ASCRC Statement of Support for Advanced Research Literacies, LSCI 391
ASCRC strongly recommends LSCI 391, Advanced Research Literacies, as a
complementary and collaborative class in support of required upper-division writing
classes. LSCI 391 is a 1-credit class designed to develop an advanced understanding of
critical literacies and lifelong information seeking skills. This class will be offered
beginning fall semester 2014. It will also be shared with the Writing Committee for further
discussion about how to best incorporate information literacy into upper-division Writing
classes.
Class Description
The ability to locate, evaluate and use information effectively and ethically is essential.
In this course students will develop an advanced understanding of critical literacies and
lifelong information seeking skills. Students are encouraged to take this course as a
complement to “W” designated courses in their major. Students will complete an indepth literature review relevant to their major that includes all aspects of information
literacy, including visual literacy, media literacy, news literacy, and scholarly
communication literacy. Students will hone their abilities in critical thinking, resource
analysis, and the ethical and appropriate use of information through an in-depth
analysis of publication practices.
Learning Outcomes
· Construct an original argument, position or question based on research findings
and/or analysis and interpretation of texts within their historical and cultural
contexts.
· Complete a literature review.
o Implement a research strategy appropriate to research need.
o Recognize the value of original scholarship;
o Compare and contrast research from various sources to create an holistic
analysis of a topic.
o Identify gaps in research findings and modify research strategies
accordingly.
· Apply discipline-specific understanding and style guide to research productions.
o Describe key discipline-specific information resources and how they are
organized and used.
o Construct advanced searches using controlled vocabularies and Boolean
operators.
o Execute cited reference searches.
o Recognize and explain the value of tracking citations forward and
backward.
· Document and organize personal research process and information sources.
· Understand the economic, legal, political, and socio-economic impacts on
information access and use (e.g., censorship, constraints, costs, funded research,
policies, scholarship).