1. Teaching Information Literacy With Google and Google Scholar
Kristin Echtenkamp (SDSU)
Lynn Klundt (NSU)

2. Background on Google/ Google Scholar
Google started in 1999 (Miller & Pellen).
Google was created to find files on the internet.
Google Scholar started in 2005 (Miller & Pellen).
Google Scholar consists of scholarly articles, patents, case law, and other scholarly information and was created for a very unique user.
“Google Scholar aims to sort articles the way researchers do, by weighing full text, authors, publication, and number of citations” (Miller & Pellen, p. 32).
Google is now only second to EBSCO for student research preference (Alfonzo, p. 2).
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3. Information seeking behavior of today’s college student
Students tend to start their research using web resources like Google, Google Scholar and Wikipedia.
Students value the convenience of finding resources above finding quality information (peer reviewed, author reputation, source reputation, etc.) (Komissarov & Murray).
Students prefer to conduct research outside the library (Komissarov & Murray).
While students are very tech savvy, they struggle when it comes to using library databases.
Students are apprehensive to ask librarians for help with research.
Eight out of 10 students “rarely if ever, turn to librarians for help with defining topics or searching for sources when working on course-related research assignments” (Head p. 475).
A study reported that 74% of respondents did not choose the Internet because it was the best source; they chose the Internet because it was the most convenient or easiest to use (93%) and did not cost much in time or money. Simon had coined the term ‘satisfice’ (a combination of satisfy and suffice) to refer to this kind of user behaviour
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4. I think it works!

5. Head, p. 477

6. Librarians meeting students at their point of need
Instruct students in how to navigate Google with more precision.
Introduce Google Scholar as a way to utilize Google’s unique search interface in order to find academic resources.
Introduce Google advanced as a way to teach students how to better refine results.
Students will usually lose access to academic databases after graduation, but will continue to use Google.

7. Teaching with Google

8. Benefits of using Google for research
Allows for misspellings (Georgas, p. 170).
Easier to navigate than most library databases (Georgas, p. 170).
Easier to manipulate search terms and to find relevant results than with most library databases (Georgas, p. 170).
Can find easy to understand descriptions of difficult concepts (Georgas, p. 170).
Google provides a comprehensive auto complete function that anticipates the search terms of the researcher (Lawrence, p. 91).

9. Disadvantages of using Google for research
Too many irrelevant search results.
Too many ads and commercial websites.
Difficult to find quality, scholarly resources.
No citation feature.
Difficult to find books.
No quality control.
(Georgas p. 172)

10. Google Tools
Advanced Search

11. Google Tips and Tricks

12. Anatomy of a Google Search

13. Google like a librarian (or fact checker)

14. Click Restraint

15. Lateral Reading

16. Taking Bearings

17. Teaching with Google Scholar

18. Benefits of using Google Scholar
Google Scholar is easy to use.
Single search box (Alfonzo, p. 5).
Highly accurate search results (Alfonzo, p. 5).
Easy to refine search terms.
“Most citations [are] from journal articles, books, dissertations and thesis” (Miller and Pellen p ).
Google Scholar can help students become more information literate (Alfonzo, p. 3).
Google Scholar offers access to resources outside of library holdings, but also points users towards library resources.

19. Google Scholar Tools
Library Links

20. Disadvantages of using Google Scholar
You may have to pay or order items through interlibrary loan for full-text articles.
“Many irrelevant hits” (Miller and Pellen p. 39).
“Cannot limit results to full-text” (Miller and Pellen p. 39).
Large amounts of results can cause information overload.

21. Anatomy of a Google Scholar Search

22. Tying the ACRL Framework to Google

23. Authority Is Constructed and Contextual
develop and maintain an open mind when encountering varied and sometimes conflicting perspectives;
motivate themselves to find authoritative sources, recognizing that authority may be conferred or manifested in unexpected ways;
develop awareness of the importance of assessing content with a skeptical stance and with a self awareness of their own biases and worldview
Source Evaluation

24. Information Creation as a Process
understand that different methods of information dissemination with different purposes are available for their use
value the process of matching an information need with an appropriate product
Information Cycle

25. Information Has Value
give credit to the original ideas of others through proper attribution and citation
understand that intellectual property is a legal and social construct that varies by culture
Citation Generator in Google Scholar

26. Research as Inquiry determine an appropriate scope of investigation
deal with complex research by breaking complex questions into simple ones, limiting the scope of investigations
value intellectual curiosity in developing questions and learning new investigative methods
Google Advanced searching

27. Scholarship as Conversation
cite the contributing work of others in their own information production
identify the contribution that particular articles, books, and other scholarly pieces make to disciplinary knowledge
summarize the changes in scholarly perspective over time on a particular topic within a specific discipline
Cited By in Google Scholar

28. Searching as Strategic Exploration
design and refine needs and search strategies as necessary, based on search results
understand how information systems (i.e., collections of recorded information) are organized in order to access relevant information
use different types of searching language (e.g., controlled vocabulary, keywords, natural language) appropriately
Anatomy of a Google Search

29. Google-a-day activity
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30. Questions?

31. Bibliography:
Alfonzo, Paige. (2016). Teaching Google Scholar : A practical guide for librarians.
Georgas, H. (2013). Google vs. the Library: Student Preferences and Perceptions when Doing Research Using Google and a Federated Search Tool. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 13(2),
Head, Alison J., & Association of College Research Libraries. National Conference Indianapolis, Ind. (2013). Project Information Literacy : What Can Be Learned about the Information-Seeking Behavior of Today's College Students?
Komissarov, & Murray. (2016). Factors that Influence Undergraduate Information-seeking Behavior and Opportunities for Student Success. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 42(4),
Lawrence, Kate. (2015). Today's college students: Skimmers, scanners and efficiency-seekers. Information Services & Use, 35(1/2),
Miller, William. ; Pellen, Rita. (2009). Google scholar and more : New Google applications and tools for libraries and library users. Routledge.