Information Competence Statement

The latter half of the twentieth century is being appropriately called the Information Age. An ever-burgeoning volume of information has become available in multiple formats from numerous sources. As we move towards an increasingly information-based society, the ability to locate information efficiently and use it effectively have become essential skills for a successful learning experience in college and beyond. This ability, which is often referred to as information literacy or information competence, is central to the academic success of our students.

Information competence prepares students not only to succeed academically but also to think critically and use information to enhance their academic, professional, and personal lives. Information competence is necessary in all disciplines and in all learning environments and forms the basis for independent, lifelong learning. The information competent student is able to recognize and articulate the need for information and to identify, locate, evaluate, and use information in a logical, cohesive, and ethical manner.1

The development of information competence is a university- wide responsibility and can best be achieved by integrating the teaching of information theory, concepts, and skills throughout the curriculum. The sustained collaborative effort of teaching faculty, librarians, and administration is essential if we wish to ensure that each University of Akron graduate is competent in identifying, locating, evaluating, and using information effectively.

A Set of Core Competencies

In order to be able to find, evaluate, and effectively use information in all its various formats, students must be able to demonstrate the following competencies:

  1. Recognize and articulate an information need
    • Understand that accurate and comprehensive information is essential in order to answer questions authoritatively, make decisions, and resolve research problems
    • Recognize when additional information is needed in order to answer a question, make a decision, address a research problem, or fill in missing data
    • State a research need, problem, or issue and formulate appropriate, relevant research questions
    • Define a manageable focus and time-line
  2. Identify and select appropriate information sources
    • Understand the nature of the assignment or information problem being addressed
    • Determine the type of information needed, i.e., popular or scholarly, primary or secondary, books or periodicals, print or electronic, etc.
    • Identify resources relevant to the research topic (including experts in the field, print resources, www resources, multimedia, etc.)
    • Understand the limitations of indexes, databases, and print resources (timeliness, updates, date coverage, subject matter, etc.) Understand what sorts of information can and cannot be found via the computer
    • Select appropriate databases or indexes for searching
  3. Develop and use successful search strategies
    • Use common access points including author, title, keyword, and subject to construct a search query
    • Understand that the use of additional access points depends on the structure and format of the source used to identify new information
    • Understand that some sources use controlled vocabulary assigned by an indexer, cataloger, or computer programmer as access points
    • Understand the concept of Boolean logic and construct a simple search using "and" and "or"
    • Select search strategies appropriate to the topic and resource
    • Assess the number and relevance of sources cited to determine whether the search strategy must be refined
  4. Locate and retrieve relevant information in a variety of formats
    • Recognize the components of a citation and differentiate between types of resources cited, such as a book, periodical, or government document, as well as format (e.g. electronic or physical)
    • Understand that libraries have developed methods for locating and sharing resources not owned locally and use the appropriate resource sharing system, such as OhioLINK or interlibrary loan, to retrieve information
    • Understand that classification schemes are designed to enable libraries to locate materials on the same subject in the same discipline in close proximity to each other
    • Understand conventions for naming and locating works in print or electronic format (i.e. call numbers and URL's)
    • Use location information in the bibliographic record to identify and retrieve locally owned resources
    • Understand that the Internet may be a useful resource for locating, retrieving, and transferring information electronically
    • Copy, save, download, print, or email information from a source and access it later
  5. Critically evaluate the information retrieved
    • Identify the currency and authority (motive, point of view, bias, scholarship, intended audience, objectivity, consistency) of information
    • Evaluate an author's expertise, educational background, and affiliation when determining an author's credibility
    • Filter large amounts of information and distinguish among facts, point of view, and opinion
    • Assess the accuracy and reliability of information
    • Distinguish between popular and scholarly resources
  6. Use information in a cohesive, logical, and ethical manner
    • Synthesize the ideas and concepts from the information sources collected, using critical thinking skills
    • Extract relevant information
    • Organize information in a logical and useful manner
    • Apply information to critical thinking and problem solving situations
    • Cite and acknowledge sources appropriately Understand the principles of intellectual property, copyright, and plagiarism and use information in an ethical manner
    • Communicate or present the final product effectively in a variety of formats and media

Information Technology Competencies

Information competence incorporates a broad spectrum of information technology competencies. An information competent individual must be computer literate in order to access and use effectively a great deal of the information required for higher education today. Technology competencies for information retrieval include skills in basic computer use, Internet applications, and proficiency in applications software. Information competence requires much more than basic information technology skills.2

Prepared by the Information Literacy Initiative Task Force

July 28, 1999

Sources:

1 Definition adapted from American Library Association Presidential Committee on Information Literacy 1989. Final Report. Chicago: The Association.

2ACRL Task Force on Information Literacy Competency Standards. Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education 1999. Draft. Chicago: The Association of College and Research Libraries.