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The purpose of this paper is to focus on academics' point of view towards integration of information literacy into the curriculum.

This meta‐synthesis analyzed 48 journal articles that examined issues related to integration information literacy into the curriculum. Using the Stevick‐Colaizzi‐Keen method, a meta‐synthesis of seven studies was conducted.

This process revealed four themes that outline issues related to the academics perspective: collaboration; information literacy pedagogy; information literacy skills; and knowledge.

As this is a literature review, one limitation is lack of literature on perceptions towards information literacy. The issue will be examined further with a wider population.

These results suggest that more knowledge is needed to integrate information literacy into the curriculum to prepare information literate students who can effectively learn information literacy skills and research strategies to be lifelong learners.

The paper explores academics' perceptions towards information literacy and shows the importance of their perceptions as a key step towards embedding its successful adoption.

This paper describes California State University efforts to help its students become information literate. Towards that end, California State University Long Beach partnered with K‐12 and media entities to provide pre‐ and in‐service teachers with an interactive online instructional resource to help them become information literate and develop ways to incorporate information literacy into their professional practice. The method is a series of workshops delivered online via Blackboard, and a reference Web site. The core of the workshops is a seven‐part videotape series that illustrates the information literacy research process. Each online workshop uses the videotape as a case study, and provides instruction on ways to incorporate information literacy into teaching (as a productivity tool and instructional tool) and relevant Web sites to support information literacy efforts. The use of such material depends on format, access and collaboration with instructors.

To provide an overview of innovative information literacy programs at San Jose State University King Library which may serve as models for future academic library information literacy programs.

New and innovative information literacy programs at the San Jose State University King Library are discussed and analyzed. These programs include freshman and transfer student literacy programs and a proposal for campus dormitory information literacy.

Analyzes innovative and multi‐faceted character of San Jose State King Library information literacy programs. Discusses successes, lessons learned, and ongoing challenges of the freshman information literacy program and presents goals and objectives of the transfer and campus dormitory information literacy programs.

This paper may serve as a guide for both academic and joint‐use academic and public libraries interested in assessing or expanding their information literacy programs.

This paper discusses innovative information literacy programs within the context of a merged or joint‐use academic and public library and will be of value to both future joint‐use libraries and academic libraries interested in expanding and evaluating their information literacy programs.

This study aims to examine the relationship between tool adoption and information literacy within smallholder farmers (SHFs).

A structured questionnaire was used to gather data for this quantitative study from 225 SHFs. Structural equation modelling was done to test the hypotheses.

The findings established that tool adoption dimensions (Information and communication technologies (ICT) acceptance, language use and information culture) positively and significantly influenced information literacy. Information culture had the strongest impact.

The study enriches the situated learning theory (SLT) literature by introducing tool adoption as a predictor of information literacy in a new context of SHFs. Use of tools as independent variables is a positive deviation from previous studies that have used them as mediating variables. Despite the contributions, the cross-sectional design study undermines the ability to solicit more detailed perspectives from the lived in experience of the respondents.

Managers should promote usage of context-specific tools like local radio stations and mobile phones, but also use language tailored to farmer contexts when disseminating information. Policymakers should leverage on social and cultural settings when designing information interventions.

The study highlights critical factors that significantly promote information use for improved productivity for SHFs, cumulatively increasing the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Socially, findings may reduce on their poverty levels of farmers.

This study offers a novel perspective in information literacy domain by using the SLT to delineate contextual tools that are paramount in predicting of information literacy in an under research informal context of SHFs.

This chapter aims to explore representations of information literacy and media literacy in Singapore’s educational discourse as part of its 21st century skills framework. Currently, information literacy and media literacy co-exist in Singapore’s education discourse but there is no related work attempting to clarify these two concepts in Singapore or to bridge them to propose an overarching framework. In what ways are these two terminologies identical or different in the local education context? We try to answer this question through reviewing relevant official documents. We start with a review the literature on the global scale regarding information literacy and media literacy. Then, we focus on Singapore to explore how various governmental agencies defining information literacy and media literacy. This chapter, in other words, is a result from a pilot study to understand how information literacy and media literacy is defined and understood in Singapore’s education system.

This chapter presents selected findings from an exploratory case study, which aimed to identify the information literacy of undergraduate students in the Faculty of Arts, Silpakorn University, Thailand. An embedded case study approach was adopted, data were gathered from academics, students, and librarians and relevant policy and curriculum documents were examined. Four departments were chosen as units of analysis within the case study to represent the different disciplines. These were Departments of Thai, Modern Eastern Languages (MEL), History and Geography. A total of 23 lecturers from these 4 departments were interviewed. A total of 35 students from the same departments and 10 librarians from the Central Library were surveyed using focus groups.

