Integrating Information Literacy into the Chemistry Curriculum

Information literacy-the ability to find, evaluate, and use information resources-is an important skill for future chemists. Students and scientists need to distinguish between information provided by Wikipedia, ChemSpider, research journals, and The New York Times, depending on the intended use of the information sought. Instructors and librarians may often teach these skills through stand-alone database demonstrations, video tutorials, and lectures. However, it is possible to teach these skills in a more contextual and integrated manner by designing chemistry assignments that incorporate information literacy as a learning outcome. This book will prove useful for librarians and chemistry instructors who are designing courses in which students develop information literacy in the context of a chemistry course at two-year colleges, public and private universities, and high schools.

The chapters in this book review the current state of information literacy in chemistry and provide concrete examples of assignments and interventions aimed at teaching information literacy skills in chemistry curricula. A wide range of options are offered for integrating information literacy into college-level chemistry courses, including general chemistry, organic chemistry, science courses for students not majoring in science, and chemistry capstone research courses.

Charity Flener Lovitt is a lecturer in Division of Physical Sciences in the School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics at the University of Washington Bothell. Prior to University of Washington Bothell, she served on the faculty at Seattle University, Seattle Central College, and Bellevue College. She was a faculty member at Seattle University when she helped organize the 2014 Biennial Conference on Chemical Education symposium that inspired this book. She received her PhD in chemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Kristen Shuyler is Director of Outreach and Partnerships at James Madison University Libraries and Educational Technologies. Her current scholarship work is in the area of academic library outreach. She was a Science and Engineering Librarian and Information Services Coordinator at Seattle University when she helped organize the 2014 BCCE symposium that inspired this book. She earned her Master of Library and Information Science and Master of Arts in Geography from the University of Washington.

Ye Li was the Chemistry Librarian at the University of Michigan during the time when she co-edited this book. Dr. Li is currently the Scholarly Communications and Instruction Librarian in the Arthur Lakes Library at the Colorado School of Mines. She received her PhD in Chemistry and Master in Library and Information Science from the University of Iowa.