Pepperdine Libraries Multiple Literacies Program

Pepperdine Libraries’ Information Literacy program champions a holistic approach to student learning by integrating multiple literacies ranging from traditional research and primary source analysis to digital fluency, maker competencies, data literacy, and the ethical use of artificial intelligence. This comprehensive framework empowers students to navigate a complex information landscape with critical acumen, fostering deep academic inquiry and creative innovation across all disciplines. By blending rigorous scholarship with hands-on engagement in spaces like the Genesis Lab–our flagship makerspace–and Special Collections, the Libraries cultivate a dynamic educational environment. This enables us to equip ethically and culturally literate leaders who are ready to address real-world challenges.

Library Instruction

Pepperdine Librarians provide in-class instruction, workshops, instructional videos, and individual and group consultations in information-seeking skills and in the use of library resources.

The program's goal is for students to move comfortably among a variety of literacies, including:

Information literacy: Develop efficient information-gathering strategies and evaluate sources for relevance and credibility.
AI literacy: Improve AI search strategies and critically assess AI outputs
Primary source literacy: Participate in active inquiry by contextualizing and interpreting historical artifacts and using them to build evidence-based arguments.
Maker literacy: Employ iterative design and fabrication to independently manage the creative lifecycle, safely transforming unmet needs into tangible solutions through collaboration and ethical stewardship.

Schedule Instruction

Your subject liaison will work with you and your class to develop research skills specific to your discipline. Please schedule your class at least one week in advance. If you have general questions about library instruction, please contact Sally Bryant at x4262.

Learning and Research Guides

Our librarians have created over 200 guides specific to courses and collections available to the Pepperdine community. These guides help users navigate our collections and identify the most useful resources and tools for their research. Guides can be viewed online by anyone, but to access the databases within the guides, users will need to log in through WaveNet.

Learning Outcomes

Inquire

Goal

Novice Outcomes

Intermediate Outcomes

Advanced Outcomes

Define the extent of the information needed. Ask questions that provide additional lines of inquiry. Approach research as a process of inquiry.

Develop appropriately-scoped research topics or questions based on identified information needs
Describe, at a general level, the scholarly research process
Describe how library services may be helpful to the research process

Recognize research as an iterative process; evaluate and revise research questions and scope based on results of the research process
Follow multiple lines of investigation on research topic
Recognize which part(s) of a research problem will need evidence or support

Revise or develop new questions and lines of inquiry based on personal interest, gaps in existing information, or when confronted with new information
Develop a working knowledge of the literature of their field and how it is produced

Find

Goal

Novice Outcomes

Intermediate Outcomes

Advanced Outcomes

Design searches strategically using advanced search techniques and careful selection of a search system.

Select appropriate general databases, catalogs, and search engines based on their information needs
Demonstrate database search techniques (e.g. keywords,
Boolean operators, limiters, filters) to locate relevant information
Employ basic strategies for organizing sources

Select and use appropriate discipline-specific resources and search strategies to find information on a given topic
Refine search strategy based on the information need
Browse bibliographies and citations to discover additional sources

Identify prominent individuals, articles, organizations, and journals for a given topic or research area
Discuss ways that search tools and algorithms might present challenges to objectivity when conducting research
Systematically organize sources using reference management software

Evaluate

Goal

Novice Outcomes

Intermediate Outcomes

Advanced Outcomes

Critically evaluate information to determine its appropriateness for a specific purpose.

Categorize sources of information based on source type and purpose
Evaluate information based on indicators of authority and
scholarliness
Discuss issues of credibility, authority, and trust as they pertain to information consumption

Recognize that there may be multiple perspectives on a research topic and that a
single source may not represent the entirety or
majority view of the scholarly conversation
Locate other trusted coverage to determine if a source is an outlier
Trace claims and quotes to their original sources

Identify biases in their research field or topic that privilege some sources of information over others
Describe how the cultural, historical, or other context in which knowledge or evidence is discovered or information is created or synthesized may
impact its presentation (e.g. packaged formally or informally) and/or its interpretation

Apply

Goal

Novice Outcomes

Intermediate Outcomes

Advanced Outcomes

Apply information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose. Contribute to the scholarly conversation at an appropriate level.

