Research Guides: I-Know Faculty Guide: SLO 2: Evaluate Career Applications

Beyond the Classroom

Why is SLO 2 (Evaluate) important to learn?

Evaluating information is a skill that students can transfer to many different scenarios and careers. This page highlights the relevancy of this level of objectives, applying them to a setting beyond the college classroom.

According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, Critical Thinking is one of the top competencies that a student can demonstrate to employers to show that they are career ready. Part of this competency includes the ability to "Gather and analyze information from a diverse set of sources and individuals to fully understand a problem."

Applying these skills to the workplace

Because of their exposure to SLOs 2A and 2B in I-Know courses, students can share with employers that they can do the following tasks:

Understand how to evaluate a source’s credibility and suitability for one’s information need.
Critically examine and ask questions about the origin, context, and suitability of information.
Recognize that suitable information may be published formally or informally and may include sources of all media types.
Develop awareness of the importance of assessing content with a skeptical stance and recognize the value of diverse ideas or worldviews.

Career Examples

As a professional, students may need evaluation skills in the following situations:

Art

As a graphic designer when researching a new product or service for a design project, evaluating the target audience and the competitive landscape in order to create a design that is appealing to the target audience and that stands out from the competition

Business

Evaluating types of questions used for surveys
As an analyst you can evaluate new and existing functionality of information systems
As an accountant, when auditing a company, evaluating the information provided by the company's management to make sure that it is accurate and complete
As an analyst, when analyzing market research data, being aware of the potential for bias in the data collection and analysis

Education

When selecting appropriate resources for students (online or in person) to use in their research and learning, being able to evaluate the quality of websites, books, and other resources to make sure that they are accurate, reliable, and appropriate for students' age and learning level.
Teaching students how to critically evaluate information themselves by helping them develop the skills they need to assess the credibility of sources and to identify bias in information

Humanities

As an author, when writing a book about a historical event, evaluating information from a variety of sources, such as primary sources, secondary sources, and academic journals, to ensure that their account of the event is accurate and comprehensive
As a historian , when writing about a historical figure, evaluating information from a variety of sources, such as the person's letters, diaries, public statements, books and articles written by historians

Media and Communications

As a journalist, when writing a news story about a scientific study, evaluating the information in the study to ensure that it is accurate and reliable.
As a social media manager, when creating a social media post about a current event, evaluating the information from news articles and other sources to ensure that it is accurate and reliable.

Nursing

When developing a care plan for a patient, evaluating the information available on the patient's condition and on evidence-based practices in order to develop a plan that is likely to be effective
Making sure health information shared with patients is credible
Evaluating current nursing research

Psychology

When reading a research study on a new psychological treatment, a psychologist needs to be aware of the potential for bias in the study design and methodology
Evaluating current studies to be kept up to date in the psychological field
Evaluating patients' diagnoses and clinical evaluations
When designing a research study, evaluating the information available on the topic to develop a study that is likely to produce reliable and valid results

Sciences

As a chemist, when designing a chemical experiment, evaluating the information available on the topic to develop an experiment that is likely to produce reliable and valid results

Sports Management

As a sports agent, when negotiating a contract for a client, evaluating the client's statistics, market trends, and salary data in order to determine a fair market value for the client
As an athletic director, when making budget decisions, evaluating information about the department's revenue and expenses

References

American Psychological Association. (2022, August 18). Understanding psychological testing and assessment. https://www.apa.org/topics/testing-assessment-measurement/understanding

Bureau of Labor Statistics, (n.d.). Computer Systems Analysts. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-systems-analysts.htm

Christensen, S. T. (2014). Defining your target audience: Who are you serving?. 99designs. https://99designs.com/blog/business/define-your-target-audience/

Indeed Editorial Team. (2022, August 25). Athletics Director Training and Education. Indeed. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/athletics-director

Indeed. (n.d.). Jobs, employment in Corpus Christi, TX. https://www.indeed.com/l-Corpus-Christi,-TX-jobs.html

LinkedIn. (2023, October 16). What steps can you take to ensure your content is both accurate and reliable? https://www.linkedin.com/advice/3/what-steps-can-you-take-ensure-your-content?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&utm_campaign=copy

LinkedIn. (2023, August 17). What’s the best way to value an athlete before negotiating? https://www.linkedin.com/advice/0/whats-best-way-value-athlete-before-negotiating

Mary and Jeff Bell Library. (2023, September 22). Understanding Nursing Research. Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Primary Research - Understanding Nursing Research - Research Guides at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (tamucc.edu)

Mary and Jeff Bell Library. (2023, September 12). Evaluating Source Credibility & More! Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. https://guides.library.tamucc.edu/NURS3318

Moe, R. (2017, March 31). Academic Research Foundations: Quantitative. LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/learning/academic-research-foundations-quantitative/welcome?u=75727812

Pew Research Center. (n.d.). Writing Survey Questions. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/our-methods/u-s-surveys/writing-survey-questions/

Raja, S. (2018, May 29). Are all the “facts” correct? - Editing Mastery: How to Edit Writing to Perfection. LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/learning/editing-mastery-how-to-edit-writing-to-perfection/are-all-the-facts-correct?u=75727812

Stanford University. (n.d.). Civic Online Reasoning. https://cor.stanford.edu/

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. (n.d.). Elementary Education, BS. https://www.tamucc.edu/programs/undergraduate-programs/elementary-education-bs.php

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. (n.d.). Why study history. https://www.tamucc.edu/liberal-arts/departments/humanities/history/index.php

Thomson Reuters. (n.d.). Auditing in accounting: What it is and how it works. https://tax.thomsonreuters.com/blog/auditing-in-accounting-what-it-is-and-how-it-works/

Westphal, L. (2020, September 11). A day in the life of a data scientist. LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/learning/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-data-scientist/biased-data-sets?autoplay=true

Wilson, B., Woollands, A., & Barrett, D. (2018). Care planning : A guide for nurses. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/tamucc/detail.action?pq-origsite=summon&docID=5584144#

Young, J. (n.d.). Identifying and evaluating instructional materials. Indiana University. https://iu.pressbooks.pub/online2020/chapter/instructional-materials/

I-Know SLO 2 Evaluate

2a) Evaluate a source’s credibility in the context of their information needs

2b) Evaluate a source’s suitability in the context of their information needs

Aligning with the ACRL Framework

SLO 2: Evaluate aligns with 2 frames of the ACRL framework.

SLO 2A: Authority is Constructed and Contextual

SLO 2B: Information Creation as a Process

I-Know Faculty Guide:SLO 2: Evaluate Career Applications