Scholarship, Practice, and Leadership

How Does Information Literacy Influence Scholarship, Practice, and Leadership in Education In today’s society, a wealth of information is available at all times literally with just the touch of a button. To some, this ease of convenience is a blessing. For those who do not use proper discretion, the convenience is a curse. Due to the abundance of information located on the World Wide Web, students can pick and choose information at their leisure, without ever thinking about whether it is recognized as a scholarly document. With the swiftness that this information age has come upon us, some of our fundamental skills were somehow left behind. According to Russell (2009), a librarian who frequently meets with campus instructors to address any issues they may be having, professors worry that “students lack an understanding of what constitutes good-quality scholarly information” (p.92). In the field of education, particularly early education, teachers must not allow the information literacy to influence scholarship, practice or leadership in a negative manner, but instead embrace the potential information literacy possesses and take full advantage of teaching students a more responsible way to research, analyze, and apply their findings. When a student chooses to research a topic, the problem most often encountered is a student’s lack of validating information they may acquire. While locating information may be easier and more convenient, students often are found to search for broader terms, not yielding results that might specifically address the topic they are researching (Holliday and Fagerheim, 2006). Holliday and Fagerheim (2006) found that, “Students are fairly confident in their search abilities, but they tend to do research superficially, focusing on assignment requirements, familiarity, and convenience rather than looking for the best possible information to address their needs.” As educators, teachers must address this issue early on,

References: Badke, W. (2009). How we failed the net generation. Infoitland , 47-49. Holliday, W. (2006). Integrating information literacy with a sequenced english composition curriculum. Portal : Libraries and the Academy, 6(2), 169-169-184. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/216174823?accountid=35812 Russell, P. (2009). Why universities need information literacy now more than ever. Feliciter, 92-94. Turusheva, L. (2009). Students ' information competence and its importance for life-long education. Problems of Education in the 21st Century, 126-132. .