Apply information from various sources to support their research in appropriate ways (e.g. background information, evidence, analysis, methodology)
Draw reasonable conclusions based on the evidence available

Organize and synthesize ideas from multiple sources and formats
Identify the contribution a single source makes towards the scholarly conversation on a research topic
Identify gaps in the scholarship
on a particular research topic

Summarize the scholarly conversation on a research topic
Identify changes over time in a scholarly conversation
Employ discipline-specific approaches for conveying research findings

Credit

Goal

Novice Outcomes

Intermediate Outcomes

Advanced Outcomes

Understand the value of information and practice contextually-appropriate attribution techniques when using others’ work.

Use available citation resources to create and modify citations in at least one common citation style
Demonstrate contextually-appropriate attribution techniques when quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing
Describe the role citation plays in facilitating the scholarly conversation

Apply the rules of a citation style appropriate to their discipline to generate citations and bibliographies
Recognize issues related to intellectual property and copyright as they pertain to finding and using information in their daily lives
Understand issues of cost as it relates to knowledge
production and access

Demonstrate mastery over the citation style appropriate to their discipline
Recognize issues related to privacy and the commodification of information and develop skills to manage personal and academic information accordingly

Reflect

Content

Critically reflect on the gaps and weaknesses in their own research practices, those of their field, and of the information ecosystem as a whole.

Identify what they have learned from practicing research
Reflect on their research to identify both their own errors and gaps and weaknesses in their literature search

Describe what they would do differently the next time they research
Reflect on the literature available on their topic and consider whose voices and contributions are missing and why

Practice continuous reflection and revision of their own research process
Reflect on how systems of information creation and dissemination can privilege some voices and contributions over others

Adapted from the Z. Smith Reynolds Library Research and Instruction Services Team's Information Literacy Learning Outcomes. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Maker Literacy SLOs

The Libraries have established the following framework for defining maker literacy competencies, integrating maker literacies into curriculum, and assessing student learning outcomes.¹ The Genesis Lab, iLabs, and the Makerspaces in a Box currently use this framework to guide their work.

Identify and articulate a need to create.
Analyze and explore ideas, questions, problems, and potential solutions.
Create effectively and safely.
Assess the availability and appropriateness of tools and materials.
Prototype using iterative design principles.
Develop a project management plan.
Engage in effective teamwork.
Employ effective knowledge management practices.
Apply knowledge gained into other situations.
Understand ethical and intellectual property issues surrounding making.

Special Collections SLOs

Examine a primary source and communicate its key points by summarizing its content and noting important details such as the document type, author, date, and process of production. Include an analysis of the object’s physical and material features.
Historically situate a primary source using knowledge of its historical and cultural context, author, genre, materiality, and/or publication history.
When analyzing a primary source, consider the role of an author or creator’s tone, subjectivity, and bias.
Identify and analyze archival silences, inconsistencies, and power dynamics. Assess their implications for your research question(s).
Approach historical sources with empathy, curiosity, and humility. Recognize that sources may be the products of a different time and/or different worldview. While we may not agree with the perspectives represented in these sources, we strive to approach diverse viewpoints with respect and a willingness to learn from them rather than judgment and condemnation.²

AI Literacy SLOs

Basic AI Literacy - Explain what artificial intelligence is and how it shapes the creation and organization of information.
Knowledge of GenAI Tools and their Uses - Recognize the types of tasks AI tools are designed for and how they influence access to and interpretation of information.
Ability to Assess the Output of Generative AI Tools - Critically assess AI-generated content for bias, misinformation, or fabricated sources.
Skill in Prompting Generative AI Tools (Prompt Engineering) - Develop effective prompts to improve the quality and relevance of AI responses.³

Data Literacy SLOs

Students will articulate how data-driven evidence supports arguments in academic research and practical problem-solving.
Students will differentiate between qualitative and quantitative data sets and justify the selection of each for specific research questions.
Students will calculate and interpret measures of central tendency (mean, median) and variability (standard deviation) to summarize a dataset.
Students will identify independent and dependent variables within a study and evaluate the strength and direction of correlations between them.
Students will critique data sources based on methodology, potential bias, sample size, and the authority of the provider.
Students will construct appropriate visual representations (e.g., charts, graphs, maps) that accurately communicate findings without distorting the data.

Notes

The framework was informed by the IMLS-funded research project which resulted in the development of the Maker Literacies.
Adapted from Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy by the SAA-ACRL/RBMS Joint Task Force on the Development of Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy.
Adapted from Vanderbilt University Library’s AI Competencies current as of 02/03/2026.