Bunker Hill Community College Library Instruction Program
Bunker Hill Librarians work to bring active learning and student-centered pedagogy to research and information literacy skill sessions for a wide range of classes, modalities, divisions, and disciplines at Bunker Hill Community College.
Focusing on a "just in time" rather than a "just in case" model, Research & Instruction Librarians collaborate with faculty to design lessons and learning activities that connect to concrete assignments and defined learning outcomes. Scaffolding research literacies in this way gives students the opportunity to practice and apply those skills in a meaningful context, and creates opportunities for deeper learning.
Goals for working with students include:
- Strengthening critical reading, synthesis, analysis and research skills for ongoing academic success, as well as practicing information literacy in diverse applications.
- Meeting students’ needs where they are and supporting them on their information and research literacy journey.
Goals for working with faculty include:
- Creating collaborative, learning driven partnerships between librarians and faculty via strong communication.
- Working with faculty early in the session planning process so librarians can support students as they develop research questions before scaffolding them into other research skills.
- Maintaining an assessment feedback loop.
- Using technology to support instruction efforts.
Best Practices for Faculty requesting Library Instruction Sessions
We want to partner with you in order to make the research instruction session as meaningful as possible for students. To that end, we ask that instructors:
- Share the provided pre-assessment survey at least one week before the library instruction session and encourage students to complete it at least one day before their Library Instruction Session. The best response rates are when instructors use class time to have students complete the survey
- Explain to students why they are having a class with a librarian and how it connects to their research assignment and/or their other work in your class.
- Actively participate in the learning activities by checking in with students, encouraging participation, and responding to questions. Your active engagement helps convey to students the importance of the class content.
The instruction menu below was created to give more information about some of the frequently-requested topics librarians teach, along with an approximation of how much time is needed for instruction. This menu is not intended to be comprehensive, and we are happy to collaborate with you to learn more about your course and create a customized lesson for your class.
Booking a Library Instruction Session
Please use the Instruction Request Form to make a request for an instruction session. Library instruction sessions and support are available for in-person, online, and web-based courses.
We ask that faculty schedule instruction at least one week in advance to allow librarians time to communicate with you about the class content and to prepare for the class. Once you submit your instruction request we'll confirm the time and reach out with follow-up questions we have. The confirmation email will include a calendar invite and a link to a pre-assessment survey for your students.
Some basic research skills can be learned via the Research Skills Tutorials, but Library instruction session content will vary depending on students’ prior research experiences and the specific needs of the assignment. Teaching all the research and information literacy skills needed is not possible in a single session, but we are happy to work with you to develop a series of shorter lessons over multiple class meetings.
Resources for Faculty
- Research Skills Guide
- Introduction to the BHCC Library and other tutorial videos on library skills like searching library databases and citations.
- Research Guides
- Make an appointment with a librarian