Title: Information Literacy the link between secondary and tertiary education
1Information Literacy the link between secondary
and tertiary education
- John Crawford and
- Christine Irving
- Glasgow Caledonian University
2Scotland - a good place to be for information
literacy
- The Lifelong Learning Strategy for Scotland a
peg to hang IL on http//www.scotland.gov.uk/libra
ry5/lifelong/llsm-00.asp - The second least socially divisive educational
system in the world Scotsman, 25/1/06,
http//thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id12005
2006 - Over 50 of the eligible population continue from
school to university, making strategies which
link the secondary and the tertiary sectors
feasible - Organisation of the school system is both simple
and uniform - Scottish Executive e-government policy
3The Drumchapel Project 2003
- An exploratory project initially ICT skills
orientated - Community ICT facilities little used - Library
and Cybercafés - School and School Library are main focus for IT
use in deprived areas - Little integration of information literacy into
the curriculum - Levels of ICT deprivation did not seem to be
high - Basic IT skills exist- WP, email, Internet
- Pupil evaluation of websites poor
- School disproportionately important in deprived
areas
4Secondary 5/6 focus group
5LIRG/SCONUL Value and Impact Project 2
- Questionnaires to students (electronically) and
alumni (administered by post Spring 2004) - Respondents included middle/senior management
- Considerable change in attitude/usage between
university and work - Strong link between IL and employability
- Scholarly methods spreading in the workplace
- Work greatly sharpens perceptions about value of
IL - Good match between databases introduced at
University and used at work - Information literacy linked with the exercise of
initiative in the workplace and getting on - Varied attitude to IL among employers
- Sparse replies from the unemployed
6A few quotes
- information literacy skills are of about
20-30 importance in my job - I have been dragged, if not kicking and
screaming, at least wincing, into EIS - Young people should be leaving school with the
basic skills to find employment or further their
studies, whilst universities should not have to
make up for this failure - If you cant do this you cant do anything
- because for a start you need to be information
literate to find a job in the first place.
7Where do we go from here?
- From all studies undertaken an information
literacy agenda emerged - Need for a strategy which links the secondary and
the tertiary sectors - The tertiary sector is not an independent unit
but a stage along the way avoid fixating on the
undergraduate - Need to focus on employability
8Information Literacy the link between
secondary and tertiary education
- innovative national pilot project which will
develop curriculum based IL frameworks with
secondary and tertiary partners which, at the end
of the project, can be rolled out to other
participants. - to produce secondary school leavers with a skill
set which further and higher education can
recognise and develop or which can be applied to
the world of work directly.
9Project objectives
- Identify student information literacy skills they
bring to university - Convert identified IL skills into an IL framework
extending from secondary into higher education - pilot and test developed framework
- Identify barriers to and constraints on the
development of a national IL framework - Test the link between IL, progression, and
retention and the employability agenda
10What information literacy skills if any do 1st
years bring to university ?
- Summary findings from Subject/Academic
- Librarian interviews (Glasgow area)
- Varies depending on the student, the course and
the school they come from plus home life - Poor or limited skills are generally in the
following areas - Knowing the different types of information where
information comes from how it is generated
published etc. and how to use it - Search strategies, searching in depth or beyond
whats available - Evaluating information found plus critical
thinking
11Developing an IL framework linked to SCQF
- Aim to create an overarching framework defining
IL learning in terms of statements of skills,
knowledge and understanding - Use the Information Handling Skills Intermediate
2 qualification SCQF level 5 as a starting
point - Use CILIP definition of IL skills and competences
to develop the other level descriptors and show
progression - Map the existing learning that is taking place
within the context of SCQF - Obtain funding and work with project partners to
achieve this.
