Impact of Information Literacy in the Digital Workplace

Last week I attended a presentation by Gunilla Widen on the Impact of Information Literacy in the Digital Workplace project http://web.abo.fi/projekt/diwil/, a project funded by the Academy of Finland 2016-2020. The researchers started by reflecting on how to define information literacy and reviewing the literature to identify common themes and issues identified in the literature. The researchers decided there was "a need for a holistic perspective, understanding IL both as a socio-cultural practice and as an individual competence", and used various data collection and analysis methods, with a particular effort to use quantitative methods (since previous studies had been mainly qualitative), to develop "a quantitative Workplace Information Literacy (WIL) measure", and they also reused qualitative data from a previous project.

Through their research, they identified 6 dimensions to WIL: Information acquisition; Information evaluation; Information environment awareness; Information use; learning from Information experince; Information ethics. More information in: Ahmad, F., Widen, G., & Huvila, I. (2020). The impact of workplace information literacy on organizational innovation: An empirical study. International Journal of Information Management, 51, 102041. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2019.102041). 

The main lesson was that WIL can be used using a quantitative measure, adding an additional way of investigating WIL, although focusing on a specific aspect of WIL would be beneficial. They identified a link between WIL and organisational performance, e.g. leadership, innovation, social capital, and technology. Widen asked the question as to whether there was "enough repect for Il skills in today's workplace". The team included people from different disciplines, and Widen identified the value of publishing outside library & information science, and having an interdiscilinary team helped with this. Future directions were: Information leadership; IL management; new workplace settings (working from home); IL and wellbeing; and the WIL concept itself. They are publishing a book with Facet Publishing on the project, and also an article in the next issue of the Journal of Information Literacy (see here for previous publications). 

To quote from the website: "The overall aim of the project is to develop workplace information literacy standard and find suitable methods and measures to study the impact of information literacy skills in the workplace on different levels." The addressed the research questions: "How can different levels of information literacy (individual and organizational) be identified and defined? What are the differences between digital and traditional information literacy skills in the workplace? Which kinds of literacies are highlighted in workplace context? What are the differences in information literacy skills between generations? How do they affect collaborative work? What connections can be found between literacy skills, well-being, and productivity? How is the development of workplace information literacy supported by organizations and how it contributes to the achievement of organizational goals? What is the role of workplace information literacy in virtual and global workplaces?"
Photo by Sheila Webber: May rose, 2021

Serendipity, decolonisation, gender, policy and information literacy at #cais2021

On 7-10 June 2021 is the Canadian Association for Information Science/ l’Association canadienne des sciences de l’information (CAIS/ACSI) conference, which is completely free, open and online - no registration required. You can find the zoom link on the page that contains the programme. Note that times on the programme are in Mountain Daylight Time (which is, for example, 7 hours behind the UK, so 12 noon mountain time is 7pm in the UK).

The theme is Northern Relations: Connecting the Unexpected and Overlooked to Information Science, and it is hosted by the University of Alberta. I think there is a very interesting, varied, programme, and it includes a session devoted to information literacy, as well as information behaviour (featuring serendipity!), race, gender, information policy etc. Go to https://www.cais2021.ca/
The information literacy session (starting 1.30 Mountain Time on 10 June) has the following talks:
- Information literacy in Nova Scotia: Systematic mapping of high school learning outcomes; Cora-Lynn Munroe-Lynds
- Information literacy from high school to university: Report of the Ontario School Library Impact Project (OSLIP); Mary Cavanagh, Dianne Oberg, Heather Buchansky, Marc d’Avernas: Kate Johnson-McGregor, Sarah Roberts
- Instruction from the margins: Giving voice to community college librarians; Heidi Julien, Melissa Gross, Don Latham
- Educating and Empowering teen activists in public libraries: A case study of the impact of reading on young adult social justice actions; Jennifer McDevitt

Creating Knowledge #CK2021

Frustratingly, I completely missed announcements about the 2021 Creating Knowledge conference, which took place yesterday and also continues today. It is too late to sign up, but you can see the abstracts on the conference website https://site.uit.no/ck2020/ and the twitter feed is at https://twitter.com/hashtag/CK2021?src=hashtag_click

Postdigital humans - and - Lies, Bullshit and Fake News

On Tuesday I attended a webinar (from the Society for Research in Higher Education)launching the book Postdigital Humans: Transitions, Transformations and Transcendence, part of the Postdigital Science and Education book series. The book is as expensive as most scholarly texts, unfortunately, but there is a useful introduction by the editor, Maggi Savin-Baden here. 

This led to me rediscovering the Postdigital Science and Education journal, and in particular an issue from over a year ago that is relevant to this blog, volume 2 issue 1, which focuses on Lies, Bullshit and Fake News. A good number of the articles in this issue are open access, including:
- Lies, Bullshit and Fake News: Some Epistemological Concerns by Alison MacKenzie & Ibrar Bhatt
- Infrastructure and the Post-Truth Era: is Trump Twitter’s Fault? by Martin Oliver
- Citizen Engagement in the Contemporary Era of Fake News: Hegemonic Distraction or Control of the Social Media Context? by Paul R. Carr, Sandra Liliana Cuervo Sanchez, Michelli Aparecida Daros
- Parody: Fake News, Regeneration and Education by Christine Sinclair
- To Believe or Not to Believe: an Epistemic Exploration of Fake News, Truth, and the Limits of Knowing by Jennifer Rose
- Opposing the Power of Lies, Bullshit and Fake News: the Value of Truth by Alison MacKenzie & Ibrar Bhatt

Photo by Sheila Webber: by the hospital, May 2021

Student-led Media and Information Literacy workshops in India #MILCLICKS

I just received this report from Dr. Anubhuti Yadav via the UNESCO Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Alliance, describing student-led MIL workshops organised by the Advertising and Public Relations Department of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication and Media and Information Literacy India Network (MILIN). Both the students leading the workshops and the participants identified the benefits of the initiative.

