Page 95 - DLIS102_LIBRARY_AND_ITS_USERS

Library and its Users

Notes Technology is changing the way higher education institutions are offering instruction. The use of
the Internet is being taught in the contexts of subject area curricula and the overall information
literacy process.
There is some empirical indication that students who use technology as a tool may become better at
managing information, communicating, and presenting ideas.

13.2.6 Distance Education

Now that information literacy has become a part of the core curriculum at many post-secondary
institutions, it is incumbent upon the library community to be able to provide information literacy
instruction in a variety of formats, including online learning and distance education. The Association
of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) addresses this need in its Guidelines for Distance Education
Services (2000):
“Library resources and services in institutions of higher education must meet the needs of all their
faculty, students, and academic support staff, wherever these individuals are located, whether on a
main campus, off campus, in distance education or extended campus programs—or in the absence
of a campus at all, in courses taken for credit or non-credit; in continuing education programs; in
courses attended in person or by means of electronic transmission; or any other means of distance
education.”
Within the e-learning and distance education worlds, providing effective information literacy
programs brings together the challenges of both distance librarianship and instruction. With the
prevalence of course management systems such as WebCT and Blackboard, library staff are
embedding information literacy training within academic programs and within individual classes
themselves (Presti, 2002).

13.2.7 Global Information Literacy

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) has established an
Information Literacy Section. The Section has, in turn, developed and mounted an Information
Literacy Resources Directory, called InfoLit Global. Librarians, educators and information
professionals may self-register and upload information-literacy-related materials (IFLA, Information
Literacy Section, n.d.) According to the IFLA website, “The primary purpose of the Information
Literacy Section is to foster international co-operation in the development of information literacy
education in all types of libraries and information institutions.” http://www.ifla.org/en/about-
information-literacy.

Self Assessment

State whether the following statements are true or false:
6. American Association of School Librarians that published new standards for student learning
in 2007.
7. IFLA claims that the Big6 is the most widely used model in K-12 education.
8. The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) addresses this need in its Guide-
lines for Distance Education Services (2000).
9. The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) has established
an Information Literacy Section.

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