Library Instruction Program

About the Barber Library Instructional Program

The Barber Library adds to the value of teaching and learning on the COCC campus by bringing subject expertise to information literacy instruction. The Library's Information Literacy Program Plan provides a comprehensive view of how the library's instructional program spans disciplines on campus to develop patrons' skills and knowledge to become effective, efficient information consumers, researchers, and lifelong learners.

Information Literacy Program Mission Statement

The information literacy instruction program plays a critical role in developing a college community that is information literate, as defined by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). The instructional program supports the campus community in the development of information-seeking abilities appropriate to their skill level by

leading formal and informal information literacy instruction at all campuses via in person and online formats;
collaborating with colleagues in all departments in order to integrate information literacy across the curriculum;
promoting the use of tools and resources to develop efficient, effective information practices for coursework and lifelong learning;
incorporating innovative pedagogy that is inclusive to all learners.

Information Literacy Definition

The Library’s instructional program (current plan; 2015-18 archived plan) was guided by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Ongoing activities and assessments are also directed by these professional standards and the definition of Information Literacy:

“Information literacy is the set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued, and the use of information in creating new knowledge and participating ethically in communities of learning.”

This definition is anchored in the six concepts described in the ACRL Framework:

Authority Is Constructed and Contextual
Information Creation as a Process
Information Has Value
Research as Inquiry
Scholarship as Conversation
Searching as Strategic Exploration

Barber Library Instructional Programs and Services

Students are paramount to the Library's mission and key to its success. The ways the library supports student engagement and persistence include:

Supporting students in building foundational information skills to develop confidence as learners and creators of information.
Acting as a campus refuge for individual and group study with point-of-need reference services.
Developing a comprehensive and collaborative instructional program that is embedded throughout the college curriculum to empower students as they become self-sufficient in discipline-specific research.

Certain student groups targeted by the program include: Adult Basic Skills (ABS) students, developmental writing students, students enrolled in transfer programs, students enrolled in CTE programs, online students, and students primarily enrolled in classes at the branch campuses.

Additionally, the instructional program also targets the following populations:

Faculty
Staff
Central Oregon Community

The goals of the Library's Instructional Program are:

To prepare the library audience for the dynamic and fluid information ecosystem in which we study, work, and live to become effective lifelong learners;
To strengthen students’ information literacy competencies as a fundamental outcome of all disciplines taught at COCC;
To ensure the library audience is aware of the relevant, accessible, and affordable resources the library offers so they can be effectively utilized for teaching and learning at COCC.

We address these goals through our Instructional Program offerings: IL sessions, embedded librarian, credit courses, face-to-face and online research support, Book-a-Librarian appointments, online tutorials, and subject guides. Usage and metrics are captured and reported annually in November.