"At the time of the pandemic when people were struggling with Misinformation and disinformation around COVID 19, students of ADPR conducted workshops on MIL with the emphasis on Fact checking and verification and helped them in developing skills to verify the content they consume. Students were limited to their homes at the time of lockdown and all their learning were happening through online classes. These workshops were planned and designed to make their classes more engaging and meaningful. These workshops also instilled sense of purpose amongst these students by contributing constructively to the community at the time of crisis.
"Seventy workshops were conducted from December 2020 to March 2021 by the students in both online and offline mode in Delhi and NCR region, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bhubneshwar, Prayagraj, Haridwar, Lucknow, Mathura, Ranchi, Dhanbad, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bhopal, Betul, Jamshedpur and Ganganagar. More than 800 people were trained in Media and Information Literacy in these workshops. The demography of the workshop participants was diverse. It comprised of college students (45.2%) followed by family members of the students at 9.5 %. This was closely followed by professionals at 7.1%.
"To ensure participation in the MIL Workshop students mostly spoke to the individuals personally and asked them to participate (59.5%). This was followed by collaborating with the colleges at 9.5%, connecting through social media at 7.1% or speaking to the principal or head of the college or school directly, collaborating with an NGO and visiting a café and speaking to the people there. The key points which were discussed during the workshop were how to access information from reliable sources and how to analyze information whether it is true or fake. Some students also discussed how to create content responsibly for the social media."
More news about MILIN is available at https://twitter.com/MILIN_INDIA and https://www.facebook.com/MediaInformationLiteracyIndiaNetwork
Photo by Sheila Webber: white rose, May 2021

WHO global conference on communicating science during health emergencies

There is a free online public session for this conference on 7 June 2021 at 13.00-16.00 Geneva time (12 noon-3pm UK time) with speakers who will address "the challenges of communicating science during the pandemic and how to make science accessible to all". It is organised by the World Health Organization Information Network for Epidemics (WHO EPI-WIN) and the speakers are: Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization; Sylvie Briand, Director, Global Infectious Hazard Preparedness Department, World Health Organization; Shamila Nair-Bedouelle, Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, UNESCO; Kasisomayajula Viswanath, Lee Kum Kee Professor of Health Communication, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, USA; Siouxsie Wiles, Associate Professor, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland - Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki Makaurau, New Zealand; Alexandra Freeman, Executive Director, Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom; Atila Lamarino, Social Media Science Communicator and Biologist, Brazil. Register at https://who.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_I5xrw5G6QAOYZh4jeQ6wxQ
Photo by Sheila Webber: peace rose, June 2021

Recent articles: Information Behaviour with Social media; IL and primary schools; Quality assessment of Wikipedia

Articles relevant to information literacy/behaviour from the last 2 issues of JoLIS and JIS (priced access, except where indicated).

- Amram, S., Aharony, N. & Ilan, J. (2021). Information literacy education in primary schools: A case study. Journal of Librarianship & Information Science, 53(2), 349-364. https://doi.org/10.1177/0961000620938132. "This [qualitative] study focuses on teachers’ perspectives concerning information literacy teaching in two primary schools in Israel — one school that joined the national information and communications technology program and a second school that did not. ... The findings suggest that participation in the national information and communications technology program did not lead to the integration of information literacy in the school’s curriculum. A significant gap was discovered in both schools between the teachers’ perceptions—who understood the importance of teaching information literacy and its actual implementation."
- Fardous, J. et al. (2021). Group trip planning and information seeking behaviours by mobile social media users: A study of tourists in Australia, Bangladesh and China. Journal of Information Science, 47(3), 323-339. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0165551519890515
- Ihejirika, K. & Krtalic, M. (2021). Moving with the media: An exploration of how migrant communities in New Zealand use social media. Journal of Librarianship & Information Science, 53(1), 50-61. https://doi.org/10.1177/0961000620911694. "An anonymous questionnaire was used to collect opinions and investigate the activities of migrant communities in New Zealand ... The main findings of our research showed that in the transitioning phase migrants use social media mostly for making the decision to move. In the settling phase, social media help them to cushion the anxieties associated with a move and also help them to make an informed decision in the new country. In the settled phase, participants used social media to stay connected with family and friends in the home country"
- Lund, B. (2021). The structure of information behavior dissertations 2009–2018: Theories, methods, populations, disciplines. Journal of Librarianship & Information Science, 53(2), 225-232. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0961000620935499 (Lund looked at dissertations listed in the Proquest dissertation database. "While the majority of information behavior research originates in the discipline of library and information science (53%), the field is nonetheless highly interdisciplinary. The theories of Kuhlthau, Dervin, and Wilson are used extensively as frameworks in information behavior dissertations. Students are the most commonly studied population, while interview is the most commonly utilized research method."
- Mansour, A. (2021). Affordances supporting mothers’ engagement in information-related activities through Facebook groups. Journal of Librarianship & Information Science, 53(2), 211-224. https://doi.org/10.1177/0961000620938106. Open access. "This qualitative study investigated the information-related activities and affordances of a Facebook group for foreign mothers living in Sweden. Four key information activities were identified: posting, monitoring, commenting and searching. ... The article concludes with a discussion of how these different modes are facilitated by the affordances of visibility, accessibility, persistence and associations"
- Wang, P., Li, X. & Wu, R. (2021). A deep learning-based quality assessment model of collaboratively edited documents: A case study of Wikipedia. Journal of Information Science, 47(2), 176-191 . https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0165551519877646
Photo by Sheila Webber: cherry blossom petals in the curb, May 2021

De l’information à l’infodémie en temps de Crise Sanitaire mondiale

The French-language conference De l’information à l’infodémie en temps de Crise Sanitaire mondiale (From information to infodemic during a global health crisis) took place 20-21 May 2021. You can see the interesting programme here: https://infodemie2021.sciencesconf.org/ and the recordings of the sessions are here https://www.facebook.com/watch/UnescoStrasbourg/

Tutorials: Thinking like a scientist; Gopher Library Adventure

The last two Peer Reviewed Instructional Materials Online (PRIMO) sites of the month (for April and May) were
- Thinking Like a Scientist; creators Dani Brecher Cook, Michael Yonezawa, and Phyllis Ung (University of California, Riverside)" This interactive tutorial was a collaborative effort between the UCR Library and the Biology Department. It reframes traditional library searching skills around the idea of “thinking like a scientist.” There is an interview at https://acrl.ala.org/IS/instruction-tools-resources-2/pedagogy/primo-peer-reviewed-instruction-materials-online/primo-site-of-the-month/primo-site-of-the-month-interview-april-2021/ and the tutorial is at https://ucrlibraryteachingandlearning.github.io/learningobjects/bio_05La_forweb/content/index.html
- Gopher Library Adventure a Choose your own Adventure e-book; creators Lacie McMillin, Kat Nelsen, Kate Peterson "The Gopher Library Adventure is a Choose Your Own Adventure-style e-book created in Pressbooks for use in the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities College of Liberal Arts First Year Experience courses and Orientation." The tutorial is at https://pressbooks.umn.edu/umnlibadventure/ 

