Researcher Unbound and National University of Singapore (NUS) Libraries' Evolving Role in Supporting University Research

2021 ◽  
pp. 216-246
Author(s):  
Fang Chiong (Patrick) Pu ◽  
Su Yian Kho ◽  
Ke Khoon Low ◽  
Amy Chou
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Knowledge Exchange ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
University Research ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Continual Improvement ◽  
National University ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
The University

As a discipline-neutral entity, knowledge exchange, and nexus of the university, the National University of Singapore (NUS) Libraries is the ideal conduit for bringing together faculties and departments to facilitate cross-disciplinary education and research. This case study gives a detailed walkthrough on the creation and design of the Research Skills Framework (RSF), which forms the backbone for all information literacy programmes (ILPs), specifically the flagship Researcher Unbound (RU) programme and RU Symposium, and shares challenges faced and future improvement plans. The exploration, design, and continual improvement of the programme ensured that NUS Libraries provides relevant and timely research support and enhances the digital information literacy skills of the NUS community. This programme continues to be a work in progress drawn from participants' feedback, attendance, experience, and insights from seven semestral runs and cumulative total of 172 workshop sessions.

scholarly journals Academic Librarians in Data Information Literacy Instruction: A Case Study in Meteorology

2016 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. 536-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily P. Frank ◽  
Nils Pharo
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Target Population ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Academic Librarians ◽  
Information Literacy Instruction ◽  
Modified Delphi ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
The University

E-science has reshaped meteorology due to the rate data is generated, collected, analyzed, and stored and brought data skills to a new prominence. Data information literacy—the skills needed to understand, use, manage, share, work with, and produce data—reflects the confluence of data skills with information literacy competencies. This research assessed perceptions of data information literacy and attitudes on its instruction for graduate students in meteorology. As academic librarians have traditionally provided information literacy instruction, the research determined if they were perceived as having a role in data information literacy instruction. The modified Delphi method was applied to obtain the perspectives of a panel of experts, representing students, librarians, professors, and researchers, for the purpose of forecasting and consensus-making. Through the consideration of the University of Oslo’s Department of Geosciences’ Meteorology Section, the research found that data information literacy skills were relevant to the work of meteorology students. Stakeholders perceived that academic librarians could play a future role in general instruction but that they would have to overcome obstacles to be involved in data information literacy instruction. For librarians to enter this domain, they would need to improve their technical skills, enhance their discipline-specific knowledge, or rely on collaborations. The significance of these findings was limited by the modest target population under examination; as a consequence, the results were strongly linked to the specific setting. Further studies would be necessary to determine their generalizability.

Examining digital information literacy as a determinant of women's online shopping behavior

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Munazza Mahmood ◽  
Syeda Hina Batool ◽  
Muhammad Rafiq ◽  
Muhammad Safdar
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Online Shopping ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Shopping Behavior ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Online Shopping Behavior

PurposeThe present study aims to examine the current digital information literacy (DIL) skills of female online shoppers in Lahore city of Pakistan. Data were gathered from a purposive sampling of women, aged between 20–50 years who were buying products online, not from the traditional retail stores. Out of 309 received questionnaires, 269 responses were useable and were utilized for data analysis. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to deduce inferences.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative research approach was employed for this study, and a survey was conducted to collect the data from the study's respondents. For data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics were used.FindingsResults revealed that the digital information literacy skills of women were good to a moderate level. However, they were not confident in applying advanced searching options. In accordance with what was hypothesized in a directional hypothesis, DIL was found to be a strong predictor of online shopping behavior of women, consequently highlighting the importance of such competencies in modern life. Other findings illustrate that participating women rarely engaged in online shopping and felt hesitation in using credit/debit card for online transactions.Research limitations/implicationsThese observations highlight the important role of information professionals in creating digital literacy among different population groups, specifically women, by planning digital information instruction through courses, workshops and trainings. This could eventually be possible with the dynamic role of librarians or information professionals in the society.Originality/valueThe present study adopts the unique approach of measuring online shopping behavior of female shoppers in connection with their digital information literacy skills.

scholarly journals From Quest to Conquer: Traversing General Education at a Diverse Alaskan University to Integrate and Assess Transferable Information Literacy Skills in Foundational Courses

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Bjartmarsdóttir ◽  
Deborah L. Mole
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Northern Region ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Faculty Teaching ◽  
University Of Alaska Anchorage ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
The University ◽  
Professional Degrees

