Do faculty and librarians see information literacy in the same way? A study of alignment

• Main Authors: CHIN, Melody, WALKER, Daniel
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2017
• Subjects: Information Literacy; Perceptions; Faculty; Librarians; Asian Studies
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/library_research/98; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1099&context=library_research
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Faculty and Librarians are two distinct professional groups each with their own subcultures, values and experiences. Hardesty (1995) noted the existence of a "faculty culture" amongst faculty members, which quite likely shapes and influences the way these individuals perceive a highly subjective concept such as Information Literacy (IL). Faculty and Librarians in higher education institutions often work together in the development of IL Programs. However, despite this collaborative relationship, it is not clear as to whether the two professional groups perceive the concept of IL similarly, or whether there exists a divide. Understanding how both professions perceive IL should be a priority, with findings from Ivey’s (2003) study revealing that a shared understanding forms one of the key elements for successful collaboration in relation to IL initiatives. This research project endeavours to shed light on this area by employing survey methodology to investigate how Faculty and Librarians at two higher education institutions in Australia and Singapore perceive the concept of IL in relation to ACRL's Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education (ACRL, 2015), including a comparative analysis. 63 Faculty and 22 Librarians from Bond University and Singapore Management University were asked a combination of open-ended and attitude-scale type questions on the framework’s definition of IL; the six threshold concepts; and on their views on the value and impact of IL programs at their respective institutions. Analysis of narrative responses and scale ratings reveal that although both professional groups share an overall positive view on the six threshold concepts and on the value of IL programs, it appears that there exists misalignment between Faculty and Librarian views in a number of aspects such as the definition of IL, the impact of programs, as well as how the two professional groups see the concept of IL itself. Differing views were particularly apparent in the impact of IL programs, such that Faculty did not perceive programs to have as much impact as Librarians had observed. By having an understanding of how the views of Faculty and Librarians differ with regards to IL, it is anticipated that the findings from this research project will better inform future IL initiatives, as well as give us greater potential to further enhance collaborative relationships between Faculty and ourselves as information professionals.