"Media and Information Literacy: strength through diversity" Presentation by Sheila Webber, 25 June 2012.

1. Media and Information Literacy:
strength through diversity
Sheila Webber
Information School
University of Sheffield
June 2012
http://infolitglobal.net/logo/en/

2. Key points
• Information and Media and Information Literacy are
contextual (to the person, the organisation, the
nation). The importance of context is a main focus
for Information Literacy research currently
• Differences matter: media and information are
important and complex, and affect the heart &
spirit as well as the mind
• Uncovering and celebrating these differences could
increase pride, motivation and ownership of MIL
internationally

3. Information Literacy
is not a fashion
but a human mosaic art
We all conceive it differently and
we all share
in designing it
Dr Shahd Salha, 2011

4. • MIL of the individual within his/her family,
workplace, communities, nation; including the
conflicts that individuals experience as they balance
their lives
• MIL of the organisation as it acts and interacts with
its members inside, and the wider world
– work by me and Bill Johnston on the Information Literate
University (Webber and Johnston, 2006)
• MIL of the government and country as it acts and
interacts with its own citizens and the wider world
(Webber and Johnston, 2002)

5. The information literate person in a
changing information culture and society
Information economy:
• Law
• Changes in media Personal goals,
• Pricing etc values and habits,
life stage,
special needs
Technical changes Information literate
person
Organisational culture: Local & national
• Mission; Values; Norms
• Management style
culture & society
• Information strategy
Bill Johnston & Sheila Webber

6. What information do I use?

7. “Empowerment of users’ abilities in relation
to information practices demands a willingness
to step outside the often general and domain-
independent perspective librarians have on
information literacy.”
Sundin, O., Limberg, L. and Lundh, A. (2008)

8. Quotation from interview, from research by Dr Shahd Salha

9. Contextual & Varying views of IL
Information, and Information Literacy can mean
different things in different contexts, for example
Subject context
Work context
Lloyd (2009)
Lupton (2008); Webber, Boon &
Johnston (2005)
United Kingdom Syria
Thailand Country or
cultural context

10. Differences in information
literacy between cultures
Two research studies

11. Conceptions of
Information literacy: a
case study of Dr Phussadee
Dokphrom
undergraduate students in
the Faculty of Arts,
Silpakorn University,
Thailand
Silpakorn Arts Faculty vision is “to
University develop human beings to
be balanced physically,
intellectually, spiritually and
socially”

12. Key part of IL are: Attitudes “An information literate
• Attitude towards obtaining information students is a person
who is interested in
– Enthusiasm current issues and
ongoing things””
– Current Awareness (Student, Department
– Being observant and curious of Thai)
– Reading attitude “IL refers to a person
– Determination who knows different
people and can
– Open-mindedness exchange information
liberally and diversely
• Attitude towards creating knowledge with them” (Student,
– Well-versed attitude Modern Eastern
Languages)
– Interdisciplinary approach
“Being enthusiastic about learning is most important, if you are willing to know, you will
make an effort, if you want to know from whatever medium, you will learn how to use
them, like if you want to know about this, you will try every way to get the information.”
(Geography Lecturer)

13. So … even in a context that has
international similarities (university
education) new things emerge
from her research, an information literate person is:
“An active, self-directed learner who is
knowledgeable and regularly acquires
new information with understanding, as
well as having the ability to research
and use information with an awareness
of a variety of formats”

14. Conceptions of information literacy of
Syrian school librarians: a
phenomenographic study
Dr Shahd Salha
Me

15. The second phase findings (1)

16. The second phase findings (2)

17. Quotation from interview, from research by Dr Shahd Salha

18. Key points revisited
• Media and Information Literacy is contextual
• Differences matter: media and information are
important and complex, and affect the heart &
spirit as well as the mind
• Uncovering and celebrating these differences could
increase pride, motivation and ownership of MIL
internationally
• So, in practical terms??

19. “To achieve its overall socio-economic
development goals, the appropriate national
authorities should develop a national information
literacy and Lifelong Learning strategy and vision
for the country as a whole, and admonish all
other institutions, each sector and citizens to treat
the area as a high priority”
Horton (2008), 41.

20. Implications for MIL indicators and
strategy
• Governments should prioritise development of their
own vision of what MIL means to their citizens
• Citizens’ key life-stages and occupations could
provide a focus
• In doing this, Governments should work with
researchers as well as practitioners, so that the
three discourses meet (from practitioners, policy-
makers, and researchers; Pilerot and Lindberg,
2011)

21. • Indicators for individual, corporate and Government
MIL are needed
• Corporate MIL could be focused on specific sectors
(e.g. health) and could also be a focus for extra-
governmental engagement with multinationals
• It is important not to lose the heart and soul of MIL,
the vision driving a need for indicators
… to finish with another quotation from Shahd Salha’s
interviewees, talking about Information Literacy…

22. Quotation from interview for research by Dr Shahd Salha

23. Sheila Webber
s.webber@shef.ac.uk
http://information-literacy.blogspot.com/
http://www.netvibes.com/sheilawebber#Sheila%27s_Web_
2.0_stuff
Twitter: sheilayoshikawa
Facebook, Youtube & Academia.edu: Sheila Webber
Shahd Salha: salhashahd@live.co.uk

24. References
• Horton, W. (2008) Understanding information literacy: A primer.
UNESCO. http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/resources/publications-and-communication-
materials/publications/full-list/understanding-information-literacy-a-primer/
• Lloyd, A. (2009) “Informing practice: information experiences of
ambulance officers in training and on-road practice.” Journal of
Documentation, 65 (3), 396-419
• Lupton, M. (2008) Information Literacy and Learning. PhD Thesis.
Brisbane: Queensland University of Technology.
http://eprints.qut.edu.au/16665/1/Mandy_Lupton_Thesis.pdf
• Pilerot, O. and Lindberg, J (2011) “The concept of Information Literacy in
policy-making texts: an imperialistic project? Library Trends, 60, 2, 338-
360.
• Sundin, O., Limberg, L. and Lundh, A. (2008) “Constructing librarians’
information literacy expertise in the domain of nursing.” Journal of
librarianship and information science, 40 (1), 21-30.

25. • Webber, S., Boon, S. and Johnston, B. (2005) “A comparison of UK
academics’ conceptions of information literacy in two disciplines:
English and Marketing.” Library and information research, 29 (93), 4-
15. http://www.lirgjournal.org.uk/lir/ojs/index.php/lir/article/view/197
• Webber, S. and Johnston, B. (2002) “Information Literacy and
Community: a UK perspective." In: Booker, D. (Ed) Information
Literacy: The Social Action Agenda: Proceedings of the 5th National
Information Literacy Conference. Adelaide: University of South
Australia Library. 68-80. http://dis.shef.ac.uk/sheila/adelaide-webber-
johnston.pdf
• Webber, S. and Johnston, B. (2006) “Working towards the
information literate university.” In Walton, G. and Pope, A. (Eds)
Information literacy: recognising the need. Staffordshire University,
Stoke-on-Trent: 17 May 2006. Oxford: Chandos. pp 47-
58. http://dis.shef.ac.uk/sheila/staffs-webber-johnston.pdf