Additional information about PRIMO is at: http://acrl.ala.org/IS/instruction-tools-resources-2/pedagogy/primo-peer-reviewed-instruction-materials-online/
Photo by Sheila Webber: wax flower, May 2021

Young people's information behaviour re COVID19 #CovidUnder19 - family and traditional news are used

There are summarised results from a Life Under Coronavirus survey that received over 26,000 responses in 137 countries from people aged 8-17 (the survey was in 27 languages). I couldn't find very detailed results anywhere, but you can download summaries on different aspects of life, as very short individual documents https://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/CentreforChildrensRights/Projects/ (scroll down to the project #CovidUnder19 Global survey...)and all the summary results in one document at https://www.tdh.ch/en/media-library/documents/covidunder19-results The main points regarding the people's use of information were

"Family members (62%) and traditional news outlets (59%) are the preferred sources of information on the coronavirus. Children showed scepticism to information given by friends or in social media; 83% and 75% (respectively) of children said they didn't use these sources. Using and sharing reliable info on social media and creating child-friendly sources of information were important concerns"
"Across all regions, a large proportion of children reported that they would go to family for reliable information on Coronavirus. Compared to all other regions (Africa = 60%; Asia-Pacific group (AP)= 56%; Eastern European group (EE) = 67%; Latin America and Caribbean group (LAC) = 64%), more children from Western Europe and Others group (WEOG) (73%) selected family. ... Accessing information using the internet varied across each of the UN regions. Notably, a larger proportion (45%) of those from Africa reported that they were ‘Never’ able to access the internet when they want or need to, compared to, for example, 1% of those from EE"
Photo by Sheila Webber: pansies and fallen cherry blossom, April 2021

Wissenschaft(lichkeits)skompetenz als Metakompetenz: and a reflection on language

Thomas Hapke picked up a blog post in which I mentioned an article about science literacy and wrote his own interesting post (in German) referring to his own articles in which he discusses information literacy (Informationskompetenz) and e.g. this one in which he outlines his own concept of Wissenschaftlichkeitskompetenz. Wissenschaft can't be exactly translated into English (as Hapke also explains) - sometimes it gets translated as "Science", but it isn't confined to the "sciences" but could also be translated more broadly as "knowledge" or "scholarship". This is Hapke's blog post https://blog.hapke.de/information-literacy/wissenschaftlichkeitsskompetenz-als-metakompetenz/. 

With the wonders of Google translate you can get a good idea of what he says, even if you don't read German (I do understand German and just checked). However, looking at the Google translation also raises the important issue of how language and meaning are obviously intertwined. Google has evidently been taught that "Informationskompetenz" should be translated as "Information Literacy", but translates "Wissenschaft(lichkeits)skompetenz" more literally as "Science competence". "Kompetenz" is literally "competence", rather than "literacy" (2 words with different meanings in English) and the fact that the german word is "Informationskompetenz" is bound to have an impact on how that concept gets interpreted, just as English's lack of a word to match the very useful concept of "Wissenschaften" may end up with us using the word "sciences" (and thus emphasising the status of "sciences") to cover the concept of "disciplinary or knowledge areas which have a foundation in research and scholarship").

Photo by Sheila Webber: lovely tulips, April 2021

Online course: Interactive Tools for Online Presentations and Teaching

UK electronic information Group (UKeiG) is running, on 10 June 2021, a half-day online course on Interactive Tools for Online Presentations and Teaching. Cost: UKeiG/CILIP members £50 + VAT; Non-members £75 + VAT. "The pandemic may have caused a permanent shift towards doing at least a proportion of our presentations and teaching online. As we shift to using Zoom and similar platforms, how do we truly engage our audience? There are plenty of freely available tools which allow more interaction from your audience, which can be used either instead of - or alongside - traditional presentation tools like PowerPoint. This online course will explain how, when and why to use these tools, and give you a chance to try them out." Course leader is Ned Potter
Details at https://www.cilip.org.uk/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1522097&group=201314
Photo by Sheila Webber: tulip, April 2021

New articles: fake news in Nigeria; anxiety management; social media use in COVID; personal librarians; reference desk

The latest issue of priced publication Reference Services Review is Volume 49 Issue 1. It includes:
- Information literacy competence in curtailing fake news about the COVID-19 pandemic among undergraduates in Nigeria by Magnus Osahon Igbinovia, Omorodion Okuonghae, John Oluwaseye Adebayo
- COVID-19 and library social media use by Alexandros Koulouris, Eftichia Vraimaki, Maria Koloniari
- Fulfilling information needs by classifying complex patron needs by Charles R. Senteio, Kaitlin E. Montague, Stacy Brody, Kristen B. Matteucci
- Communication-based approaches to library reference services: anxiety-uncertainty management as a model for communication breakdowns by Brady Lund
- Personal connections: one library’s history of personal librarian by Elise Ferer ("the “intent of a personal librarian program is to build long-term, one-on-one connections that allow students to have the confidence and resources to be successful in the skill sets that librarians particularly seek to instill in them”)
- Is the reference desk used for reference interviews by Idunn Bøyum, Katriina Byström, Nils Pharo
- Referring academic library chat reference patrons: how subject librarians decide by Paula R. Dempsey Go to https://www.emerald.com/insight/publication/issn/0090-7324/vol/49/iss/1

Photo by Sheila Webber: fallen cherry blossom  and bluebells, April 2021

Webinar: International Research in Library and Information Science

IFLA Library Theory and Research Section has organised, on 26 May 4pm-5.30pm UK time a webinar: International Research in Library and Information Science (Live AI Closed Captioning and transcription available) "This webinar will explore international and comparative research in Library and Information Science (LIS). Peter Lor (University of Pretoria, South Africa) ... will give an introductory talk to examine what is meant by international and comparative research in LIS, what can be learned from such research, and outline what special pitfalls and challenges are to be considered. The introduction will be followed by a panel of LIS journal editors discussing and evaluating the international and comparative LIS research submitted to their journals (Kendra Albright and Theo Bothma (Libri); Juan Daniel Machin Mastromatteo (Information Development); Steve Witt (IFLA Journal). The webinar will also include two presentations of international research by Anna Maria Tammaro (University of Parma, Italy) and Amy van Scoy (University at Buffalo, USA)." Registration: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RiZ4D19BQtG1kap1rKjdLA

Photo by Sheila Webber: Greenwich Park, April 2021

Misinformation Escape Room project

An interesting project run by researchers from the University of Washington’s TASCHA: Center for an Informed Public, the GAMER Group, and Puzzle Break: the Misinformation Escape Room. "This project designs and studies the impact of escape rooms as a mechanism for learning about and developing resilience towards misinformation." The project page is here https://tascha.uw.edu/projects/misinformation-escape-room/ and this post gives a brief report about libraries piloting the escape room https://tascha.uw.edu/2021/04/libraries-pilot-the-euphorigen-investigation-escape-room/

Photo by Sheila Webber: alien about to be crushed by giant wheeel! (no, that's misinformation, it is simply a Lost Item, probably dropped out of the car when people were getting out....)

