Need for curriculum that supports information literacy: the case of school libraries in Botswana
Neo Mosarwe (Ms)
email address:
Phone: 71615129 / 72917308
Abstract
For lifelong learning to have the desired impact within schools in Botswana, teacher librarians together with curriculum developers should model lifelong learning competencies into curriculum development as a measure to foster information literacy. Information literacy empowers students to seek information, evaluate it, use it as well as create it to achieve personal, social, occupational and educational goals. Students must be able to work independently to make meaningful contributions to the wider society.Teacher- Librarians, as selectors and custodians of information in schools, must provide tailor made user education to facilitate harnessing of information literacy skills and develop lifelong learners. This paper presents findings of my experience as a Teacher Librarian for and a desk study that was carried out to establish reasons behind the need for an education curriculum that supports the development of information literacy programmes which culminate in lifelong learning which is the foundation on which sustainable development will be built. The key findings indicate that there is no approved curriculum to teach information literacy in Botswana; acquisition of literacy skills by students is still a far cry suggesting that they enroll into tertiary institutions without the basic literacy and relevant research skills. The paper concludes by stating that it is crucial for the Ministry of Education and Curriculum Development to approve and implement the long proposed library/ information skills syllabus in order to produce information literate students who are lifelong learners.
Key terms; Information literacy, curriculum, lifelong learning, school libraries
Introduction
Information consumers are faced with difficult information choices in their everyday lives; be it in their studies or the workplace. This is so because of the information explosion. Information is available in a variety of sources and formats; like the media, internet, service providers, libraries and many more. This information comes unfiltered and thus questions about its authenticity, validity, and reliability arise (ANZIIL, 2004). In addition problems like copyright issues, ethical concerns including evaluating, understanding and using it come to light. This is problematic in our society because information like that will not make more informed users without the understanding and the capability to use it more effectively.
So it is imperative that librarians arrange information for easy retrieval but more importantly, users, especially students in secondary schools, must possess skills that will enable them to retrieve the information that is relevant to their needs. Students must be able to access and use information in an ethical and legal manner as well as be in a position to use the information and the knowledge they acquired for participative citizenship and social responsibility. They must be able to make informed decisions and be independent lifelong learners through information literacy. (American Library Association, 1989).
Information literacy is a survival skill in the information age and enables students to know how to learn because they know how knowledge is organised, how to find information, and how to use this information for their satisfaction. According to the Alexandria Proclamation of 2005, adopted by UNESCO’s Information for All Programme (IFAP), Information Literacy is the capacity of people to:
Recognize their information needs
Locate and evaluate the quality of information
Store and retrieve information
Make effective and ethical use of information, and
Apply information to create and communicate knowledge.
Information Literacy is the basis for lifelong learning and is common to all disciplines, to all learning environments, as well as to all levels of education. Students become lifelong learners, because they can always find the information for any task or decision at hand. So we can conclude by saying that information literacy is a subset of independent learning that in turn is a subset of lifelong learning (ANZIIL, 2004).
Lifelong learning could be defined as formal, non- formal and informal learning, whether intentional or not anticipated, which may occur at any time during the lifespan of an individual. So Information literacy is very essential and is an enabler for lifelong learning.
Therefore, the school library as part and parcel of the academic set-up, is there to serve and support the educational activities of the school and must impart information literacy skills. It is the mandate of the school library to provide information; to inculcate ideas, and develop knowledge that is essential to students to enable them to function successfully in today’s information and knowledge based society. It is quite fundamental for school libraries to equip students with lifelong learning skills and develop in them creative thinking and imaginative skills that will enable them to live as ideal and responsible citizens. The school library must support all students in learning and practicing skills for evaluating and using information regardless of form, format or medium. In so saying, the school library must be made the hub of all the academic activities planned and executed in school.
The government of Botswana should encourage secondary school curriculum that promotes education with lifelong skills. Learning in the 21st century is said to be a lifelong process; meaning that students need to cope with the continuous changes due to the driving force of information and communication technologies.
The secondary school education or curriculum, should lead to significant education reforms by attaching the highest importance to learners and their need for information. This could be achieved through the development of learner-centred methods where learning produces desirable characteristics of learners who have the capability of self-learning on a continuous basis, lifelong learning, and learning at all times and in all places leading to sustainability in the national development.
Teacher- librarians play a significant role in information literacy instruction. In Botswana, a draft syllabus for teaching library (information) skills has long been released to school. It is nearly a decade now and still the syllabus has not been adopted and implemented by Curriculum Development or The Ministry of Education, despite the several attempts to engage with them and show them the need.
Review of literature
A lot of research studies on information literacy, especially the development of information literate students, have been conducted worldwide but not significantly in the Botswana context, especially at school levels.
Mutoroke(2009) observed that secondary school libraries are not used effectively as schools receive learners who lack information literacy skills. He highlighted that this problem is further compounded by the teaching load of Teacher – Librarians which limits their endeavours to effectively orientate new comers in library skills and guide them during their information search.
Mutoroke’s observation of Teacher Librarian’s loads is still true even today. Teacher Librarians still go at high loads for their teaching subjects even though the case is not the same for all schools. The way it is now is dependent upon the discretion of a particular school management. Some Teacher Librarians go at a minimum of two classes whilst others go at a full load of four classes. The establishment register for teaching loads in Junior Secondary Schools states a maximum of twenty-four periods per six-day timetable/ cycle; an example of English Language will be four classes of six periods per cycle. This means that some Teacher Librarians may go at their maximum loads depending on what importance the school management attaches to the library.
