CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE
INFORMATION COMPETENCY REQUIREMENT CHECKLIST
Dept. & number: ______________________________
Course title: _______________________________________________
Instructor name: ______________________________
Date of submission: ______________________
CCC INFORMATION COMPETENCY REQUIREMENT: All courses that satisfy the Information Competency Requirement (approved by CIC
Spring 2004) must include the following five standards, performance indicators and outcomes as part of the course content shown on the course
outline. These standards have been modified from the American College and Research Libraries (ACRL) guidelines for Information Literacy.
Information Competency is the ability to recognize when information is needed, and the ability
to locate, evaluate, synthesize, use and communicate information in various formats.
DIRECTIONS
Specify instructional mode where indicated, i.e. tutorial/chapter number, lecture, textbook, infosheet (describe), library orientation, worksheet,
etc.
Circle Y (yes) if performance indicator and its outcomes are included in course outline. A course must include ALL of the instruction indicated
in the outcomes in order to fulfill the requirement. (One library orientation and a research assignment do NOT fulfill this requirement.)
Standard
STANDARD ONE: The
information competent student
determines the nature and extent
of information needed
STANDARD TWO: The
information competent student
accesses information effectively
and efficiently.
Performance indicator
Instructional mode (specify)
Included?
Defines a research topic and determines
information requirements.
Outcomes below:
Identify keywords or main concept for a topic.
Y or N
Formulate and state a research question.
Y or N
Modify an initial research question’s scope from
one that might be too broad or narrow, to one
that is manageable.
Y or N
Determine the information requirements of a
research question, problem, or issue.
Locates and retrieves relevant information
from a variety of formats, including books,
reference resources, library subscription
databases, and the Worldwide Web.
Y or N
Outcomes below:
1
CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE
INFORMATION COMPETENCY REQUIREMENT CHECKLIST
Standard
Performance indicator
A. Online Library Catalog: Use the CCC
Library’s online catalog to search for materials by
Author, Title, Subject, and Keyword in the CCC,
DVC, and LMC library collections.
Read a library catalog number and location
information and find items in the library.
B. Reference Resources:
Identify and use a variety of print reference
sources (including dictionaries, almanacs,
general and subject encyclopedias, newspapers,
periodicals) for finding different types of
background and factual information.
Demonstrate knowledge of what print based
indexes are and how to use them (such as
Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature and New
York Times Index).
C. Library Subscription Databases: Use library
subscription periodical and resource databases
to access information.
Instructional mode (specify)
Included?
Y or N
Y or N
Y or N
Y or N
Identify and select an appropriate database to
find a newspaper article, journal article,
biographical information, health topic, or social
issue.
Y or N
Demonstrate the difference between subject
versus keyword searching and explain the
advantages and disadvantages of each method.
Y or N
Identify and use search features such as
Boolean search terms, phrase searching,
truncation, etc. Indicate how to determine which
features are available for a specific database.
Y or N
Find and capture full-text search results relevant
to a research topic.
Y or N
Identify all information needed to write a citation
documenting a database source.
D. World-Wide-Web: Use the Internet to
access information.
Y or N
Connect to websites via their Internet addresses.
Y or N
2
CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE
INFORMATION COMPETENCY REQUIREMENT CHECKLIST
Standard
STANDARD THREE: The
information competent student
evaluates information and its
sources critically.
Performance indicator
Instructional mode (specify)
Included?
Give examples of fee and free web sites.
Y or N
Identify at least 3 web subject directories and
find information within them by following links.
Y or N
Identify websites by domain including
commercial, non-profit, educational, government
sites, etc.
Y or N
Identify and utilize at least two search engines
and successfully search for information and
images using Boolean search terms, phrase
searching, and advanced search. Refine a
search that has too many or too few results.
Y or N
Analyze a specific website to determine its
purpose, to identify the person or organization
responsible for the information, the source of the
information within the website, and when it was
created or last updated.
Y or N
Identify all information needed to write a citation
documenting an Internet source.
Y or N
E. Evaluates, organizes and synthesizes
information.
Outcomes below:
Evaluate information in terms of relevancy and
timeliness.
Y or N
Examine information sources for their reliability,
comprehensiveness, accuracy and authority.
Y or N
Evaluate the content of a website utilizing
standards of authority, accuracy, objectivity,
currency, and level of coverage.
Y or N
Demonstrate knowledge of the difference
between primary and secondary sources.
Y or N
Identify the difference between journals and
popular magazines.
Y or N
Identify the difference between fact, theory,
opinion, and propaganda.
Y or N
Recognize bias in information sources.
Y or N
3
CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE
INFORMATION COMPETENCY REQUIREMENT CHECKLIST
Standard
STANDARD FOUR: The
information competent student
understands many of the
economic, legal and social issues
surrounding the use of information
and accesses and uses
information ethically and legally.
STANDARD FIVE: The
information competent student
uses information gathered to
accomplish a task.
Performance indicator
Instructional mode (specify)
Included?
Identify the specific elements of an effective
written research strategy.
Y or N
Organize and synthesize information in a manner
that permits analysis, understanding and
communication.
Understands legal and ethical issues relating
to information and technology.
Y or N
Outcomes below:
Identify copyright, fair use and public domain
information issues.
Y or N
Define plagiarism and identify examples.
Y or N
Identify the need for citing sources in one’s work.
Y or N
Create a citation list of at least three types of
sources (book, online database article and
internet site) in MLA or another recognized
format.
Y or N
Identify some privacy and security issues when
using information technology.
Y or N
Identify some issues of censorship of information
and its relationship to the First Amendment.
Effectively creates, presents, and
communicates information.
Y or N
Outcomes below:
Identify methods of creating and presenting
information effectively in a variety of formats
appropriate to the subject, audience, and
purpose.
Y or N
Communicate information successfully to
accomplish a specific purpose.
Y or N
Document retrieved information in an organized
fashion with appropriate citation data.
Y or N
4