Teaching Information Literacy for Inquiry‐based Learning

Citation

Mason, D. (2010), "Teaching Information Literacy for Inquiry‐based Learning", The Electronic Library, Vol. 28 No. 6, pp. 900-901. https://doi.org/10.1108/02640471011093633

This book is a manifesto for information literacy. The authors want to see information literacy being taught in all learning environments from primary school upwards, and recognised as an essential core skill of all learning. For them, information literacy is something that has to be internalised as a personal skill, acquired in education and applied to problem solving in all aspects of life.

Both authors have a long background in teaching information literacy and this shows through in the writing. The basic premise of the book is that although there is no shortage of training, workbooks, study guides etc., most of these are not based on a sound understanding of what works, and why it works, of the pedagogy underlying the interventions. The authors contend that much of what is taught as information literacy is too simplistic. Students are taught the mechanics of retrieval and never get a deep appreciation of how information behaves in context, and teachers do not appreciate the importance of the social and physical environment of the learner.

The book is in two parts. The first part is about learning and information literacy, the second part is about teaching and information literacy. The theme of the book is to present evidence and research about how students learn, and how to teach them.

The learning part looks at the theories of learning. There is an introductory chapter on what information literacy is, and why it matters. Then four chapters explore learning from four different approaches: sensory, cognitive, constructivist and social constructivist.

The teaching part presents five ways of teaching information literacy: by understanding learners' information needs, by understanding their information landscape, through the use of information retrieval tools, by interacting with information, and by using information in the workplace holistically. Throughout, the emphasis is on teaching the learner to learn independently and effectively, to empower the learner to thrive in an information world.

The book shows that a great deal of care and thought has gone into the writing. The text is fully referenced and up to date, the interventions are clearly described and care is taken to link practice to theory at every point. This is not a book for students', it is a book for those wanting to improve the quality and effectiveness of their teaching. As such, it is an excellent contribution to the literature of learning and teaching information literacy.