From Books to Bytes: Navigating the Research Ecosystem

“From Books to Bytes: Navigating the Research Ecosystem” is a set of online resources that provides students and instructors an engaging and accessible guide to navigating Columbia’s research ecosystem.

In collaboration with Columbia University librarians, CTL staff members worked to develop six multimedia-rich modules that define the research cycle, provide students with practical strategies, and cover related topics such as recognizing bias and managing citations. The modules are available to all students and faculty within CourseWorks.

The modules clarify each stage of research, from developing a coherent research strategy to preserving and sharing research outputs. These tools for explaining and supporting the research lifecycle enable students, whether undergraduates preparing their first research papers or established authors with multiple publications, to produce quality work in a higher education setting. Collectively, “From Books to Bytes” navigates each phase of the research process through 30- to 45-minute video modules, handouts, and information that support viewers in their use of library services and tools related to the fundamentals of research. The production team worked with Kindea Labs, an animation studio, to create fun and engaging animations for five of the modules.

“From Books to Bytes” also includes an Instructor Toolkit — a guide for how to contact and collaborate with a librarian to best leverage the series in class, how to access the series in CourseWorks, and how to implement instructional strategies and assessment techniques to disseminate the content.