New book: The Academic Teaching Librarian's Handbook

The Academic Teaching Librarian's Handbook is a new book by Claire McGuinness (information literacy expert and faculty member at University College Dublin), published by Facet (ISBN 9781783304622). The main sections are: Part 1 Constructing the academic teaching librarian (subsections: Shaping the academic teaching librarian; Defining the academic teaching librarian; Becoming an academic teaching librarian) Part 2 Excelling as an academic teaching librarian (subsections: Technology and the academic teaching librarian; Leading and co-ordinating for the academic teaching librarian; Advocacy and the academic teaching librarian. Cost is £55, with discount to CILIP members. More details at https://www.facetpublishing.co.uk/page/detail/the-academic-teaching-librarian/?k=9781783304622

Photo by Sheila Webber: winter reflections, January 2021

Webinar: La voie à suivre: le développement de la littératie numérique au Canada

An interesting French-language webinar: La voie à suivre: le développement de la littératie numérique au Canada, [developing digital literacy in Canada] on 10 February 2021, 4.00-5.00 pm UK time. The panel consists of Prof Davina Frau-Meigs (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle), Marc Ladouceur (Media Smarts/Habilo Media), and Rudy Reichstadt (Conspiracy Watch), moderated by Agnès Gruda. It will be streamed to Facebook and Youtube and is part of the Canadian Coalition to Counter COVID Digital Disinformation (which is obviously a bingual French/English initiative). "Lors de la cinquième session de notre série d'évènement sur la COVID-19 et la désinformation, nous parlerons des acteurs principaux, des thèmes clés, et du développement de la littératie numérique au sein de la population canadienne. Nous regarderons ce qui se fait déjà ici et ailleurs alors que nous faisons encore face à la pandémie." Register here (the link will then be sent to particpants in advance) https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/la-voie-a-suivre-le-developpement-de-la-litteratie-numerique-au-canada-tickets-136308194479

Photo by Sheila Webber, taken in Second Life: in Second Life I need no mask for shopping, and the digital tools used for the photo were a Firestorm virtual worlds browser, and the GIMP photo editor.

5000th blog post on the Information Literacy Weblog

Today I'm celebrating 5000 blog posts on this Information Literacy Weblog. The first blog post, on 5th September 2005, started "This is a temporary blog"(note 1) - my predictive powers were obviously pretty poor that day. In the blog's early days Stuart Boon also blogged here and latterly the blog has gained from conference blogposts from my colleague Dr Pam McKinney, but otherwise the posts are by me. At time of writing this post, the Blogger counter records 2,695,807 page views (note 2).

I have dithered about how to mark this milestone (that's why I haven't blogged for a few days!) but I've decided to have a series of reflective posts, thinking about was going on, and what I was posting, then and now. I have started by identifying a few then-and-now facts, below. There are advances in information literacy in 2021 (for example more journal articles, more accessible webinars, conferences and specialist groups, and in more countries - not so focused on the West). However, there are other changes: for example, much less IL activity in Australia (which led in IL research and practice at the start of the millennium, I think) and the disappearance or stagnation of some specialist groups (such as ENIL and the SCONUL group). 

Bill Johnston and I reflected on the development of information literacy in Webber & Johnston (2017) so I won't go over that ground again, but in future posts I'll do a bit more analysis of themes and events, then and now. Of course, what is on this blog reflects my own preferences, conceptions, biases etc. as well as pragmatic decisions I make on how much time to spend on the blog!

In 2005 there were not: (1) Any journals dedicated to information literacy (Journal of Information Literacy and Communications in Information Literacy both started in 2007 and NORIL in 2009);
(2) Online conferences and webinars about information literacy;
(3) The IFLA Information Literacy Section (the first Standing Committee meeting was in 2009).
(4) As many journal articles about information literacy (see e.g. Pinto, Escalona-Fernandez & Pulgarin, 2013)

In 2005 there were: (1) Lots of information literacy conferences: The LILAC conference (the first one was in 2005), WILU, LOEX plus various other conferences in Australia, Sweden, Canada, the UK and so on - there were also calls for papers for the 2006 Lifelong Learning conference in Australia, the 2006 Creating Knowledge conference in Denmark and Les Rencontres FORMIST in France.
(2) Proclamations from UNESCO on Information Literacy - the initiative really kickstarted with the Prague Declaration in 2003, and in November 2005 the Alexandria Proclamation was produced.
(3) Specialist groups and networks, including the European Network on Information Literacy (ENIL) (which launched its 2nd international survey that year and had in 2003 published Information Literacy in Europe: a first insight into the state of the art of Information Literacy in the European Union) and the SCONUL Working Group on Information Literacy
-------------------------------

References: Pinto, M., Escalona-Fernandez, M.I. & Pulgarin, A. (2013). Information Literacy in social sciences and health sciences: a bibliometric study (1974-2011). Scientometrics, 95, 1071-1094. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-012-0899-y 

Webber, S., & Johnston, B. (2017). Information literacy: conceptions, context and the formation of a discipline. Journal of Information Literacy, 11(1), 156-183. https://ojs.lboro.ac.uk/JIL/article/view/PRA-V11-I1-9

Note 1. This blog was a continuation of one of the same name, started in 2003 and hosted on a unix machine at Sheffield University, which closed for technical reasons (i.e. the person who did unix left), and the earliest post on this blog is a repost from there (on the pedagogy of Harry Potter)

Note 2. To be honest, this 2,695,807 is likely to include a chunk of denial-of-service spam views. However, I think a reasonable percentage are hits from actual human beings.

Fake News for Dummies/ Open your eyes project

The Open Your Eyes project "targets specifically adult learners and educators and seeks to improve their digital skills by providing them with tools to identify fake news and fight the spread of disinformation online" (see https://openyoureyes.info/en/about). Partners included EU Disinfo LAB and the European Digital Learning Network. One output was a database which can be filtered by country and type of resource which aimed to be "a collection of useful tools and initiatives to learn about online disinformation" (it says it will be updated, but it wasn't clear whether that was happening) and a multi-module handbook for adult educators which focuses on teaching adult educators to develop media literacy. From a very superficial evaluation it seemed to me that the American Library Association materials were more immediately useful for librarians, but the material here is also worth investigating, giving a different set of activities and also having a more international scope.

