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Articles 1 - 30 of 311
Full-Text Articles in Library and Information Science
Exploring Information Literacy Skills, Attitudes, And Barriers Among Medical And Nursing Students In Bahrain: A Mixed-Methods Perspective, Asif Altaf, Suchita N. Dsilva, Simple Sibi Joseph, Fida Mukhtar, Muhammad Zeeshan, Bindhu Nair
Exploring Information Literacy Skills, Attitudes, And Barriers Among Medical And Nursing Students In Bahrain: A Mixed-Methods Perspective, Asif Altaf, Suchita N. Dsilva, Simple Sibi Joseph, Fida Mukhtar, Muhammad Zeeshan, Bindhu Nair
Communications in Information Literacy
Information literacy is essential for evidence-based medical education, yet Gulf-region studies rarely examine student competencies and barriers. This study examines the information literacy skills, attitudes, and challenges faced by medical and nursing students at RCSI Bahrain. A mixed-methods design was employed, combining a quantitative survey (n = 343) with qualitative focus groups (n = 10). Students reported high self-perceived information literacy across domains. Time constraints and information overload were identified as the primary barriers to effective communication. Focus group findings highlighted the late introduction of curricula, technical access challenges, and inequities between medical and nursing programs. Library training attendance, academic …
Critical Information Literacy In Higher Education: An Evolution In Theory, Practice, And Assessment, Dan Williford
Critical Information Literacy In Higher Education: An Evolution In Theory, Practice, And Assessment, Dan Williford
Communications in Information Literacy
This article offers a critical synthesis of scholarship on critical information literacy (CIL) in higher education from 2015 to 2026, extending and recalibrating prior longitudinal reviews to account for post-2020 theoretical, political, and technological shifts. Drawing on a corpus of 48 peer-reviewed publications published between 2020 and 2026, the study employs thematic cluster analysis—building on Tewell’s four-domain framework—to examine developments in theory, pedagogy, digital and political engagement, reflexive critique, and assessment. Rather than treating critical information literacy as a settled framework, this review positions it as an evolving and contested practice shaped by the political economy of higher education. It …
Review Of Instructional Design For Teaching Information Literacy Online: A Student-Centered Approach, By J. Mattson, D. Lemmons, V. Linsinbigler, And C. Lowder, Kendall Morgan
Communications in Information Literacy
Review of Mattson, J., Lemmons, D., Linsinbigler, V., & Lowder, C. (2025). Instructional design for teaching information literacy online: A student-centered approach. Association of College and Research Libraries.
Application Of Information Literacy Skills To Everyday Life Information Seeking In College Students: Implications For Instruction, Stephanie Ward, Rachel Dineen, Darren Ilett
Application Of Information Literacy Skills To Everyday Life Information Seeking In College Students: Implications For Instruction, Stephanie Ward, Rachel Dineen, Darren Ilett
Communications in Information Literacy
Academic librarians who teach information literacy (IL) skills hope students will transfer those skills to their information seeking in everyday life. However, there is little evidence that students are transferring what they learn about research to their lives outside college. This study aims to find out what search and evaluation strategies college students who have had IL instruction apply to their own personal information seeking behaviors. To do this, a talk-aloud protocol was used to record participants’ thoughts and actions as they navigated scenarios that required them to select a source that met a non-academic information need. The findings indicate …
The More Things Change...Reaffirming Our Commitment To Cil’S Core Values, Jane Hammons, Laureen Cantwell-Jurkovic, Jessica Denke, Allison Hosier, Sarah Lemire
The More Things Change...Reaffirming Our Commitment To Cil’S Core Values, Jane Hammons, Laureen Cantwell-Jurkovic, Jessica Denke, Allison Hosier, Sarah Lemire
Communications in Information Literacy
The new co-editors of Communications in Information Literacy reaffirm their commitment to the journal's values.
