What are the key understandings in teaching about information? Think about how information is conceptualized, both within popular consciousness, and academia. Using Bruce's informed learning, as well as standards what do we think is important in understanding information?
I’m not really sure that information literacy as a term or the concept we in academia think of has really reached popular consciousness yet. I know that the academic world of people like Bruce (and us) have been talking about information literacy, and now informed learning, since the mid-1990s. The idea of information literacy, according to Bruce, began to emerge in the early 1970s with the “advent of information technologies [and has] grown, taken shape and strengthened to become recognized as the critical literacy for the twenty-first century” (Bruce, 2002). However, until I began working in academia and studying Information Science, I had not heard the term “information literacy”, and I still think that the term itself has not reached popular consciousness even today.
I mean, sure most Millennials (or Gen-Y’ers) know how to look up information on the Internet, and many of them even know how to find information on an e-database. However, I’m not too sure that most of them know that what they are doing has a name…information literacy. They not only need to be taught all of the different ways they can determine information needs and how to access the information, as well as evaluate and use it, but they also need to understand the importance of these skills and how they may be used in all facets of life. Not just to finish their homework or do a research paper. According to Bruce, and others, information literacy is the “key to lifelong learning”, which is why I feel that even Bruce’s conception of information literacy has changed over the years.
I found, and read, a paper from 2002 and a Powerpoint presentation from 2003, in which Bruce refers to her Seven Faces of Information Literacy. However, in 2008 she began to call them the Seven Faces of Informed Learning. Over time we, as teachers, have come to see that we do not need to teach information literacy so that students can simply know how to find information, but that we need them to understand how the skills they learn can affect all aspects of their lives and to motivate them to continue developing their information skills all their lives long. I also feel that our conceptions will continue to change as information sources continue to evolve.
References:
Bruce, C. S. (2008). Informed Learning. Chicago: American Library Association.
Bruce, C.S. (2002, July). Information Literacy as a Catalyst for Education Change: A Background Paper. White Paper prepared for UNESCO, the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, and the National Forum on Information Literacy, for use at the Information Literacy Meeting of Experts, Prague, The Czech Republic.
Bruce, C.S. (2003). Seven Faces of Information Literacy: Toward inviting student into new experiences. Powerpoint presentation, retrieved March 10, 2011, from http://www.bestlibrary.org/digital/files bruce.pdf
5 comments:
Hi Tracy- I think that you are right about needing to teach students the need for these information technology skills. There are so many times when we think, “Do I really need to know this”? Often if there is a reason behind why we are learning it, it is easier to learn (or it is for me!) Too often, the skills that are taught are in isolation, and students don’t even realize that they can be transferred to other areas of learning. As much as I hate to say it, people are often very literal in their thinking and understanding of their own learning.
I think that you and Bruce bring up a good point, that “Information Literacy is the key to life long learning”. But isn’t it our interest in a specific area that would motivate our continued learning? I wonder if/how it would be possible to spark that same sort of interest in students in other areas, especially the areas that they are not as interested in.
I would like to add that besides the idea of information literacy not being recognized within popular consciousness, I think that most people see learning as an A to B experience, with a beginning, a middle, and then an end. To give you an example, in my other class I was studying articles pertaining to youth and reading. One study questioned why students read, and while many students saw reading as a pleasurable activity that they did in their spare time, many students identified reading as something they do in order to get good grades. They didn’t recognize reading as a process, but a straight line that starts at one point and ends at another.
I guess my point in this conversation is that as Tracey stated, not only is information literacy not common knowledge and needs to be identified and understood by learners, but I see this issue clearly impacting the current way of teaching and assessing students-this needs to change in order to ensure that learning is a process, not a point A to point B experience. Until learners are able to recognize and see that these information skills are necessary outside of the classroom, they will continue to learn in order to “finish their homework or do a research paper.”
"I also feel that our conceptions will continue to change as information sources continue to evolve."
We live in a changing world. Recognizing that information sources change is an important part of Information Literacy. We are preparing students to be adaptive and critical so that they can evolve and develop as conceptions change. We are preparing them to be life long learners who will survive in a world that is currently undefined. We know that the future generations will occupy jobs that don't even exist today, and that they will change their jobs (and careers) many more times that we are foretasted to do. They must be information literate to survive.
“Too often, the skills that are taught are in isolation, and students don’t even realize that they can be transferred to other areas of learning.”
I remember when I would just learn information for a test and then forget what I had learned because I never used it again. When I entered college and took classes in my major I became more intrigued with anthropology. I also learned that many of the subjects and information were similar and could be used in other classes. I was amazed when I would learn the same concept in two different classes. I could use information learned in one class and many more, throughout my major. It felt really rewarding when I already knew a concept and could further my learning instead of learning it all over from the beginning.
I’m glad that you pointed out that collaboration is not confined to group projects. Collaboration, you point out, is about interaction. As I wrote my reflection I was thinking about this, and while I did not express the idea directly I had considered the idea that we often associate collaboration with projects that are designed for group work. It is important that we remember that collaboration is a more general idea. We collaborate when we answer each other’s questions and when we share ideas. Collaboration is like sharing and responding to each other’s ideas. As Julie pointed out in her blog we sometimes seek out others to use as a ‘soundboard’, as Julie did when she began to think about her project, to help us organize and develop our ideas. This is a type of collaboration that we use though we might not always consider these types of interactions as collaboration.
I’m also glad that you mentioned the off-topic forums. In my 285 module we met in groups on Elluminate. The professor instructed us to talk informally for twenty minutes before we stated our formal group meeting. This informal conversation was very useful because it helped us navigate the more formal part of the Elluminate sessions. We are social animals and our interactions are complicated through “off topic” conversations we begin to learn to interact more successfully.
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