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Chapter 1: Information Literacy
Lecture Notes
Key Terms
Competencies- Skills and capabilities to do something successfully or
properly
Computer Literacy- Knowledge and skills to sue computers and other
computer-related technology effectively and efficiently
Digital Literacy- Having skills to find, evaluate, create and communicate
information through digital technologies
Information Literacy- Ability to know when information is needed, where to
find it and how to evaluate and use it once it has been found
Lifelong Learning- Ongoing and self-directed search for knowledge and
development of competencies
Media Literacy- Ability to use many types of media
What is information literacy
Computer literacy
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Knowing about computers and related technology and being able to use
them effectively and efficiently
Being computer literate doesn’t mean you have the skills to find
information or use it effectively- need additional skills and
competencies
Media literacy
Ability to access, analyse, critically evaluate, create, contribute to and
take part in communications in many formats
Understanding the role of media in society
Digital literacy
Ability to find and use information, also includes issues such as
communication, teamwork and social awareness etc.
Information Literacy
Ability to know when information is needed and to be able to find,
evaluate and use the information.
Includes skills to access and use information sources
Why is it important to be information literate?
To be successful in your studies and research
For everyday living activities
To cope and do well in your chosen profession
Relation ship between information literacy and lifelong learning
able to apply and transfer these skills to many other areas of learning
and research.
not possible to learn everything you need to know in your field of study
in a few years at university- constantly evolving
Competencies of an information literate person in the digital
environment
Information literate individuals is able to do the following:
Recognise a need for information and determine the extent of the
information needed for making decisions and completing tasks.
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Find the needed information effectively and efficiently. This requires
knowledge of available information sources and applying systematic
search strategies intelligently.
Evaluate information and its sources critically and select only sources
that can be used.
Incorporate selected information into their knowledge base and use that
information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose.
Understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use
of information, and access and use information ethically and legally.
Communicate effectively in the digital environment and create new
ideas and products collaboratively.
Where do these information literacies come from?
Process Models
Big6 information literacy model:
1. Task definition- define the information problem and identify the
information need
2. Information seeking strategies: Identify all possible sources of
information and select the best ones
3. Location and access: Find sources and information in the sources
4. Use information: Read, look at source information and extract the
appropriate information
5. Synthesis: Combine all information and present it as an assignment
or report
6. Evaluation: Evaluate the product and the process to determine the
effectiveness and efficiency of information
Information literacy framework:
Authority is constructed and contextual
Trustworthiness of information creator is reflected in the source
Information creation as a process
Process of researching and creating information
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Information has value
Information has several dimensions of value
Legal and socioeconomic interests influence information
production and dissemination.
Research as enquiry
is iterative and depends on asking increasingly complex or new
questions whose answers in turn develop into additional
questions or lines of enquiry.
Scholarship as conversation
Communities of scholars engage in sustained discourse with
new insights and discoveries
Search as a strategic exploration
often non-linear and iterative, requiring the evaluation of a range
of information sources and the mental flexibility to pursue
alternative avenues as new understanding develops.
Digital and information literacy framework:
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