Well, your very own GCC librarians are here to help!   In cooperation with other district librarians, we have developed an evidence based checklist for evaluating research handouts.  This review tool is based on recent results published in the Project Information Literacy (PIL) report, “Assigning Inquiry:  How Handouts for Research Assignments Guide Today’s College Students.”

PIL is an ongoing national study of the research habits of college and university students.  The faculty and librarians working in collaboration on this study reported in “Lessons Learned: How College Student Seek Information in the Digital Age,” that 76% of students surveyed considered written guidelines about course-related assignments to be the most helpful materials an instructor can provide (29-30).  With this much attention paid by students to research handouts, use the Checklist to Evaluate Assignment Handouts, which aligns with the PIL report, as a guide as you gauge yours.

To save time, we recommend that you give the GCC Librarians an opportunity to provide assistance with the development and refinement of your research assignments as well as instruct your classes in project specific research methods.

To learn more about PIL and research handouts, and earn FPG credit while doing so, sign up for the MCLI learnshop, Research Assignment Handouts: Essential Elements to Promote Student Success (offered online via Canvas).

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Head, Alison J. and Michael B. Eisenberg.  “Assigning Inquiry: How Handouts for Research Assignments Guide Today’s College Students,” Project Information Literacy, University of Washington’s Information School, 13 July 2010. Web.  17 February 2014.

Head, Alison J. and Michael B. Eisenberg.  “Lessons Learned: How College Student Seek Information in the Digital Age,” Project Information Literacy, University of Washington’s Information School, 1 December 2009. Web. 17 February 2014.