Recent articles: tutorials, curriculum mapping; AR game; conspiracy theories; transition; design for serendipity; COVID response

The latest issue of the Journal of Academic Librarianship (Volume 47 issue 1) includes (priced publication - though note a couple of articles, marked below, are open access) : 

- Redesigning an online information literacy tutorial for first-year undergraduate instruction by Kimberly Y. Franklin, Kendall Faulkner, Tiffanie Ford-Baxter, Sheree Fu (open access)
- Practicing information literacy: Practicum students negotiating information practice in workplace settings by Sara Sharun
- Using curriculum mapping to scaffold and equitably distribute information literacy instruction for graduate professional studies programs by Ladislava Khailova
- Comparative analysis of academic scientists, social scientists and humanists' scholarly information seeking habits by Alia Arshad, Kanwal Ameen
- Scaffolded research assignment analysis for a required first year course by Jennifer Saulnier, Corey M. Johnson, Kathleen Whalen
- Help first-year college students to learn their library through an augmented reality game by Yingqi Tang
- A call to action for librarians: Countering conspiracy theories in the age of QAnon by Stephanie Beene, Katie Greer
- The higher education environment driving academic library strategy: A political, economic, social and technological (PEST) analysis by John Cox (open access)
- Successes, challenges, and next steps in implementing outcome-based assessment: The case of Istanbul Bilgi University Library by Fatma Didin Sonmez, Sami Cuhadar, Mustafa Kerem Kahvecioglu
- Improv(is)ing research: Instructional design for serendipity in archival exploration by Jason Ezell, Lucy
- Uncovering the information literacy skills of first-generation and provisionally admitted students by Stephanie J. Graves, Sarah LeMire, Kathy Christie Anders
- Transitioning to college: Impact of high school librarians by Lesley S.J. Farmer, Skyler Phamle (open access)
- University libraries response to COVID-19 pandemic: A developing country perspective by Muhammad Rafiq, Syeda Hina Batool, Amna Farzand Ali, Midrar Ullah 

Go to https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/the-journal-of-academic-librarianship/vol/47/issue/1

Photo by Sheila Webber: vivid winter sky, January 2021

Call for chapters: Practicing privacy literacy in academic libraries

There is a call for chapter proposals for Practicing privacy literacy in academic libraries (working title) to be published by the Association of College and Research Libraries. The deadline is March 5 2021. "We welcome chapter proposals on all aspects of privacy literacy work in academic libraries ... Chapters will be organized into four sections: What is privacy literacy?, Protecting privacy, Educating about privacy, and Advocating for privacy. Topics might include, but are not limited to: instruction, student engagement, faculty outreach, collection development and resource description, library systems administration, library assessment, learning analytics, and institutional research, and other aspects of library administration, professional development, professional ethics, institutional service, and scholarly communication."

More information at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OMZjP0QOtYD2DB-GvlAeeoo5l_YHoa8F/view. Submit proposals at https://psu.libwizard.com/f/ACRLPrivLitProposal .

Photo by Sheila Webber: winter reflections, January 2021

Indigenous information literacy: recording and resources

There is a recording of the webinar from Rachel Chong (Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Canada), delivered on 22nd January 2021, on Indigenous information literacy at https://media.kpu.ca/media/Indigenous+Information+Literacy+-+Background/0_r9ac5esu. The first 25 minutes is her presentation about developing videos and then there is about 30 minutes of interesting questions and comments. You can also access the videos she made, embedded in an Indigenous Studies Libguide here https://libguides.kpu.ca/indigenous/indigenousinformationliteracy and in their own video channel at https://media.kpu.ca/playlist/dedicated/133875/0_3vccum6n/0_pd2m69be. The videos include: source evaluation; Finding Indigenous Voices; Elders and respectful research; TCPS2 and Indigenous Research (TCPS2 is the Canadian guideline on ethical research); How to cite elders in various different bibliographical styles (APA etc.).

Photo by Sheila Webber: in winter, looking forward to spring (this hopeful mimosa tree is in flower...), January 2021

Infolit for U MOOC still available

I mentioned previously in 2018 a MOOC developed by universities in Hong Kong, aimed at undergraduates, Infolit for U. It is still available via EdX and they added new material after my previous blog post. The registration/home page for the MOOC is at https://edx.keep.edu.hk/courses/course-v1:UGCULibs+IL1001+2017_01/about
and their Youtube is at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtGUWVpBbHrewqZK3G4v91A/videos Anyone can sign up for the MOOC (I tested again that this works).

Guide and webinars on media literacy

The American Library Association published a guide to support librarians in developing media literacy outside formal education (e.g. in public libraries) and also deliver free one hour webinars on the topic.  The guide is Media Literacy in the Library: A Guide for Library Practitioners and is free to download. The webinars are as follows and are all at 1 p.m. US CT (which is, e.g., 7pm UK time) :

Media Literacy for Adults: Misinformation and Disinformation February 10, 2021 "Nicole Cooke of the University of South Carolina School of Information Science will discuss how libraries and information organizations are in prime positions to assist their students and patrons with disputing misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation."
Media Literacy for Adults: Architecture of the Internet, February 24, 2021 "Natasha Casey of Blackburn College will discuss cookies, algorithms, and a variety of other parts of the internet that track your online presence. How can we talk about these things with library patrons?"
Media Literacy for Adults: Civics, March 10, 2021 "Join Laura Saunders of Simmons University School of Library and Information Science for a webinar on the important role libraries play in the civic life of their patrons and how that role is shaped."
Media Literacy for Adults: Media Landscape and Economics at 1 p.m. CT "Michael Spikes of Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy will discuss how this mix of [professionally produced and user-generated] content leads to a “blurring of the lines” between various types of content making it difficult to tell what is trustworthy and what is not.
Media Literacy for Adults: Media Engagement and Creation, April 14, 2021

For all these (including the guide), go to https://programminglibrarian.org/articles/media-literacy-adults-free-practitioners-guide-and-webinars?

Media Literacy for Adults: Meeting Patrons Where They Are, the first webinar, was held on January 12, 2021 and this page has links to the recording, powerpoint and resource list 

Photo by Sheila Webber: ex-Xmas trees of South London, January 2021

New online community for teaching librarians

Andrew Walsh has launched a new online network for anyone interested in teaching or training in library settings, Library Instruction. It will include some content, but is mainly focused on enabling people to exchange experience, advice and support and to collaborate e.g. on events. You can join for free or pay get a premium service ($14.99, to cover hosting costs) "There will be additional content in a private section of the network for premium members (initially a PDF of “The Mini Book of Teaching Tips for Librarians" [by Andrew Walsh]..., but most things will be available for free to all."
To join, go to https://library-instruction.mn.co

Photo by Sheila Webber: Ex-Xmas trees of South London, January 2021

Webinar: Indigenous Information Literacy project

On 22 January 2021 at 10-11 US MT (which is, e.g., 17.00-18.00 UK time) there is a webinar Indigenous Information Literacy project (40 min presentation, 20 min q and a). "The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action both demand improved recognition regarding Indigenous Peoples information rights. In response to these documents and to support local Kwantlen Polytechnic University commitments to decolonize and Indigenize, a series of instructional videos were created to encourage faculty to include Indigenous Information Literacy training in their virtual courses. This presentation will outline how the Indigenous Information Literacy project came into being, the process involved in creating the videos, an overview of the content, as well as a discussion on sharing and implementation." It is presented by Rachel Chong, Indigenous Engagement and Subject Liaison Librarian at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Canada, on the unceded traditional and ancestral lands of the Kwantlen, Musqueam, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen, Qayqayt, and Kwikwetlem Peoples. Chong is Métis through her maternal grandfather’s lineage. 

