Information literacy has become a complex topic because it is imperative that people become information literate in order to successfully navigate the wealth of information on the web and decide whether or not it is credible. In “The Nation: Course correction; teaching students to swim in the online sea” Geoffrey Nunberg says: “The trusting nature is partly a legacy of the print age-if we give the benefit of the doubt to the things we read in library books it is because they have been screened twice: first by a publisher, who decided they were worth printing and then by a librarian who acquired them or a professor that requested their purchase”. (Nunberg, 2005, para. 3). This tells us that we have left information literacy to the Information professionals and therefore have not learned the proper ways to evaluate sources. College students have turned to Google as their main research source and simply click the first links that appear on the page, assuming that the information is credible because it appears first. This limits the scope of student research because they lack information literacy. Carie Windham, author of Getting past Google: Perspectives on information literacy from the millennial mind says: “students often limit their search options by relying on digitized sources when more relevant, hard copy sources may be found on the libraries shelves”. (Windam, 2006, p.5) The objective of information literacy education is to produce citizens who are informed, able to succeed in society and who can evaluate information in beneficial ways. Using Google as the sole source for academic research (even though it does contain products such as Google Scholar) is not enough.
This is one reason why Information Literacy tutorials such TILT (Texas Information Literacy Tutorial), developed by the library system at University of Texas at Austin are important for educating students in Information Literacy. Tutorials integrate new, flashy, technology with traditional research questions and answers such as: “how do I evaluate this source”?, “Is this source credible”? “What sources are best for certain types of information”? It attempts to provide a focus for student research and show them that both the Internet and the library are valuable research tools once you have the skills necessary to navigate them. TILT won the Association of College and Research Libraries annual “Innovation in Instruction Award. (University of Texas Information Literacy Tutorial Wins More National Honors, 2000). According to the article: “Texas information literacy tutorial wins more national honors, from the University of Texas at Austin’s website, TILT is:
“a modular, Web-based tool designed to teach undergraduates fundamental research skills, covers the selection of appropriate information sources; effective searching of library databases and the Internet; and the location, evaluation and citation of information. In each module students learn concepts and practice them through interactions.” (University of Texas Information Literacy Tutorial Wins More National Honors, 2000). This tutorial is a great example of how librarians can help students become more information literate. (Click on this link to check out the Tutorial).
http://tilt.lib.utsystem.edu/intro/require.htm
Do you think this tutorial supports information literacy learning? Do you think other college students would be responsive to this type of product if it was featured in your library? This was originally designed for students in an academic library, but how could you adapt it for a general population within a public library?
The New York Times also has a position on information literacy in its current series called “The Future of Reading”. The article entitled: “Online, RU really Reading” addresses how the Internet is affecting literacy for children, teens and college students. Researchers argue that web-reading promotes traditional literacy and information literacy at the same time because students are engaged in reading the content they are most interested in, such as fan fiction and blogs. In effect, they are reading and engaging with information even though it may not be in traditional formats. Additionally, “some literacy experts say that online reading skills will help children fare better when they begin looking for digital age jobs” (Rich, 2008, Setting Expections section, para. 1 )This is one pro for on-line reading and literacy, because it promotes information literacy, but there are also cons. One con is that it ruins concentration and changes the way the brain processes the act of reading. “Zigzagging through a cornucopia of words, pictures, videos and sounds…distracts more than strengthens readers”. (Rich, 2008, Setting Expections section, para.14) As we move into the digital age of libraries we must recognize a variety of ways to promote information literacy.
Can you think of other pros and cons for the idea that online/digital reading supports information literacy?
References
Nunberg, G. (2005, February 13). The Nation: course correction: Teaching students to swim in the online sea. New York Times. Retrieved, October 28, 2008, from, http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9501E2D8143AF930A25751C0A9639C8B63&sec=&spon=&&scp=2&sq=information%20literacy&st=cse
Rich, M. (2008, July 27). Online RU Really Reading. New York Times. Retrieved October 28, 2008, from, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/27/books/27reading.html
University of Texas at Austin. (2000, April 19). Texas information literacy tutorial wins more national honors. In Office of Public Affairs News. Retrieved October 28, 2008, from, http://www.utexas.edu/news/2000/04/19/nr_tilt/
University of Texas System Digital Library. (16 June 2003). Texas Information Literacy Tutorial. Retrieved October 25, 2008, from, http://tilt.lib.utsystem.edu/intro/require.htm
Windam, C. (2006). Getting past Google: Perspectives on information literacy from the millennial mind. Educause Learning Initative, 3,1-10. Retrieved October 28, 2008, from, http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI3007.pdf
7 comments:
I can think of a con for the idea that online reading suports informational literacy.
In the July/August 2008 edition of _The Atlantic_ magazine, in an article titled "Is Google Making us Stupid?", Nicholas Carr argues that while online reading/navigating may make us more technologically saavy, it comes with the cost of a loss of concentration and contemplation. We are still reading the same information, he argues, but we are not reading it in the same way. In other words, reading online is changing the very way we think and process information.
