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Carol C. Kuhlthau (1989, 1990) agrees with Breivik on the need for persistence, attention to detail, and caution in accepting information. She points out that one of the most important aspects of information literacy is an understanding of the amount of time and work involved in information seeking and use. The IL individual must be aware that information gathering is not linear; it is a complex process in which questions change and evolve as new information is gathered and thought about. Susanne Bjorner (1991) contributes a few more attitudinal or personality traits to the mix. She includes not only recognizing but also accepting a need for investigation, constructs a variety of strategies to reduce the information gap, evaluates and selects the most appropriate strategy and assesses the effectiveness of the chosen strategy. Finally, the information literacy individual not only uses the information now, he or she also stores it for future use. Hannelore B. Rader (1991) discusses the information literacy individual as someone who can survive and be successful in a rapidly changing information environment. Being information literate allows one to lead a productive and satisfying life in a democratic society and to ensure a better future for coming generations The AASL /AECT standards also reflect this view. These standards define information literate student as one who accesses information efficiently and effectively, critically evaluates the information, and uses it accurately and creatively. |
There is an emphasis on independent learning and also an element of social responsibility. The information literate individual is someone who contributes positively to the learning community and to society. Underlying this definition is the belief that an information literate populace is the cornerstone of democracy (ALA: American Association of School Librarians and Association for Educational Communications and Technology, 1998).
Christina S. Doyle (1996) characterizes the IL person as one who recognizes an information need and acknowledges that accurate and complete information is the basis for decision making. The information literate individual can formulate questions based on this information need, develop appropriate search strategies, and access information from a variety of sources. Furthermore, the information literate individual must be able to organize information, and use it in critical thinking and problem solving.
Then we have Christine Bruce's (1997) description of an information literate person as one who engages in independent, self-directed learning using a variety of resources (print and electronic). He or she values information and its use, approaches information critically and has developed a personal information style. Information literacy is described as a construct developed by the information literate individual. Such an individual creates a specific relationship with information in which he or she interacts with it in a way that provides personal meaning.
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives 3.0 License
Sirje Virkus, Tallinn University, 2009