Skill: Research Guide Development & Information Literacy Curriculum Design
Design research guides and information literacy curricula
What You Can Do
You can develop comprehensive research guides tailored to specific subjects or disciplines, and design complete information literacy curricula that teach students critical evaluation and research skills. The skill generates learning objectives, assessment strategies, activity ideas, and frameworks aligned with established information literacy standards. It helps academic librarians, educators, and curriculum designers create structured programs that measurably improve student research competency.
Features
Generate structured research guides for any subject, including topic overview, search strategies, source evaluation criteria, and citation guidance tailored to discipline-specific conventions.
Build multi-week or semester-long information literacy programs with modular units, learning outcomes, and alignment to academic standards like ACRL IL Competency Standards.
Create measurable learning objectives and outcomes at multiple cognitive levels (Bloom's taxonomy), ensuring students understand what they'll achieve at each stage.
Design formative and summative assessments—rubrics, quizzes, research papers, and performance tasks—that accurately measure information literacy skills.
Generate interactive activities, case studies, real-world scenarios, and hands-on exercises that make information literacy relevant and engaging for diverse learners.
Align your curriculum with disciplinary research standards (ACRL, discipline-specific guidelines) and map standards to specific units and learning outcomes.
Develop recommendations for subject-specific databases, journals, archives, open-access resources, and evaluation criteria students should use.
Create scaffolded pathways for learners at different starting levels and accommodate diverse accessibility needs (visual, auditory, cognitive, physical).
Example Output
Example 1: Research Guide for Biology
## Biology Research Guide
### Your Research Question
Narrow your topic using the PICO framework:
- Population: your subject
- Intervention: treatment/comparison
- Outcome: measurable result
### Search Strategy
- PubMed (biomedical), Google Scholar (multidisciplinary)
- Keywords: [topic] AND [condition] NOT [exclusion]
- Try these databases: BIOSIS, Web of Science
### Source Evaluation
Use the CRAAP test:
- Currency: Publication date recent?
- Relevance: Addresses your question?
- Authority: Credible author/publisher?
- Accuracy: Evidence-based and cited?
- Purpose: Objective research or marketing?
Example 2: 5-Week Information Literacy Curriculum Outline
Week 1: Research Foundations
- Learning Objective: Define information needs and research process
- Activity: Debate—What counts as reliable information?
- Assessment: Reflection essay
Week 2-3: Source Evaluation & Database Navigation
- Learning Objective: Critically evaluate sources across formats
- Activity: Source detective scavenger hunt
- Assessment: Annotation task—Evaluate 5 sources using CRAAP
Week 4: Citation & Academic Integrity
- Learning Objective: Properly cite sources and understand plagiarism
- Activity: Citation practice with real papers
- Assessment: Quiz + sample paper citation audit
Week 5: Capstone Research Project
- Learning Objective: Synthesize and present research findings
- Activity: Mini research poster presentation
- Assessment: Research guide + annotated bibliography
What's Included
- Research Guide Template Library: Pre-built frameworks for 15+ disciplines (STEM, humanities, social sciences, business) that you can customize for your specific institution and subject area.
- Curriculum Planning Workbook: Step-by-step guidance for designing a semester- or year-long information literacy program, including pacing, unit breakdown, and integration points with disciplinary courses.
- Learning Objectives & Outcomes Builder: Tool to generate SMART objectives aligned with Bloom's taxonomy and ACRL standards, with verifiable assessment criteria.
- Assessment & Rubric Generator: Rubrics and assessment tools (quizzes, performance tasks, portfolios) to measure student progress on research and information literacy competencies.
- Lesson Plans & Activity Bank: 50+ ready-to-adapt lesson plans, icebreakers, active learning activities, case studies, and discussion prompts for engagement and retention.
- Standards Mapping Guide: Pre-mapped alignment of ACRL IL Standards, LOEX competencies, and discipline-specific research standards to help ensure comprehensive coverage.
Who It's For
- Academic Librarians & Information Literacy Coordinators
- Faculty Teaching Information Literacy or First-Year Seminars
- Curriculum Designers & Department Heads
- Educational Technologists & Instructional Designers
- Academic Research Skills Educators
Best For
- Creating Subject-Specific Research Guides
- Designing Full Information Literacy Curricula
- Developing Learning Outcomes & Assessment Rubrics
- Building Scaffolded Research Skills Programs
- Aligning Curriculum with IL Standards & Best Practices
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