How is it changing the way we think? Anyone who reads online can answer that. As for me, online reading is fast, information is downloaded, the faster the better, I jump from page to page, spot to spot, constantly skipping over material, constantly browsing and rarely reading it slowly. To sum up: it is different from sitting down with a book and reading it, and then thinking it over.
The article can be found here (or you could read the hard-copy.hehe): http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google
I think he has a point here. Do you?
Thank you, Matt.
Yes, I agree that Nicholas Carr has a point in saying that we lose are abilities to concentrate and contemplate if we read online. He also made a good point about the fact that, now because of online reading and different ways of concentrating, we have to tailor the new technologies to the media for people to comprehend information in more digital ways (such as adding tags, crawlers and pop-ups to tv). This is why the Texas Information Literacy Tutorial is important-it integrates new technology with traditional research questions so that students are exposed to a technology medium while having the opportunity to learn how to engage with other non-print resources. If you click on the link to check out the tutorial it will take you to it. You need to scroll all the way to the bottom to where it says "Enter TILT" and it will let you in if you want to try it.
I think a tutorial is a great way to help introduce patrons to a topic. Although it depends on the community in which the library is serving, some communities may not have a lot of success with it. As for the example shown on the blog about the college campus and computers, I think its great start. Not everyone will take advantage of it, but it may be a great resource for others.
I find the Nicholas Carr's reasoning very interesting, and one that has occured to me as well. but I also thought about the way that not only our habits of spending time online are changing, but all other aspects of our lives as a result of it. Is the internet trying to keep up with us, or are we trying to keep up with the internet? The cause and effect are so mixed up it's hard to tell how far the cycle of accelerating information production and consumption can go.
Yes, we are reading and processing online in a different way, but not because we are being made stupid (perhaps), but because we are such highly adaptive creatures. We become fast because we demand that we become fast. Society demands that we become fast. Otherwise we may lose our job or never get one, perhaps our friends will visit other people's pages and forget us. Some of us like the speed and some don't. Some of us rebel on different levels. The Slow Food Movement has stood in the face of this acceleration as a defiant response to it. I wonder if there is a Slow Read Movement somewhere. Maybe quietly. In the libraries there are underground revolutionaries who read novels and taste the words as they ponder the symbolism in solitude.
I think it promotes information literacy because the skills provided gets the users to question print and other sources of information as well. Once they learn how to evaluate websites they can apply the skills to books. After all the internet is not the single provider of false information.
I agree that loss of concentration is a drawback of reading online. I guess it's psychological, but I tend to equate anything Web-related with being fast-paced, and generally fall into a pattern of "scanning" information rather than really reading it. I usually print anything I want to read to re-gain focus and perspective. I need the old school printed page to keep myself in line.
I think tutorials are a great way to bring attention to the fact that all Web-based information is not created equally. I think that tutorials should be created for all age-ranges and used as soon as children are exposed to the internet in school. Anything promoting reading is a good, thing, but instilling the habit of questioning information should be taught in conjunction with the technical aspects of computers and the Web. Adapting tutorials for use in public libraries would be helpful. They could be presented in a variety of ways, such as self-service tutorials, game themed tutorials for younger patrons, and special presentations lead by library staff. Some libraries already offer presentations/classes for those who want to learn to use computers and surf the net. Tutorials such as TILT, should be integrated into those types of programs.
Kinga's comment about society's requirement for speed is a good one. It has become ingrained in us. I realized that at work yesterday, when I found myself standing in front of the microwave, wishing it would hurry. I think that is in part, what sets people up to think that the quantity of information available with a few keystroke and a click, is actually quality information. If it appears that fast, it must be important and usable information. There is merit in slowing down and doing real evaluation, and there is actually a "slow read" movement happening. I have attached some interesting links.
http://www.freelance-academy.org/slowread.htm
http://johnmiedema.ca/slow-reading/
There's an interesting PDF document under the literature review link.
http://fno.org/mar97/deep.html
Interesting article entitled "Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info-Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-Glimmer"
Ahhhh, such a blizzard of information and a slip-slidey slope of better vs worse! Admittedly, they both serve a good purpose. But it fact that everyone is reading fewer books, especially kids. I believe reading on the web is completely different from reading a book. The web is very interactive, fast, colorful, with bells and whistles. On the other hand, reading a book is a solitary, quiet, slow activity. Reading on the web is practically equal to watching tv, fast and flashy, just right for the short attention span that afflicts so many young people today. Is this old-fashioned thinking that comes from someone who loves the feel and smell of a book in her hands? I don't think so. I believe information literacy is a vital aspect of our world today- absolutely. But reading entire books online, or using the web as a sole source of reading, is, I believe, more of a disservice to young people than a source of value. A balance of the two fabulous worlds of reading and the info literacy on the web must be forged- one where kids are not forced to select books based on a level and the fact that they have to take a test and get a certain number of points. Another where kids get curriculum on information literacy- what could be more relevant to young people's success than an appreciation for reading and information literacy? Two separate entities both with the power to change lives but...."nary the two shall be a complete substitute for another."
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