Recent articles: Science literacy; Copyright literacy; Imposter syndrome; Students sharing info during COVID19

Howell, E.L., & Brossard, D. (2021) (Mis)informed about what? What it means to be a science-literate citizen in a digital world. PNAS, 118 (15) e1912436117. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1912436117 Another literacy - though "science literacy" has been a concept for a while. The authors say that these abilities include: "1) Understanding how science is produced, and what that means for how science relates to broader society, or “civic science literacy”; 2) understanding how science information appears and moves through media systems, or “digital media science literacy”; and 3) understanding how people interpret science information when they come across it, or “cognitive science literacy.”" 

Adams, K. (2021, February 10). Combatting Imposter Syndrome with Comradery and Critical Pedagogy [blog post]. https://acrlog.org/2021/02/10/combatting-imposter-syndrome-with-comradery-and-critical-pedagogy/

The latest issue of the open access IFLA journal (Volume 47 Number 1 March 2021) includes:
- Information-seeking behaviour of science and technology researchers in Nigeria: A survey of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi by Olayinka Babayemi Makinde, Glenrose Velile Jiyane and Tinashe Mugwisi
- Copyright literacy of library and information science professionals in Bangladesh by Zakir Hossain ("The results of this study suggest that librarians overall are at least somewhat familiar with a wide range of copyright issues and topics. The findings suggest that in Bangladesh there is a need for improvement."
Download the whole-issue pdf at http://www.ifla.org/files/assets/hq/publications/ifla-journal/ifla-journal-47-1_2021.pdf

Hashim, L. et al. (2020). Students’ Intention to Share Information Via Social Media: A Case Study of Covid-19 Pandemic. Indonesian Journal of Science & Technology,  5(2), 236-245. https://ejournal.upi.edu/index.php/ijost/article/view/24586
Photo by Sheila Webber: hawthorn blossom, May 2021

Call for proposals: Information Science Research During #COVID19 and #Post-Pandemic Opportunities #IST21 @asist_ec

The ASIS&T European Chapter seeks abstracts for the online research and networking event (on June 9-11, 2021, 2pm-5pm UK time, which is, e.g. 9am-12 noon US Eastern time) on Information Science Research During COVID-19 and Post-Pandemic Opportunities. The Deadline for proposals is 28 May 2021 and proposals will be reviewed on a rolling basis, as they are submitted. For each day we will have one keynote followed by short online talks and a student poster session. I'm saying "we" as I'm one of the organisers of this event ;-) The extended abstracts will be published at Zenodo, an online repository for research outputs (see here for abstracts from previous years). 

Topics may include, but are not limited to: Information behaviour/practices during a pandemic; Social informatics in a pandemic; Retrieval for pandemic information; Information ethics and society during lockdown; Data in a pandemic; Artificial intelligence (AI), a pandemic opportunity?; Online and remote data collection; Ethical concerns around online research; Research collaboration during a pandemic; Researchers' health and well-being during a pandemic; Funding challenges during COVID-19; Post-pandemic information science research; Research dissemination and discourse during a pandemic.

Contributions can be a presentation talk (15 min) or a poster presentation (10 min; for students only). All contribution submissions require an extended abstract (500-1,000 words, including references in APA format, and written in English). They should be submitted using this template by 28 May 2021 online to Easychair via this submission link: https://easychair.org/cfp/IST2021. All abstracts will be peer-reviewed. 

For the Student Posters, Information Science students (BA/BSc, MA/MSc, or PhD students within Information Science) are invited to submit posters about their research (i.e. it can be on a different theme to the main conference themes). All student posters will be entered in a Best Poster competition. You need to verify your status and name your supervisors.  

Registration (whether you are a presenter or a delegate) is free for members of ASIST&T (Association for Information Science and Technology: n.b. you need to login to the ASIS&T website to see the zero cost registration option); otherwise $10 for students and $25 for others. Registration is here: https://associationforinformationscienceandtechnologyasist.growthzoneapp.com/ap/Events/Register/xP2D478r?mode=Attendee

Webinar: Open Access, Infodemics and Libraries: Exploring the global equity of science #EmergingInternationalVoices

A free 2-hour webinar is organised by IFLA and Goethe-Institut in its #EmergingInternationalVoices series on 26 May at 3pm Central European Summer Time (which is, e.g., 2pm UK time): Open Access, Infodemics and Libraries, exploring the global equity of science. It is organised by young librarians from around the world, and it addresses the questions: How did the COVID-19 Pandemic affect access to Open Access research, including of course access to reliable and correct information about the Pandemic itself? How can libraries solve these problems? Registration at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FE0A6ec2TrGZ_TcgpgfEIQ

Webinar: Open Educational Practices Showcase

ACRL SLILC has organised a free Open Educational Practices Showcase on 25 May 25 2021 at 3pm USA Central Time (which is, e.g., 9pm UK time). The presentations are:
- Open Textbook Writing as a Tool of Instruction in Information Literacy Courses: Yang Wu, Anne Grant, and Megan Palmer (Clemson University)
- WikiEdu: Open Educational Practice Overload?: Brandon Adler (University of New Orleans)
- OEP Collaborations and the Open Pedagogy Project Roadmap: Considerations for Planning, Implementing, Sharing, and Sustaining Open Pedagogy Projects: Bryan McGeary and Christina Riehman-Murphy (Pennsylvania State University).
Register at https://ala-events.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DfTesTApQ4aNUWmdNd5ZtQ
Photo by Sheila Webber: lilac and the sky, May 2021

#ukmedlibs chat on Health Information Week

The next #ukmedlibs Twitter chat will be on Tuesday 18 May 2021 from 12.30 UK time. The topic for the chat will be Health Information Week, which takes place 5 to 11 July 2021. Questions for discussion: Is this your first time celebrating Health Information Week? Which of the daily themes appeals to you the most? Who will you be promoting this to? What do you have planned for the week in terms of promotion? What do you think of this years publicity? What else would you like to see? What would you like to see for Health Information Week 2022?
Links to transcripts and analytics of previous chats are available here. https://ukmedlibs.wordpress.com/
Photo by Sheila Webber: peony, May 2021

