A strategy for curriculum integration of information skills instruction

The ever increasing need of health professionals for information and the inclusion of active learning experiences in the medical school curriculum require that students learn the effective use of health information tools. Curriculum integration is gaining acceptance as an effective approach to teaching information skills in this setting. At the University of Miami School of Medicine, information skills components taught by library faculty are integrated into the Freshman Orientation Program and two sophomore curriculum courses. Beginning with a core set of skills and basic information management tools, more complex and subject-specific skills are introduced sequentially throughout the basic sciences curriculum. During the first two years, a wide range of information skills are taught, and students receive many opportunities to seek and identify information using both printed sources and computerized bibliographic databases. This paper describes how curriculum integration of information skills instruction was achieved and the many benefits of this approach. Included are a description of the information skills components, evaluation data, and future plans.