The John Esch Library has a new online tutorial called Research 101 geared towards teaching research skills to Core I students.

Research 101 takes students through the process of researching for a paper. The site contains six different units, each devoted to a different step in the research process. The six units have the following objectives. The Basics unit teaches students general information about the internet, helps students understand and choose sources based on their credibility. The Information Cycles unit evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the information students have on their topic. The Topics unit helps students choose a topic and then broaden or narrow that topic based on the assignment’s requirements. The Searching unit instructs students how to use databases correctly through instructional videos. The Finding unit shows students how to obtain actual sources. The Evaluating unit provides methods for evaluating information.

Research 101 replaced the Library Skills workbook, a paper workbook created to help students find sources in different kinds of reference materials.

A library taskforce met in Feb. of 2005 to discuss a more-efficient alternative to the Library Skills workbook. They decided on Research 101, a tutorial originally created by a 40-person staff from the University of Washington.

“A lot of colleges throughout the country use the framework of Research 101,” said librarian Joe Pirillo. “The framework is under a creative commons license which allows other colleges to use it.”

Pirillo modified the tutorial’s content to include applications on plagiarism, copyright, and video tutorials demonstrating how to use EasiCat and different library databases.

Anne Penke, director of library services, feels that Research 101 will benefit students.

“The new tutorial is an introduction to research using databases that students may not be familiar with,” said Penke. “The library offers a number of research tools which can be alternatives to Google.”

Pirillo also believes Research 101 could positively impact less outgoing students.

“The new tutorial is an easy way to bridge the gap for students who might not feel comfortable asking for help,” said Pirillo.

The Research 101 tutorial can be accessed at the Lakeland.edu Web site by clicking on Academics, Library, and Research 101 tutorial.