Call for proposals: Librarians on the Front Lines: Combatting Misinformation, Disinformation, Malinformation and Fake News

Presenters are sought for the IFLA Reference and Information Services Section (RISS) session at WLIC (World Library & Information Congress) 2021 (taking place in August), Librarians on the Front Lines: Combatting Misinformation, Disinformation, Malinformation and Fake News. The deadline for proposals is 17 May 2021
They "seek provocateur speakers who can speak for no more than 10 minutes on what they and their libraries have done to be in the forefront of the conversation about misinformation and disinformation. Have you done something beyond creating a LibGuide? Have you created an innovative program about the threats of misinformation? Have you collaborated with another agency to educate about the perils of disinformation? How are you working together with your community toward the common goal of eradicating malinformation? We want specific examples of activities your library has, and is, taking that will inspire, engage, empower, and challenge your colleagues."
Send proposals of no more than 200 words, together with your name, title, affiliation, and contact information (and with the subject line RISS Provocateur) to Marydee Ojala, RISS Secretary, marydee@xmission.com and to Kimberley Bugg, RISS Chair, kimberleybugg@gmail.com
Photo by Sheila Webber: pink cherry blossom, April 2021

Reading in the Age of Distrust

Last month (7 April 2021) the 2nd in the Project Information Literacy Provocations series was published: Alison Head on Reading in the Age of Distrust. Head discusses the importance of different types of reading at university level, and the importance of supporting students in learning to read critically, and for understanding. Go to  https://projectinfolit.org/pubs/provocation-series/essays/reading-in-the-age-of-distrust.html.
Photo by Sheila Webber, taken in the 3D virtual world, Second Life, May 2021

Recording: Hosting successful online training

A 30 minute recording of a session held on 23 April 2021 provides some useful advice: Hosting successful online training: experiences and tips was delivered by Katie Edwards, NHS Education for Scotland, in collaboration with CILIP Scotland. It aimed "to share experiences of delivering remote learning and offer various tips for doing this" https://vimeo.com/540730265/26b5fef6ec

Photo by Sheila Webber: crab apple, Apple 2021

Registration for #WILU21 open

Registration for the WILU 2021 (Canadian information literacy) conference (taking place online 21-25 June 2021) is open. The registration form is available on the conference website: https://wilu-conference.github.io/register/.  The conference is co-organised by Dalhousie, Mount Saint Vincent and Saint Mary's Universities, Canada. This year's theme is Visions of the Possible, and keynote speakers are Kim Brooks (Professor of Law and Dean of the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University and Veronica Arellano Douglas (Instruction Coordinator at the University of Houston Libraries). For more information go to https://wilu-conference.github.io/

Leading Light FestivIL 2021 award: nominations open #FestivIL

The LILAC Committee have opened nominations for the Leading Light FestivIL 2021 award, sponsored by the University of Sheffield Information School (my department!): the deadline for nominations is 25 May 2021. "This award is for a member of the IL [Information Literacy] community who has been a local hero supporting, leading or inspiring colleagues or library users in information literacy during the last 12 months. Nominations are invited for people or teams who have: Supported, mentored or coached others in any aspect of information literacy; Led or inspired colleagues or library users or have gone 'above and beyond' with information literacy initiatives; Created innovative information literacy teaching or services"
Full details of the award and the nomination form can be found on the FestivIL by LILAC website https://medium.com/festivil-by-lilac/awards-940c5b3e3700.
Photo by Sheila Webber: tulips, April 2021

Notes from: Media and Information Literacy for Government Officials and Policy-makers #MILCLICKS

I attended the WSIS forum webinar that I advertised earlier today, which had an impressive list of panellists (see my previous blog post). It started by publicising the MOOC (free online course) that is being developed by the United Nations University: Media, Information and Literacy (MIL) MOOC for Government Officials and Policy-makers (see https://egov.unu.edu/research/media-information-and-literacy-mil-mooc-for-government-officials-and-policy-makers.html#outline) which will launch in a few months. At the start of the webinar they outlined that there will be 4 modules in the course (An invitation to MIL; MIL policies and strategies; Mainstreaming MIL in general policy development; Practice & experience).
There was also broader discussion about related Media and Information Literacy issues. Points that were made included: that in some regions of the world governments would be unwilling to support MIL, because critical and independent thinking is thought of as disrespectful and not something to be developed; that involving citizens in developing MIL was essential (and not just involving media companies etc.) - the link to the SDG about "leaving noone behind" was mentioned; that fact-checking is not enough - for example, critical thinking is vital; the need for all stakeholders to collaborate to move forward, and for it to be transdisciplinary; the need for a multilevel approach (from local grassroots, through national, to international policy), all joined up.
There is a recording of the webinar on Facebook https://fb.watch/5kVUgVaLUr/ and this was the agenda and panel biographies https://www.itu.int/net4/wsis/forum/2021/Agenda/Session/399

Webinar *today* 12 noon UK time: Media and Information Literacy for Government Officials and Policy-makers

Only heard about it this morning: one hour webinar Media and Information Literacy for Government Officials and Policy-makers, part of the WSIS Forum 2021, register at https://www.itu.int/net4/wsis/forum/2021/Agenda/Session/399. "This workshop proposal draws on the need and importance of MIL policies and strategies at the national level and is inscribed in a current project being jointly developed by UNESCO (https://en.unesco.org/themes/communication-and-information), UNU-EGOV (United Nations University Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic Governance https://egov.unu.edu) and UAB (Autonomous University of Barcelona https://www.uab.cat/web/universitat-autonoma-de-barcelona-1345467954774.html) to design a MIL Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) for Government Officials and Policy-makers."
The panellists are Barbara Lison (IFLA’s President-Elect and Governing Board member), Ramon R. Tuazon (Secretary General, Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC), Philippines), Dorcas Bowler (Director of Libraries, National Library and Information Services - Ministry of Education, Bahamas), Tomás Durán-Becerra (Head of Research, UNIMINUTO University, Colombia), Alton Grizzle (Programme Specialist in Communication and Information, UNESCO), Delfina Soares (Director of the United Nations University Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic Governance, UNU-EGOV, Portugal), Laura Cervi (Serra Húnter Professor, Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), Spain), Mariana Lameiras (Senior Academic Fellow, United Nations University Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic Governance (UNU-EGOV)

