Thing 1. What Are You Talking About? Understanding Information Literacy

A quick definition of information literacy: the ability to assess the need for information and to then be able to locate, retrieve, evaluate, analyze, and apply information at home, at work, and in the community.

These competencies and skills are developed over time and are essential for lifelong learning. When information literacy skills are integrated into the curriculum across all disciplines we build a foundation for lifelong, independent learning related to finding, using, and evaluating information tools, formats, sources, and products.

A key to successful teaching of information literacy is the collaboration of library media specialists and teachers. Library media specialists look at curriculum, assignments, and learning in terms of the information resources, processes, and technologies required for student success. They collaborate with teachers to share their in-depth knowledge of resources of all types, how to teach the use of research materials and the research process, and provide support and expertise in integrating technology into curriculum. A collaborative team will ensure that all students get the information literacy instruction they need.

Core
1. Read and review these four articles on information literacy the Minnesota Information and Technology Literacy Standards:

• Lippincott, Joan K., Student Content Creators: Convergence of Literacies, Educause, November/December 2007). Positive argument for teaching information literacy in the context of new media and content creation.
  
• Information Literacy for Faculty and Administrators, Association of College and Research Libraries
• 21st Century Skills: Information Literacy, EnGauge, National Central Education Laboratory.
• Nishimuro, Taizo. 1999. "Information Literacy: How does it differ from Traditional or Computer Literacy?" TechKnowLogia (September/October)

2. Familiarize yourself with the MILI Vocabulary. This list gives you common language for teaching information literacy concepts. We don’t want you to teach the vocabulary—no quizzes—but instead use these terms when you are teaching or talking about the concepts.

3. You received a brochure with a summary of the Information & Technology Standards in your first training session. Look at the full Standards and at a Scope and Sequence document based on these Standards.

Click on sidebar links for these documents.

Blog Prompts
Use these ideas or your own for your blog post on Thing 1.

• Are the concepts of information literacy new to you? Did the articles introduce any new ideas?
• How do you collaborate now?
• How do you foresee your content area standards can address the information and technology literacy standards?

Click here for more for Thing 1., if you want to go deeper.