Research A-Z: Information for Faculty
What Is Information Fluency?
"Information fluency integrates the abilities to: collect the information necessary to consider a problem or issue; employ critical thinking skills in the evaluation and analysis of the information and its sources; [and] formulate logical conclusions and present those conclusions in an appropriate and effective way.” (Associated Colleges of the South)
Why Information Fluency Is Important
Knowing how to find, evaluate, organize, use, and present information is fundamental to education. As students are confronted with an abundance of information, they need to develop effective strategies for determining what is relevant to their research, evaluating a work's accuracy and the strength of its argument, and incorporating information into their own research. Whether students are writing papers for a research class or developing design proposals for engineering projects, they must present information effectively and support their ideas with sound research.
Many universities make advancing students' information fluency an important institutional goal. For istance, the SACS Principles of Accreditation (2008) require universities to demonstrate how they cultivate information fluency. Two outcomes are particularly relevant: 1) "The institution’s use of technology enhances student learning and is appropriate for meeting the objectives of its programs. Students have access to and training in the use of technology"; and 2) "The institution ensures that users have access to regular and timely instruction in the use of the library and other learning/information resources." Likewise, the Committee on the Rice Undergraduate Program identified information fluency as one of its 11 core goals: "With the extraordinarily rapid increase of new information, information sources, and kinds of knowledge, we must ensure that our undergraduates know both how to obtain and critically assess information."
Information Fluency Model
How Can Faculty Help Support Information Fluency?
Fondren librarians are eager to work with faculty in helping students develop information fluency skills. For example, faculty can:
- work with library staff to develop assignments that integrate information fluency skills.
- ask a librarian to teach class sessions on conducting research.
- add a "librarian" role in OwlSpace, so that the librarian can provide research support online.
- ask a librarian to develop specialized guides to relevant resources for your class.
To find the librarian who is the liaison for your subject/department, please check this list of subject librarians.