Library Instruction: Procedures & Guidelines

Students and their instructor meet with a librarian in the library classroom for a 50-minute research skills session. For classes that are longer than 50 minutes, the instructor may remain in the library classroom after the session is over, unless another class is scheduled to come.

To make the sessions as productive as possible for students, please observe the following:

1. If you would like a general library orientation, please refer your students to the Jessup Playbooks.
2. Requests for instruction sessions must be submitted at least 3 business days in advance. Library instruction sessions are scheduled on a first come, first served basis, and depending on librarian availability. While availability cannot be guaranteed, it's still a good idea to schedule early to secure a time slot that best fits your students' needs.
3. If you need to change the focus of the session, please notify the library at least 3 business days in advance.
4. To be most effective, instruction sessions should correspond to a specific research assignment or topic. The best time for students to attend a library session is just as they are beginning to work on a project that requires information literacy skills--skills such as source selection and/or evaluation, copyright awareness, media literacy, etc.  When the information is relevant to students' needs, they are more likely to recall the information, the resources, and the strategies they were presented with.
5. To ensure that the sessions meet the needs of the specific assignment, please provide the librarians with relevant materials, such as the course syllabus and information on the assignment the library session will cover. Feel free to discuss the assignment with the librarian, and please be open to alternative suggestions.  PVCC library collections are always changing, which means there may be new research tools available. Additionally, the library's instruction program follows a specific instructional sequence with set modules for different classes (see below).
6. The library's instruction program is sequential, with different courses receiving set instruction that is part of that sequence.  For example, SDV students learn about the library policies and layout via an information hunt; ENG 111 sessions involve research-related information. The content of our sessions is set and cannot be interchanged. If you would like instruction on specific topics, please consider our library shorts. 
7. The course instructor of record must be present for the duration of the session.  It is crucial for the instructor to be on hand during the sessions; he or she can answer questions about the research assignment and clarify expectations. Additionally, the instructional partnership between the two faculty members (instructor and librarian) lends weight and authority to the session. We cannot conduct sessions in the absence of the course instructor.   If you cannot be present during the session, please reschedule it for a date and time when you can be present.  
8. No electronic devices are allowed for the duration of the library session, unless the librarian directs otherwise. All devices (smartphones, laptops, tablets, etc.) must be put away in book bags, backpacks, purses, or under the chairs, and they must remain out of reach during the session. 
9. Please ask your students to get food,  use the facilities, etc.,  before the library session. Doing so during the session is disruptive. 
10. If you need to address your students, please do so before coming to the library, or after the session. In order to fit the material, and due to time constraints, the librarians must start and end the sessions at the scheduled times.

To request face-to-face library instruction, please fill out this form.