Research as Inquiry

True or False: The Purpose of Research

The goal of this activity is to help students develop a broader understanding of the purpose of academic research assignments, by helping to identify some of the common misconceptions that they might have about research assignments. This could also be used as a low-stakes activity or assignment at the beginning of a research project to help clarify expectations.

Resource Type(s):

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

Discipline(s): 
Not Discipline Specific
License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial License CC-BY-NC

Defining Research as Inquiry

The goal of this activity is to help students start to develop an understanding of research as an ongoing process of inquiry, rather than a straightforward process of compiling information on a topic. Students develop initial definitions of “research as inquiry,” review and discuss resources related to the concept, revise their definitions, and reflect on how the concept relates to their research practices.  

Resource Type(s):

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

Discipline(s): 
Not Discipline Specific
License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial License CC-BY-NC

The 3 P's: Population, Place, Problem

This is a fun, hands-on activity that can help with brainstorming a topic and/or reserach question. Can also function as an ice-breaker! The results can be informative...and also sometimes entertaining!On the slip of paper (attachment), students write their name and a Population that they'd like to focus on. then they hand it off to another student, who fills in a Place. They then hand it off to a third student, who fills in a Problem. Finally, the slip is returned to its original owner who must formulate a research question based on those three pieces of information. 

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial License CC-BY-NC

Putting S.I.F.T. To Work

This Worksheet is based on Mike Caulfield’s S.I.F.T. Method. Students will first need to have a familiarity with that. I highly recommend the “S.I.F.T. For Teachers” video playlist on his YouTube channel and/or his website.This activity would probably take most of a class period. Could also be done online via a Discussion.

Resource Type(s):

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial License CC-BY-NC

Anti-Racist Teaching in Higher Education: Teaching Resources

Tabs: Books, Ebooks, Vidoes, Articles, Podcasts, Resources for Your Students

Resource Type(s):

Discipline(s): 
EducationEthnic Studies
License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial License CC-BY-NC

Researching Family History

This LibGuide is used when teaching a 30 minute workshop for Honors students who are required to research an immigration story from their own family tree.  They have to research their geneology to the point where they find an ancestor who immigrated to the United States. They will try to find why that immigrant came to America and whether they are part of a particular wave of migration, i.e. slavery, Irish potato famine, industrialization, etc...Since everyone's family story is unique, and some students know their history and others are still building their family tree, we start the workshop with a Choose-Your-Adventure type quiz. Students are encouraged to pick where they are in the research process and are ultimately led to 3-4 resource suggestions that are likely to work, whether searching for obituaries in local newspapers, searching Ellis Island records, or regional migration research from a variety of resources. 

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

Discipline(s): 
AnthropologyHistory

Type of Institution:

License Assigned: 
CC Attribution License CC-BY

Researching Family History

This LibGuide is used when teaching a 30 minute workshop for Honors students who are required to research an immigration story from their own family tree.  They have to research their geneology to the point where they find an ancestor who immigrated to the United States. They will try to find why that immigrant came to America and whether they are part of a particular wave of migration, i.e. slavery, Irish potato famine, industrialization, etc...Since everyone's family story is unique, and some students know their history and others are still building their family tree, we start the workshop with a Choose-Your-Adventure type quiz. Students are encouraged to pick where they are in the research process and are ultimately led to 3-4 resource suggestions that are likely to work, whether searching for obituaries in local newspapers, searching Ellis Island records, or regional migration research from a variety of resources. 

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

Discipline(s): 
AnthropologyHistory

Type of Institution:

License Assigned: 
CC Attribution License CC-BY

Critically Appraised Topics in Evidence-based Management: Classroom Activities 1 and 2

These materials accompany the book chapter “Using Critically Appraised Topics to Teach Evidence-based Management to Graduate Business Students” from Teaching Business Information Literacy published by ACRL Press.

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Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

Type of Institution:

License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-ShareAlike License CC-BY-SA

Brainstorm Station Rotation!

This is a brainstorming activity in which students work in groups that each spend time (approx. 2-3 min.) at 3 different stations. 

Resource Type(s):

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial License CC-BY-NC

Business Research Writing Handout

These materials accompany the book chapter “Let's Compare: Using a Recommendation Report to Teach Basic Business Research Skills” from Teaching Business Information Literacy published by ACRL Press.

Resource Type(s):

Information Literacy Frame(s) Addressed:

Discipline(s): 
Business
License Assigned: 
CC Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License CC-BY-NC-SA

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