Registration link: https://forms.gle/8TaXASpBE3xts2vi6

Photo by Sheila Webber: ex-Xmas trees of South London ( 2-tree household), January 2021

Webinar: Open and Inclusive Pedagogies from and Beyond Your Living Room

A limited number (300) can register for the free ACRL online webinar SLILC Midwinter Virtual Discussion: Open and Inclusive Pedagogies from and Beyond Your Living Room, on February 10 2021, at 3-4pm CST (which is, e.g., 9pm-10pm UK time)

"Facing the challenges of a global pandemic and confronting the harsh realities of racial and social injustice over this past year, teaching librarians have become increasingly attuned to the value of open and inclusive pedagogies. This is reflected in growing conversations about open educational practices (OEP), which extend beyond the mere use of open educational resources to include “collaborative, pedagogical practices employing social and participatory technologies for interaction, peer-learning, knowledge creation and sharing, and empowerment of learners” (see Catherine Cronin & Iain MacLaren’s “Conceptualizing OEP”). Open educational practices are intended to remove barriers to meaningful learning and to invite students to be active agents in their learning. This “Ask the Room” discussion-based event will be an opportunity for fellow librarians to share opportunities, challenges, and questions related to open educational practices in their everyday work now and in the foreseeable future. The event organizers (the ACRL SLILC Committee Open Educational Practices team) will use participants’ ideas and feedback to inform future professional development offerings and resources. " All are welcome. No ALA membership or conference registration required.

Register at https://ala-events.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcud-mtpj8oGNBQ8EYOIv1BHN8pzR7yENCA

Photo by Sheila Webber: ex-Xmas trees of South London, January 2021

2nd call for papers: Critical Approaches to Libraries Conference (CALC) #CALC2021

There is a 2nd call for proposals for the Critical Approaches to Libraries Conference (CALC) conference taking place online, 5-6 May 2021. The deadline for proposals is 14 February 2021. This call is open to all. The scope of the conference is as follows "Our aim in this conference is to provide a space to share and range of ideas and practices in all areas of critical library practice, including (but not limited to) decolonisation, critical information literacy and critical pedagogy, equality, diversity and inclusion library work and services and representation of marginalised groups in society, academia and collections. Similarly we are interested in sharing experiences and practices from all areas (collections, liaison, teaching and learning etc.) and sectors of library work (HE, FE, health, public, school and special libraries and special collections). If you work in or with the library sector and are interested in challenging the dominant “historical, cultural, social, economic, political and other forces that affect information” (Gregory and Higgins 2013) then we would love you to attend this conference." (source here) 

For more information, go to http://calc.coventry.domains/participate/call-for-papers/

Call for chapter proposals: Instructional Identities and Information Literacy

There is a call for chapter proposals for Instructional Identities and Information Literacy: Transforming Our Profession, Our Institutions, Our Programs, and Ourselves, a forthcoming book to be published by ACRL. The deadline for proposals is 31 March 2021. This "seeks to emphasize real-world examples from an array of librarians to explore how teaching-centric perspective transformation can happen in diverse environments, for librarians with diverse needs, around diverse instructional issues (e.g. teaching with technology, considering critical pedagogy, integrating the Framework into instruction, finding nexus with other literacies). In this book, we’ll use transformative learning theory, and the diverse ways to consider this approach to adult learning, to more fully explore how these ideas may be put into action for libraries and librarians looking to reconsider their instructional identities and teaching practices." The proposed sections are: 

"- Instructional Identities: Have you had personal experience in exploring, critically reflecting on, and/or redefining your own identity as an educator in the wake of social, political, or cultural events? Did you lead or engage in a shared professional learning opportunity for a group of librarians (journal clubs, learning communities, etc.) that focused on transforming or reshaping teaching identities?

"- Program Identities: Has your library unit worked in systematic, intentional ways to reshape how your library offers information literacy instruction? How has transformation played a role in such work? 

"- Institutional Identities: Have you and your colleagues spearheaded efforts to connect information literacy instruction to student success initiatives, high-impact practices, or other institution-wide efforts? Have you had a strong voice on your campus in redefining information literacy broadly or for specific disciplines, especially since the release of the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education? 

"- Professional Identities: Do you have a distinct perspective on how we, in librarianship, might transform our instructional work to be more anti-racist, inclusive, or critical?"

More details at https://sites.google.com/oakland.edu/instructional-identities

Photo by Sheila Webber: Ex-Xmas trees of South London, January 2021

New articles: reflecting on IL instruction; librarians as teachers; flipped classroom; copyright; learner confidence; data literacy; IL design

There is a new issue of the open-access Journal of Information Literacy (volume 15 issue 1). The articles and project reports are: 

- Critical discourse analysis as a reflection tool for information literacy instruction by Devina Dandar, Sajni Lacey
- Librarians’ development as teachers by Andrea Baer
- Copyright Dough by Hannah Pyman, Katrine Sundsbø
- A flipped classroom approach to teaching search techniques for systematic reviews to encourage active learning by Karen Poole
- Teaching a one-credit course on data literacy and data visualisation by Tatiana Usova, Robert Laws
- Evaluating confidence in information literacy by David Bedford
- Information-Wise by Jaro Pichel, Barend Last, Julie de Ronde, Alicja Garbaciak, Henrietta Hazen, Stefan Jongen
Go to https://ojs.lboro.ac.uk/JIL/issue/view/223   

