Frequently asked questions about information literacy
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is information literacy?
Information literacy is the set of learning and critical thinking skills necessary to access, evaluate and use information effectively. It means knowing when a book may be more helpful than a computer, it means asking questions, it means understanding that information is different than knowledge.
Information literate students are adept in their ability to navigate a broad range of information retrieval systems. They understand how information is organized, which can facilitate the way they find information.
Critical thinking and analytical skills also provide students with the cognitive abilities required to evaluate and use information that is best suited to solve a particular information need at any stage in their lives.
Learning to learn is at the heart of information literacy, which ultimately fosters one's sense of discovery, spirit of enquiry and appreciation for lifelong learning.
Why is information literacy important? - In general
Today, more than ever, students are faced with an overwhelming number of information sources. Information literacy provides students with the tools required to benefit from this situation.
Informed and critical citizens are at the heart of a democratic society where sound decisions depend on sound information.
Although finding information is easy, finding the right information can be difficult, especially as the volume of globally accessible information expands.
Why is information literacy important? - For Concordia University
The value of a Concordia University education is reflected in the information proficiency of its graduates.
Why is information literacy important? - For me and my students
Students with information literacy skills are better equipped to be efficient and effective searchers, something that can translate into higher quality research papers and assignments.
Information literacy promotes academic integrity, research and scholarship.
What is the difference between 1-hour workshops and an information literacy program?
In the same way that one does not learn a new language or how to play a musical instrument in a single 1-hour workshop, information literacy is a cognitive process that is best acquired gradually over time, in such a way as to be fully and truly integrated into one's own information seeking behaviour.
An information literacy program ensures that students learn skills at the most opportune times throughout their academic careers and within the most relevant contexts.
Where do librarians fit in?
To be successful, any information literacy initiative relies on collaboration between students, librarians, faculty members and university administrators.
Librarians are partners in the educational mission of Concordia University and are committed to improving student learning.
By the very nature of their work, librarians are skilled at accessing, evaluating and using information. These skills and background allows them to keep up-to-date with the ever-changing and fast-paced field of information.
Librarians provide learner-centered instruction on various tools, resources and search strategies tailored to meet course- or assignment-specific outcomes. They can also assist with assignment design in order to ensure that an information literacy component is included.
What is involved in implementing information literacy?
Many higher education institutions are currently implementing an integrated approach by discipline to information literacy. Modules and assignments are developed collaboratively and integrated throughout a program of study to provide students with relevant and meaningful opportunities to learn and apply required skills and knowledge.
An integrated approach is beneficial as students can better grasp the relationship between information literacy skills and their applicability to course content and coursework.
Implementing an information literacy program requires considerable time and energy, which is most effectively spent when librarians and faculty use their respective strengths to work together to develop the best possible model to enhance student learning.
Why should I spare class time for information literacy?
Devoting class time to information literacy ensures that students receive some basic level of instruction. They will not seek out other options, such as general workshops, online tutorials or help guides, on their own.
In addition, students will likely benefit from instruction that demystifies the library and information resources, and that provides them with practical skills and knowledge they can apply for the purposes of their assignment. This proactive method can result in students having more time to spend on analyzing and interpreting information rather than trying to find it.
More important, in-class instruction sends a strong message to students about the value you place on information research in the context of higher education.
How can my course benefit from information literacy?
Information literacy, at its core, is about the intelligent use of information. Through information literacy instruction and practice, students:
- become more autonomous when searching and evaluating information resources
- develop the capacity to think critically about the information they find
- complete assignments that show a greater range of authoritative and relevant sources
- familiarize themselves with legal and ethical issues surrounding information use
Through effective instruction, the risk of plagiarism decreases and students' confidence in their ability to use library and information resources increases, fostering their spirit of enquiry.
This can result in higher-quality and more thoughtful assignments, in more active participation in class discussions, and in better integration of course material and content into their existing knowledge base.
How do I incorporate information literacy in my curriculum?
There are many different ways to go about this depending on the specific subject area that you are teaching. In many situations, information literacy can be incorporated into the curriculum by addressing it in lectures, by modifying or redesigning assignments, and through hands-on exercises that develop and later assess these skills.
- Consult Concordia Libraries' Information Literacy Position Statement, which outlines the desired outcomes and performance indicators that students should acquire throughout their university education. By comparing it to the learning outcomes you have established for your course, you will be able to determine which ones are addressed in your curriculum and which are not.
- Adapt an existing course learning outcome to include elements pertaining to the importance and value of research, writing, critical thinking and evaluation.
- Have students evaluate and assess the quality of research in the literature. Encourage them to use a variety of sources to support their statements and arguments.
- Provide opportunities for students to acquire skills through instructional strategies and required coursework that are linked with the retrieval, evaluation and use of information.
- Contact your subject librarian to discuss potential strategies to integrate information literacy within your course.
How do we compare to other universities in terms of information literacy?
Many higher education institutions across North America are recognizing the value and significance of equipping their students, and ultimately their graduates, with the necessary knowledge and abilities to successfully locate, interpret and use information. They are implementing or have already implemented programs and strategies that provide opportunities for them to acquire fundamental information research skills and competencies.
Concordia Libraries currently offer general workshops open to all students. In addition, subject librarians offer course-specific library instruction, upon request. These methods are far from ideal because they do not, in any way, reach the entire student population, are mostly skills- and tool-based and do not introduce higher-level competencies such as critical thinking, evaluation and/or ethical use of information. This approach is also limited in terms of effectiveness as the importance of information research skills and knowledge are not fully recognized by faculty members and, therefore, are rarely, if ever, formally assessed.
For better results in equipping our graduates to work and function in an information rich and demanding environment, the Libraries need the support of the entire Concordia community, including faculty members, administrators and students.
Other universities are ahead of Concordia in terms of formally integrating information literacy teaching and learning within the curriculum.
For instance, in Quebec, the following initiatives are underway at other institutions:
| Université de Montréal | Politique de formation à l'utilisation de l'information – official university policy (relating to teaching) that was adopted on January 15, 2002 by the Secrétariat général; curriculum-integrated instruction in more than a dozen departments |
| Université Laval | Formal and progressive integration (over three years) of information literacy instruction within selected undergraduate programs in the Faculté des sciences de l'agriculture et de l'alimentation (similar approach being developed for the Faculté de pharmacie) |
| McGill University | McGill University Senate Committee on Libraries officially endorsed the ACRL Standards in February 2003 |
| École Polytechnique de Montréal | 12-hour course (ING8901 – Méthodologie de la recherche) that is mandatory for all PhD students and that is highly recommended to those masters students engaged in the research option |
