scholarly journals Teaching Foundational Data Skills in the Library

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Beauchamp ◽  
Christine Murray
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Teaching Strategies ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Data Literacy ◽  
Research Libraries ◽  
Reference Services ◽  
Effective Teaching Strategies

In Databrarianship: The Academic Data Librarian in Theory and Practice, edited by Linda Kellam and Kristi Thompson. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries, 2015.Undergraduate students often struggle when asked to locate, evaluate, and use data in their research, and librarians have an opportunity to support them as they learn data literacy skills. Much of the literature on data librarianship in this area focuses on data reference services, but there is a lack of scholarship and guidance on how to translate data reference expertise into effective teaching strategies. In this chapter, the authors will bridge that gap between data reference and information literacy instruction.

Information Literacy

2011 ◽  
pp. 1178-1182
Author(s):  
Elaine Fabbro
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Lifelong Learners ◽  
Research Libraries ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Need For Information

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education defines information literacy as the ability to recognize the need for information, and be able to locate, evaluate, and use the information effectively (2000, p.2). Information literacy is essential in the creation of lifelong learners (Wallis, 2005, p. 221). Educators struggle continually to ensure that students are not only able to successfully navigate through the plethora of information available, but that they are able to think critically about information, and put it to use in all aspects of their lives. Information literacy skills instruction can serve as a method to help meet this goal. However, in order to provide information literacy instruction it is necessary to fully understand the concept and all it entails, including how it can be implemented and the benefits it offers to students, educators, and higher education institutions as a whole.

scholarly journals Graduate Students May Need Information Literacy Instruction as Much as Undergraduates

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Elizabeth Miller
Keyword(s):  
Student Performance ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Basic Information ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Research Libraries ◽  
Information Studies ◽  
Information Literacy Skills

A Review of: Conway, Kate. (2011). How prepared are students for postgraduate study? A comparison of the information literacy skills of commencing undergraduate and postgraduate studies students at Curtin University. Australian Academic & Research Libraries, 42(2), 121-135. Abstract Objective – To determine whether there is a difference in the information literacy skills of postgraduate and undergraduate students beginning an information studies program, and to examine the influence of demographic characteristics on information literacy skills. Design – Online, multiple choice questionnaire to test basic information literacy skills. Setting – Information studies program at a large university in Western Australia. Subjects – 64 information studies students who responded to an email invitation to participate in an online questionnaire, a 44% response rate. Of those responding, 23 were undergraduates and 41 were postgraduates. Methods – Over the course of two semesters, an online survey was administered. In order to measure student performance against established standards, 25 test questions were aligned with the Australian and New Zealand Information Literacy Framework (ANZIIL) (Bundy, 2004), an adapted version of the ACRL Information Literacy Standards for Higher Education (Association of College & Research Libraries, 2000). In the first semester that the survey was administered, 9 demographic questions were asked and 11 in the second semester. Participants were invited to respond voluntarily to the questionnaire via email. Results were presented as descriptive statistics, comparing undergraduate and postgraduate student performance. The results were not tested for statistical significance and the author did not control for confounding variables. Main Results – Postgraduate respondents scored an average of 77% on the test questionnaire, while undergraduates scored an average of 69%. The 25% of respondents who had previous work experience in a library achieved average scores of 79%, in contrast to 69% among those who had not worked in a library. Average scores for undergraduates in the 20-30 age group were 81%, while those in the 30-40 age group averaged 65%. Among both undergraduate and postgraduate students, scores may indicate deficiencies in information literacy skills in several areas, including parsing citations, strategies for locating specific content, and defining an information need. Conclusion – The study concludes that postgraduate students’ information literacy skills may be marginally better than the skills of undergraduates. Age was found to be associated with higher performance among undergraduate students, and a variety of “basic” information literacy skills may elude many respondents. These findings might prompt librarians and instructors to look closely at gaps in information literacy knowledge among students at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level.

“StatLit: tactical interventions for strategic transformation”

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (9) ◽  
pp. 10-14
Author(s):  
Seth Porter ◽  
Ameet Doshi
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Statistical Reasoning ◽  
Statistical Literacy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Libraries ◽  
Biennial Conference ◽  
Strategic Transformation

Purpose This paper was inspired by an Association of College and Research Libraries Biennial Conference 2017 roundtable that aimed to transform existing notions about statistical literacy in information literacy instruction. Design/methodology/approach In Baltimore, the authors facilitated an in-person discussion and synchronous virtual dialogue via Twitter and Periscope about teaching basic statistical concepts (such as mean vs median) and the real implications of “statistical significance”. Findings A recording of the roundtable is available here: http://bit.ly/StatLit. Originality/value The goal of the StatLit roundtable was to inspire transformational thinking for teaching basic statistical reasoning to students within a library context.

An assessment of information literacy skills among first-year postgraduate students at Sokoine University of Agriculture Tanzania

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 427-434 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mugyabuso J. F. Lwehabura
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Search ◽  
Concept Maps ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Independent Learning ◽  
First Year ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Literacy Knowledge ◽  
Information Literacy Skills

This study was set to examine and identify some aspects of information literacy skills among postgraduate students at Sokoine University of Agriculture and determine challenges and problems facing them in terms of searching and use of various information resources. Systematic probability sampling and questionnaires were used to collect data from175 students out of 314 first-year postgraduate students registered. The findings showed that although information literacy exists among students, a good number of students demonstrated significant deficiency in their information literacy knowledge and skills in key aspects including searching for information from electronic sources, application of various information search techniques such as Boolean operators, use of truncation, synonyms and concept maps. Based on the findings, the paper recommends addressing the shortcomings found by introducing a mandatory information literacy course for both postgraduate and undergraduate students to ensure effective independent learning among students.

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.

Information Literacy

2011 ◽  
pp. 1091-1092
Author(s):  
Elaine Magusin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Lifelong Learners ◽  
Information Literacy Instruction ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
The Creation

Information literacy is essential in the creation of lifelong learners. As educators struggle continually to ensure that students are able to successfully navigate the plethora of information available, and be able to think critically about this information, it is logical to consider information literacy skills instruction as a method of helping meet this goal. However, in order to provide information literacy instruction it is necessary to fully understand the concept and all it entails, including how it can be implemented and what benefits it offers to students, educators, and higher education institutions as a whole.

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