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Project by Dr. Emma Coonan "IntroductionThis short project, based at Cambridge University Library and funded by the Arcadia Programme, sought to develop a practical curriculum for information literacy that meets the needs of the undergraduate student entering higher education over the next five years.The research is grounded in relevant theoretical models and reviews of recent professional literature and existing best practices. In addition, the authors consulted with experts in the information literacy field, and also those working in curriculum design and educational technologies.Project aims and objectivesThis project sought to develop a practical curriculum for information literacy that meets the needs of the undergraduate student entering higher education over the next five years. Specifically the project aimed:* To understand the information needs of future undergraduate students on entering higher education* To develop a revolutionary curriculum for information literacy that can be used with undergraduate students entering UK higher education* To provide practical guidance about how best to equip students with the knowledge, skills and behaviour around information use to support their learning in the digital age* To develop a flexible curriculum that can be used and adapted in the higher education community and used in face to face, blended and online learning provision."

In order to survive and develop, make decisions, and solve problems in every facet of life - personal, social, educational, and professional, individuals, communities, and nations need information about themselves as well as their physical and their social environments. This information is available via three processes: observation and experimentation, conversation (with other persons), and consultation (with memory institutions). The competence to do this effectively and efficiently is called Media and Information Literacy.

Hector Peebles, multimedia & community editor and David Kernohan, Jisc programme manager, share their thoughts on how to be at the forefront of social media trends, whilst keeping up to date with current affairs and continuing to digest information for work or pleasure. Hector and David have put their heads together to provide you with information on the tools you can use to help you manage your time and track topics of interest.

The Knight Commission recognized that people need tools, skills and understanding to use information effectively, and that successful participation in the digital age entails two kinds of skills sets: digital literacy and media literacy. Digital literacy means learning how to work the information and communication technologies in a networked environment, as well as understanding the social, cultural and ethical issues that go along with the use of these technologies. Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, reflect upon, and act with the information products that media disseminate.

Authority. Authenticity. Ownership. Perspective. These four pillars make up the critical facets of the information we consume -- and understanding them makes us and our students wiser users of information. However, on the web, people often make assumptions about the authority and authenticity of information, and it can be challenging to understand ownership and perspective. The Glean Who-Is Tool help you and your students learn to investigate web-based content sources. By using technical information about websites ("whois"), along with historical and factual information, the tool encourages us to dig more deeply, to understand more thoroughly, and to critique more closely.

"The 2011 ECAR National (USA) Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology gathered stratified data from "3,000 college students from 1,179 colleges and universities" via an opt-in invitation-only online questionnaire, in June 2011."

An updated and expanded version to reflect more clearly the range of different terminologies and concepts which we now understand as "Information Literacy". Online (rather than pdf) version with clickable links

An updated and expanded version to reflect more clearly the range of different terminologies and concepts which we now understand as "Information Literacy". Online (rather than pdf) version with clickable links

Summary presentation of a recent Cambridge research project aiming to development an Information Literacy curriculum for undergraduate students. There is also a comprehensive Wiki of resources. The sixth slide is interesting: placing digital literacy as part of the wider information literacy landscape.

Plagiarism is using others' ideas and words without clearly acknowledging the source of that information. The World Wide Web has become a more popular source of information for student papers, and many questions have arisen about how to avoid plagiarizing these sources.

In combination with academic literacies, digital and information literacies represent a broad spectrum of knowledge and skills that ideally should be developed as an integral part of subject specific learning. The challenge at an institutional level is helping academic staff and students achieve this in a manner that is fully integrated and sustainable. As part of the JISC funded Digidol Project (http://digidol.cardiff.ac.uk) at Cardiff University work is being done to create a common framework and methodology to enable professional services staff, academic staff and students to arrive at a shared understanding of what literacies are required and how they can best be realised through meaningful learning and teaching practices.

The RIN is co-ordinating the development of the Research Information and Digital Literacies Coalition (RIDLs): a coalition of partners working together to promote the value of information and research data literacy for academic researchers; and to enable activities which help to advance this knowledge and skills.

UBLIN, Ohio, USA, 12 June 2012-JISC, the UK's expert on information and digital technologies for education and research, has agreed to continue funding a third phase of "Visitors and Residents: What Motivates Engagement with the Digital Information Environment?" a UK-US partnership between the University of Oxford and OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc., in collaboration with the University of North Carolina, Charlotte. The project is led by David S. White (U. Oxford-TALL), and Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Ph.D. (OCLC Research).

Learn how to identify, locate, evaluate, organise and effectively use information. This is an excellent set of information literacy materials, paid for by the Scottish Government.

Three tools to support information literacy skills including boolify, comparison search and who-is

is a 3 hour self paced class combined with a performance assessment of your information fluency skills

Rutgers RIOT (Research Information Online Tutorial) Lessons in selecting  a topic, finding resources, selecting keywords, identifying citations and evaluating sources.

A nifty little quiz for developing search skills and you get a certificate. I've tweeted the link from the dig lit feed too :)

Over the past 18 months I've been having a series of discussions with Bill Johnston (a colleague of mine here at Strathclyde) around notions information and digital literacy and of what it means to be a digital university.

The SAILS test offers universities and colleges a method for testing the information literacy skills of its students.