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TILT (Texas Information Literacy Tutorial) was developed to teach undergraduates -- primarily freshmen -- fundamental and transferable research skills. After a brief introduction which dispels some of the common misconceptions about the Internet, students enter one of three modules where they learn to select sources appropriate for academic-level research, search periodical indexes and search engines, and evaluate and cite information. In the tutorial students study concepts and practice them through interactions. At the conclusion of each module, they can test their comprehension and receive immediate feedback. Each module takes less than 30 minutes to complete. The content was created to appeal to a traditional-aged freshman student. The original cartoon images provide quirky visual representations of the content to aid recall of information. The tone of the text is fun and, in places, irreverent. Text length for each page is short, easy to read, and free of library jargon. A panel of instructors and students reviewed all content. Our undergraduate student reviewers provided the most useful feedback by letting the developers know when information was difficult to understand or the tone was stilted. Usability testing with undergraduates showed that the original online text was too long. In response, text for each module was edited to approximately 50% of its original length. Providing personalized and relevant instruction encourages students to be more responsive and retain information more easily. Using these techniques in an online environment improves the overall experience for students when learning about library research. To personalize instruction in TILT, students select an Internet issue that interests them and then examples are generated based on their chosen topic. Besides understanding the research concepts presented, students learn more about the Internet and are more savvy users of online information. Student learning is further supported through self-assessment quizzes, which may be taken as many times as a student wishes and provide feedback immediate. Since the sixteen institutions of The University of Texas System have very different resources and library environments, it was necessary for TILT content to be generally applicable in any academic setting. Research concepts are intentionally taught without highlighting specific collections or buildings. tilt@utlists.utexas.edu
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