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Information Literacy Framework

Information Literacy

The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) Information Literacy Group published the CILIP Definition of Information Literacy (2018) which reinforces the relevance of information literacy in the current age.

 

“Information literacy is the ability to think critically and make balanced judgements about any information we find and use. It empowers us as citizens to develop informed views and to engage fully with society.” 

- CILIP Information Literacy Group

 

The University Library's Information Literacy Framework (ILF) has been created to guide the development of information literacy skills at the University of Notre Dame University Australia (UNDA). 

Experts advise integrating information literacy programs into subject curriculum and teaching them collaboratively with librarians, academics and support colleagues for optimal effectiveness. The ILF aims to develop a curriculum for information literacy at UNDA that offers practical guidance, equips students with knowledge, skills, and behaviours for information use, and supports their learning in the digital age.

Academics can use the ILF to:
  • Provide a scaffolded structure for workshops and professional development
  • Develop learning outcomes for assessment
  • Collaborate on creating assignments
  • Coordinate information literacy curriculum within programs and the School
  • Make information literacy more transparent

 

The ILF 

  • Aligns with UNDA's strategic priorities
  • Supports development of the University's graduate outcomes
  • Provides teaching staff with a roadmap for enhancing their students' information literacy skills
  • Identifies skills that are valuable assets for students in their future employment

Information literacy is widely acknowledged as a crucial component of lifelong independent learning. It plays a vital role in personal, professional, and academic endeavours. Information literacy encompasses a range of skills, attributes, and behaviours that form the foundation of student learning in the digital age. Recognising its importance for graduate employability, universities are actively adopting information literacy strategies to equip students with these capabilities during their university journey and beyond.

Why is information literacy important? 

For students:

  • Enhances their comprehension of subject-specific knowledge.
  • Leads to the creation of high-quality assignments.
  • Encourages ethical usage of information, fostering respect for intellectual property and the work of others.
  • Establishes research paths that cultivate future researchers

For graduates:

  • Equips them with learning skills and a versatile set of transferable abilities.
  • Enables them to effectively locate, evaluate, and utilise the best information for decision-making purposes.

For academics:

  • Integrating information literacy into the curriculum aligns the university's courses with the Higher Education Standards Framework.
  • Explicitly embedding scholarly and digital literacy within the curriculum programs supports accreditation reviews and assists faculties and schools in demonstrating that their courses and graduates meet the requirements of external bodies.

For employers:

  • Seek individuals who exhibit creativity, self-direction, and possess problem-solving and critical thinking abilities.
The NDA Information Literacy Framework is built upon the foundations of the following frameworks that provide a context for understanding information and the necessary skills for effectively utilising it.These frameworks provide guidelines, concepts, and best practices for information literacy in different contexts and levels of education.

Information Literacy at Notre Dame

The University of Notre Dame recognises that information literacy is a key graduate skill that has lasting value beyond university, and this is reflected in the University's Graduate Attributes.

 

Graduate attributes are the qualities, skills and understandings which the University aspires to enable in its students.

  • Communication: Enhances effective communication across various domains and contexts through oracy, literacy, numeracy, and information skills.
  • Critical and reflective thinking: Cultivates reflective practitioners with strong decision-making abilities, promoting clear, critical, and creative thinking, as well as effective problem-solving skills.
  • Life-long learning: Encourages personal responsibility for ongoing learning and professional development, fostering self-direction and using effective time-management skills.
  • Research and information retrieval skills: Facilitates the construction of new concepts and understanding through research and inquiry processes.

The ILF advances Notre Dame's priorities, including:

  • 'Educating for the Common Good' Pillar: developing graduates who are equipped for the workforce and also good, humane, ethical citizens with the commitment, courage, and confidence to serve the common good.
  • 'Integral Human development' Pillar: developing graduates who embrace the opportunities of a university education, actively contribute to the common good of communities, and use their education and formation for the good of others.
  • Academic Integrity Policy: using information ethically and responsibly.
  • Assessment in Higher Education Coursework Policy: assessment design reflects a progressive increase in the complexity, depth and autonomy of learning as students move through to higher level courses or skills within their course of study, including the development of information literacy capabilities. 

The University Library Service Charter sets out the principles which guide the University Library’s contributions to the University community. These principles, and all University Library practices, are informed by the Objects of the University.

The Library strives to promote collaborative development of information literacy skills to achieve the following:

  • Provide every NDA student with equal opportunities to develop information literacy competencies.
  • Equip teaching staff with the necessary skills and support to integrate information literacy skills into their courses.
  • Establish the library team as a leading authority in information literacy.

The Library will lead efforts to:

  • Encourage joint teaching and learning practices that involve both library and teaching staff to achieve the most effective information competency outcomes for students
  • Offer students chances to enhance their information literacy abilities independently
  • Establish a plan of action to ensure a progressive development of information literacy skills from pre-course to postgraduate education
  • Advocate for information literacy as an intentionally taught skill that is systematically expanded
  • Assist teaching and academic staff in integrating information literacy skills development into their teaching practices
  • Provide resources for academic and teaching staff to enhance their knowledge of information literacy.
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