This article caught my eye because it seemed like something that would be assigned for SI 500. It draws some interesting--if well-traveled--parallels between the current tech/data boom and other historical events like the invention of printing. It also suggests that many of the perceived problems with contemporary information practices are defined and exaggerated by those in the information profession, and asserts a need to verify the existence and importance of these problems before mounting efforts to repair them. I do not like the accusatory tone the article takes on this point, but I agree that in some cases we may tend to spot problems that are only momentary and will be resolved by the simple fact that humans are adaptable creatures. The authors seem to agree with this, tracing problems of information overload from antiquity through the present, not as an escalating problem but as an ongoing and ever-changing constant.
Buschman, John. "Information Literacy, 'New' Literacies, and Literacy." The Library Quarterly, Vol. 79, No. 1 (January 2009), pp. 95-118.
This article takes a look at shifting approaches to information literacy among the academic community. In particular, this includes the exposure of privileged, academic forms of literacy and attention to emerging and marginalized texts and readers. There is also a strong emphasis on distancing the connotation of "information literacy" from what Buschman sees as the historic form--the actual ability to read text. I think this is a smart move, especially since both the old-fashioned and the new-fangled forms of literacy are facing plenty of problems right now. And the fact that a distressing number of Americans can't read at all is a separate problem from the fact that some other Americans can't successfully navigate a web search. By separating the two, there is a better chance that real problems can be isolated and addressed.
This article takes a look at shifting approaches to information literacy among the academic community. In particular, this includes the exposure of privileged, academic forms of literacy and attention to emerging and marginalized texts and readers. There is also a strong emphasis on distancing the connotation of "information literacy" from what Buschman sees as the historic form--the actual ability to read text. I think this is a smart move, especially since both the old-fashioned and the new-fangled forms of literacy are facing plenty of problems right now. And the fact that a distressing number of Americans can't read at all is a separate problem from the fact that some other Americans can't successfully navigate a web search. By separating the two, there is a better chance that real problems can be isolated and addressed.
Lorenzo, George, and Charles Dziuban. "Ensuring the Net Generation is Net Savvy." ELI PAPER 2: 2006. September 2006.
This paper is basically an explication of challenges in information literacy faced by people--namely college students--who are so accustomed to having web access that they don't think about how they make use of it. Most of it is familiar, and it's the sort of topic that gets thrown around at SI on a daily basis, but it's nice to have it all laid out in one place. Some of the ideas in the article definitely show the wear and tear of six years, but most of it seems relevant to the current situation.
It is interesting to think of information overload as an ever changing constant. Perhaps the world should be changed to Information Stress instead of information overload. I feel like there is more coming at me more of the time, causing stress.
ReplyDeleteI am amused that Information Overload is the theme of 500 again this year. Perhaps THIS year they will solve it!
I really enjoyed learning a little bit about the articles you selected. In particular, I found your second article, detailing the need for boundaries between the terms "literacy" and "information literacy" really relevant to my own experiences. Prior to SI 643, I had never really encountered this term and had only vague (and totally wrong) ideas of what it meant. In fact, when I read the term, "information literacy," I thought of it in a strictly literacy way, which is one part of the equation. I viewed information literacy as a means of studying data, of understanding what numbers and information mean. I didn't consider it in terms of imparting knowledge, searching effectively, or any other of that jazz. I did not understand the boundaries.
ReplyDeleteWithout actually reading the article, I think I agree with the author's (and your) assertion that they do need to be divided, as they are very separate problems. I think that the former, "literacy," has much greater implications on the lives and livelihoods of individuals; if you can't read, you really can't make it in society. If you can't use a website, there is a much less involved approach, and you can find the help you need from a valuable source: librarians.
Of course, because I hope to be a librarian, I believe both problems should be addressed and separated better, not only because it will help the librarian in his/her job but will also ensure that s/he has a job.