Photo by Sheila Webber: ex-Xmas trees of South London, January 2021

Webinar: Media Literacy for Librarians

There is a priced webinar from Amigos Library Services (fee between US $70 and $155) on 21 January 2021 at 2pm-4pm CST (which is, e.g. 8pm-10pm UK time): Media Literacy for Librarians. "Media literacy focuses on analyzing media content and the effect of media on society, while information literacy is the ability to identify, find, evaluate, and use information effectively. In this course, designed for librarians and staff, you will learn how to interpret media messages and their effect on individuals and society by applying media literacy theory and practices. You will also learn how to pass this knowledge on to your patrons and colleagues to help them better evaluate media." More info at https://www.amigos.org/node/4317
Photo by Sheila Webber: ex-Xmas trees of South London, January 2021

New collection of Age-friendly images #AFMIL @Ageing_Better

The Centre for Ageing Better has created a small library of freely-usable (under CC) photos which show more realistic and positive images of older people. Avoiding ageist stereotyping in images of older people is one of the aspects of Age-Friendly Media and Information Literacy #AFMIL that Bill Johnston and I have identified. As the Centre for Ageing Better notes "images of wrinkly hands clasped together in consternation is an all too common sight" and they also urge people to avoid images that emphasise frailty "sad eyes, beige sofas etc.". (This is what you get, for example, if you search "elderly" on Unsplash .... https://unsplash.com/s/photos/elderly.) 

This is a good project that hopefully will be added to (e.g. I'd find it useful to have more pictures of older people using online devices). There is information at https://www.ageing-better.org.uk/news/age-positive-image-library-launched, the library is at https://ageingbetter.resourcespace.com/pages/search.php and they have a short guide to creating age-positive images https://www.ageing-better.org.uk/sites/default/files/2021-01/Age-positive-image-library.pdf 

Thanks to Pam McKinney for drawing this to my attention

Photo by P. Kindersley used under a CCO attribution no-derivatives license downloaded from the Centre for Ageing Better library at https://ageingbetter.resourcespace.com/?r=8373&k=963f01d79b

SEDA: call for papers and webinars on wellbeing

SEDA is a professional association for staff and educational developers in the UK "promoting innovation and good practice in higher education". Firstly, it has a call for proposals for its (online, 6-7 May 2021) spring conference Brighter Future - Opportunities for Educational Change, with a proposal deadline of 29th January 2021. The three themes are: (1) What have we learned from over a year of the ‘new abnormal’ in optimising the student experience (e.g. through course design, student support); (2) How are we applying what we have learned in these, and other areas of educational change, to the design of the University Experience for the future? (3) Reimagining how we engage in educational change to ensure the most positive student experience. More info at https://www.seda.ac.uk/spr-con-2021

Secondly, SEDA is running 3 wellbeing workshops, one (on 11 February 2021) focusing on learners' wellbeing, one (on 9 March 2021) on staff (which in the UK is a term which includes faculty), and (on 21 April 2021) one on wellbeing of educational developers. They cost £35 each for non members, less for SEDA members. You can register for all 3 here https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/establishing-a-wellbeing-equilibrium-x-3-workshops-registration-133064723169 and for the educational developers' one (which I think should also be of interest to librarians) individual registration is here https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/establishing-a-wellbeing-equilibrium-education-developer-wellbeing-registration-133210782035  

Photo by Sheila Webber: the last in my "wreaths of South London" series (December 2020): next up - discarded Xmas trees of South London.

Webinar: Intercultural perspectives on information literacy

An online conference takes place January 30 2021 9.00-15.15 CET (which is, e.g., 8.00-14.15 UK time) on the transnational project Intercultural perspectives on information literacy on January 30, 2021, with [particular input from collaborative Indian-German groups. The project involves the University of Hildesheim and the Symbiosis College of Arts and Commerce in Pune and its website is here https://ipil.blog.uni-hildesheim.de The programme includes 

Information behaviour in Corona times (Student session 1: Information behaviour) 
'What I believe is surely true.' How to correct cognitive errors to promote an open mind." (Student session 1: Information behaviour) 
The Role of Metaliteracy in Designing Open Learning Initiatives Thomas P. Mackey & Trudi E. Jacobson, State University of New York, USA 
Impact of pandemic on education sector (Student session 2: Education) 
How to cultivate information literacy in rural environments (Student session 2: Education)
Workshop: Cultural aspects of information literacy 

To participate, e-mail theresia.woltermann (at) uni-hildesheim.de by January 23, 2021. More information at http://ipil.blog.uni-hildesheim.de/registration

Photo by Sheila Webber: wreaths of South London, December 2020 

Webinar: Critical Media Literacy vs Information Disorder: School Library as Third Space

On 10 February 2020 at 3:30-4:30pm UK time, cost £24, there is a webinar organised by the UK's School Library Association Critical Media Literacy vs Information Disorder: School Library as Third Space. It is run by media literacy expert Julian McDougall. "This webinar will explore how the concept of ‘third space’ in education applies to what happens in school libraries and how they might offer a ‘third space’ intersection for critical media literacy in the era of ‘information disorder’. Using ‘fake news’ as a case study, we will think about how the school library can offer a critical thinking space that combines school subject knowledge with students’ media experiences." Register at https://www.sla.org.uk/ticket/critical-media-literacy-vs-information-disorder-school-library-as-third-space/10048  

Photo by Sheila Webber: wreaths of south London, December 2020

Printed educational materials: effects on professional practice and healthcare outcomes

Starting the year with evidence! There is a Cochrane Collaboration systematic review: Printed educational materials: effects on professional practice and healthcare outcomes. The methods are, of course, given in detail and the findings of the review explained clearly. They reviewed 84 research studies. To quote from the plain English summary 

"The aim of this review was to find out whether printed educational material distributed to healthcare professionals can improve their practice and in turn improve patient health. 

"Key messages: The results of this review indicate that printed educational materials probably improve the practice of healthcare professionals and probably make little or no difference to patient health. The results also suggest that computerised versions may make little or no difference to healthcare professionals' practice compared to printed versions of the same printed educational material. Further research with rigorous methodology is likely to have an important impact on our confidence in these estimates of effect, and may change the estimate." The review is open access at https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD004398.pub4  

Photo by Sheila Webber: doorway, December 2020

Seoul Declaration on Media and Information Literacy for Everyone and by Everyone: A Defence against Disinfodemics #MILCLICKS

My final post of 2020 looks to the future, in highlighting the Seoul Declaration on Media and Information Literacy for Everyone and by Everyone: A Defence against Disinfodemics which was an outcome of this year's Global Media and Information Literacy week. After the usual preambles, it states the following (below), and then lists actions: for government, for "civil society, media, youth, academic institutions and researchers", for the private sector "including Internet communications companies", and for UNESCO. There is much collaborative work laid out in these actions, which it would be good to address in a (post)pandemic 2021. 