The University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) is an open enrollment university that offers vocational, academic, and professional degrees in a northern region. UAA serves a culturally and demographically diverse population. Given this diversity, students display varying levels of information literacy (IL) competencies. Library Professors Anna Bjartmarsdóttir and Deborah Mole partner with faculty teaching composition and communication courses to create increasingly sophisticated and transferable IL learning opportunities. Strategies include: assessing students’ IL competencies; creating engaging activities; integrating IL throughout the semester; developing reflection opportunities to reinforce IL skills. UAA librarians, partnered with faculty, integrate and scaffold IL activities in foundational GE courses to develop increasingly sophisticated, transferable IL skills and knowledge practices. From team-based learning application exercises to workshops for teaching assistants, students learn how creativity partnered with initiative has helped to integrate transferable IL skill education at this diverse arctic university.

scholarly journals Invited guest or wedding crasher?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Everhart
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Professional Practice ◽  
Common Core ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
School Librarian ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
School Librarians ◽  
National School ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
The Common

Nationwide education initiatives are underway in various parts of the world, including a push for national curricula in the U.S. and Australia. In Australia, school librarians have been invited guests to provide input into the integration of digital/information literacy across curriculum areas. Conversely, U.S., school librarians crashed the wedding by actively responding to the Common Core Standards initiative by highlighting areas where information literacy skills, dispositions, responsibilities and assessments are integrated – even though they weren’t asked. Other examples of successful and not so successful national school librarian involvement to infuse 21st century skills and implications for professional practice are discussed.

Information Literacy among Undergraduate Students in Nigeria

2016 ◽  
pp. 1314-1327
Author(s):  
Stella E. Igun ◽  
Jessa Precious Odafe
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Survey Design ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
State University ◽  
Statistical Tool ◽  
Needed Information ◽  
Information Literacy Skills

This paper examined information literacy skills among undergraduate students in Nigeria. The scope of the study covered two departments in Delta State University, Abraka namely: Library and Information Science and Guidance and Counselling. The study was limited to final year students of the two departments. The descriptive survey design was adopted for the study and the population was 517. 103 or 20% of the population of 517 were sampled for the study. 97 questionnaires were retrieved and used for the study. Simple percentage and frequency count statistical tool was used to analyze the data. The study found out that ability to use information effectively to accomplish a task, ability to recognize the needed information, ability to access the needed information effectively and efficiently and ability to evaluate information critically are the information literacy skills possessed by some of the undergraduate students in Nigeria. The study recommended that information literacy education and electronic/digital information skills should be included in the curriculum of the undergraduate students in the universities.

scholarly journals Transfer of academic information literacy skills to workplace contexts

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ina Fourie ◽  
Heidi Julien
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Critical Incident ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
Information Practices ◽  
University Of Pretoria ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
Academic Information ◽  
Transfer Of Information ◽  
The University

This paper reports preliminary results of a study analyzing transfer of information literacy skills learned in a compulsory undergraduate course at the University of Pretoria. Twenty-three alumni with a range of disciplinary backgrounds, and currently working in a diversity of workplaces, participated in critical incident interviews which explored transferability of the skills learned in the course, and information practices in the workplace.

scholarly journals A collaborative approach to the use of archives in information literacy teaching and learning in an arts university

2014 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 27-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adele Martin-Bowtell ◽  
Rebekah Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Creative Arts ◽  
Collaborative Approach ◽  
Literacy Teaching ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
Formed Part ◽  
Skills Learning ◽  
The University

Why do significant parts of our art libraries collections remain undiscovered and unused? Seemingly invisible to students and staff, the university archive strong room creates a barrier, preventing our students and researchers from accessing and browsing materials, as they would with our open shelf collections. What happens when archive materials are freed from their confines, brought out into the studio and explored and used by arts students? Better still, what happens when librarian, archivist and academic collaborate to make this happen, enabling increased awareness of these resources and facilitating information literacy skills learning? Conclude this with an artistic response to this method of teaching and learning and you have the Animation Archive Day at the University for the Creative Arts. The day formed part of a longer term initiative put together by the archivist and librarian to raise awareness among students and staff of the opportunities to utilize archives in their subject specific creative arts learning and education. The project recognizes the importance of allowing students to steer and interact creatively with archive use in a library context.

scholarly journals Information Literacy Alliances

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Verna George ◽  
Paulette Kerr
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
High Schools ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
The West ◽  
Informal Observation ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
University Level ◽  
The University

Informal observation by University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona librarians and anecdotal evidence from UWI faculty suggested that information literacy skills among students at the UWI Mona are inadequate for university level. Results of an informal survey of IL in select high school libraries in Jamaica indicated school IL programmes were not preparing students adequately. Therefore, the authors propose forging alliances between the University Mona Library and high school libraries to improve IL programmes in the high schools. The paper draws on three recent successful cases of collaboration between the UWI Mona library and high schools. It ends with some recommendations.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document