final portion of information systems project- need done in 3 hours!!!
Heytheb.hage
INFORMATION LITERACY
WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
According to the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL), information literacy is “the set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued, and the use of information in creating new knowledge and participating ethically in communities of learning” (Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, 2015, para. 6) It is a survival skill for the Age of Information.Information literacy also provides a foundation for lifelong learning, and is essential to responding effectively in the ever-changing academic and workplace environment. . It is common to all disciplines, to all learning environments, and to all levels of education. In fact, businesses actively search for employees who are able to gather information quickly, evaluate, analyze, and present realistic solutions based on the information gathered (Owusu-Ansah, 2007). Individuals who are ‘information literate’ are empowered to make sound arguments, appreciate different perspectives, and search for opportunities for personal and professional improvement. The High- Level Colloquium on Information Literacy and Lifelong Learning (UNESCO, 2005) proposes that information literacy is “a prerequisite for participating effectively in the Information Society and is part of the basic human right of lifelong learning” (p. 30).
An information literate individual is able to meet several performance indicators, and the first one is being able to determine the extent of information needed. Before gathering research even begins, part of the information literacy process involves being able to define the information needed, understanding what type of information is needed, and determining exactly how much information is needed.
After determining the information needed, next the information literate individual will be able to find and access the needed information effectively and efficiently. Determining the best way to retrieve information and what search systems will be most effective and efficient are signs of information literacy. Information literacy is more than knowing how to use technology to gather facts and figures. Individuals can be information literate regardless of access to a specific type of technology or device. Technology is the vehicle for access to online and physical library systems on campus, at home, at work, or even at the local coffee shop. This open access to resources is critical to writing a paper, collaborating on a team project, or even locating directions to the nearest gas station.
The next step in the information literacy process is being able to critically evaluate information and its sources. Is the information that has been gathered valid and relevant? This step is increasingly important as we now depend almost solely on technology to help us find information. Constant changes in technology require the ability to navigate through multiple types of sources online quickly and easily; however, not all information gathered
from the internet is appropriate or reliable. The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (2012), delves into the need for individuals to understand how to avoid using generic, but readily-available search engines like Google as a primary source of information. Although Google can provide answers to the radio announcer’s trivia question of the day, it is not the best source for identifying all of the possible side effects to the drug the neonatologist just prescribed an infant patient.
The ability to evaluate information with a critical eye is often challenging and multi- dimensional. It is not always easy to locate answers to important questions in just one attempt as effective search strategies are often complex. Individuals who are ‘information literate’ are able to locate information from a variety of appropriate sources, and revise search strategies if information gathered is irrelevant, biased, or insignificant. Information literacy does go beyond a finite skill set to the notion that allows the individual to gain a new view of a subject landscape move through a “liminal” space, an uncomfortable, challenging transition, and emerge with transformed perspective.
After evaluating the information gathered, the next step is to incorporate the selected information into one’s knowledge base and use information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose. Information gathered might simply be for personal growth, or it could be for academic tasks and professional development. Lifelong learning is at the center of information literacy. Lifelong learners recognize that learning happens every day and adding new knowledge to our ‘wheelhouses’ provides growth and development both personally and professionally.
The final step in the information literacy process is to understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information, and access and use information ethically and legally. This involves more than plagiarism and also encompasses freedom of speech, privacy, intellectual property, fair use, and much more. Using information ethically also extends outside of the academic world. Corporations have compliance and legal departments directly responsible for the application of rules and regulations by employees and the organization itself. Economic and legal penalties can be imposed if an individual, organization or institution has not followed proper guidelines in crediting original authors, editors, or groups with acknowledgment of their original work
WHAT IS THE VALUE OF INFORMATION LITERACY IN ONE’S CAREER? HOW IS THIS TRANSFERABLE SKILL DEMONSTRATED?
Proficiency of information literacy equips individuals with the strategies to be independent, critical thinkers. Being information literate is an important skill for any career. In the health and human services fields, information literacy is essential to understanding documentation, records, charts and treatments to guarantee care, accuracy in diagnosis, treatment plans and patient instructions. According to UNESCO (2005), Dr. Phil Candy stresses that information literacy is crucial for health care workers to provide ethical, responsible services to patients and collaboration across sectors, including “education, care providers, insurance companies, libraries, publishers and pharmaceutical companies” (p.55). Dr. Candy also emphasizes a need for evidence-based decision making in healthcare to
provide patients with the best options for therapies and pharmacological interventions (UNESCO, 2005).
In the criminal justice and related fields, information literacy is imperative to recognizing the application of laws, statutes and the legal system, and ensuring that justice is applied fairly and consistently. As a law enforcement detective, it is essential to understand how to investigate a ‘cold-case’ by collection of evidence, research of previous cases, witness testimony review and analysis of similar criminal reports in adjacent jurisdictions. A suspect would not be held accountable for his or her actions if the detective relies on unreliable information gathered from a generic internet search on “How to pursue a homicide suspect.”
Additionally, in fields of business, information literacy is crucial to team collaboration and successful project management. All members of the team need to be able to gather relevant information quickly and evaluate source materials for bias and appropriate business application. Creating an innovative solution or new product often requires understanding of patent processes, cost analysis and knowledge of previous attempts by competitors.
WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES IF INFORMATION LITERACY IS LACKING?
Competition for jobs is often a reality in many fields, and college graduates need to be prepared to prove their worth during the interview process. Unfortunately, without successful tools in information literacy, candidates may be overlooked for jobs despite solid transcripts and work experience. Imagine a graduate with a 3.5 GPA, externship experience, and glowing letters of recommendation interviewing for a coveted position with a Fortune 500 company. The interview is going well, and the graduate is able to answer all of the questions about skills for the job impeccably. The interviewer then asks, “How would you lead a team to find a solution to our company’s current problem with…?” Without the ability to explain the information literacy process succinctly, the graduate may lose out on a dream job.
