Library Instruction Enhances Student Learning

Students attend a library instruction session in the Dubin Classroom

Faculty, as you plan your spring semester courses, we invite you to contact a research librarian to discuss your needs. We can work with you to help scaffold learning in your course and foster student inquiry through library research instruction. Instruction sessions offer you the opportunity to see students working through their initial research challenges and to answer their questions. By involving a librarian, you can be sure that all students have the same information, understand their objectives, and know where to ask for help. We can:

  • Teach course-specific resources, including finding primary sources, data sets and statistics, non-English language material, and images/multimedia, as well as research strategies and citation management software (such as Zotero or RefWorks).
  • Work with students individually in research consultation appointments. Students get one-on-one assistance when they need it.
  • Collaborate with you to craft research assignments that develop student research skills, from beginner through advanced levels.
  • Create a specific course guide, be present in Canvas, and make tutorials geared to your course needs.

In addition, you may link to the Start Your Research guide, our Research & Course Guides, and Tutorials within Canvas or your course site.

Looking to include digital scholarship tools and topics such as digital mapping, podcasting, virtual reality and augmented reality, or data visualization to your course? The Library’s Digital Scholarship Services Unit can work with you to plan the assignment and teach students the technical skills they will need to complete it. Contact digitalscholarship@georgetown.edu to learn more.

If you’re interested in incorporating primary source material in your courses, the Booth Family Center for Special Collections has unique materials to support teaching and learning across all disciplines. With our emphasis on active learning and teaching research methods, students will engage in hands-on learning to build transferable skills that directly promote their academic growth and development. Please fill out our request form or email speccoll@georgetown.edu for more information.