Norco College Library Develops an Information Literacy Graphic Novel
By Hayley Ashby, Norco College
Norco College recently completed its own graphic novel titled, On the Research Trail: A Guide to Evaluating Information. Norco College librarians applied for and received a Century Circle grant from the RCCD Foundation to develop an inclusive 24-page library comic for students on how to critically evaluate the trustworthiness of information and identify misinformation and disinformation online. The comic's objective was to give students practical 21st Century strategies for determining the credibility of information, and highlight resources and tools available through the Wilfred J. Airey Library.
Creating a Graphic Novel
At Norco College the librarians recognize the graphic novel as a powerful storytelling medium for promoting visual and verbal literacy. The library’s collection of comic books, manga, and graphic novels has been cultivated to specifically support the College’s student population.
The popularity and draw of these materials inspired the library faculty to think about innovative ways to provide information literacy instruction. The increasing awareness of representation in the comic book industry has also raised the voices of diverse comic book authors, which has allowed the library to add more inclusive resources to its collections.
After coming up with the idea to develop a comic, the library faculty discussed the idea with the library dean, who unfortunately determined that existing library budget could not support the project. Undeterred, the librarians applied for an RCCD Foundation Century Circle Grant to cover the cost of contracting with the comic artist and printing physical copies.
After receiving the grant, the librarians began collaborating with Mike Hall, a fellow librarian and college instructor who had experience developing educational comics for academic and public libraries. Mike brought Dustin Evans on board to assist in coloring the pages once they were inked.
Content of the Story
Following the publication of Stanford History Education Group’s (2020) working paper, "Educating for Misunderstanding", Norco College librarians reflected on their approaches to teaching students how to evaluate information. Library faculty also observed that students were increasingly using social media sources such as TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Discord, and X to obtain current news information. Furthermore, "The Global Risks Report 2024" identified misinformation and disinformation as the number one global risk in the next two years due to the growing proliferation of artificial intelligence at a time when over half of the world's population is holding elections (World Economic Forum, 2024, 18-21). The current discourse on information and media literacy led the librarians to focus the graphic novel “story” on how to safely navigate today’s digital landscape to avoid information disorder.
The librarians shared background information and photos of the College and students with the artist including student population data to ensure that the drawings would be representative of our demographics. The characters in the comic represent Norco College. The narrator is a horse (Norco, CA is affectionately known as “Horsetown USA”) and our students are the main characters. When developing the script for the graphic novel, the library faculty brainstormed on the various information literacy frameworks for evaluating information.
These included:
• Academic and College Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy
• Fact Checking using SIFT (Stop, Investigate, Find Better Coverage, and Trace the Context)
• VIAbility Testing for News Sources (verification, independence, and accountability)
• Information Neighborhoods for better understanding the goal, method, practitioners, and outcomes for different domains such as Journalism or Entertainment
Using the Graphic Novel
Norco College is using its new graphic novel to introduce students to the library and to the basics of information literacy, especially evaluating information. The comic book highlights evaluation strategies and provides practical tools for students to become their own fact checkers. Librarians are also using the comic book to describe the different types of information sources that exist and are available at the Wilfed J. Airey Library.
Aligned with the Guided Pathways Framework, each school at Norco College has a dedicated library liaison. The library liaisons are distributing the graphic novel to faculty and students in their assigned school and providing guidance on how to use the material for instructional purposes.
Librarians have been using the graphic novel during library research sessions for courses such as English as a Second Language and Political Science. The comic will also be used by librarians teaching the LIB-1: Introduction to Information Literacy Course and will be integrated into the library’s information literacy Canvas modules.
Library faculty are developing companion guides, worksheets, and assessments that faculty can use in conjunction with the graphic novel. Since the comic is available in print and electronically, librarians are assisting faculty with embedding information literacy instruction into their courses.
Finally, the comic book is being used as an outreach tool for library tours, Welcome Week, Career and Academic Planning (CAP) Hour, and open house events to introduce the library and promote information literacy. Librarians will also be reaching out to feeder schools to discuss how the graphic novel could be used to promote information literacy at the high schools and middle college within the service area.