As members of the U of M faculty, librarians are prepared to work with teaching faculty in all academic disciplines. The Libraries' Instruction Program makes it easy for you to contact a librarian to help you teach your students about library resources and research. Working with a librarian, you can give your students whatever kind and amount of information they need to complete the library requirements of your course. A side benefit of this collaboration is that the librarian learns more about your disciplinary needs and you keep your own library expertise up to date. Arrange library instruction at the time it is needed.
Library instruction given in a vacuum often is wasted time and effort.
When scheduling a day in your syllabus for library instruction, put it as close to the time of need as possible and make sure the instruction addresses the course requirements. Library instruction not associated with a specific need or task will often go unheeded since the students may not see a use for it. Many students will get a general library orientation and instruction through either ACAD 1100 or ENGL 1102, and often in both of these courses. They may also get library instruction in other classes, which can lead to overkill. However, unless a student is completely brain dead, he or she can usually pick up some bit of information not presented or missed before.