Assessment Of Information Literacy Instruction In Reference: Applying Vanscoy’S Conceptual And Procedural Framework In Practice, Vanessa Arce
Communications in Information Literacy
The instructional aspect of reference work has long been acknowledged, especially in academic libraries. The current RUSA guidelines include helping users develop information literacy as a goal of reference. In this context, investigating the presence and nature of information literacy instruction can be used to assess the quality of reference services. This study applied Amy VanScoy’s conceptual/procedural framework for point-of-need instruction to a sample of chat reference transcripts at Lehman College, City University of New York. One of the assessment’s goals was to determine the prevalence of instruction and type of knowledge addressed in reference interactions. Another goal was to …
"An Open Mind And A Critical Stance": A Content Analysis Of Information Literacy Integration Into A Course About Poverty And Discrimination, Ashley Shealy, C. Rebecca Oldham, Clay Oldham, Tara L. Griffith
"An Open Mind And A Critical Stance": A Content Analysis Of Information Literacy Integration Into A Course About Poverty And Discrimination, Ashley Shealy, C. Rebecca Oldham, Clay Oldham, Tara L. Griffith
Communications in Information Literacy
The ACRL Framework argues that infusing curriculum with information literacy concepts can improve students’ attitudes and abilities to navigate complex information landscapes. This paper describes how a librarian and a faculty member integrated an information literacy curriculum into an undergraduate upper-division course about poverty and discrimination. Curriculum efficacy was assessed through directed content analysis of student responses to open-ended questions about engaging with news and social media, forming opinions, and having conversations about controversial topics. Responses were analyzed using a coding scheme based on course objectives derived from Framework dispositions and knowledge practices. Results indicated that exposing students to an …
Research Matters: Problem-Setting: A Research Reflection Process, Merinda Kaye Hensley
Research Matters: Problem-Setting: A Research Reflection Process, Merinda Kaye Hensley
Communications in Information Literacy
In this inaugural “Research Matters” column, Merinda Kaye Hensley introduces problem-setting as an intentional research reflection process inspired by instructional design. This three-pronged approach invites librarians to examine their research agendas by surfacing prior knowledge, identifying bottlenecks, and creating an assumptions inventory. By interrogating what we think we know and where we struggle in doing research related to information literacy, problem-setting reframes our research processes as a generative, inquiry-driven practice. Drawing on an example from her own research agenda, investigating undergraduate researchers’ understandings of the publication process, Hensley demonstrates how reflective problem-setting can unstick thinking, sharpen questions and energize scholarly …
Information Literacy Tutorials For High Enrollment Courses: An Iterative Design-Based Approach, Kimberly Casey, Rebekah Heleen
Information Literacy Tutorials For High Enrollment Courses: An Iterative Design-Based Approach, Kimberly Casey, Rebekah Heleen
Communications in Information Literacy
The purpose of this paper is to provide academic librarians practical guidance on how to provide information literacy support to high enrollment, general education courses. It includes a detailed description and analysis of our approach and findings throughout the project, as well as reflections and lessons learned. The project team developed asynchronous information literacy tutorials for first-year students at the University of Arkansas, utilizing a flipped classroom approach, to address challenges in delivering personalized instruction to high-enrollment courses. Collaborating with program directors, the team created online tutorials embedded with feedback surveys, which collected nearly 2,000 student responses. We also surveyed …
The Spectrum Of Authority: A New Approach To Teaching Ai And Primary Source Literacies, Kristen Howard
The Spectrum Of Authority: A New Approach To Teaching Ai And Primary Source Literacies, Kristen Howard
Communications in Information Literacy
This article presents an information literacy workshop designed for undergraduate history courses that introduces students to generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) while strengthening primary source literacy. Anchored in the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, “Authority Is Constructed and Contextual,” the workshop employs an innovative pedagogical device, the Spectrum of Authority, to help students critically evaluate information sources. Through comparative analysis and guided discussion, students increased their ability to assess credibility in information sources. Student feedback indicated increased confidence in analyzing primary sources and a greater understanding of GenAI’s capabilities and …
Review Of Information Literacy And Social Media: Empowered Student Engagement With The Acrl Framework, Rebecca M. Mccall
Review Of Information Literacy And Social Media: Empowered Student Engagement With The Acrl Framework, Rebecca M. Mccall
Communications in Information Literacy
Review of Santamaría, M., & Pfannenstiel, N. (2024). Information literacy and social media: Empowered student engagement with the ACRL Framework. Association of College and Research Libraries.
