TY  - JOUR
AB  - Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to show how, in planning and building a new library at a US‐style higher education institution in the Middle East, special attention was paid to the need to encourage and enhance student information literacy competencies. This was a core purpose behind the building design, activity zones and Information Commons layout.Design/methodology/approach– Librarians visited a wide range of academic libraries in the USA and Canada as a means of benchmarking best practice in space and building design. Extensive feedback was also gathered from the campus community and their desires reflected in the final design.Findings– The library classrooms and adjacent Information Commons are key components in facilitating student information literacy skills.Practical implications– Student attainment of core information literacy skills can be facilitated and enhanced through library facility design, particularly through the careful placement of instruction classrooms and a central computing or information commons area.Originality/value– The paper shows how planning a new library at a US‐style higher education institution in the Middle East incorporated the need to encourage and enhance student information literacy competencies
VL  - 36
IS  - 2
SN  - 0090-7324
DO  - 10.1108/00907320810873039
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/00907320810873039
AU  - Ritchie Lorin
AU  - Ray Kathlin
PY  - 2008
Y1  - 2008/01/01
TI  - Incorporating information literacy into the building plan: The American University of Sharjah experience
T2  - Reference Services Review
PB  - Emerald Group Publishing Limited
SP  - 167
EP  - 179
Y2  - 2024/04/23
ER  -