"We understand that MIL on its own is not a cure for all problems, including the pandemic, but insist that MIL be further recognized and valued throughout educational, social and economic systems and that it be applied as part of a more proactive approach in order to build a sustainable and inclusive society; 

"We stress that enhancing media and information literacy for all, which addresses critical thinking, provides a sustainable approach to strengthen people’s critical thinking and their power of discernment about how they engage with information and communication technologies – especially in times of crisis.

 "We urge therefore that “Media and Information Literacy for Everyone and by Everyone” should be advanced in the age of digital connectivity. In this connection, we commit to: 

"1. Promoting MIL within wider efforts to tackle divides such as in access to information and quality education, which have been notably widened by the pandemic, to assure no one is left behind; 

"2. Attracting more participation in MIL and MIL policy from Internet communications companies, academia, NGOs, international and regional organizations, communications regulators, media, civil society, youth and communities; 

"3. Advocating for intensified MIL initiatives to tackle the disinfodemic, climate change, etc., while also urging respect for freedom of expression and access to information which are not only human rights but also part of the solution to disinformation; 

"4. Building MIL considerations into ethical frameworks within institutions and companies, so as to ensure transparent, inclusive and safe development of technologies such as AI; 

"5. Advocate for MIL initiatives to tackle technological determinism." 

Go to https://en.unesco.org/news/seoul-declaration-media-and-information-literacy-everyone-and-everyone-0

Photo by Sheila Webber: pink rose after rain, September 2020 

African Centre for Media and Information Literacy

I don't think I have featured the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy, a "non-government organisation that focuses on media, information, research, advocacy and training". Its most recent news focuses on media, disinformation and journalists, but it also has programmes focused on Media and Information Literacy, particularly concerning young people, with news and resources. Go to https://www.africmil.org/ and https://twitter.com/Africmil.

Webinar: Nearpod+Zoom to Make Learning Fun!

The next LiLi Online Instruction Show & Tell is on 6 January 2021 at 10-11am US Pacific time (which is, e.g. 6-7pm UK time): Nearpod+Zoom to Make Learning Fun! Shaimaa Sakr (an Egyptian librarian working in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) "will introduce the basic and free subscription of Nearpod with useful features that can be a tool to interact with students." To register go to https://lili.libguides.com/lili/shaimaa-sakr

IFLA webinar recordings

There are recordings from IFLA webinars in its Youtube channel (IFLA=International Federation for Library Associations & Institutions). These include: 

 - Moodle for Education and Training (which took place on 10 December 2020) which has an interesting range of presentations looking at use of Moodle from different perspectives and in different educational contexts. The slides are also avialable here https://www.ifla.org/node/93487

- IFLA Section on Education and Training (SET) 2 day Webinar series (19/20 November 2020). Day 1 included Youth access to social media in Libraryand Information Science in Kuwait and Taiwan (Hanadi Buarki, Hui-Yun Sung); AllWork and All Play. Sustainable Development Awareness Tools for Librarians (RaphaëlleBats, Camille Delaune, Mathilde Gaffet, LaurePapon-Vidal; From checklists to critical thinking: Updating information analysis in the age of fake news (Julie Biando Edwards) . The slides are here https://www.ifla.org/node/93317

- Talks on Fake News & Its Impact on Society (18 November 2020) 

The IFLA channel is at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLV81siTMahbtVBA47f4pP3W3dxA1eqzdQ

Photo by Sheila Webber: sun on Christmas Day, December 2020

Digital Native News Media: Trends and Challenges

Volume 8 issue 2 of the open access journal Media and Communication was devoted to the theme of Digital Native News Media: Trends and Challenges (by which is meant news media that are "born digital", not media aimed at digital natives, looking particularly at hispanic contexts). The articles include: 

-Information Quality in Latin American Digital Native Media: Analysis Based on Structured Dimensions and Indicators by Claudia Rodríguez-Hidalgo, Diana Rivera-Rogel and Luis M. Romero-Rodríguez 

- Cross-National Similarities and Differences between Legacy and Digital-Born News Media Audiences by Alfonso Vara-Miguel 

- Business Model Innovation in News Media: Fostering New Relationships to Stimulate Support from Readers by Giuliander Carpes da Silva and Gabriela Gruszynski Sanseverino 

- Why Do Digital Native News Media Fail? An Investigation of Failure in the Early Start-Up Phase by Christopher Buschow 

- Behind the Comments Section: The Ethics of Digital Native News Discussions by Orge Castellano Parra, Koldobika Meso Ayerdi and Simón Peña Fernández 

- Media Roles in the Online News Domain: Authorities and Emergent Audience Brokers by Sílvia Majó-Vázquez, Ana S. Cardenal, Oleguer Segarra and Pol Colomer de Simón 

- Between Self-Regulation and Participatory Monitoring: Comparing Digital News Media Accountability Practices in Spain by Pedro-Luis Pérez-Díaz, Rocío Zamora Medina and Enrique Arroyas Langa 

 Go to https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/issue/view/174

Photo by Sheila Webber: crib (the basis of which is a set I was given by an aunt when I was about 7), December 2020

Merry Christmas to all Information Literacy enthusiasts!

A very happy Christmas to all those interested in information literacy! I hope you have a joyful and restful/energetic (depending on which you prefer!) holiday season. As usual the photo is of the wreath I made this year with some of the lower branches of our Christmas tree.

New articles: Embedding metaliteracy; Evaluating sources; Critical thinking; First year experience; Community colleges

The latest issue of Communications in Information Literacy (Volume 14, Issue 2) contains: 

- Assessing the Potential for Critical Thinking Instruction in Information Literacy Online Learning Objects Using Best Practices by Mandi Goodsett 

- Instructional Experience and Teaching Identities: How Academic Librarians’ Years of Experience in Instruction Impact their Perceptions of Themselves as Educators by Amanda Nichols Hess 

- Teaching and User Satisfaction in an Academic Chat Reference Consortium by Kathryn Barrett, Judith Logan, Sabina Pagotto, and Amy Greenberg 

- Critical Thinking in a Service-Learning Course: Impacts of Information Literacy Instruction by Heather R. Kennedy and Anne Marie H. Gruber 

- Not a Blank Slate: Information Literacy Misconceptions in First-Year Experience Courses by Michelle Keba and Elizabeth Fairall

 - The Journalistic Approach: Evaluating Web Sources in an Age of Mass Disinformation by Victoria Elmwood 

- Information Literacy Practices and Perceptions of Community College Librarians in Florida and New York by Heidi Julien, Don Latham, Melissa Gross, Lindsey Moses, and Felicia Warren 