New articles: contra one-shots; transactional distance

The latest issue of open-access College and Research Libraries (vol 82 no 3)includes:
- Pagowsky, N. (2021). The Contested One-Shot: Deconstructing Power Structures to Imagine New Futures. College & Research Libraries, 82(3), 300. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.82.3.300 "This guest editorial will discuss one-shots in the context of effective teaching practices; assessment; and power structures related to care-work and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI)."
- Charles, L., & DeFabiis, W. (2021). Closing the Transactional Distance in an Online Graduate Course through the Practice of Embedded Librarianship. College & Research Libraries, 82(3), 370. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.82.3.370 (abstract) "Using the practice of embedded librarianship, a professor from the Graduate School of Education and the Education Librarian at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey collaborated to investigate its impact on the inherent transactional distance that exists in an online graduate course. Using Michael G. Moore’s three relational distances existing in the online environment—“teacher-student,” “student-student,” “student-course content”—the authors added two areas—”instructor-librarian” and “student-librarian”—that can close the transactional distance in online courses. Through course activities, structure, and access to the embedded librarian and specific library resources, students had increased opportunities for engagement, thereby reducing transactional distance."
- A book review by Natasha Jenkins of: Mallon, M. (2020). Partners in Teaching and Learning: Coordinating a Successful Academic Library Instruction Program. Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield. (ISBN 978-1-5381-1884-9). Review at https://crl.acrl.org/index.php/crl/article/view/24923
Photo by Sheila Webber: ornamental cherry, April 2021

Registration open for FestivIL by LILAC

FestivIL by LILAC, taking place onine on 6-8 July 2021, is open for booking - there are limited numbers, so book soon. Delegates can choose to attend all three half-days or choose a specific half-day: 6 July (1.00pm – 5.30pm BST (UK time); 7th July (9.00am – 1.30pm BST); 8th July (1.00pm – 5.30pm BST). The costs are: Full event £50 plus VAT; Per half day £20 plus VAT. More info including programme at https://medium.com/festivil-by-lilac and registration at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/festivil-by-lilac-tickets-145661115317

#LibrariesAreEssential to Tackling Misinformation

In the leadup to the Scottish elections taking place this Thursday, CILIP Scotland assembled some pages summarising evidence about the relevance of libraries to various issues, for people to bring to the attention to the political parties and their candidates. One such page is #LibrariesAreEssential to Tackling Misinformation, which has links both to reports detailing the problem of misinformation (without special reference to libraries) and to evidence that libraries have worked to tackle misinformation and the problems it causes. Go to https://www.cilips.org.uk/advocacy-campaigns/librariesareessential/librariesareessential-to-tackling-misinformation/. You can also see on this page (scroll down a little) the questions that CILIPS posed to all the Scottish political parties about their position on libraries, and the parties' responses (all the major ones have responded as of today).
Photo by Sheila Webber: A bright future? April 2021

ACRL Framework for Information Literacy Sandbox recording

On 27 April 2021 there was a 30 minute webinar on using the ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) Framework for Information Literacy Sandbox  Speakers Jane Hammons, Alicia Vaandering and Kari D. Weaver talked about contributing to the sandbox and searching it to find material you could use in your own information literacy teaching. The recording is at https://youtu.be/tM9OfxicIj8
Photo by Sheila Webber: tulips and hedges, April 2021

Interview with winners of 2021 Ilene F. Rockman publication Award

Alison J. Head, Barbara Fister, and Margy MacMillan won the 2021 Ilene F. Rockman Instruction Publication of the year Award for their report, Information Literacy in the Age of Algorithms: Student Experiences with News and Information, and the Need for Change. There is an interview with them here: https://acrl.ala.org/IS/2021-rockman-award-winner-interview-alison-j-head-barbara-fister-and-margy-macmillan/
Photo by Sheila Webber: first asparagus from the farmers' market, 2 weeks ago, another lovely bunch today.

Webinar 3: Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think critically, Click Wisely #MILCLICKS

Yesterday (29 April 2021) saw the final webinar in the series from UNESCO launching the new edition of the Media and Information Literacy Curriculum: Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think critically, Click Wisely. The full recording is here: https://youtu.be/wzzgW5wwbFk
The first session was Media and Information Literacy as a backbone for intercultural dialogue and anti-hate speech, chaired by Maarit Jaakkola, (Co-Director and Researcher, Nordicom, Nordic Centre for Media Research, University of Gothenburg, Sweden) with panelists: Olunifesi Suraj (Senior Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, University of Lagos, Nigeria); Milena Dragićević Šešić (Professor, UNESCO Chair in Cultural Policy and Management, University of Arts in Belgrade, Serbia); Bayan Tal (Communications and Media Specialist, Jordan Media Institute, Jordan); Paul R. Carr (UNESCO Chair in Democracy, Global Citizenship and Transformative Education, Université du Québec en Outaouais, Canada).
The second part (which starts at about 1 hour 7 minutes into the recording) was Media and Information Literacy by design: Can media, AI and libraries help? and it included two strong leaders of the library and information community, Jesus Lau and Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe. The chair was Alton Grizzle (Programme Specialist, UNESCO) and the panelists: Ana Mirković (CEO and Co-Founder, Digital Communications Institute, Serbia); Lisa W. Hinchliffe (Professor and Coordinator for Information Literacy Services and Instruction, University of Illinois, USA); Ibrahim Kushchu (Professor and Founding Director, TheNextMinds.com, Turkey); Ronan Costello (Senior Public Policy Manager, Twitter, Ireland); Jesus Lau (Professor, University of Veracruzana, , Mexico, and Co-Chair of the International Steering Committee for the UNESCO MIL Alliance); Olya Booyar (Head of Radio, Asia-Pacific broadcasting Union, Malaysia); Nathalie Labourdette (Manager, EBU Academy, Switzerland)
The summary of the new curriculum (but still not yet, at time of writing, the full document, is linked from this page: https://en.unesco.org/news/media-and-information-literate-citizens-think-critically-click-wisely

Online poster display til 30 April, focused on distance library instruction #ACRL

The ACRL Distance and Online Learning Section Instruction Committee is holding their 3rd annual Virtual Poster Session until 30 April 2021. "32 posters about online teaching and learning practices are available to view and presenters are available to answer questions." They are focused on educating for information literacy at a distance, in 5 tracks: "The Accidental Virtual Librarian; Assessment; Instructional Collaborations; Project Planning & Management; Student Engagement" You can leave thoughts and questions in the comment sections of the posters up til the 30th and presenters may respond. Go to http://bit.ly/DOLSPosters21 and you can afterwards complete a survey at http://bit.ly/DOLSPosterSurvey21