In a recent study from Project Information Literacy (Head, 2014), college students were more likely to use Google as a search engine and preferred “online forums, blogs, webinars, MOOCs, YouTube, and face-to-face conversations” for information sources (p.4). By avoiding opportunities to perform scholarly research using appropriate methods, students are unable to practice the strategies needed to be ‘information literate’ upon graduation. According to Owusu-Ansah (2007), individuals must also understand how “copyright, intellectual property and plagiarism” are critical factors in information literacy skill development (p.417). Information literacy is essential for employees to produce ethically and legally compliant products and services. When individuals are not cognizant of the ramifications of failure to comply with copyright laws and plagiarism rules, the result can be disastrous. Consider the following scenarios:
A. An employee creates a presentation to the Board of Directors of the company and includes an online video from a Grammy-winning artist. The emotion and passion of the video, music and lyrics fit perfectly into the presentation and the reaction from the board is overwhelmingly positive. The company agrees to sign a contract with
an outside vendor for $1 million provided the music is included in the marketing campaign. Unfortunately, the employee did not understand Creative Commons licensing and assumes it is not a big deal to gain permission from the artist. The original artist files a lawsuit against the company for violation of copyright, the company loses the $1 million contract, and the employee is fired.
B. A Nursing student is in the final quarter before graduation and has already accepted a position at a prestigious local hospital in a preferred department. The job offer is contingent on a diploma in hand by the end of the quarter. The student has an A in the externship course and the final project is due at the end of the next week. The student has been working 40+ hours at a local pharmacy, caring for an elderly parent and managing a household. A classmate suggests that the student save time by copying a section from a blog she found online. The student likes the information but is not sure how to properly cite the information. She adds the content anyway to “get the job done.” The instructor checks all students’ reference citations, locates the plagiarized portion and gives the student an F in the course for violating the college’s Academic Integrity policy. The student loses the job at the hospital and must retake the course the following quarter and adjust her student loan to pay for the course a second time.
WHAT CAN A STUDENT DO NOW TO FURTHER DEVELOP THIS SKILL?
Students can develop information literacy skills through practice and application in researching and retrieving information in each course at Rasmussen. Knowing resources and creating habits of inquiry establish a foundation for success. The High-Level Colloquium on Information Literacy and Lifelong Learning (UNESCO, 2005) created a model, titled “Empowering 8,” to describe the process by which students develop through stages when applying information literacy to new situations (p. 31-2).
1. Identify a personal need for information to solve a problem;
2. Explore the problem, and develop a search strategy by posing important questions that need attention;
3. Select the sources from which information can be obtained: print, electronic, or human;
4. Organize, sort, analyze, and evaluate the information to apply it to the specific problem;
5. Create by synthesis one’s own answer based on the facts available, and be prepared to justify the decision
6. Present the new knowledge, understanding, or resolution using a medium that is practical for the audience
7. Assess the success of the activity in terms of content investigated, the skills learned, and the product’s applicability through personal, teacher, and peer feedback and evaluations.
8. Apply the changes in knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behavior to new problems on a regular basis.
As a student at Rasmussen College, you can continue to develop your skills in information literacy by becoming an active participant in collecting data for papers and weekly discussion posts in your courses. Seek the support of the Rasmussen Library and Learning Services team, search for scholarly articles through the college’s online database subscriptions, and pay attention to information provided in your courses by your instructors. Attend an APA webinar, use the APA guide link http://guides.rasmussen.edu/apa for specific assistance with citations and references, and do not be afraid to ask questions.
As President Obama stated in his proclamation of National Information Literacy Awareness Month in October 2009:
The need for an information literate citizenry was first articulated in the 1989 American Library Association’s (ALA) Presidential Committee on Information Literacy http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/whitepapers/presidential . The report recognized that the advent of the Information Age created a seismic shift in not only how we should teach and learn, but also how we should live and work in the 21st century. With the arrival of the Internet and the World Wide Web came a whole new set of basic skills. The 3Rs alone – reading, writing, and arithmetic – no longer represented the basic literacy skills needed by all Americans to achieve educational and workplace success in this new millennium.As a result, the National Forum recognizes information literacy as a key 21st century skill set required for successful educational and workforce preparation. Information literacy empowers learners and workers to become informed decision makers by utilizing diverse methods and strategies to find, evaluate, assess and use effectively information from a variety of sources. These are, in effect, the lifelong learning skills needed by all people to live responsibly and work efficiently in today’s information society (National Forum on Information Literacy, 2009, para.11).
References
American Library Association. (1998, March). Presidential committee on information literacy:
Final report updated. Retrieved from
http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/whitepapers/progressreport
Association of College & Research Libraries. (2015). Framework for Information Literacy for
Higher Education, 2015. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework
The business of information literacy. (2012, October 21). Retrieved from International
Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) website:
http://www.ifla.org/node/5715
Introduction to information literacy. (n.d.). Retrieved from Association of College & Research
Libraries website: http://www.ala.org/acrl/issues/infolit/overview/intro
Owusu-Ansah, E. (2007). Beyond collaboration: Seeking greater scope and centrality for library
instruction. Portal: Libraries & the Academy, 7(4), 415-429. Retrieved from
http://www.press.jhu.edu/
Presidential committee on information literacy: Final report (American Library Association,
Comp.). (1989, January). Retrieved from
http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/whitepapers/presidential
United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2005, November).
High-level colloquium on information literacy and lifelong learning (S. D. Garner, Ed.).
Retrieved from http://www.ifla.org/files/assets/information-literacy/publications/high-
level-colloquium-2005.pdf