Navigating the Information Explosion: Challenges and Solutions for Information Literacy

1. Information and Literacy Week 2

2. So, how is it going? • Questions from last week? • What did you think of the readings? Grassian as compared to Eisenberg as compared to Pawley as compared to Williams • Assignment questions?

3. What does this have to do with teaching patrons? John Bransford

4. The Information Society • Two overviews of who we are http://shifthappens.wikispaces.com/ http://mediatedcultures.net/mediatedculture.htm • One vision of where we are going http://epic.makingithappen.co.uk/ • Discuss with your group at least one thing you noticed that impacts you as an instructional librarian

5. The Information Society • More information produced in the last 30 years than the last 30 thousand • The amount of science and technology information doubles every 5 years • One issue of the New York Times contains more information than the average 1700’s person encountered in a lifetime • A web search result with half a million hits would take over 37 hours to completely review and 635 days to thoroughly check • Moore’s Law – computing power doubles every 18 months • Gates also said 20 years from now computing power will be one million times faster

6. Got overload? • Computing devices are everywhere and soon will be more embedded • Information Fatigue Syndrome • paralysis of the analytical capacity • high blood pressure and weakened vision • increased anxiety and sleeplessness • increasing self-doubt in decision-making • foolish decisions and flawed conclusions • decrease in benevolence • forgetfulness

7. Solutions (or not) • Technology • If that’s the answer, what’s the question? • It doesn’t take sides, it just is. • Pack it in method – more content, speeded up, with technology • Can we really do this • Information Literacy • A process that identifies skills • Lets people be in charge of what’s coming • Ensure students, staff, employees, etc. become effective users of ideas and information

8. Definitions • Chat with your group about the definitions of literacy and about defining information literacy • Post (via reply) a couple sentences on the course GoPost under Week 2

9. Information Literacy Defined • To be information literate, a person must be able to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate and use effectively the needed information. – ALA Presidential Committee on Information Literacy, 1989 (see also Doyle and Kulthau) • Information Literacy – Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2004 • Accessing information efficiently and effectively, evaluating information critically and competently and using information accurately and creatively for the issue or problem at hand • Possessing a fundamental understanding of the ethical/legal issues surrounding the access and use of information • In other words, an information process that utilizes a full range of information and technology skills.

10. Readings Discussion • Do you think information literacy is necessary? What are some other terms that could/should be used? • What do you think is included in the term information literacy and what is not? • What are the barriers one might encounter in becoming information literate? Which of these barriers, to any degree, have you encountered? • What role does information literacy have in higher education? How is this different from the role it plays in K-12 education? How is it similar?

11. Up next Education and Information Literacy