Photo by Sheila Webber: Crab apple blossom, April 2021

UNESCO MIL Curriculum: disinformation; MIL policies #MILCLICKS

The Second Edition of the Media and Information Literacy (MIL) curriculum has still not been published, although the summary is there, but yesterday was the second of three webinars focusing on MIL and the themes of the new curriculum. I give below some notes about some topics that emerged (I say more about the second part than the first). The recording is here https://youtu.be/E-tNJQ0Xf0o
The first part of yesterday's session was Media and Information Literacy as a prequisite to tackle disinformation and conspiracy theories. Chaired by Rachel Fischer (Information Ethicist, Co-Chair of the International Centre for Information Ethics, South Africa), the panelists were: Dorcas R. Bowler (Director of Libraries, National Library and Information Services, Ministry of Education, Bahamas); Saša Mirković (Media Expert and Lecturer at Faculty of Media and Communications, Serbia); Kristine Stewart (Information Literacy Coordinator, Library & Learning Commons, Zayed University, United Arab Emirates); Anna Kozlowska (Assistant Professor and Liaison Librarian, The University of Illinois at Chicago, USA).
Two of the things that were highlighted were the Serbian national guidelines for MIL for citizens, which has high level support, and the need to target populations outside formal education. In terms of best practices, panelists emphasises: the need for colaboration with all stakeholders; the importance of not just thinking about functional literacy; the importance of the whole population thinking critically; integration of MIL; the focus on lifelong learning (not just learning in formal education); the need to address the power of Artificial Intelligence; the need for equality in MIL (e.g. fighting stereotypes); the need to set an example of MIL, personally; the need to provide educational material in multiple languages; Inclusive and flexible approaches. 

The second session was Policies and Practices: Futures of Media and Information Literacy. It was chaired by Carolyn Wilson (Lecturer, Western University, Canada) with panelists: Divina Frau-Meigs (Professor and UNESCO Chair, Université Paris 3 Sorbonne Nouvelle, France); Dorothy Gordon (Chair of the UNESCO Information For All Programme, and Board Member of the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education, Ghana); Ramon Tuazon (President of the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication and secretary general of the Asian Media Information and Communication Centre, Philippines); Masato Kajimoto (Associate Professor, at the Journalism and Media Studies Centre, The University of Hong Kong, China); and Maja Zarić (Head of Unit for International Cooperation, European Integration and Projects in the field of Media, the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Serbia).
Frau-Meigs mentioned that MIL is in the DG concerned with digital communications. She talked about the call for projects concerned with disinformation etc. in particular the projects she is involved with - think this is one of them http://project-youcheck.com/ & https://savoirdevenir.net/you-check/. She also rounded out the sessions by talking about the need for evaluation and metrics, and the need for good research evidence - Frau-Meigs talked about upcoming European research programmes that can be related to MIL (linked variously to employability, creativity etc.)  She finished by emphasising the need for values as well as metrics, though, and the importance of supporting those who educate about freedom of expression. This also involved linking MIL to the environment and sustainability.
Gordon identified the importance of librarians, and that you cannot target just one group of stakeholders to reach all citizens. All citizens need to be included in MIL and people should have access material in their own language. It is important for key policy people to understand the importance of MIL and be trained, and a whole Government approach is needed. The pandemic has made policymakers more aware of the need for MIL. She also identified the problem in evaluating MIL projects, and a need for metrics. Tuazon identified a number of initiatives in Myanmar which had involved MIL, before the recent coup. I will also highlight the Philippine Association for Media and Information Literacy https://www.facebook.com/PAMIL.PH/. He said that UNESCO had been valuable in triggering MIL initiatives, then they needed to be taken up inistutionally to be sustainable. Tuazon felt it was important that young people were heavilyy involved in iniatives. He finished by identifying the power of the private companies in all this.
Kajimoto talked about how the current focus in Hong Kong is fake news and fact checking, and indeed this has been introduced more strongly in schools by the Chinese Government with new textbooks suddenly arriving. This brings in the issue of what the outcomes of these initiatives are, and how they will be evaluated: it is tricky for teachers implementing this, as this is a sensitive area. In terms of recommendations, one thing he identified was that you needed to develop MIL Curricula specific your own country, which takes account of the national/regional cultural, information and educational landscape in your country.
Zarić talked about how they brought together stakeholders from many sectors in Serbia and introduced the concept of MIL into law, then worked on MIL handbooks for educators (for preschool - elementary school - secondary school) which have been published on a web portal (in Serbian) and there is also an app and a TV series.

PhD thesis on What Shapes Academic Librarians’ Teaching Practices

Published online last month, the PhD thesis of Eveline Houtman, graduating from the University of Toronto, Canada, has tackled a question very relevant to this blog.
Houtman, E. (2021). What Shapes Academic Librarians’ Teaching Practices? A Holistic Study of Individual Librarians, their Contexts, and their Professional Learning Activities. (PhD thesis, University of Toronto Department: Curriculum, Teaching and Learning). https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/handle/1807/104868
Abstract (extract): "This qualitative study explored the range of experiences, professional contexts, and professional learning activities that shape 12 academic librarians’ teaching practices. As both librarian and researcher, I was positioned as an insider-outsider. I took a bricolage approach that combined narrative, case study, and analysis based on an a priori model that situated the individual librarians in their local, professional, higher education, and societal contexts. I recruited 12 teaching librarians from Canada and the United States and conducted two semi-structured interviews with each. I stitched together a composite picture of the participants’ unique, varying experiences, with rich examples of the ways they understood and developed their teaching roles in relationship to their varied contexts, and in relationship to their own values (e.g., a commitment to social justice; an ethic of care), identities, and prior experiences. I identified two stages in their learning: 1) an initial “learning to teach as a librarian” stage, in which they required (but did not always receive) greater support, and 2) lifelong learning. Librarians in both stages were strongly self-directed and employed a variety of strategies. The professional context served as a broad community of practice that supported their development of a teacher identity and provided them with norms and guidelines. The individuals and their contexts varied enough, however, that no single picture of librarians’ teaching could emerge. This holistic approach to studying librarians’ development as teachers suggests new approaches for practice as well as new questions for research. In particular, the initial “learning to teach as a librarian” stage demands more attention."

Photo by Sheila Webber: parrot tulips from the farmers market, April 2021

Webinars: Two sets of lightning talks

ILAGO, the Information Literacy Advocacy Group of Oregon, has organised 2 free lightning talk-style sessions.

