Peer Review

InfoSkills Tutorial

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Reviewed:: Sep 2, 2014 by Library and Information Services

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Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

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Overview:: This is a comprehensive information literacy tutorial covering the basics of research and academic writing for undergraduate students. It contains five modules, each of which can be used as a stand-alone tutorial or as part of the whole. The first three (planning for Research, Finding Information, and Evaluating Information) could be used in any introductory undergraduate course with a research component. The Writing and Plagiarism module contains much information that is universal, but the examples and illustrations are specific to the University of Newcastle. The final module, Using Information Ethically, is focused on copyright laws and use in an Australian context.
Type of Material:: Tutorial
Recommended Uses:: This could be used in a library orientation to a class getting ready to start a research project. It could also be used individually by students who want to refresh their understanding of writing a research paper.
Technical Requirements:: javascript, XHTML, browser with pop-ups enabled.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: Students will learn strategies to prepare for their research assignments. Students will be able to use library databases and the free Internet to conduct academic research. Students will be able to evaluate information sources. Students will learn writing and citation techniques to help avoid plagiarism and academic misconduct. Students will be able to use information ethically and appropriately. Detailed learning objectives for each module can be found in the ABOUT section of the website.
Target Student Population:: Undergraduates new to research and academic writing, appropriate for all subject areas.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: Basic computer skills

Content Quality

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Strengths:: This tutorial is divided into five clear and concise parts and teaches the complete process of writing a research paper. Each part can used separately as a review, or can be used in a introductory course to teach the research process. Each section is reviewed well with a short quiz. Interactive quizzes and quick checks for comprehension are incorporated throughout the tutorial, with students receiving feedback on both correct and incorrect answers.
Concerns:: Module Four (Writing and Plagiarism) contains information that is specific to the University of Newcastle. Students at other institutions will not have the benefit of learning about the policies at their own university. Module Five (Using Information Ethically) is designed for students in Australia. Students in other countries could become confused by the differences in copyright and other legal issues involved with research.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

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Strengths:: Each module clearly defines learning goals to students. Students can move through the modules at their own pace. Students can explore concepts in more depth by using the links provided in the modules. The information in each module reinforces the information in the other modules, but can also be used independently. Reinforces the concept of research as a process and a set of behaviors that can be applied to numerous assignments and subject areas.
Concerns:: Instructors outside the University of Newcastle and Australia would need to provide a significant amount of material relevant to their institutions and countries to make the final two modules useful for their students. There is no certificate, email reporting, or other mechanism for instructors to see if their students have completed the tutorial.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

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Strengths:: The tutorial is very easy to navigate. Students can go back and forth between sections in the tutorial without error problems. Each slide contains limited, essential information with links and roll-over texts with more details or additional information. Students are able to interact with the tutorial through frequent quizzes, checks for understanding, and links to additional information. The tutorial is designed in a simple html format, making it easy to use on a number of platforms and browsers without additional plug-ins or applications. Each module has a progress bar to show how much of the module is completed.
Concerns:: Many of the additional information links are pop-ups which might not display properly on some devices or with higher security settings.

Other Issues and Comments:: The first three modules of this tutorial are well designed, comprehensive, and can be used without any supplementary material from an instructor. Although well designed, the fourth and fifth modules may not be relevant for students outside the University of Newcastle (Module Four) and Australia (Module Five).
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