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Several recent events brought key components of information literacy into sharp focus for the American public. Author and historian Stephen Ambrose was accused of, and later admitted to, using the prose of others without proper attribution in several of his published books. Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, author, and television commentator Doris Kearns Goodwin suffered similar damage to her reputation.
As these stories broke in early 2002, the New York Times ran a headline on the front page of its January 11, 2002 edition, titled, "As Historian's Fame Grows, So Do Questions on Methods." The reporter, David D. Kirkpatrick, quoted author Ambrose as stating that he "inappropriately borrowed the words and phrases" from numerous passages written by several other authors. As the facts unfolded in the nations' newspapers and magazines, author Goodwin felt compelled to publish a full-page "Viewpoint" in the February 4, 2002 issue of Time, acknowledging that she had not properly "attributed" her sources.
Neither Ambrose nor Goodwin used the word "plagiarism" or the phrase "legal and ethical use of information," both key components of information literacy. Yet, as academic role models, their illegal borrowing of the words of others and their subsequent explanations of such behavior leave much to be desired as models for scholars and students.
With the systemwide Information Competence Initiative, strong efforts are underway throughout the California State University to integrate information literacy competencies into the learning outcomes of academic departments and disciplines. Such efforts place a high premium on helping students to learn correctly how to represent the language, thoughts, and ideas of others when writing a paper, creating a project, working in the laboratory, growing a crop, raising an animal, or engaging in any other type of creative or research activity; how properly to cite sources; how to understand and respect copyright laws and intellectual property rights in a physical and a virtual world; and how to avoid unethical behavior.
What is information literacy competency? The Presidential Committee on Information Literacy of the American Library Association stated in 1989 that "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." Within the CSU, information literacy is understood as the fusion or integration of library literacy, computer literacy, media literacy, technological literacy, ethics, critical thinking, and communication skills (Information Competence in the CSU: A Report, 1995, p. 9). The goal is for all CSU students to graduate with a mastery of these important skills.
Why is information literacy important? In addition to the issues of proper attribution and fair use of existing scholarship, in the increasingly complex world in which we live, there is an abundance of print, electronic, image, spatial, audio, visual, and numeric information choices--all tempting to use, but not all of equal value. How can students judge the integrity and worth of information sources like these? According to a Google press release, more than 17 million Internet sites and 3 billion web pages may be available, plus huge amounts of print and multimedia materials. It is all too easy for students to become confused or overwhelmed. The issue is no longer not enough information, but the opposite. How can one teach students to systematically find, evaluate, synthesize, organize, and communicate information ethically, legally, and appropriately?
We, as educators, have an important responsibility to help our students learn proper research procedures so they will avoid mislabeling the passages of others as their own, "borrowing" the words of others by mistake without credit or acknowledgment, or taking shortcuts, that, at minimum, produce sloppy if not dishonest scholarship.
Various higher education reports have shown that students are lacking information literacy skills when they enter colleges and universities. According to the recent "Report to Stakeholders on the Conditions and Effectiveness of Postsecondary Education," published in the May/June 2001 issue of Change magazine, less than half (48%) of the undergraduate students surveyed by the National Center for Postsecondary Improvement were "confident in their ability to find information-essentially the skills needed to research a topic" (p. 29).
In its 2001 Handbook, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) includes information literacy as a core learning ability and competency at the undergraduate level (p. 20). According to the National Forum on Information Literacy, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education has also recognized the importance of information literacy.
Although students may be able to teach themselves how to "surf" the Internet, download music, send email, or "cut and paste" text passages into documents, they have not taught themselves how to become information literate in the sense discussed here. The California State University library faculty are partnering with discipline-based faculty colleagues, as well as with secondary level and community college faculty members, to provide guidance and assistance. Other institutions are engaged in similar projects. For example, the Colorado Student Assessment Program shows that students learn and academic achievement is enhanced when librarians and teachers work together. Recently, the Glendale Community College in Southern California reported a positive relationship between instruction in information literacy and improvement of student grades.
The challenge ahead for educators is to recognize the value of including information literacy skills vertically and horizontally throughout the curriculum, integrated into such areas as lower and upper division general education courses, courses in the major, electives, and capstone learning experiences. When educators do so, all students will have the requisite skills, knowledge, and abilities to become both critical consumers and ethical producers of information. In addition, by displaying a combination of analytical and critical thinking, information evaluation, and ethical behavior, our students will have greater potential to grow into informed citizens, lifelong learners, and solid role models for future generations.
Works Consulted:
American Library Association Presidential Committee on Information Literacy. (1989, January 10). Final report. Retrieved March 13, 2002 from http://www.ala.org/acrl/nili/ilit1st.html
Goodwin, D. K. (2002, February 4). Viewpoint. Time, p. 69.
Information literacy competency standards for higher education. (2000). Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries. Retrieved March 13, 2002, from http://www.ala.org/acrl/ilcomstan.html
Kirkpatrick, D. D. (2002, January 11). As historian's fame grows, so do questions on methods. New York Times, p. A1.
Lance, K. C., Rodney, M. J., & Hamilton-Pennell, C. (2000). How school librarians help kids achieve standards: The second Colorado study. San Jose, CA: Hi Willow Research & Publishing.
New study shows impact of school libraries, librarians, on students. (2000, May 18). Retrieved March 13, 2002, from http://www.tcps.k12.md.us/memo/col.html
Press release. (2001, December 11). Retrieved March 13, 2002, from
http://www.google.com/press/pressrel/3billion.html
Report to stakeholders on the conditions and effectiveness of postsecondary education. (2001, May/June). Change, 33 (3), 27-42.
Rockman, I. (Ed.). (2002). Libraries @ Calstate: The Newsletter of the CSU California State University Libraries, 1. Retrieved from http://www.calstate.edu/LS/A1007.pdf
Study shows workshops make a difference. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.glendale.edu/library/icimproves.htm
The National Forum on Information Literacy. Description of the commission on higher education of the middle states associations of colleges and schools. Retrieved March 13, 2002, from
http://www.infolit.org/members/che.htm
Western Association of Schools and Colleges. (2001). 2001 Handbook of accreditation. Retrieved from
http://www.wascweb.org/senior/handbook.pdf
Work Group on Information Competence. (1995, December). Information competence in the csu: a report. Long Beach, CA: CSU Office of the Chancellor. Retrieved from http://www.calstate.edu/LS/FinalRpt_95.doc
Posted May 13, 2002
All material appearing in this journal is subject to applicable copyright laws. Publication in this journal in no way indicates the endorsement of the content by the California State University, the Institute for Teaching and Learning, or the Exchanges Editorial Board. ©2002 by Ilene Rockman.
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