Information is inherently valuable. Access to it, or lack of access, has the potential to affect the quality of one’s life. In this lesson, students will learn how access to information shapes people’s lives and how they can make informed decisions related to access to information in their lives and in their communities.

When looking for information, one of the first steps is to develop a research question to figure out the scope of what exactly is needed. In this lesson, students will explore what it takes to narrow a search in order to find the best information.

Information can be packaged in a variety of digital formats that have their own properties and can lead down certain information paths. In this lesson, students will explore properties of digital formats in order to identify the best format to meet their information needs.

The Citations lesson is mapped to Information has Value and Scholarship as Conversation Frames. It discusses why citations are a foundation of scholarly communication and the basic components of a citation. Through infographics and videos, students will learn the differences between paraphrasing, summarizing and quoting.

The Evidence-Based Practice lesson is mapped to the Research as Inquiry Frame and addresses how to match a clinical question to types of research evidence.

Google Scholar can be a valuable complement to your institution’s subscription databases when researching a topic. In this lesson, you will learn how Google Scholar works, and how to use it to complement your use of discipline-specific subscription databases.

The Question Authority lesson is mapped to the Authority is Constructed and Contextual Frame. The lesson introduces the concept of authority in the research process, that it is constructed and contextual, and that the authority sought changes based on the research question. Criteria for evaluating authority are discussed, as is the idea that not all voices are represented in authoritative conversations.

Academic research articles have a structure and language that is different from our other reading materials such as textbooks. This lesson can help students new to academic research understand these differences and learn strategies for finding information in such articles.

Jumping into research on a specific subject may feel overwhelming when faced with the vast amount of information that has been published on the subject. In this lesson, students will discover how research is like a conversation that takes place between scholars in a field and will investigate ways they can become part of the conversation over time.

The Search Strategies lesson is mapped to the Searching as Strategic Exploration Frame and introduces the concept of strategic searching in order to use search tools more effectively. By understanding strategic searching techniques, students will be able to not only compose an initial search query, but will be able to refine and revise their search in order to locate relevant sources. In this lesson students will learn how to:

Identify keywords and search terms
Strategically combine search terms using Boolean operators and punctuation
Evaluate search results to apply useful search refinements

The Types of Information lesson is mapped to the Information Creation as a Process Frame and introduces various types of information in relation to typical research questions. Characteristics of information are discussed including what criteria can be used to identify popular, professional, and scholarly materials.

With the vast amount of information that can be found as quickly as a mouse click, it is easy to think that all information is free. However, information and access to it is paid for by someone and is not all created equally. In this lesson, students will explore the value and cost of information and learn how to make wise information decisions.