Scaffolding information literacy in the nursing curriculum

Abstract

Teaching students how to effectively retrieve, evaluate, and use information is a difficult task for all librarians. Expecting students to understand how to apply these skills – inside and outside of academia – in an hour-long instruction session is setting oneself up for failure. This paper describes the process of librarians and nursing faculty using the Lesson Study methodology to address adding information literacy and evidence-based practice (EBP) skills and content within a series of scaffolded classes in the nursing curriculum. Quantitative data showed growth in student learning from sophomore to senior years but retention of knowledge was inconclusive. Qualitative data indicated that students valued the scaffolded curriculum, librarians and nursing faculty working together, and understood the usefulness of EBP and information literacy. The multiple assessment methods used in this study allowed the team to assess student learning and the usefulness of Lesson Study as an instructional development tool.