The standards and supporting student learning outcomes that are presented here are drawn from the Research Competency Guidelines for Literatures in English. They can be adopted in whole or easily adapted for other disciplines in the Humanities.
1: Understand the structure of information within the field of literary research.
- Differentiate between primary and secondary sources
- Differentiate between reviews of literary works and literary criticism
- (e.g., This specific example is discussed in library instruction sessions for English 204.)
2: Identify and use key literary research tools to locate relevant information.
- Effectively use library catalogs to identify relevant holdings at Chapman University and WorldCat to identify holdings at other libraries
- Use subjective and objective sources such as book reviews, citation metrics, and surveys of research to determine the relative importance of an author and/or the relevance of the specific knowledge work
- (e.g., library instruction sessions can discuss the use of Google Scholar to track bibliographic citations.)
3: Plan effective search strategies and modify search strategies as needed.
- Identify the best databases and online resources
- Identify and use subject terms from the MLA International Bibliography and other specialized indexes and bibliographies
4: Recognize and make appropriate use of library services in the research process.
- Identify and use librarians and reference services in the research process
- Use interlibrary loan to acquire materials not available at the Leatherby Libraries
- (e.g., ask a student who has used ILL to describe the process for the other students.)
5: Understand that some information sources are more authoritative than others and demonstrate critical thinking in the research process.
- Know about Internet resources (e.g., blogs, social media, etc.) and how to evaluate them for relevancy and credibility
- Differentiate between Open Access resources and subscription electronic resources
6: Understand the technical and ethical issues involved in writing research essays.
- Document sources ethically
- Understand the relationship between received (fact-based, objective) knowledge and the production of new knowledge in the discipline of literary studies
7: Locate information about the literary profession itself.
- Access information about graduate programs and specialized programs in film study, creative writing, and other related fields, and about workshops and summer study opportunities
- Access information about financial assistance and scholarships available for literary study and related fields
