Information Literacy in the Curriculum

Faculty Liaison Librarians:Catherine Sherwood, Martin Edwards, Manfred

Gschwandtner

“The subjects comprising a course of study in a school or college”Oxford English Dictionary

What is Curriculum?

“Most fundamentally universities exist to continue the intellectual and personal development of young people; to help them gain the skills and knowledge they will need to carry out their plans of life; and to help them fulfil their capacities as citizens, creators, and leaders. A university education ought to be an environment in which the young person is challenged and assisted in the process of expanding and deepening his or her intellectual capabilities.”Daniel Little, Philosopher of Social Science, http://understandingsociety.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/defining-university-curriculum.html

A wider remit?

“To develop a distinctive curriculum offer with a strong focus on developing student employability and preparing students for employment, lifelong learning and citizenship in the modern, global world. Among the graduate attributes to be developed are: an ethical approach to professional life, research and enquiry skills, academic skills including critical thinking, communication skills and reflective capacities as learners / practitioners.”

CCCU Strategic Plan 2011-15

Living in the “information age”

What is information literacy?

“Information literacy is knowing when and why you need information, where to find it, and how to evaluate, use and communicate it in an ethical manner.”CILIP (Chartered Institute for Library and Information Professionals)

Information Literacy

The skills that are required to be information literate call for an understanding of:

A need for information The resources available How to find information The need to evaluate results How to work with or exploit results Ethics and responsibility of use How to communicate or share your findings How to manage your findings

For study at university – get good marks in assignments!

For lifelong learning – go on to further study For vocations – understand how to find

evidence-based research For living in society – live confidently in an

information age

Why skills are needed

SCONUL - “7 pillars” ANCIL - “A New

Curriculum for Information Literacy”

ALA – “Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education”

Models and frameworks

http://www.informationliteracy.org.uk/information-literacy-definitions/il-models/

Cranfield University –Online information literacy tutorial

UEL Infoskills – video clip “Using wikipedia”

Examples in practice

All CCCU students will gain and develop information literacy skills, through librarians and academic staff working as partners to integrate learning opportunities into the curriculum.

Our vision

Information Literacy provision at CCCU now: Haphazard Infrequent Unequal across programmes / levels / subjects /

faculties / campuses / full-time/part time students… etc.

But there are many examples of good practice!

Current situation

Librarians and academic staff working in partnership to achieve our Information Literacy Vision

An established CCCU Information Literacy Strategy with an active, working framework

The future?

1. What to deliver? Defining the content – what to include in a framework? How to integrate into curriculum/programmes.

Assessment?

2. Who to deliver? Librarians with academics? Overlap with other “graduate skills”, “digital literacy”, the

work of other university departments/services?

3. How to deliver information literacy? Methods: face to face, online tutorials, hands-on… Curriculum restraints of timetabling and fitting in content

Integrating Information Literacy into the new Learning and Teaching Strategy and getting “buy-in” from everyone?

The challenge!

Discuss!

1). What do you think is the most important aspect of information literacy we can teach our students?

2). A top-tip/suggestion of how to achieve this!

Write it down!

http://infoskills.uelconnect.org.uk/home/ https://ilrb.cf.ac.uk/ http://www.cranfield.ac.uk/about/people-and-

resources/external-services/library/online-information-literacy-tutorial.html

Online tutorial examples