Teaching Research As An Interdependent Practice: Bringing Alternate Models Into The Scholarly Conversation, Natalia Kapacinskas, Veronica Arellano Douglas
Teaching Research As An Interdependent Practice: Bringing Alternate Models Into The Scholarly Conversation, Natalia Kapacinskas, Veronica Arellano Douglas
Communications in Information Literacy
The customs and practices of research in academia are often mischaracterized as individualistic pursuits, ignoring the reality that research requires a great deal of collaboration. As teaching librarians, our research instruction often reinforces individualism as a scholarly virtue, even as we simultaneously engage with themes of connection between researchers and their ideas. We propose an approach to teaching research and information literacy grounded in the concept, intention, and practice of interdependence rather than individualism. In doing so, we will call in models of interdependence from critical disability studies, relational-cultural theory, Indigenous Ways of Knowing, and the Cite Black Women movement. …
The Librarian Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale, Maoria J. Kirker, David X. Lemmons
The Librarian Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale, Maoria J. Kirker, David X. Lemmons
Communications in Information Literacy
Teaching self-efficacy is a critical factor in instructional success. Little research has been conducted on how academic librarians perceive their own teaching abilities. This study introduces and validates the Librarian Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale, a tool designed to measure self-efficacy beliefs among academic librarians engaged in information literacy instruction. By adapting established self-efficacy scales to the library instruction context, this study examines key factors influencing librarian teaching self-efficacy, including instructional strategies, lesson planning, and collaboration with faculty. Collective self-efficacy, which is perceptions of colleagues’ teaching confidence, is also examined. Statistical analysis indicates a reliable and valid scale which may benefit …
“‘What Is One Takeaway You've Gotten From This Learning Experience?’ Analyzing Student Reflections On Introductory Information Literacy Instruction”, Amanda Nichols Hess, Emily Ruth Benoit, Rebecca M. Krystyniak, Stephanie Williams
“‘What Is One Takeaway You've Gotten From This Learning Experience?’ Analyzing Student Reflections On Introductory Information Literacy Instruction”, Amanda Nichols Hess, Emily Ruth Benoit, Rebecca M. Krystyniak, Stephanie Williams
Communications in Information Literacy
Reflection is a useful pedagogical tool for both learners in instructional settings and educators seeking to offer meaningful experiences; in this article, a group of academic librarians use the former to engage with the latter. We analyzed more than 830 first-year students’ responses to a reflection question posed at the conclusion of library instruction over the course of the 2023–2024 academic year with a specific eye to the concepts that were and were not resonant, as well as whether there were common areas of confusion. We used a grounded theory approach to make sense of the data and allow ideas …
The Library Instructor As Learner: A Survey Of Reflective Teaching Practices In Us Academic Libraries, Alicia G. Vaandering, Amanda Crego-Emley
The Library Instructor As Learner: A Survey Of Reflective Teaching Practices In Us Academic Libraries, Alicia G. Vaandering, Amanda Crego-Emley
Communications in Information Literacy
Reflective practice provides library workers with a critical opportunity to examine professional experiences, question assumptions and approaches, explore new perspectives, and develop innovative solutions to existing problems. When applied to instruction as reflective teaching, this practice better situates library instructors to meet the evolving needs of twenty-first-century library users. This research study explores how library workers engage with reflective teaching in academic libraries across the United States. A survey was distributed to academic library communities, and a total of 153 responses were collected. While 92% of respondents reported participating in reflective teaching practice in a variety of instructional contexts, results …
Information Literacy In The Artificial Intelligence Era: A Proposed Framework, Radwan Ali, Matthew L. Wilson
Information Literacy In The Artificial Intelligence Era: A Proposed Framework, Radwan Ali, Matthew L. Wilson
Communications in Information Literacy
Artificial intelligence (AI) systems and applications have become ubiquitous across daily life. While AI offers numerous positive opportunities, it also presents numerous challenges. Information literacy (IL) advocates are concerned about the risks that accompany AI systems. Given the universal reach of AI with its potential pitfalls and perils, researchers and practitioners from various fields and disciplines should inform the dialogue on AI’s development and application. A critical aspect of this dialogue comes in the form of information literacy. Our paper aims to answer the question “How can information literacy guide users in navigating and shaping artificial intelligence technologies?” by establishing …
Little Did I Know, Christopher V. Hollister
Little Did I Know, Christopher V. Hollister
Communications in Information Literacy
Christopher Hollister, co-founder and co-editor-in-chief, reflects on his time with CIL in this farewell editorial.