- Professional Development for Research-Writing Instructors: A Collaborative Approach by Melissa Bowles-Terry and Kaitlin Clinnin 

- Embedding Metaliteracy in the Design of a Post-Truth MOOC: Building Communities of Trust by Thomas P. Mackey 

- Analyzing Information Sources Through the Lens of the ACRL Framework: A Case Study of Wikipedia by Trudi E. Jacobson 

- A Noteworthy Next Class: Making Learning Objectives Work for You by Amy B. James 

Plus book reviews of: The Engaged Library: High-Impact Educational Practices in Academic Libraries; and Learning Beyond the Classroom: Engaging Students in Information Literacy through Co-Curricular Activities; and Meeting the Challenge of Teaching Information Literacy

Go to https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/comminfolit/vol14/iss2/

Photo by Sheila Webber: wreaths of South London, December 2020

Statement from the ‘civil society’ track of the 3rd Global Infodemic Management Conference: Stopping the Infodemic from Within

A Statement from the ‘civil society’ track of the World Health Organization's 3rd Global Infodemic Management Conference - Stopping the Infodemic from Within - mentions information literacy in summarising the problems and possible solutions. The biggest message in the statement is the importance of involving communities in combatting infodemics. They propose three challenges and three solutions. 

Solution 3 says that "Literacy is not simply an issue of being able to read and write; comprehensive literacy entails critical thinking and analysis, including an ability to discern fact from fiction. Advancing literacy requires us to understand key barriers to meaningful access to information and services, including healthcare. Once these barriers are understood, investments must be made in literacy capacity building and information infrastructure. Information literacy must be developed with and informed by the inputs, beliefs, attitudes, experiences, perceptions, social norms, and capacities of individuals and communities. Information and communication systems should be developed with communities and a comprehensive understanding of information actors and the existing ecosystem(s) in which they operate. ... Investments should be made globally and locally in media and information literacy education, ensuring it is part of core education curriculum." 

https://www.who.int/news/item/10-12-2020-statement-from-the-civil-society-track-of-the-3rd-global-infodemic-management-conference

Photo by Sheila Webber: another wreath of South London, December 2020

Call for Chapters: Exploring Inclusive & Equitable Pedagogies

There is a call all for chapters for a proposed book to be published by ACRL: Exploring Inclusive & Equitable Pedagogies: Creating Space for All Learners. Proposals are due by 15 January 2020. "Some of the questions we seek to address in this publication include: How do theories and practices related to equitable and inclusive pedagogies inspire your teaching? How have librarians engaged in equitable and inclusive teaching? How might librarians implement equitable and inclusive pedagogy in ways specific to library instruction? Taking an inclusive approach to content, chapters will take a variety of formats such as: reflective and personal essays, narratives, analytical and academic essays, case studies, autoethnographies, lesson plans, or zines and other graphic formats. You can share your ideas for your own teaching or take a more programmatic approach. Submissions may reflect the range of instructional activities and settings with which academic library educators engage" 

More information at http://bit.ly/CFP_ACRLinclusivepedbook

Photo by Sheila Webber: Christmas trees in Second Life, November 2020

Recent articles: student skills; faculty and OERs; Boolean search; scholarly information seeking; COVID

The latest issue of the Journal of Academic Librarianship (priced) (Volume 46 issue 6) includes: 

- Toward a conceptual framework for scholarly information seeking by Sarah Rose Fitzgerald 

- Impact of library instruction on the development of student skills in synthesis and source attribution: A model for academic program assessment by Sarah P.C. Dahlen, Ryne Leuzinger (open access) 

- Incentivizing faculty for open educational resources (OER) adoption and open textbook authoring by Lily Todorinova, Zara T. Wilkinson 

- Boolean redux: Performance of advanced versus simple boolean searches and implications for upper-level instruction by M. Sara Lowe, Sean M. Stone, Bronwen K. Maxson, Eric Snajdr, Willie Miller 

- Implementing an information literacy course: Impact on undergraduate medical students' abilities and attitudes by Baris Sezer 

- Library support for student mental health and well-being in the UK: Before and during the COVID-19 pandemic by Andrew Cox, Liz Brewster (open access) 

- Covid – 19 pandemic and the future of Nigeria's university system: The quest for libraries' relevance by Goodluck Ifijeh, Felicia Yusuf (open access) 

- The role of Roman Urdu in multilingual information retrieval: A regional study by Zanab Safdar, Ruqia Safdar Bajwa, Shafiq Hussain, Haslinda Binti Abdullah, ... Umar Draz 

Go to https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/the-journal-of-academic-librarianship/vol/46/issue/6

Fake News Immunity project

A research project Being Alone Together: Developing Fake News Immunity project "is about empowering citizens to critically understand and engage with the information manipulations they encounter on the internet" so that citizens can become fact checkers. The project site is at https://fakenewsimmunity.liverpool.ac.uk/ and they have just released a chatbot which aims to train citizens to be sceptical and question the news they encounter. The two distinctive aspects are their analysis, using Natural Language Processing, of a database of news from fact checking sites (with the fact checkers evaluations) and their use of philosophical methods (and avatars of three philosophers - Socrates, Gorgias and Aristotle) in the chatbot. The demo chatbot is here if you want to try it out: https://fakenewsimmunity.liverpool.ac.uk/the-chatbot/. I must confess I got a bit impatient with the chatbot after a while, mostly beacuse of me not being able to guess what kind of answers it was expecting and would accept, or perhaps I'm just impatient.  

Photo by Sheila Webber: wreaths of South London, December 2020

New articles: Sustainability and Libraries

The latest issue of the open access International Journal of Librarianship (vol. 5 no. 2) is an interesting one with the theme of Sustainability and Libraries. Articles include The Use of Social Media Instagram to Disseminate Sustainable Information; Sustainable Development Goals: Insights from Research Libraries; Managing a Sustainable Work-from-Home Scheme. Go to https://journal.calaijol.org/index.php/ijol/issue/view/12

New articles: scoping reviews on: business information literacy; analsying the syllabus for information literacy

The latest issue of open access journal Evidence Based Library and Information Practice (vol 15 number 4) includes (picking out ones most relevant to this blog): 

- Syllabus Mining for Information Literacy Instruction: A Scoping Review by Kathleen Butler, Theresa Calcagno 

- Twenty Years of Business Information Literacy Research: A Scoping Review by Meggan A. Houlihan, Amanda B. Click, Claire Walker Wiley 

and evidence summaries, including 

- Graduate Assistants Trained in Reference May Not Consistently Apply Reference Interview and Instructional Strategies in Reference Interactions (summary by Sarah Bartlett Schroeder) 

