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Some helpful and interesting literature on research assignments. We will continue to add to this as we discover more related research and professional think-pieces.
Bodi, S. (2002). How do we bridge the gap between what we teach and what they do? some thoughts on the place of questions in the process of research. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 28 (3), 109-114.
Abstract: Undergraduate students approach research with difficulty and are often overwhelmed by the process. Lacking experience to follow scholarly methods of research, students require a strategy appropriate to their level. This article addresses the research process of scholars and of undergraduates and suggests several guiding questions for students to ask.
Broussard, M. (2017). Reading, research, and writing: Teaching information literacy with process-based research assignments. Association of College and Research Libraries.
Abstract: Information literacy involves a combination of reading, writing, and critical thinking. Librarians in an academic library, while not directly responsible for teaching those skills, are involved in making such literacy part of the students' learning process. Broussard approaches the misconceptions about the relationship between libraries as a source of information literacy, and offers suggestions on providing students support when working on research papers.
Farkas, M. (2011). "I need three peer reviewed articles" or the Freshman research paper by Meredith Farkas.
"I understand perfectly that faculty want their first-year students to find quality resources and they want their students to have an understanding of scholarly communication. But is the best way to do that forcing them to find scholarly articles for a research paper?"
Fister, B. (2011). Sources of confusion. Library Babel Fish.
"Perhaps more troubling, but less frequently a source of mass anxiety than plagiarism, is the fact that students often don’t understand the sources they are citing. In many cases, it’s likely they haven’t even read them. They’ve simply found some money quotes they can use. This leads me to wonder (again) why we ask first year students to make their paper look sort of like a JSTOR article instead of sort of like a story in the New York Times Magazine..."
Holliday, W. and Rogers, J. (2013) Talking about information literacy: the mediating role of discourse in a college writing classroom. portal: Libraries & the Academy, 13 (3). 257-271.
Abstract: This paper reports on the findings of an observational study of information literacy instruction in a college writing course. Using a sociocultural approach, the study explores how classroom discourse can influence the ways in which students conceive of information literacy and the process of research and writing. We found that a discourse that emphasized "finding sources" more than "learning about" might limit students' engagement with information and the process of inquiry. This article concludes with recommendations for modifying discourse and instructional practices in order to help students engage more deeply in the research process.
Stewart-Mailhiot, A. E. (2014). Same Song, Different Verse: Developing Research Skills with Low Stakes Assignments. Communications in Information Literacy, 8 (1), 32-2.
Abstract: The research component of college writing and composition courses is often only practiced as part of high stakes assignments. This paper proposes a collaborative approach to helping students develop foundational research skills that builds on the success of the low stakes writing movement. Using Elbow's 1997 article "High Stakes and Low Stakes in Assigning and Responding to Writing" as a framework, the low stakes research model centers around providing students multiple opportunities to practice research skills in a manner that alleviates library research anxiety and increases research quality. Key to the success of this model is a collaborative relationship between the classroom faculty member and the librarian.