Searching For Change: Exploring Historical Silences And Counterstorytelling Through Youth-Led Social Justice Movements, Ariana Varela
Searching For Change: Exploring Historical Silences And Counterstorytelling Through Youth-Led Social Justice Movements, Ariana Varela
Communications in Information Literacy
During a first-year engagement program, a librarian and a cohort of students worked towards a shared understanding of dominant narratives, historical silences, and creating counterstories through research to center marginalized stories and complicate existing narratives. As information literacy professionals, we should design interactive lessons that demonstrate critical search and evaluation skills through topics that are relevant to students and encourage them to work with issues that impact their communities. Incorporating critical information literacy, feminist pedagogy, and critical race theory, this two-day micro-seminar introduced first-year students to the legacy of youth community activism in the neighborhoods around their university. They practiced …
What Language Are We Speaking?: Marketing Information Literacy On University Library Websites, Aleksandar Golijanin
What Language Are We Speaking?: Marketing Information Literacy On University Library Websites, Aleksandar Golijanin
Communications in Information Literacy
This study investigates how Canadian university libraries communicate information literacy (IL) to non-library faculty members on faculty-facing web pages. A content analysis was conducted of websites from institutions affiliated with the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (n = 25) to identify trends in the terminology used to describe IL. The findings reveal that the term "information literacy" appears with varying frequency across website headings, subheadings and body text, while terms like “research skills” and “critical information use” may appear in its stead. University libraries may intentionally be employing these terms to enhance faculty engagement in response to the existing …
"Some Level Of Skill For Life": Secondary Teacher Librarians Supporting Student Information Literacy Skill Transfer Beyond Secondary School, Kasey L. Garrison, Kay Oddone
"Some Level Of Skill For Life": Secondary Teacher Librarians Supporting Student Information Literacy Skill Transfer Beyond Secondary School, Kasey L. Garrison, Kay Oddone
Communications in Information Literacy
Students entering higher education are expected to transfer information literacy skills and knowledge developed through their primary schooling and sharpened in their secondary years. However, the constant evolution of the information landscape means the mastery of these skills presents challenges for students to develop and teachers to teach. Through interviews, this phenomenological study examines the perspectives and practices of 19 Australian secondary teacher librarians supporting student information literacy skill transfer in school and life contexts and considers important changes in the teaching of these skills. Findings suggest time and content overload are preventing integration across subjects and limiting students’ ability …
Generative Ai For College Students: A Collaboratively Developed Online Microcourse On Genai In The College Classroom, Amber Willenborg, Tessa Withorn
Generative Ai For College Students: A Collaboratively Developed Online Microcourse On Genai In The College Classroom, Amber Willenborg, Tessa Withorn
Communications in Information Literacy
Academic libraries have taken a variety of approaches to addressing the opportunities and challenges of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in higher education. For universities that have no standard policy around GenAI, instructors are left with little guidance on how to teach students about GenAI in the classroom and may have varying levels of comfort with GenAI and its applications. To address the need for more instruction around GenAI, a team of librarians and university writing center and digital media suite staff took an innovative approach to teaching AI literacy by creating a six-lesson microcourse in their learning management system all …
Exploring Positional Knowledge: Using Theory To Teach Bias, Thomas C. Weeks, Melissa E. Johnson
Exploring Positional Knowledge: Using Theory To Teach Bias, Thomas C. Weeks, Melissa E. Johnson
Communications in Information Literacy
In this article, the authors explain how librarians can use positionality theory to understand how students produce value judgments around questions of bias, authority, and credibility. Librarians can help guide students to recognize the student’s own positionality when approaching issues of bias. Students are often instructed to choose credible sources for their research, which they often interpret as sources that avoid bias. Source evaluation tools and checklists, such as the CRAAP test and SIFT, also tell students to watch out for biased language. Unfortunately, many people, students and librarians alike, misunderstand bias and fail to recognize its significance in the …
Enchanted April, Christopher V. Hollister, Allison Hosier, Jacqulyn A. Williams
Enchanted April, Christopher V. Hollister, Allison Hosier, Jacqulyn A. Williams
Communications in Information Literacy
This editorial is a tribute to former CIL co-editor-in-chief, April Schweikhard.
