A Research Guide for Beginners

Hello,

Welcome to Concordia University Texas! During your time here you will inevitably need to do some research. That research could be for an assignment, a presentation, a project, a paper, or it could be your own self-directed research. However, there is a lot of information and resources out there, so this guide is meant to help you get started on that process. You will learn some basic ideas about information literacy, how to find appropriate resources, and you will learn how CTX Library can help support you research needs.

This libguide is primarily focuses on research and information literacy You can do a variety of things at the library, so if you want more information on things like printing, study rooms, getting your ID etc. visit this libguide for more information.

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.

From the ACLR Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education

Some explanation of the definition

"Reflective Discovery of Information" means you are aware of your process for discovering information and what you are discovering

"Understanding how Information is Produced and Valued" means distinguishing between primary and secondary sources as well as understanding processes like peer review

"The Use of Information in Creating New Knowledge" means ethically using information in your research by not misrepresenting or misinterpreting sources

"Participating Ethically in Communities of Learning" means citing sources and abiding by your disciplines codes of ethics. 

Basically, Information Literacy is about being aware of how you are searching, being aware of what you are finding, and being aware of how you use what you find.