Information Literacy Defined

The American Library Association defines Information Literacy as a set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information.

Information Literacy is Everyone's Problem

The set of skills required to be considered informationally literate are applicable to students of all ages and span all disciplines. It is vital that every instructor, no matter the subject taught, takes time to teach and guide students in knowing when and where to find information and how to evaluate this information for legitimacy. For this reason it is important for instructors to use sources of information in their teaching that reinforce these concepts. This especially includes the use of technology-based resources.

While a quote from NPR's Camila Domonoske is quoted to the left, Chris Berdick of Slate writes that, "despite young people’s reputation as “digital natives,” they are woefully unprepared to sort online fact from fiction, and the danger isn’t just to scholarship but to citizenship." The positive side is that teachers have remarkable influence to reduce these numbers!

What Instructors Can Do

Instructors can provide opportunities for increased informational literacy by:

engaging students in critical thinking activities
giving students choice in research topics
modeling critical thinking and evaluative practices
demonstrating appropriate digital citizenry
providing a process for writing and research topics with check points
using acceptable sources and demonstrating a process for finding them
developing a code of ethics for students and a plan for issues of plagiarism
helping students understand the digital footprint they leave behind and how to build a positive online image

Read This Article

Please read these articles and proceed to the assignment following.

Students Have 'Dismaying' Inability To Tell Fake News From Real, Study Finds

'Fake News,' Bogus Tweets Raise Stakes for Media Literacy