Information Literacy and Classes

BRAC University Library offers a number of programs throughout the year to assist students, researchers and faculty members in developing research skills and to use the full range of information resources available at the library. Our objective is to promote user understanding and use of information in the discovery, creation and transmission of knowledge to enhance their academic experience and lifelong learning. Library is also creating subject specific Research Guides and Online Tutorials for the users on the library website.

The following library sessions and workshops are conducted by the library.
 

Face-to-face assistance

Available via Zoom or Google Meet on request, 9am-5pm Sunday- Thursday for All Discipline areas & Year Levels. This session will be available for individual users by appointment to assist them for fulfilling their needs.
 

Online Drop-in Sessions:

All Discipline areas  & Year Levels.
Online drop-in sessions are open to all BRAC University students (undergraduate and postgraduate) and faculty from each discipline area. The librarian will assist students, faculty, researchers with finding resources for their assignment and research or information on how to reference, and to develop skills beyond the basics. The details of the Programs are given below:

1. Library Orientation Sessions
   A quick overview of the library and its services, spaces and resources tailored for new students. Library can provide sessions for students online or onsite.
   Target Group: Freshers
   Average Session Length: 10-15 minutes
    
2. One-hour Library Sessions/Workshops
   Overviews of discipline-specific collections and research practices, working in conjunction with faculty requests.
   Target Group: First Year to Final Year Students, Researchers, Faculty members
   Average Session Length: One-hour sessions, 15-minute Q/A
   Contents covered:
   • ​Introduction to the library website
     Users will learn the access points to library services & resources.
   • Finding Books and Other Items in the Catalog
     This part will focus on how to find books, eBooks, journal articles   and other research materials in the library catalogue.
   • Formulating Information Search Strategies
   • Finding Articles with Databases
     Find out how databases can make your academic research more productive and efficient. Learn about choosing a database, limiting your results in useful ways, and locating articles.
   • Finding previous theses and other projects
     This will help students to find previous projects, internship reports, thesis and thesis templates.
   • Advanced Search Techniques
     The “advanced search” option in most search tools gives multiple ways of controlling what results users will get before they even hit the “search” button. This session will focus on ways of narrowing or expanding their search results in the library catalog and online journals databases.
   • Evaluating Internet Resources
     This session will help users determine how credible a website or page is by asking questions about its authorship, purpose, and timeliness.
      
3. Workshop on Subject Specific Research Database
   Participants are introduced to subject databases, resources, and will learn basic to advance search strategies and techniques relevant to conducting research within a specific discipline or field of study. Each workshop is tailored to the specific objectives of the class and content reflects assignment requirements and research expectations.
   Target Group: First Year to Final Year Students, Researchers, Faculty members
   Average Session Length: One hour
    
4. Citation Management Workshop
   Target Group: First Year to Final Year Students, Researchers, Faculty members
   Average Session Length: One hour
   Citation
   Why Cite - Learn multiple purposes of citing sources, and why citation is so important to scholars.
   How to cite- Learn the basic information needed in any citation, and the main purposes and forms that most citations take
   Citation Management Tool –Mendeley and Zotero
   This video will explain why it’s a good idea to use a citation management tool, and introduce you to the basic functions of Mendeley and Zotero.
    
5. Academic Integrity Workshop
   Target Group: First Year to Final Year Students, Researchers, Faculty members
   Average Session Length: One hour
   The online workshop is for students starting or continuing their studies at BRAC University. 
   In this workshop students will learn:
   • What academic integrity means at BRAC University? BRAC University Academic Integrity Policy.
   • Why it is important to present authentic work and acknowledge the work of others
   • How to check similarity into Anti-Plagiarism Tool Turnitin and how to manage account

Information literacy is a feature of recent innovations in education and a crucial aspect of a modern library. The main purpose is to acquaint students and faculties with the information sources, resources, and techniques to retrieve the resources. The BRACU library has a rich collection of resources which is continually expanding. Further, advances in computer technology are profoundly affecting nearly all sources as well as systems of access and use. Currently, the library strives to meet the information needs of the BRAC University community and to provide appropriate access to the faculty and students. In order to maximize the use of resources it is necessary to help users gain maximum benefit from information sources and systems. At this situation, an attempt has been taken to establish a BRACU Library Learning Resource Centre (LRC) which will help users gain maximum support from the library. To achieve the above goals library staff will teach users to know, understand and evaluate information systems, to select sources and devise search strategies appropriate to their needs, and use systems, sources and search strategies effectively. Apart from regular service this Learning Resource Centre (LRC) will provide some special services which are usually not available in other BRACU Computers LABs. Library staffs are specially trained to provide these services.

To support information literacy the following services and training will be provided from BRACU Library Learning Resource Centre (LRC):

• Provide general orientations on library services and resources such as databases, e-journals, online catalogue etc.
• Provide tailored presentations emphasizing appropriate reference sources, electronic resources for a particular discipline, and class or assignment.
• Assist students and faculties either one-on-one or in small groups to help them develop the information literacy skills for using information resources, evaluation of information and information sources, keywords and related terms for search strategy.
• Provide training on building a bibliography and proper citation according to the discipline: for example APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago style etc by using Mendeley Software.
• Offer services like scanning documents/pictures, CD writing, and printing including color printing.
• Meet users? inquiries in relation to LRC.
• Conduct training programs and workshops for library professionals of other organization

Policy to use Library Learning Resource Centre

• Students must provide a valid BRACU ID card to use the LRC. The lab is restricted to BRACU students, staff and faculties. Students will be required to log into a workstation using their name and ID number.
• Students may use the workstation for one hour after they have signed in. If there are no requests, students may stay longer than one hour, but may be asked to give up a workstation if other students subsequently request access to the workstation.
• The LRC may only be used for course work and related research. No recreational use of the computers is permitted. This includes chat rooms, games, personal email, and web browsing. Anyone violating this policy will be asked to leave.
• No more than two students may use a workstation at one time.
• Cell phones, food and drink are specifically prohibited in the LRC.
• Personal software cannot be loaded on LRC?s computers. Students must save their work on a removable disk. No provisions will be made to allow students to save any information on the computer's hard drive.
• No student will be given permission to use the LRC during the times that it is being used for classroom teaching (orientations, presentations and briefing sessions). As much advance notice as possible will be given when the lab is scheduled for use as a classroom. Shortly before any classes are scheduled to begin, students will be asked to save any work and then be remotely logged off by the lab monitor.

Booking a Class The BRACU Ayesha Abed Library offers classes throughout the year. Classes may be booked by sending email to librarian@bracu.ac.bd.