From Novice To Expert: Exploring The Relationship Between Information Literacy Threshold Concepts And Epistemological Development, Amanda L. Folk
From Novice To Expert: Exploring The Relationship Between Information Literacy Threshold Concepts And Epistemological Development, Amanda L. Folk
Communications in Information Literacy
The Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education articulates the ways of thinking, knowing, and doing that are valued in the academic community. Prior to the Framework, several scholars explored the potential relationship between information literacy and epistemological development, or the ways in which learners develop their understanding of and positionality to knowledge creation. However, the intersections of information literacy and epistemological development have been underexamined in the era of the Framework. In this article, I analyze the Framework through the lens of two epistemological development models, the Epistemological Reflection Model (Baxter-Magolda, 1992) and Reflective Judgement Model (King …
From Cynicism To Trust: Strategies For Teaching Students Source Evaluation Skills, Mandi Goodsett, Melanie Gagich
From Cynicism To Trust: Strategies For Teaching Students Source Evaluation Skills, Mandi Goodsett, Melanie Gagich
Communications in Information Literacy
Concerns about the spread and adoption of misinformation abound, and academic librarians have played a part in trying to stem the tide through information literacy instruction. However, teaching students how to evaluate sources can be complicated—teaching fact-checking skills may be insufficient if it increases students’ overall cynicism about information ecosystems. This study explores how teaching fact-checking and lateral reading skills, along with instruction about “bias filters,” can help to reduce the cynicism of first year writing students, while also increasing their misinformation detection skills. Results are mixed, but teaching about the information creation process and “bias filters” is especially promising. …
Visual Literacy Instruction At Scale: Developing Asynchronous Learning Objects For First-Year Art And Design Students, Jacqueline Huddle, Sarah Carter
Visual Literacy Instruction At Scale: Developing Asynchronous Learning Objects For First-Year Art And Design Students, Jacqueline Huddle, Sarah Carter
Communications in Information Literacy
While learning modules are not new to academic librarianship, student-centered, asynchronous learning modules are an innovative approach not commonly considered within the academic librarianship literature. This article discusses the development and implementation of visual literacy asynchronous learning modules created by two librarians for a cohort of first-year studio art students. In creating these modules, the goal was to offer studio art students visual literacy instruction specific to their personal interests and future careers. Specifically, this article discusses the module design process and how student-centered learning can be incorporated into modules in order to offer deep learning opportunities.
Building On Strengths: A Collaborative, Asset-Focused Approach To Teaching Critical Information Literacy Skills, Rebecca B. Penrose, Kristi J. Chavez
Building On Strengths: A Collaborative, Asset-Focused Approach To Teaching Critical Information Literacy Skills, Rebecca B. Penrose, Kristi J. Chavez
Communications in Information Literacy
This article showcases an instructor–librarian collaborative model for teaching critical information literacy (CIL) skills in a higher education course by incorporating interactive workshops into a sequence of required course assignments. Using an asset-focused design, this assignment sequence allows students to first demonstrate their existing research strategies and then evaluate those strategies during workshop activities, applying the CIL principles they are learning. In this way, the approach recognizes students’ existing strengths and builds upon them, while emphasizing self-reflection opportunities and an intentional research focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and representation. Results from our one-year study are also highlighted. The suggested instructional …
A Faculty Workshop On Developing Students As Discipline-Situated Researchers, William Badke, Elizabeth Kreiter, Qinqin Zhang
A Faculty Workshop On Developing Students As Discipline-Situated Researchers, William Badke, Elizabeth Kreiter, Qinqin Zhang
Communications in Information Literacy
The reference librarians of Trinity Western University have a strong mission-driven commitment to teach information literacy, but there is a significant contrast between the amount of instruction they can provide and the demanding task of developing all students as skilled researchers. The growing teach-the-teacher model suggested an option to enlist faculty in providing a larger portion of information literacy instruction themselves. With strong support from academic administration, three librarians devised an initial faculty workshop as part of the university’s faculty professional development series, followed by four detailed weekly sessions. They based their activities on several factors: first, faculty members would …
The Inclusion Of Metacognition In Source Evaluation Instruction, Anthony Tardiff
The Inclusion Of Metacognition In Source Evaluation Instruction, Anthony Tardiff
Communications in Information Literacy
Though the ACRL Framework holds metacognition as crucial to exercising information literacy, its emphasis was reduced from prominence in early drafts to a single mention in the final document. At the same time, few of the frequently-taught sets of source evaluation criteria include a step for self-awareness. This raises the question: do librarians explicitly teach metacognitive concepts when they teach source evaluation? Online library guides about source evaluation from various colleges and universities in Washington state were analyzed, and librarians who taught source evaluation were surveyed to determine whether and to what extent metacognitive concepts were included as part of …
Mapping Out Information Literacy: A Textbook Review, Alyssa Russo
Mapping Out Information Literacy: A Textbook Review, Alyssa Russo
Communications in Information Literacy
This narrative review examines the thematic content and evolution of information literacy textbooks published between 2005 and 2022. Analyzing sixteen textbooks, it explores two themes: the research process and conceptual foundations of information literacy. The research process theme highlights the procedural aspects of conducting library research, delineating the steps from topic selection to presentation. The conceptual foundations of IL theme reveals a discrepancy in how textbooks address the broader conceptual underpinnings of information literacy, particularly the context of a rapidly changing information society. This review highlights the focus on practical skills and the relative lack of discussions on broader contexts …