18 May 2021, 1-2 pm (I think this is US Pacific time, so that would be, e.g., 9-10pm UK time, but double check this if you register) The talks are: Andrew Wang and Kate Thornhill - Functional and Subject Specialists Collaborating in the Remote Classroom; Kate Thornhill - Talking Stories: An Open Pedagogy Collaboration and Partnership; Garrett Trott - Transparent Library Instruction. Registration form at https://forms.gle/vugChgiJZ3aXBdGM8 

21 May 2021, 11-12 noon (7-8p UK time). The talks are: Anders Tobiason - On “Developing Information Literate Abilities”: Uncovering Whiteness at the Center of the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy; Lynda Irons - Transparent Teaching in Action: Developing a First-Year Seminar Lesson Plan; Dawn Lowe-Wincentsen and Alla Powers - An Adaptive/Open Information Literacy Model for the Sciences Registration form at https://forms.gle/2cFbVc8WWuAUJEeG6 Registration is open to any person, so register soon! The sessions will be recorded.

Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think critically, Click Wisely #MILCLICKS

This is the 2 minute video that went along with the first launch event (that I blogged about yesterday) for the 2nd edition of the UNESCO Model Media and Information Literacy Curriculum for Educators and Learners: Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think critically, Click Wisely. It identifies Media and Information Literacy as "a foundation to live by".

2nd edition of the UNESCO Model Media and Information Literacy Curriculum for Educators and Learners

Today was the launch of Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think critically, Click Wisely (Second Edition of the UNESCO Model Media and Information Literacy Curriculum for Educators and Learners) It was launched by Audrey Azoulay, Director-General, UNESCO; Mr Xing Qu, Deputy Director-General, UNESCO; Ana Brnabić, Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia; Vera Jourova, Vice President and Commissioner, European Commission; and H.E. Dr. Monique Nsanzabaganwa, Deputy Chairperson, African Union Commission. 

They all stressed the problem of disinformation and misinformation, and how this had become a graver problem during the pandemic, and also how disinformation could threaten democracy. There was also a little discussion about implementation of the curriculum from Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General for Education, UNESCO & Gordana Čomić, Minister for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue, Republic of Serbia, which touched on points such as: the need for capacity building for educators etc.; the sensitivity of some issues and how this needed to be taken account of when implementing the curriculum; the need to incorporate in formal education, and also informally (like the campaign with health messages on cigarette packets "educate with simple message").

I thought the webinar would come to the end without mentioning libraries, but in fact the very last question that was posed to Stefania Giannini asked about them, and she did say that they were vital (though I'm not sure she was considering the role of libraries in formal education). The video of the launch (81 minutes) is here https://youtu.be/3EuHe2BaYrI

The page https://en.unesco.org/news/media-and-information-literate-citizens-think-critically-click-wisely already has a summary of the curriculum, but the full curriculum document is just "coming soon" and they didn't say when it would be released -I will blog again and discuss the curriculum when that happens (I would guess, next week). This is an important publication, especially with this high level support. I think it is up to the information literacy community to make sure that they take part in discussion and implentation, since otherwise (as noted above) there is a tendency to forget both the role of libarians and the "information" part of media and information literacy.

#WorldBookandCopyrightDay

Today is World Book and Copyright Day, sponsored by UNESCO. 23 April was chosen when this annual event started because "23 April is a symbolic date in world literature. It is the date on which several prominent authors, William Shakespeare, Miguel de Cervantes and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died." There is a communication toolkit (graphics with various quotes - like the one reproduced here at - in a zipped file at https://en.unesco.org/sites/default/files/toolkit-wbd-2021.zip ) Links to this and other pages e.g. to the opening ceremony at Tblisi and to various challenges are at https://en.unesco.org/commemorations/worldbookday. There are also two online World Book Day events from The British Library tonight (23 April) at 6pm UK time (Kazuo Ishiguro in conversation with Kate Mosse) and at 8pm UK time (World Book Night presents: Books to Make you Smile, hosted by Sandi Toksvig)

LIli (LifeLong Information Literacy) show and tell videos

There are recordings from the "show and tell" sessions that LILi (LifeLong Information Literacy) has been holding every other Wednesday. They include explanations of how specific tools such as Zoom, Nearpod or Mintimeter are being used in teaching information literacy, and descriptions of specific strategies and activities that people have used. Go to https://lili.libguides.com/lili/show_and_tell. There is a final show and tell session, looking at highlights and discussing a community agreement to support a safe and welcoming space at LILi events: registration is here.
Photo by Sheila Webber: secret door, April 2021

Building successful teacher collaboration through FOSIL-based enquiry

An online half-day priced training course run by Elizabeth Hutchinson and organised by UK's CILIP is Building successful teacher collaboration through FOSIL-based enquiry, on 1 June 2021 9.30am-12.30pm UK time. "It is designed for school library staff working across all sectors and is a great introduction to FOSIL (Framework Of Skills for Inquiry Learning).... Find out about the IFLA School Library Guidelines, the FOSIL Group and Backward Design. Examine how to work with teachers in supporting students through using an initial teacher contact form, which the trainer will share with delegates. This session will focus on using the initial teacher contact form to guide school library staff into conversations about curriculum topics and demonstrate how this can help teachers understand school librarians' role within inquiry." Costs: CILIP Individual Member - UK £50.00+ VAT (£60.00; CILIP Employer Partner, Supplier Partner - £60.00+ VAT (£72.00); Non-member - £80.00+ VAT (£96.00). Register at https://www.cilip.org.uk/page/CILIPTrainingteachercollabthroughinquiry
Photo by Sheila Webber: cherry blossom and new hawthorn leaves, April 2021

UNESCO webinars: Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think Critically, Click Wisely! #MILCLICKS

UNESCO has organised 3 events, which include the launch of UNESCO’s MIL Curriculum for Educators and Learners (second edition). Entitled International High-Level Event - Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think Critically, Click Wisely! , the events consist of a "High level session" on 23 April 2021 at 3pm-4.15pm CEST (which is, e.g., 2pm-3.15pm UK time, 9am-10.15am US Eastern time); and "thematic webinars" on 27 April 2021 and 29 April 2021 both at 3pm-5pm CEST. To book, go to https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_N8O1npVQTYacjSAkZhPn-A?

Keeping up with ... misinformation; open science

There are two new information sheets in the Association of College & Research Libraries' Keeping up with series. The first, just published, is Keeping Up With . . . Misinformation and News Literacy and like others in this series it has a brief summary of key terms, plus links to readings and resources. This is at http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/keeping_up_with/misinformation. The previous sheet was on Keeping Up With... Open Science which includes a useful diagram showing a taxonomy of open science. The sheet describes what is included in open science, and talks briefly about implications for librarians - http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/keeping_up_with/open_science
Photo by Sheila Webber: cherry blossom cluster, April 2021