This information has been provided for librarians, instructors, faculty and other educators interested in learning more about SBU Library Research Guide. If you have contributions or suggestions about using SBU Library Research Guide, please email us.
What Is SBU Library Research Guide?
SBU Library Research Guide is a resource for SBU students, a self-instructional tutorial to teach them basic library and research skills. It covers the research process from initial topic selection to citation styles and the issue of plagiarism. There is a link to SBU Library Research Guide on the Libraries' home page or it can be accessed directly from http://www.stonybrook.edu/library/tutorial.
Its content is organized into six modules:
| 1. Choosing a Topic | provides tips on broadening and narrowing a topic and discusses search concepts. |
| 2. Identifying Sources | is an overview that introduces students to various types of sources. |
| 3. Using STARS | has live practice searches in our online catalog. |
| 4. Finding Articles | provides practice searching in the Infotrac database. |
| 5. Using the Web | includes the comparative evaluation of Web sources. |
| 6. Citing Sources | includes the topics of citing, plagiarism, and copyright. |
Students can complete the tutorial on their own time outside of class. Each of its six sections takes about 15 minutes and students can complete one or more modules at a time. Each of the modules is followed by a short quiz (see details below).
Who Is It Designed For?
SBU Library Research Guide is designed for students in classes with a substantial writing component or introductory-level research, especially for WRT102. However, we hope instructors of other classes will find it useful and assign it to their students.
How Can Instructors Effectively Use SBU Library Research Guide with Their Courses?
Please have students complete SBU Library Research Guide before they begin their research or attend a library session. Students can complete SBU Library Research Guide on their own time and submit their quiz results to you.
Each module is followed by a short quiz and a results page, which provides an overall percentage score for that module, as well as a summary of questions answered right or wrong. Students can either print the six results pages with their name and submit the printouts to you as proof of completion or they can email their quiz results to you.
Many instructors have chosen to give extra credit points to students who complete SBU Library Research Guide. We strongly suggest that students be required to pass the quizzes with a score of at least 85% or better. Student may retake a quiz as many times as they want to improve their score.
Does SBU Library Research Guide Replace Library Instruction?
No! We continue to offer course-related library instruction and hope that you will incorporate a library session into your syllabus. Timing is important! Have your students complete SBU Library Research Guide, then schedule library instruction with us for a date after they've received an assignment. Then they will learn about searching databases when they need these skills to complete their research assignment. Research has shown that:
- Students learn best and retain most when they need the information.
- Library instruction is more effective when the course instructor is present.
- Library instruction is more effective when coordinated with a class assignment.
The Main Library has two electronic classrooms, which librarians use for computer demonstrations and hands-on training. These are heavily booked, so please schedule early to reserve the date and time you need — preferably call us at least 2 weeks ahead. Requests will be filled on a first-come basis.
To arrange a library instruction session contact:
Janet Clarke, phone: 631-632-1917, e-mail: janet.clarke@stonybrook.edu or your department's library liaison. See http://www.sunysb.edu/library/about/staff&dept/collection_dev.html to find the name of your liaison.
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