assignment.  Asking the whole class to use one particular source usually ends with that source missing and/or damaged.   Example

• "Scavenger Hunt" - sending the class to find obscure trivia.  These are believed by many librarians to be the most ineffective types of assignments.  Librarians end up doing the work, students learn nothing.  Example

• "Old Curiosity Shop" - assigning use of outdated sources.  Databases are now the dominant tools for accessing information.  Assignment should not require outdated sources unless there's a reason.

• "Lost in Space" - without direction, students will use the Internet for all their information needs.