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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 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.

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.

Explore perceptions of the importance of information literacy among different stakeholders, and gain a better understanding of its role in the accounting curriculum.

Literature review, stakeholder surveys, and written feedback.

The perceptions of academics, employers, and alumni uniformly highlighted the importance of information literacy for continuous learning in an evolving environment. The feedback included open-ended questions where the alumni emphasized the importance of the area over the different stages of their careers. While there may be differences in perspectives of academics and employers/alumni on information literacy, with the latter more likely to hold a pragmatic perspective related to career advancement, the overall consensus highlights the need for a systematic approach to the area. Student feedback suggested that the learning process occurred over stages in the college curriculum. Overall, the results of this exploratory study indicate the value of planning the course curriculum systematically to enable students to develop information literacy skills incrementally and in relation to their specific areas of specialization.

Highlights the value of information literacy in deeper and lifelong learning.

Students are better equipped for continuous learning to meet the challenges of changing environment.

Although information literacy is an important pedagogic area, accounting academic research does not appear to have addressed its implications for student learning.

School library media specialists (SLMSs) often struggle with assuming leadership roles. Discrepancies existed in perceptions of SLMSs of their leadership preparedness, their opportunities to exert leadership, and their assumption of leadership roles. The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the perceptions of SLMSs regarding their instructional leadership and to examine the extent to which they practiced instructional leadership. The study was designed to determine whether there were differences between SLMSs perceptions of the importance of their leadership roles and their opportunities to practice those roles. The results of the study indicated that SLMSs perceived all of the leadership roles to be more important than they were able to carry out in practice and that supportive administrators were the most essential factor in providing SLMSs the opportunity to practice and expand their roles as instructional leaders.

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.

Information literacy instruction in higher education tends to focus on a relatively small slice of the information literacy landscape: academic research skills. Students often fail to see the relevance of these sessions beyond the direct application to their assignments. In addition, while this type of instruction helps students succeed academically, it does not necessarily prepare them for their future careers, which can lead to a lapse in student engagement. A prior exploratory survey study among alumni of four bachelor of nursing programs provided insight into current information practices of professional nurses and how librarians could have better prepared them for their eventual workplace. This chapter outlines how this evidence informed a change in information instruction, now preparing nursing students for professional as well as academic success. This evidence-based approach has the potential benefit of making instruction more relevant and engaging to students, while at the same time expanding their information literacy skills. Teaching nursing students professional information literacy skills, in addition to academic information literacy skills, leads to better-prepared nurses which ultimately benefits their patients. The chapter provides several implementation examples but also addresses the challenges that librarians face when pursuing evidence-based practice to increase student engagement.

Purpose – The purpose of this chapter is to assess the avenues through which traditional notions of information literacy skills shape oral communication curriculum and to identify steps that can be taken to transform the experience of students in the public speaking classroom so that they are offered an opportunity to develop understandings of how they use information to learn.

Approach – This chapter engages in an analysis of teaching materials and best practice scholarship used in the traditional college public speaking classroom. An informed learning perspective is applied to this corpus to identify the ways in which an information literacy skills approach is reflected in current practice.

Findings – The analysis highlights the prevalence of an information literacy skills approach throughout the oral communication curriculum. Textbooks, assignment types and guidelines, along with grading rubrics and instructor feedback all perpetuate a skills approach. Outside class support, including peer tutors and library instruction, also contribute to a focus on information literacy over informed learning.

Implications – Informed learners are better prepared to engage and apply information across contexts and to use information to continue learning. Informed learners are reflective on the knowledge they gain through information use. Therefore, this chapter concludes that public speaking courses, along with the communication centers and libraries that support oral communication instruction, should embrace an informed learning approach to the development of course materials, assignments, and teaching.

Originality/value – Suggestions for reframing public speaking curriculum and support from the informed learning perspective are provided.