Associate Librarian University of Arizona Libraries
Supported by a Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS) Program Grant, librarians at the University of Arizona Libraries (UAL) partnered with disciplinary faculty to develop lessons that incorporated digitized primary sources into undergraduate and graduate courses in a range of disciplines. Teaching with primary sources can support inquiry-based learning, and the aim of this project was to foster collaborations with faculty to enhance both student learning and engagement and to encourage increased use of primary sources in teaching. To date, these partnerships have resulted in reaching over 200 undergraduate and graduate students in 10 different courses in disciplines ranging from history and women’s studies, to English and education, and to music and Middle East studies, as well as in general education and honors courses. Initial evaluation of the project included student reflections on their experiences in learning with primary sources. The lesson plans with links to digitized primary sources will be hosted as open educational resources on the UAL website and available for librarians and instructors to adapt for their own teaching. This poster will highlight samples of the co-created lesson plans, showcase images of a variety of primary sources used in courses, and present preliminary insights from assessment.