12Outcome of meeting with Curriculum Review Team
- the curriculum was being fundamentally changed
with the main focus being a move towards a 318
curriculum that will declutter the curriculum
(which is currently very prescriptive) and have
cohesion and progression - we need to demonstrate a link between information
literacy and cohesion and progression for
information literacy to be considered as part of
the new curriculum - we need to clarify the confusion about study
skills, library skills, information skills,
information handling skills, information literacy
and media literacy (Ofcom) - those interested in information literacy need to
input into the curriculum review, raise
information literacys profile and lobby for its
inclusion in the curriculum.
13The curriculum the way forward
- A curriculum for excellence progress and
proposals - Interdisciplinary projects and studies
- The curriculum needs to include space for
learning beyond subject - boundaries, so that learners can make connections
between different - areas of learning. Through interdisciplinary
activities of this kind, young - people can develop their organisational skills,
creativity, teamwork and - the ability to apply their learning in new and
challenging contexts. - enterprise, citizenship, health, creativity and
problem solving, for - example, are embedded and developed across the
curriculum
14HMI Report 2005
- The report identifies that Few schools had
systematic approaches to developing information
literacy to ensure that all pupils acquired this
set of skills progressively as part of their
passport of core and life skills. As part of the
conclusions relating to curricular planning it
states that - Schools should ensure that
- pupils ultimately achieve a cohesive ICT skills
set, to prepare them for the world of tertiary
education or work including information literacy
skills - (HM Inspectors of Education Scotland 2005)
- http//www.hmie.gov.uk/documents/publication/EvICT
20Final201820Oct.html
15A few points
- In Scotland there a number of initiatives in the
secondary sector but they are uncoordinated - Contacts between schools and universities are
limited - There is very little perception in HE about what
skills new students bring with them - Partners recruited from both the secondary and
tertiary sectors and..
16Issues identified
- There should be a seamless progression from
school to work (via HE or directly into work) - The employability agenda is a key issue which we
must focus on - We need to know more about how the skills we
impart extend to the workplace - We need to know more about the workplace and
attitudes of employers - Does IL have a direct value which can be
calculated? - Making the case - Advocacy
17Progress so far
- Partners identified but limited progress
- Mapping exercise and piloting next
- Work with learndirect Scotland
- New focus on the workplace - LTS funding
- Links with work based learning
- Advocacy focus Petition to the Scottish
Parliament - Funding mainly to support employability agenda
- Still terrible problems with definitions
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20Outcomes
- Very favourable reaction from the profession and
professional media otherwise zilch - Petitions Committee wrote to the Scottish
Executive, a range of NGOs and unions - Other interested bodies subsequently submitted
evidence - Petitions Committee reviewed evidence on 31st May
and sent it to us for comment - We have commented on the evidence
21Where should we be going?
- Lifelong learners shift from content to ability
to learn - Workers information to support decision making
and career development - Is it a competition issue?
- Problem based thinkers
- People with recreational information needs
22Some references
- McLelland, Dorothy and Crawford, John (2004) The
Drumchapel Project a study of ICT usage by
school pupils and teachers in a secondary school
in a deprived area of Glasgow, Journal of
librarianship and information science, 36, (2),
pp. 55-67. - Crawford, John et al (2004) Use and awareness of
electronic information services by students at
Glasgow Caledonian University a longitudinal
study, Journal of librarianship and information
science, 36, (3), pp. 101-117 - Crawford, John (2006) The use of electronic
information services and information literacy,
Journal of librarianship and information science,
38, (1), pp. 33-44 - Crawford, John Irving, Christine (2006) Begin
at school. Library Information Update, 5
(1-2), pp. 38-39
23Contact details
- Dr. John Crawford, Christine Irving
- Library Research Officer, Research Assistant /
Project Officer - Room 302, (3rd floor) Room 305, (3rd floor)
- 6 Rose Street, 6 Rose Street,
- Glasgow, G3 6RB Glasgow, G3 6RB
- Tel 0141-273 -1248 Tel 0141-273 -1249
- Email jcr_at_gcal.ac.uk Email christine.irving_at_gcal.
ac.uk - Project website
- www.learningservices.gcal.ac.uk/ils/index.html