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Notes & Quotes

    Books

    Information Literacy

    by Mary Beth Parkinson, Information Literacy Librarian

    Although information literacy has been promoted and taught chiefly by librarians, it is not solely about libraries. Rather, information literacy is really about learning – reading, writing, thinking, as well as searching, selecting, analyzing, and questioning and is, therefore, truly a curriculum issue. As a learning and teaching issue, information literacy requires the collaboration of faculty and librarians to better support and nurture the developing abilities of our students in relation to information use.

    A complex set of skills, information literacy encompasses much more than knowing what information to pursue, locating, and then evaluating the information. With the goal of preparing our students for success in an information culture, it further requires that students apply new knowledge to solve a problem, and/or create a written, oral, or visual product. Reaching beyond the textbook and lecture notes to more fully explore course content in terms of an idea, concept, discovery, or historical moment, provides the student with opportunities to build information literacy skills. This process clearly requires the involvement, support, and subject expertise of the classroom faculty.

    The Core Steering Committee has identified information literacy as one of five skills (along with computer fluency, communication, analytic and quantitative reasoning) essential for our students’ academic, career, personal, and lifelong success. Information literacy, which is also cross-disciplinary in nature, will be a part of our general core and will be integrated with learning outcomes and assessed, in some way, at the course and program level.

    The development of information literacy is a process that is best developed and assessed through a variety of disciplines across the curriculum. We look forward to working with our faculty to ensure that our students are building this essential literacy. I encourage faculty who are ready to add an information literacy/research component to a course and wish to have some assistance to contact me. [I would also suggest taking the CTL described below.]

    Librarians at the Brendlinger and West campus libraries are pleased to offer assignment-related classes focusing on library research strategies and information literacy. Class sessions generally cover pertinent reference sources, electronic search techniques, and a demonstration of online databases. To schedule classes and discuss instruction:

    Brendlinger Library
    – Day classes - contact Mary Beth Parkinson – 215-619-7480
    – Evening classes – contact Robert Erb – 215-646-6622

    West Campus Library
    – Day classes – Marie Devine – 610-718-1867; Kevin Strunk – 610-718-1912
    – Evening classes – Terri Sharif – 610-718-1820


    CTL Learning Community for Information Literacy

    To more fully explore and discover how information literacy can be integrated with the learning outcomes identified for a course, there will be an information literacy learning community offered through the CTL on the Central campus this semester. The sessions will meet from 12:30 until 1:30 on 9/27; 10/16; 11/15; and 12/6. In addition to strengthening research skills with practice using our catalog, databases, and the Internet, this 2-credit CTL program will also require some outside readings as well as the creation or modification of an existing course syllabus and assignment(s). Please call me with any questions regarding these sessions. You may register for these sessions through the CTL website.

    For more information about the Library’s information literacy initiatives, please refer to previous issues of the Notes & Quotes newsletter, especially the Fall ’05 and Spring “06 issues.