Week 3: What Works in Information Literacy

What is information literacy? In short, it’s the ability to find information and know how to use it appropriately.  In Week 3, I have looked at three different articles that deal with some aspect of information literacy (IL).  Two of the articles focused on the most effective ways of reaching learners for IL instruction while a third article was all about a specific example of implementing an online class for teaching IL.  What seemed most obvious from my reading is that there is no single best method of imparting information literacy skills to library patrons.  Rather, teaching information literacy skills happens whenever the opportunity presents itself.

The first article I read, “Making information literacy relevant (Shenton & Fitzgibbons),” discussed how we can encourage better information-seeking habits through broadening our ideas of what are appropriate search topics.  This question of what students should search for—only academic-related topics? or subjects of personal interest as well?—is of primary concern to the authors. IL strategies are typically taught within what the authors refer to as “exercise” categories—so the student is not necessarily familiar with how IL may be applicable in real-world, real-interest areas. They argue that, as instructors of IL, we should strive to draw upon subjects of interest to our learners. After all, the more students can relate to what they are searching for, the more they will care about the search process, and the more information literate they will become.

Another article, “Alternative strategies for promoting information literacy (Galvin),” also dealt with how IL can best be taught.  Specifically, the author was interested in utilizing teachable moments for IL instruction, and she stressed that becoming information literate is an ongoing process.  Related to this, she observed that IL can seldom be learned effectively through a “one-shot” tutorial or workshop—a point I found interesting considering the reading (author) from last week. As an example of how and where IL can be taught, Galvin points out the reference services offered at academic libraries. Reference librarians should strive for excellent customer (patron) service, the author argues, as being approachable may mean the difference between a student learning valuable information literacy skills or not. Over all, the more available library resources are (in whatever form: handouts, roving librarians, modules, virtual reference desks), the more probable it is that students will eventually grasp necessary IL skills.

Finally, I looked at an article about a specific case of information literacy instruction (“Taking information literacy online,” Levesque). The author described the experience of designing a new IL course at a community college and the challenges that came with this task. I was hoping this article would provide examples of what worked well in an online information literacy course, but I came away from the reading with a better idea of what didn’t work so well in an online environment. For instance, posting in forums and discussion boards was especially problematic for first-time users—they just didn’t do it.  At the same time, the article offered a few worthwhile tidbits for future instructors of IL: stay away from text-based instruction, use group projects to actively engage participation, etc.

To summarize, teaching IL should not be reserved for purely instructional moments (IL tutorials or courses). IL can be learned from whenever the circumstances allow.  Moreover, as Shenton & Fitzgibbons and Galvin point out, students are unlikely to want to learn IL skills unless backed into a corner. Galvin notes that most literacy skills are learned at the “point of need,” or whenever the student has exhausted his list of options and (finally) needs to know how to find and use information. This notion of reluctance or resistance to learning IL suggests that perhaps designing tutorials, workshops or entire classes on the subject may not be the best route.  The motivation for learning IL must be in place first, and this usually occurs during the course of regular academic work.  Consequently, librarians should make IL resources readily available to students—through webpages, pamphlets, online modules, or in-person instruction/reference—whenever the information need strikes.

Shenton, A.K., & Fitzgibbons, M. (2010). Making information literacy relevant. Library Review, 59(3), 165-174. 

Galvin, J. (2005). Alternative strategies for promoting information literacy. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 31(44), 352-357.

Levesque, C. (2003). Taking information literacy online. Community & Junior College Libraries, 11(2), 7-11.