This paper discusses the use of LibGuides as an effective tool for teaching Information Literacy and specifically enhancing student research in Political Science and International Affairs. With myriad evidentiary sources available for course papers, LibGuides provide a framed gateway for library research which reduces student apprehension and enables faculty to guide inquiry to a variety of sources and a multitude of perspectives. Flexible and personal, LibGuides enhance teaching effectiveness by expanding faculty guidance while still leaving the challenges of Information Literacy such as efficient acquisition, evidentiary choice, and ethical use up to the student. Experience and adaptation of LibGuides at North Georgia College & State University provide the evidence in this paper by which Information Literacy is promoted, enhanced, and an improved product in student research.

This paper contends that political literacy and information literacy are compatible concepts that are inextricably linked and should therefore be taught and stressed simultaneously to students in the classroom. Improving the information literacy and political literacy skills of students will allow them not only to perform better academically, but also empower them to become better citizens who form opinions and make decisions based on appropriate and quality information.

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This study highlights the efforts of Indiana University East to make substantive changes to its general education program, resulting primarily from state mandates and legislation, on an extremely aggressive timeline. While fraught with challenges, these legislative mandates also presented opportunities for the institution to make necessary and impactful improvements to its general education curriculum, policies, and procedures that may not have occurred without the looming deadlines and requirements of the legislation. Indiana is one of several states that have enacted and implemented similar legislation, causing curricular and procedural change in general education programs throughout the nation. While often difficult to manage, these legislative measures can be viewed as opportunities at institutions, like Indiana University East, that desperately needed general education reform.

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