Data Literacy in the 21st Century

Data Literacy in the 21st Century

• Data literacy is an essential skill in the 21st century, critical for everyone, not just data scientists
• It enhances data-informed decision-making and is a core requirement across various sectors like business, technology, healthcare, and education
• Data literacy contributes to an employable workforce
• Data literacy cultivates critical thinking in various professions
• Defined as the ability to read, work with, analyze, and argue with data as part of a broader process of inquiry into the world
• Data literacy empowers individuals to navigate the data-driven world effectively

Emphasis on Data Literacy in Education

• An increasing demand for data literacy skills in the job market and society drives the growing emphasis on data literacy in higher education
• Data is viewed as a new language of communication that students need to be taught to thrive in today's digital world
• Data literacy in higher education is core, cross-disciplinary, and critical for students
• Higher education is grappling with how to incorporate data literacy training into its programming
• Undergraduate students need data literacy for research and critical thinking
• Introducing data literacy to students early in their learning helps them develop a solid foundation
• Data literacy skills can be fine-tuned as they proceed through their studies

Community College Focus

• Community colleges serve about 10 million students annually, roughly 40% of all undergraduates nationwide
• These institutions are effective workforce development agencies
• There is a growing emphasis on the need for community colleges to incorporate data literacy into their educational curricula due to shifts in the labor market
• Many institutions have expanded their course offerings to accommodate students pursuing data-related degrees
• Community colleges face the challenge of meeting the needs of diverse students with different backgrounds, skills, and levels of academic readiness in teaching data literacy
• It is challenging to adapt instructional strategies to meet such diversity
• Community college libraries have an important responsibility to provide academic support services, including computer access, tutoring, writing help, and technology training

The Role of Libraries and Librarians

• Librarian-led information literacy instruction is an important element in enhancing student success as it helps students acquire the skills to research and think critically
• Community college libraries must continue demonstrating their impact on student achievement and adapt to new changes and innovations as the information landscape changes
• Community college libraries and librarians can contribute to preparing students with the knowledge and skills to thrive in a data-driven world
• Little work has been done to explore how community college libraries and librarians can enhance students’ data literacy

Study Objectives

• Perspectives of community college librarians regarding data literacy will be examined

The objectives are:

• How do community college librarians conceptualize and value data literacy?
• What are the perspectives of community college librarians on integrating data literacy into community college education?
• How do community college librarians perceive their preparedness and self-efficacy in teaching data literacy?

Data Literacy in Higher Education

• The growing volume and complexity of data have necessitated a transformation in higher education to equip the future workforce with the necessary data skills
• Academic libraries have addressed this transformation by providing data literacy instruction, particularly in four-year institutions
• Such data literacy instruction takes many different forms
• Data literacy has joined information literacy to become a core component of undergraduate education

Addressing concerns

• Higher education is beginning to incorporate data literacy training into its curriculum, but there is no systematic approach within community colleges
• Libraries should have a set of standards to establish norms and guide instructional activities in the realm of big data
• An exhaustive study of student practices and syllabus analysis to develop scaffolded approaches to data literacy training for all stages of undergraduate education is needed

Information Literacy in Community College Libraries

• Community college librarianship literature mainly focuses on information literacy
• Many community college students need more experience in information literacy and information handling and are ineffective independent learners
• Students often struggle to identify relevant sources for their information needs and face challenges recognizing reliable sources
• Students generally view information literacy skills as valuable beyond the classroom and recognize the significance of information literacy in their personal lives, academic success, and future careers
• Community college librarians may hold multiple roles or specialties when delivering services and resources to their students
• Many librarians handle multiple duties simultaneously, facing challenges in providing information literacy instruction
• Challenges includes time constraints, inadequate faculty collaboration, diverse student populations, limited resources, limited budgets and staffing, and the advanced nature of the ACRL framework

Theoretical Framework

• Rogers’ (2003) diffusion of innovations theory is the theoretical framework
• Adoption as a process rather than an event, characterized as a series of five stages: Knowledge, Persuasion, Decision, Implementation, and Confirmation
• The first research question aims to examine community college librarians’ understanding of data literacy and the second question examines perceptions and practices
• The attributes can impact the diffusion process and the rate of adoption

Methodology

• Participants of the study are librarians working at community colleges in the United States
• Interview participants were recruited through ACRL Community and Junior College Libraries Section discussion

Results

• 21 participants were interviewed
• The sample size was guided by the principles of data saturation, where the collection of new data no longer yields any new insights

Findings

Essential Competency for Community College Students

• Essential knowledge and skills community college students need extends beyond traditional academic skills, including information literacy, research skills, and technology proficiency

The evolving landscape

• Awareness of the evolving technological landscape, including artificial intelligence tools, is vital
• Distinguishing between real and AI-generated content is important

Critical Skills

• Interview participants acknowledged that these skills were critical for academic performance and informed decision-making

Data Literacy

• Its importance is in understanding, interpreting, and applying data in arguments, reasoning, and daily activities
• Integration of data literacy at early stages of education, offering a basic data literacy course

Data and Data Literacy: Perspectives

• The term "data" elicited a range of responses, showing different perspectives on what data is and what data can be used for in any field of study or work
• Participants recognized the value of data in various contexts and circumstances, emphasizing that its usefulness heavily depended on how processed data was interpreted, used, and shared
• Participants consistently reported using data to facilitate data-informed decision-making in their professional roles
• Participants unanimously agreed on the ubiquity of data and its far-reaching impact, acknowledging a culture that embraces data-driven decision-making in their institutions and libraries

Concerns

• Concerns were raised about the potential misuse and misunderstanding of data, which can lead to flawed decisions
• Decisions are often made in opposition to data-driven recommendations
• data needs supplementation with narrative context because looking at numbers alone doesn't provide the context for a specific situation
• Decisions should not be based exclusively on data, particularly numerical data, and advocated for a more holistic approach that takes into account other aspects or human elements

Data Literacy and Skills

• Data literacy mostly entails making sense of data, understanding, interpreting, and using data effectively
• It should encompass skills such as locating credible data sources, critically evaluating data, questioning its validity, understanding the data collection process, and grasping the story behind the data
• Critical thinking is a key skill for data literacy
• Using data to inform decisions andethical considerations are also important
• Technological competency is an integral part of data literacy

Information Literacy

• Some participants explicitly defined data literacy as a subset of information literacy
• Data literacy included not just technical skills but also a deeper understanding of the context and implications of data in the broader realm of information

Data Literacy in Community Colleges

• Stakeholder collaboration is vital
• Though most participants believed that data literacy was valuable, they expressed diverse perspectives on integrating it into community college settings
• Data literacy was considered relevant across a variety of fields of study and occupations
• Diverse backgrounds of community college students and the need for such a course to accommodate varying levels of prior knowledge in data literacy
• Strategic, structured planning and inter-departmental collaboration were critical
• Libraries could augment individual department and instructor coordination efforts by developing research guides tailored to specific assignments

Instructional Challenges

• Defining data literacy
• Standardizing curricula and teaching methods are difficult, as data literacy intersected with different disciplines and required a tailored approach for each
• Ensuring faculty adherence to new competencies Institution-wide challenges also exist

Instruction

• Participants described implementing a class including basic data and information literacy
• Approaches varied, and participants were enthusiastic and willing to integrate this in future strategies