- The Urgency and Importance of an Active Information Seeking Task Influence the Interruption of Information Encountering Episodes (summary by Barbara M. Wildemuth) 

- Information Horizons Mapping is Related to Other Measures of Health Literacy but Not Information Literacy (summary by Eugenia Opuda) 

- Students Value Asynchronous Instruction, Individual Projects and Frequent Communication with the Instructor in an Online Library Science Classroom (summary by Heather MacDonald) 

Contents at https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/eblip/index.php/EBLIP/issue/view/1954

Photo by Sheila Webber: farmers market, December 2020

California Conference on Library Instruction call for proposals

There is a call for proposals for the California Conference on Library Instruction, taking place online, on May 21, 2021. It has the theme: Same, But Different: How 2020 stretched our teaching capabilities and strengthened our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Proposal deadline is December 21 2020 (extended from the 14th December). "The extraordinary events of 2020 turned online instruction, sometimes viewed with skepticism, into the only viable way to reach our students. In the process of converting teaching and allied services from in-person to online, DEI issues have continued to disproportionately affect our most vulnerable populations of students. CCLI 2021 will provide a venue to reflect on the various ways we have responded to these very unique challenges." More info at https://www.cclibinstruction.org/call-for-speaker-proposals-2021/

Photo by Sheila Webber: fluffy cat, December 2020

Draft Framework for Information Literacy in Sociology

The Instruction & Information Literacy Committee of the ACRL Anthropology & Sociology Section has created a draft Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education in Sociology, and seeks feedback by January 31 2021. They use the "five essential concepts: The Sociological Eye, Social Structure, Socialization, Stratification, and Social Change and Social Reproduction" of the Sociological Literacy Framework (SLF) as the lens for each of the ACRL frames.The document starts with a definition of Sociological information literacy and a brief summary of how the document ws drafted. Questions to ANSS-IIL Co-chairs Gina Schlesselman-Tarango at gschlesselman@csusb.edu or Krystal Lewis (Co-PI) at klewis48@depaul.edu Go to https://acrl.libguides.com/ANSS_IIL/Sociology_Draft_Documents?preview=82d01995399324fb72a418837e270b56 for links to the document, and to the feedback survey (the link to that is in the paragraph of text). 

Photo by Sheila Webber: more winter oak leaves, December 2020

Presentations from #CILIPConf20 health literacy and digital pivot

Presentations from the CILIP conference (held in November 2020) are available on CILIP Slideshare. Ones I think particularly relevant to this blog are:

Ruth Carlyle Health Literacy: Knowledge for healthcare and building on your skills https://www2.slideshare.net/CILIP/cilip-conference-2020-health-literacy-knowledge-for-healthcare-and-building-on-your-skills 

Bob Gann Supporting digital health literacy and combating digital health inequalities: what libraries can do https://www2.slideshare.net/CILIP/cilip-conference-2020-supporting-digital-health-literacy-and-combating-digital-health-inequalities-what-libraries-can-do 

Jane Secker The 'Digital Pivot' - the role of librarnas and knowledge specialists in moving teaching and learning online https://www2.slideshare.net/CILIP/cilip-conference-2020-the-digital-pivot-the-role-of-librarnas-and-knowledge-specialists-in-moving-teaching-and-learning-online 

Hossam Kassum The 'Digital Pivot' - the role of librarians and knowledge specialists in moving teaching and learning onlines https://www2.slideshare.net/CILIP/cilip-conference-2020-the-digital-pivot-the-role-of-librarians-and-knowledge-specialists-in-moving-teaching-and-learning-online 

Claire McGuinness and Crystal Fulton Preparing to Pivot: From Blended to Online Learning in the time of COVID https://www2.slideshare.net/CILIP/cilip-conference-2020-preparing-to-pivot-from-blended-to-online-learning-in-the-time-of-covid 

Photo by Sheila Webber: local Christmas wreaths II, December 2020

Forthcoming short courses

Forthcoming Library Juice Academy short courses include 

- Critical Concepts in LIS: Research, Teaching, and Practice; US $175.00; Dates: January 4 - January 31. https://libraryjuiceacademy.com/shop/course/265-critical-concepts-in-lis-research-teaching-and-practice/ 

- Sociology of Information Disorder and Fake News; US $250.00; Dates: January 4 - February 14. https://libraryjuiceacademy.com/shop/course/261-sociology-of-information-disorder-and-fake-news/ 

- Inclusive Instructional Design; US $175.00; Dates: February 1 - February 28. https://libraryjuiceacademy.com/shop/course/258-inclusive-instructional-design/

Photo by Sheila Webber: dead leaves on a wall, November 2020

Working Group on Infodemics Policy Framework

The Forum on Information and Democracy (an international organisation with high level connections) has had a working group on Infodemics, which produced a report in November 2020. It focuses on regulatory solutions and measures that could be taken by platforms, with recommendations to governments and online service providers. The start of the report outlines the origins and workings of the Forum. The steering committee of the working group is international, as were the 60 experts consulted for the report. I don't think anyone from an Information School or a library agency was included, distrubingly it seems like no international forum or agency appears to think that anyone from information science or librarianship has anything to contribute on the topic of infodemics. The report can be downloaded here: https://informationdemocracy.org/working-groups/concrete-solutions-against-the-infodemic/

Photo by Sheila Webber: early winter leaves, December 2020

New articles: Information Literacy bibliography 2019; business students; undergrads IL; Attitudes to Google Scholar

The latest issue of priced publication Reference Services Review is Volume 48 Issue 4. It includes 

- Library instruction and information literacy 2019 by Tessa Withorn, Joanna Messer Kimmitt, Carolyn Caffrey Gardner, Anthony Andora, Cristina Springfield, Dana Ospina, Maggie Clarke, George Martinez, Amalia Castañeda, Aric Haas, Wendolyn Vermeer. This is the latest of the annual annotated bibliographies published by RSR. "This year, 370 articles, books, reports and dissertations are annotated and organized in the following categories: K-12 Education, Children and Adolescents (31); Academic and Professional Programs (257); Everyday Life, Community and the Workplace (30); Libraries and Health Information Literacy (23); Multiple Library Types (13); and Other Information Literacy Research and Theory (16)." As usual, this is not a comprehensive listing of all articles to do with information literacy from 2019, but it covers English-language LIS journals well and is very useful. When I accessed it the pdf was of the article from the previous year, but the web version was correct, hopefully it will all be correct by the time you look at it.

