Student Research Habits

What makes it difficult for many students to conduct college-level research?

Why do so many revert to Wikipedia and/or Google after you’ve given them all the guidance you can think of, including a research instruction session at the Library?

Would you be surprised to learn that a 2013 report from Project Information Literacy and the University of Washington entitled, Learning the Ropes: How Freshmen Conduct Course Research Once They Enter College, found that the majority of first year students:

• Find it difficult to effectively search academic library portals;
• Struggle with reading and comprehending scholarly materials once they are able to find them; and
• Have trouble figuring out faculty expectations for course research assignments?

If these questions are of concern to you, you might be interested in reading some of the studies produced by Project Information Literacy (PIL).

Project Information Literacy, in conjunction with the University of Washington, has been studying students’ research habits since 2008.  They have studied more than 13,000 students at more than 60 institutions of higher education to explore how they access and use information.  They are also studying what makes research difficult for students; how teaching Information Literacy concepts, such as the evaluation of resources, can be made more effective; how the assignment instructions themselves can impact the quality of students’ work; and if college graduates are prepared for their life-long research needs.

To access PIL’s 2013 report and other studies, visit their Publications page. To hear about students’ reactions as they transition from high school to college research project expectations, check out this video from PIL.

As always, if you have any questions about this blog post, or would like more information about how Research Support Services can help your students with their research needs, please let me know: pwaterman@assumption.edu or x7375.