Information Literacy and Lifelong Learning

• These notes cover information literacy and skills for lifelong learning.

Introduction

• Finding your way in a new place exemplifies information literacy: knowing what information is needed, where to find it, and how to use it.
• Information literacy includes knowing what information is available, where to find it, and evaluating its correctness and sufficiency.
• Information-literate individuals can find and use information for studies, work, research, and daily activities.
• Information literacy enables lifelong learning, where acquired knowledge and skills are continuously applied.
• Module focus is on finding, organizing, and using information, applying information skills to academic and everyday environments.

What Is Information?

• Information is essential for work, studies, and leisure, serving as a strategic resource in many occupations.
• Initially, people were the sole repositories of knowledge, but recording systems evolved to preserve and share information.
• Information is recorded in text, images, sound, moving images, and digital formats.

Data, Information, and Knowledge

• Data are raw facts or symbols that gain purpose when converted into information.
• Information is interpreted data with meaning within a context.
• Knowledge is interpreted, understood, and remembered information integrated with understanding, benefiting personal and societal development.
• Knowledge is personally possessed information acquired through education and experience.
• Recorded knowledge becomes a new information source for communication.
• Information is data processed into meaningful and usable form, crucial for decision-making.

Characteristics of Information

• Information is infinitely expandable and does not diminish with use.
• Sharing information enhances its value.
• Accurate information is error-free.
• Information consists of new ideas.
• Information serves as a basis for human actions.
• Information reduces uncertainty.
• Information aids in sensible decision-making.
• Information can be stored, retrieved, and transferred if understood by the user.
• Information broadens knowledge of a subject.
• Information is used to achieve specific objectives.

Types of Information

• General information: Background information for daily functioning from sources like ads, TV, and news.
• Sensational information: Arouses interest and curiosity through news headlines and social media posts.
• Popular information: Reflects tastes of many, found in popular magazines and social media.
• Scholarly/academic information: Well-researched material for work and research, such as textbooks and journals.

The Creation, Recording, and Distribution of Information

• Information creators, such as researchers and authors, generate intellectual content.
• Ordinary people can also contribute information through websites, blogs, and social media.
• Publishers record, print, and distribute information, acting as intermediaries between creators and users.
• The distribution process involves evaluation, preparation, printing, and sales or library access.
• Information is available in print, visual, audio, audiovisual, electronic, and online formats.
• The Internet allows immediate information creation, access, and distribution.

The Quality of Information

• High-quality information fulfills an information need.
• Reliability and accuracy: Information from experts should be correct and precise.
• Comprehensiveness: Information should be complete but not overly dense.
• Recency: Information should be up-to-date.
• Comprehensibility: Information must be understandable to the user.
• Relevance: Information should meet the user's specific needs.

The Information Society

• The information age is characterized by information being a key resource that influences decisions, development, quality of life, and social change.
• It relies heavily on information and communication technologies (ICTs) in digital format.
• The information society is where the creation, distribution, and manipulation of information are significant economic and cultural activities.
• Economies are based on information and knowledge.
• It uses common technology and the ability to rapidly transmit digital data.

Characteristics of Information Societies

• Information as an economic resource: Increase efficiency, innovation, and competitiveness.
• Greater use of information among the public: Informed consumers and active citizens.
• Development of an information sector: Satisfies demand for information facilities and services.
• Emphasis on education and learning: Technology revolutionizes education delivery.

Information Overload

• Modern society is characterized by a great need for information and its abundance.
• The term "information explosion" describes the flood of information in all subject fields, beginning after World War II.
• Information overload is feeling overwhelmed by the vast amount of information.

The Role of ICTs

• ICTs encompass information, communication and technology.
• Communication transfers information and meaning between senders and receivers.
• Rapid technological advancements have greatly improved communication in terms of speed, cost, ease of use, and availability.
• ICTs are central to collecting, manipulating, and storing information.
• ICTs include software, hardware, and networks for processing and transmitting information electronically.
• Technology is a tool to deliver information to the right people at the right time.
• ICTs encompass wireless networks, workspaces, communications, meeting spaces, podcasts, blogs, wikis, social networking, web-based meetings, teleconferencing, and videoconferencing.
• Modern society views developed information technology as something to learn how to use.

ICT Literacy

• Literacy includes reading, writing, and oral communication skills.
• ICT literacy is the ability to use ICTs to communicate information effectively, including reading, writing, oral, numeracy, computer, and media skills.

Other forms of Literacy

• Functional literacy: Recognizing signs and symbols.
• Book literacy: Knowing how to read a book (left to right, chapters, etc.).
• Academic literacy: Understanding academic texts at all education levels.
• Cultural literacy: Understanding and appreciating one's own and other cultures.
• Computer literacy: Knowing about and using computers effectively.
• Media literacy: Accessing, analyzing, assessing, creating, and participating in messages in various formats.

Information Literacy

• This is the ability to access and evaluate information effectively for problem-solving and decision-making.
• It includes knowing when information is needed, finding it, evaluating it, and using it, along with the technological skills to access and use information sources.
• Requires proficiency in reading, writing, speaking, and ICT skills and a key component of lifelong learning.

Information-literate people know

• How to learn because they know how information is organized.
• How to find information.
• How to use information for others' learning.

The information-literate person can

• Identify situations needing information.
• Locate and access information sources.
• Evaluate found information.
• Use information to solve problems.
• Understand legal issues for responsible information use.

Characteristics of an information-literate individual

• Can be acquired by anyone needing to cope with information.
• Can be applied in occupational and personal life.
• Can enable others to learn through problem-solving and decision-making.
• Knows how to learn by finding and using information.
• Deals effectively with new technologies.

Skills related to information literacy

• Library and media skills: Finding and accessing information.
• Information skills: Interpreting, evaluating, and presenting information.
• Computer skills: Retrieving, processing, and presenting information.
• Learning skills: Becoming a lifelong learner.

Importance of Information Literacy and Lifelong Learning

• Information literate people know how to learn because they know how information is recorded, organized, where to find it and how to use it effectively, preparing them for lifelong learning.
• Lifelong learning is applying acquired knowledge and skills to continue learning.
• Information literacy is essential for adapting to continuous change in work and life.

Information Literacy Skills

• Main goal is to search for, find, evaluate, synthesize, use, and manage information.
• Recognize and understand information tasks.
• Know that you need information for the task.
• Identify what information you need.
• Know where and how to find the information.
• Know how to organize information so that they you use it.