For each department, the data was analysed and triangulated and the information literacy conceptions of academics and students were mapped and compared, together with a picture of the department’s goals and pedagogic approach for information literacy. Finally, findings from all four departments were brought together to provide holistic insight into the information literacy of students in the faculty.

It emerged from the data that both staff and students identified a number of personal attributes that were expected of the information literate student. These were categorised into four groupings: attitude, research skills, generic skills and knowledge. The study revealed some common and distinct characteristics of different disciplines, which reflect the similarities and differences of perceptions of information literacy in this study. The key variations were: the conceptualisation and nature of ‘information’, the degree to which the outside world is of importance and the use of specialised technology.

Information literacy education is perceived as a holistic approach, integrated through courses across the curriculum through formal and informal education. Students are engaged with different aspects of information literacy through different teaching, learning and assessment methods and activities. Independent learning is emphasised as a teaching and learning strategy. Discussion-based and coursework-based instructions are identified as best methods in developing students’ information literacy. The findings also reveal that teaching and learning information literacy is deemed the responsibility of academic lecturers while librarians are not involved in information literacy education.

This paper reports on part of a dissertation project on the relationships between learning methods and students’ information behavior in Finland. In this qualitative study, information behavior is studied in the contexts of a problem-based learning curriculum and a traditional curriculum. In 1998, 16 theme interviews were conducted at the Tampere University Medical School, which applied the problem-based learning curriculum and 15 interviews at the Turku University Medical School, in which the traditional curriculum with an early patient contact program was implemented. The focus of this paper is on the concept of information literacy as a part of the students’ information behavior and its relationships with students’ conceptions of learning. The findings indicate that students’ information literacy is developed, on the one hand, through active use of information and sources in connection with real information needs, and, on the other hand, through an educational context which offers opportunities to get different viewpoints on issues. Following the same tendency, the more developed conceptions of learning were mostly held by the students belonging to the problem-based group with simple or developed skills in information literacy, although there were exceptions from this pattern.

This chapter examines the efforts undertaken to restructure the legal education system in South Africa and Nigeria. It investigates the connection between contextual influences and professional development, particularly with respect to the concept of legal information literacy and the value of acquired educational skills in the context of legal practice. The chapter provides insights to the needs and challenges for graduate requirement for legal information literacy skills in the effort to ensure productivity in the legal education system in Africa. Data were obtained using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Outcomes from the study were supportive of the importance of information literacy as central to the development of professional competence. Findings also point to a need for greater collaboration between the legal education system and the legal profession in narrowing the gap between the teaching and practice of law specifically in the design and implementation of an information literacy framework for the legal education system.

This chapter reports a six-year integrated information literacy instruction program in Taiwan that brought together concepts from informed learning, especially the six frames, with inquiry-based learning frameworks in schools. A total of eleven inquiry projects have been implemented from grades 1 through 6. Six projects selected for each grade are explained in detail. The themes of the projects are designed based on the essence of six frames, each project involving one to three frames depending on the integrated subjects. Through the descriptions, we present how the information literacy instruction is integrated into various subject matters via the framework of inquiry-based learning, such as the Super3 and Big6 models. Students’ performances in subject content and information literacy of the six projects are delineated quantitatively and qualitatively.

This is a review of information literacy interventions which focused on fostering information literacy skills for agriculturalists and health practitioners in Tanzania. The purpose of the intervention was to impart information literacy skills to agriculturalists and health professionals based on problem-solving and collaborative approaches through pedagogical theories of Kolb and Vygotsky which emphasize experiential and reflective learning as well as mediated communication. The interventions were based on an integration of knowledge from information behaviour research and educational theory and current Information and library science perspectives of information literacy. This was preceded by a survey which collected data on information literacy needs of agriculturalists and health practitioners in order to determine what should be taught in information literacy courses for both categories of professionals. The interventions were evaluated through exercises, reflective discussions and observations of activities. Diagnostic tests were also carried out before and after the interventions to provide an indication of knowledge changes. It was generally discovered that both categories of practitioners lacked information literacy skills and had a dire need for the same to effectively perform their work. Work experiences of participants as well as problems associated with lack of information to perform assigned tasks in their occupations were motivational factors for their active participation in the courses. Judging from participants’ feedback, the courses were effective. Participants were able to demonstrate their abilities to solve a particular information-related problem through collaborative learning and work experience. It is recommended that information literacy courses in work places should focus on work-related information problems and active participation.