- Relating library user education to business students’ information needs and learning practices: a comparative study by Yifei Zhang, Patrick Lo, Stuart So, Dickson K.W. Chiu 

- Belief in importance of information literacy abilities among undergraduates. Underlying factors and analysis of variance by Maria Pinto, David Caballero, Dora Sales, Alicia Segura 

- OhioLINK librarians and Google Scholar over time: a longitudinal analysis of attitudes and uses by David Luftig, Joan Plungis. 

Go to https://www.emerald.com/insight/publication/issn/0090-7324/vol/48/iss/4

Photo by Sheila Webber: I made the Christmas puddings a week ago, using my mother's recipe. They are now all cooked (steamed) and maturing.

New articles: Interdisciplinarity of Information Science Research @zin_journal

The Polish journal ZIN Zagadnienia Informacji Naukowej (volume 58 no. 1A) has an interesting issue on Interdisciplinarity of Information Science Research. The home page is (unsurprisingly) in Polish, but click the UK flag top right and you have the page in English and the articles are in English. They include: 

- Complex Interdisciplinary Approach to Modelling Information Literacy Education by Tibor Koltay, Enikő Szőke-Milinte 

- Affective Factors in Human Information Behavior: A Conceptual Analysis of Interdisciplinary Research on Information Behavior by Monika Krakowska 

- Theoretical Bases of Critical Data Studies by Łukasz Iwasiński 

- Information Science in Dialogue with Archival Science, Library Science and Museum Studies: The Recent Brazilian Experience by Carlos Alberto Ávila Araújo 

Go to http://ojs.sbp.pl/index.php/zin/issue/view/73  

Photo by Sheila Webber: old oak, November 2020

Misinformation Workshop; Public pedagogy

Material from the CILIP Scotland conference (held in October 2020) have been released, notably:

- a prezi and padlet from the workshop Fighting ‘Fake News’: a workshop on misinformation, delivered by Paul Gray, Jenny Foreman, and Morag Higgison, Scottish Government Librarians https://prezi.com/wbbqdz-2lvga/fighting-fake-news-for-cilips-conference/  and http://tinyurl.com/sglibraryfakenews (the prezi is extensive, but noone seems to have contributed to the padlet yet). 

- recording of Sheila MacNeill's keynote presentation The Role of Public Pedagogy, Open Education and Information Literacy in a Rapidly Changing World https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S90NA8zN7giYoHyse67muQvjB9c0SGkh/view?usp=sharing - I already blogged her own blog post about it and her powerpoint here.

Photo by Sheila Webber: The first Xmas wreath: spotted a couple of weeks ago, there are loads of them about now.

New articles: infolit and lifelong learning; trends in LIS research

The latest issue of open-access IFLA Journal (volume 46 no. 3) can now be downloaded from the IFLA website (the whole issue in a pdf). It includes: 

- The effect of information literacy instruction on lifelong learning readiness Leili Seifi, Maryam Habibi and Mohsen Ayati 

- National and international trends in library and information science research: A comparative review of the literature Mallikarjun Dora and H. Anil Kumar 

Go to https://www.ifla.org/files/assets/hq/publications/ifla-journal/ifla-journal-46-3_2020.pdf  

Photo by Sheila Webber: path on the heath, December 2020

Business Reference in Academic Libraries webinar

On December 9th and 16th there is a series of sessions comprising The Brass (Business Reference and Services Section) Symposium. Several sessions are relevant to this blog. The timetable is as follows - all times are US Eastern time (which is, e.g., 5 hours behind time in the UK): 

- December 9th 12:00 - 12:45 p.m. US EST. Make a Case: Strategies for writing effective business information literacy case studies during COVID-19 and beyond. Presenters: Zoeanna Mayhook and Dr. Annette Bochenek 

- December 9th from 1:00 - 1:45 p.m. US EST. Classroom Assessment in the Virtual Classroom. Presenter: Chloe Dufour 

- December 9th from 4:00 - 4:45 p.m. EST. The Ladder of Inference and 4-Step Source Assessment Model: Making Connection between Business and Information Literacy. Presenter: Grace Liu 

- December 16th from 12:00 - 12:45 p.m. EST. You, me, and data literacy: A professional community exploration through the emerging themes from the research on business and economics librarians' data literacy instruction practices. Presenter: Charissa Jefferson 

- December 16th from 1:00 - 1:45 p.m. EST. Rework the Network: Virtual Outreach Methods in the Covid Era. Presenters: Alexandra Howard and Amber Willenborg 

- December 16th from 3:00 - 3:45 p.m. EST. Light, camera, action: attracting business students to library resources. Presenter: Doris Jui 

- December 16th from 4:00 - 4:45 p.m. EST. Outreach, Collections and Open Educational Resources: Unique partners with ideas for saving cost during a pandemic. Presenters: Janet Reid and Patricia Sobczak

To register go to https://forms.gle/BU2KoNzPZ99jjk7s6 Photo by Sheila Webber: imprint of a leaf on teh pavement, November 2020

New articles: researching conflicts; digital reading; IL in public libraries; university-school outreach; nursing students

The latest issue (Volume 14 No 2) of open access Journal of Information Literacy has been published. The articles are: 

- Be kind: Teaching for information literacy in a pandemic era by Alison Hicks (Editorial)

- Students’ approaches when researching complex geographical conflicts using the internet by Eva Engelen, Alexandra Budke  (the participants were secondary school students in Germany)

- How to teach digital reading? by Fei Victor Lim, Weimin Toh 

- Information literacy outreach between universities and schools by Sharon Wagg, Pam McKinney (a case study using situational analysis of a programme)

- Information literacy instruction in public libraries by Miriam Louise Matteson, Beate Gersch  ("Key findings were that public librarians incorporate a range of IL concepts in their interactions with patrons, across a wide variety of expressed information needs, with most of the instruction directed toward helping patrons plan their information tasks, access information, and judge information. Secondary themes showed that although librarians believed strongly in the value and importance of providing instruction, individual and situational factors presented barriers to effective instruction.")

- Developing information literacy skills in elementary students [10-12 years] using the web-based Inquiry Strategies for the Information Society of the Twenty-First (ISIS-21) Century by Anne C. Wade, Larysa Lysenko,Philip C. Abrami 

- Innovative digital tools in EBP [evidence based practice] and information literacy education for undergraduate nursing students by Bryan Chan, Ruth Wei 

Go to https://ojs.lboro.ac.uk/JIL/issue/view/221  

Photo by Sheila Webber: autumn anemone, November 2020