If you can’t find it on If you can’t find it on

it doesn’t existit doesn’t exist..

Towards improvement of information Towards improvement of information literacy in the digital era through useful literacy in the digital era through useful

and meaningful educational programmesand meaningful educational programmes

Hogeschool van Hogeschool van AmsterdamAmsterdam

Drs Barbara DevileeDrs Barbara DevileeLecturer @Lecturer @

Institute for Media and Information Institute for Media and Information ManagementManagement

My experiences as a beginning My experiences as a beginning lecturer. lecturer.

How to make students more How to make students more information literate.information literate.

Our Students Had Problems With:Our Students Had Problems With:

Formulating keywords Formulating keywords

Using categoriesUsing categories

Paying attention to their information Paying attention to their information retrieval retrieval

Planning, and strategy of their Planning, and strategy of their researchresearch

Evaluating their findings and the Evaluating their findings and the sourcessources

Where Do These Problems Come Where Do These Problems Come From?From?

I decided to look into:I decided to look into:

Previous training Previous training (Dutch educational system)(Dutch educational system)

Technological changes Technological changes

Social changesSocial changes

Curriculum Media and Information Curriculum Media and Information ManagementManagement

Previous TrainingPrevious Training97% of all secondary school teachers in the 97% of all secondary school teachers in the

Netherlands tell their students to look for Netherlands tell their students to look for information on the Internet (surface web, information on the Internet (surface web, using search engines)using search engines)

Students do this Students do this web research at homeweb research at home

40% of the students think that the teacher’s 40% of the students think that the teacher’s instructions on how to find information are instructions on how to find information are useful and effective useful and effective

(Kennisnet, 2008)(Kennisnet, 2008)

Deep web and surface webDeep web and surface web

The Deep Web refers to internet content that is not part of theSurface Web, which is indexed by search engines. It is estimated that the Deep Web is several orders of magnitudelarger than Surface Web.

(Wikipedia)

Previous education does not prepare Previous education does not prepare students for doing desk research.students for doing desk research.

They know how to define an They know how to define an information problem but not how to information problem but not how to formulate keywords or use formulate keywords or use categories.categories.

They do not know of the existence of They do not know of the existence of deep web or how to use public deep web or how to use public databases.databases.

Previous TrainingPrevious Training

Technological ChangesTechnological Changes

The Google MythThe Google Myth

ToolsTools andand ToysToys

WYSIWIGWYSIWIG CultureCulture /DesignDesign forfor SimplicitySimplicity

The Google MythThe Google Myth

89% of all online search actions start 89% of all online search actions start at a search engine.at a search engine.

Only 3% of scientific information Only 3% of scientific information (required in higher education) can be (required in higher education) can be retrieved directly via search engines.retrieved directly via search engines.

Relevance as indicated by Google, is Relevance as indicated by Google, is relative. relative.

Tools and ToysTools and Toys

““Anything we grow up with is not Anything we grow up with is not technology to us. It simply is.”technology to us. It simply is.”

(Kranenburg, R. 2008)(Kranenburg, R. 2008)

WYSIWIG Culture /WYSIWIG Culture / Design for Simplicity Design for Simplicity

Intuitive design makes technology Intuitive design makes technology invisible.invisible.

Social ChangesSocial Changes

WeWe AreAre HowHow WeWe ReadRead

PowerPower BrowsingBrowsing

TheThe MythMyth ofof MultitaskingMultitasking

LackLack ofof AttentionAttention

We Are How We ReadWe Are How We Read

““The medium is the massage.” The medium is the massage.” (McLuhan, M.)(McLuhan, M.)

The way information is presented to us The way information is presented to us influences the way we process this influences the way we process this information and the way we structure our information and the way we structure our thoughts. thoughts.

Power BrowsingPower Browsing

Term coined in a CIBER Briefing paper (British Library)

Doing research by skimming websites and scanning indexes

(Centre for Information Behaviour and the Evaluation of Research)

(British Library /CIBER, 2008)

The Myth of MultitaskingThe Myth of Multitasking

AttentionAttention

Lack of AttentionLack of Attention

““Amid the glittering promise of our Amid the glittering promise of our new technology and the wondrous new technology and the wondrous potential of our scientific gains, we potential of our scientific gains, we are nurturing a culture of are nurturing a culture of fragmentation and detachment. In fragmentation and detachment. In this new world, something is missing this new world, something is missing and that something is attention.”and that something is attention.”

(Jackson, M. 2008 )(Jackson, M. 2008 )

Our CurriculumOur Curriculum

Research is an essential component in Research is an essential component in the curriculum of the Institute of the curriculum of the Institute of Media and Information Management. Media and Information Management.

The emphasis lies on field research The emphasis lies on field research and market research. and market research.

ConclusionConclusion

Students do their desk research highly Students do their desk research highly intuitively, without any plan or intuitively, without any plan or strategy. This is because they are strategy. This is because they are used to doing it in that way.used to doing it in that way.

Students are laxer in performing desk Students are laxer in performing desk research than in doing field research.research than in doing field research.

RecommendationsRecommendations

Desk research should get more Desk research should get more attention in our curriculum.attention in our curriculum.

We should teach a standardized way of We should teach a standardized way of doing desk research.doing desk research.

Focus should be on planning and Focus should be on planning and strategy.strategy.

Hands-on training using databases and Hands-on training using databases and deep web is essential.deep web is essential.

ChallengeChallenge