We want you to be information literate!
"Information literacy is a set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information." (ACRL). Information literacy is an important skill to have for your academic studies and your life.
An information literate person will be able to:
- Determine the extent of information needed
- Access the needed information effectively and efficiently
- Evaluate information and its sources critically
- Incorporate selected information into one's knowledge base
- Use information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose
- Understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information, and access and use of information ethically and legally
American Library Association, Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, www.ala.org, 2016.
Becoming information literate
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Evaluating SourcesEvaluating your sources is a very important part of being information literate. The Evaluating Sources libguide will give you an in-depth look at how to evaluate different sources including books, journals and websites.
What is a peer reviewed article? Watch this video to find out...
Boolean searching uses operators "AND", "OR", and "NOT" to maximize the relevancy and effectiveness of the search. Click on the image below for a visual representation of results using, "AND", "OR", and "NOT".
Learn about the differences between scholarly journals and popular magazines.
| Scholarly Journals | Popular Magazines |
|---|---|
| Academic/scholarly in scope | News/general interest in scope |
| Written by faculty/scholars | Written by reporters/freelances/anonymous |
| Research articles | Public interest articles |
| References and bibliography | Few bibliographic references |
| Scholarly language | Conversational language |
| Written for researchers/students | Written for the general public |
| Articles are peer-reviewed* | Articles reviewed by editorial staff |
*Peer-reviewed articles are reviewed by other professionals in the author's field of study (peers), to determine journal acceptance.
How to use Wikipedia...
- Background research - key names, dates, issues, people to use in searching for journal articles
- References list - links to sources, some journals, books, websites
- External links - to other sources and websites that might be useful
When to NOT use Wikipedia...
- Never cite a Wikipedia entry in your paper - academic work never cites any encyclopedic work. Special encyclopedias are part of your own personal background research for overview and to help find other sources.
- When the article has a "bad" grade - below a "B", you shouldn't even look at it
If you need help, Ask A Librarian!