By Cathy Rowe,
GETTING READY FOR THE INFORMATION AGE
What does it mean to be information literate? In this Information Age, when the expansion of available information is proceeding at an unprecedented rate, clear concepts of how to access and evaluate this information are essential. National organizations, including the American Association of Higher Education (AAHE), the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), and a growing number of the regional accreditation associations are grappling with the issue of ensuring that our graduates are information literate. The American Library Association defines information literacy as the ability to “recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate and use effectively the needed information." (1)
What does a person need to know today to be a full-fledged, competent and literate member of the information society? Jeremy Shapiro and Shelley Hughes posed this question in their article “Information Literacy as a Liberal Art.” (2) It is their premise that those members of society who are able to effectively locate, evaluate and use information will be the “intelligent shapers” of the Information Age. Those who are dependent on others for their information needs are, in effect, relinquishing valuable freedoms. When citizens fail to understand how information is organized and accessible, they lose the freedom to seek and critically analyze information for themselves, the freedom to make personally informed decisions on political and social issues, and the freedom to make an enlightened contribution to the body of human knowledge. In this context, information literacy is more than how to search the Internet or use the latest Microsoft product. Information literacy rises to the level of possessing a worldview that acknowledges that there is a wealth of information available and that an educated citizen should possess the ability to harness it to enhance his own life and the lives of those around him. The information literate citizen has:
The goal of information literacy is reflected in the mission of our university; to empower the student to be an independent, life-long learner. Seeking information in all its forms will continue to include both print and electronic sources although these sources will continue to change and evolve. The challenge is to provide students with the means to see beyond the framework to the information contained within the latest print source or new technology. The student should then be able to determine how it is organized and accessed, to evaluate its quality and to judge how best it can be used. To obtain this goal will be a challenge for faculty and information professionals alike. It will not be achieved in one class or even one course but in a series of incremental steps throughout a student’s college experience.
- an understanding of the process of seeking information in all its forms and formats.
- an ability to analyze information for accuracy, authority and bias.
- an ability to extract, manage and synthesize the information into a personal expression of ideas and values.
- an understanding that there are legal and ethical issues where the intellectual property of others is concerned.
In January of this year, the Board of Directors of ACRL approved the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. These are a set of core competencies that are meant to be integrated into the curriculum. There are five standards, twenty-two performance indicators and a range of measurable outcomes to assist in the assessment of student learning. The standards define an information literate student and then proceed to delineate the various levels of thinking skills that would be required to exhibit mastery of that particular standard. The standards are online at http://www.ala.org/acrl/ilcomstan.html.
In March, at the American Association of Higher Education’s National Conference, ACRL joined AAHE in a forum on the theme of “New Students, New Expectations = New Information Infrastructures.” The ACRL standards were discussed in the context of information literacy as being an important higher education strategic initiative and a core mission of every institution.
Among the regional associations that accredit public and private schools, colleges and universities in the United States, three have added information literacy as a criteria for accreditation. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) has included information literacy since 1998. The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSCHE) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) have recently added it. WASC Standards 2000 lists information literacy as a “core learning ability and competency” and asks, “How does the institution ensure that its members develop the critical information literacy skills needed to locate, evaluate, and responsibly use information?” These standards may be found at http://www.wascweb.org/senior/newstandards/standards.html.
While information literacy has been established as a necessary competency, the practical skills of seeking and critically examining information should be supplemented with the ability to reflect on the nature of information as a whole. In the context of a liberal arts education, information literacy should play a larger role in developing educated citizens who will make meaningful contributions to society.
How can the objectives of information literacy be advanced here at Salve? The professional librarians have approved a mission statement for the library that includes an information literacy component. Ongoing collaboration between the reference librarians and many of the faculty indicates that, although the term may be new to many, the need for new ideas to confront the proliferation of information has been a matter of discussion over the last several years. New partnerships between faculty and librarians are being proposed as well as a pilot course on information literacy to be offered next semester. The goal will be to equip our students for the Information Age.
1. American Library Association. Presidential Committee on Information Literacy. Final Report. (Chicago: American Library Association, 1989.) online, Available: http://www.ala.org/acrl/nili/ilit1st.html 20 August 2000
2. Shapiro, Jeremy J. and Shelley K. Hughes. "Information Literacy as a Liberal Art", Educom Review, 31.2 (March/April 1996) online, Available: http://www.educause.edu/pub/er/review/reviewarticles/31231.htm 7 July 2000