The above situation is a contradiction to what has been recommended in NDP9:48 which states that;
‘The status and responsibilities of the Community Junior Secondary School Teacher Librarian should be clarified as a matter of urgency…’
In addition, RNPE (1994:73), states that the goals of the Ten-year basic education should be “to produce students who are skillful consumers and producers of information in a wide range of resources and formats to thrive personally and economically in the communication age.”
It is clear the Botswana Government has the focus and the right intentions as well as appreciates the importance of integrating information literacy skills into the curriculum, but the problem is implementation. The way our curriculum, is structured and delivered does not produce the caliber of students above. Critical questions have been raised as to whether our education systemis an effective vehicle for the development of a criticaland sustainable human resources/capital that would be productive driversof the national economy (BFTU, 2007)
The Revised National Policy on Education (RNPE) Government Paper No. 2 (1994), which was founded on the country’s long term vision of 2016, which puts emphasis on the need to have an educated and informed nation, has been the guiding basis for the implementation of providing quality education and training. Thus in NDP 9, the emphasis has now been placed on equipping learners with skills to enable them to enter into self- employment as well as create an opportunity for lifelong learning (BFTU, 2007)
The same was well expressed in the Ministry of Education Strategic Plan 2001 – 2006, which aims;
“To offer equitable lifelong education and training that is relevant and responsive to the rapid technological development and the changing socio-economic environment, and that produces knowledgeable, skilled enterprising and independent individuals”
(NDP 9).
The above statements are supported by the World Summit on the Information Society (2003, para. 29) which emphasized that;
Each person should have the opportunity to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge in order to understand, participate actively in, and benefit fully from, the information society and the knowledge economy.
This implies that students should master the knowledge that is necessary for information processing, and also have the proper attitude towards information processing so that they may develop the capacity for lifelong learning and gain social responsibilities from their learning. Therefore students should be empowered with the capacity to manipulate the information at their disposal.
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs, 2003), also require that people have the ability to apply information into practice in order to combat diseases and enhance employment opportunities. This necessitates the need for one to possess Information Literacy skills. It does not only stop in the classroom, it goes a long way in lifelong learning and sustainable development.
However, some concerns have been raised by the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs (2004) that, the education system in Botswana is an academically oriented schooling system that does not encourage diversity of career opportunities. This results in people lacking problem solving and communication skills as part of an integrated set of skills which they need to be effective in all aspects of their lives. The Ministry is concerned that this has raised the level of unemployment in the country.
Conclusion
I would like to conclude by saying, as access to information becomes easier and less expensive, the skills and competencies relating to the selection and efficient use of information become more and more crucial. The ability to filter information, that is select relevant and discard irrelevant information, recognize patterns in information, interpret and decode information as well as learn new skills are in increasing demand (Virkus, 2003).
Education is the foundation of any modern society, so Botswana can never hope to achieve sustainable development without proper education. Integrating information literacy in the school curriculum is very important in that it helps create information literate students.
Teacher- librarians should be seen to be playing an important role in teaching and imparting library/ information skills so as to produce information literate people who are able to;
recognise a need for information
determine the extent of information needed
access information efficiently
critically evaluate information and its sources
classify, store, manipulate and redraft information collected or generated
incorporate selected information into their knowledge base
use information effectively to learn, create new knowledge, solve problems and make informed decisions
Moreover, the above can only be possible with the adoption, incorporation and implementation of the library skills syllabus in the secondary school curriculum. So I call upon the BLA, which BOSSLA is an affiliate, to advocate for this endeavor as a matter of urgency.
References
American Library Association (1989).Presidential Committee on Information Literacy.Final Report. Chicago: American Library Association, Links to Curriculum Design
Australian and New Zealand Institute for Information Literacy (ANZIIL)(2004), principles, standards and practice, Second edition (accessed 2 February 2015)
BFTU (2004). Position Paper, Gaborone.
Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis (BIDPA).(2006) Overview of the Economy during the National Development Plan 9 (NPD 9).
Paper prepared by MonnaneMonnane (Research Fellow) for the Botswana Federation of Trade Unions (BFTU) Workshop on National Economic, Gaborone, Botswana
Botswana, Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs, (2004). Review of the National Youth Policy (Unpublished)
Botswana, Ministry of Finance & Development Planning (2005).Mid Term Review of National Development Plan 9. Gaborone, Government Printer. IFLA (2006).Guidelines on information literacy for lifelong learning.Boca del Río: IFLA
Kong, S. C. (2007). A curriculum framework for implementing information technology in school education to foster information literacy, Computers & Education
UNESCO (2007). Information for All Programme, located April 2015 at url_id=21293&url_do=do_topic&url_section=201.html
Virkus, S. (2003). Information literacy in Europe: a literature review; Information Research, Vol. 8 No. 4
Measuring the Information literacy level of academics at Botswana Accountancy College (BAC) Phenomena which led to the introduction of information skills as part of ContinuousProfessional Development (CPD) among BAC academics
By Bongiwe Magocha.
Email:
Cell: 74406715.
Abstract
The ultimate goal of a comprehensive information literacyprogramme is to inculcate inthe individual the ability to recognize when information is required and to teach them to understand how the information is organized, and how to access it. Through observations, most BAC academics have been found to lack the sophisticated skills that are needed to exploit the college Library resources, especially online resources. A study was done among BAC academics to measure their information literacy level. Based on the findings, workshops and seminars were introduced by the Library department to close the information literacy gap.
This paper will elaborate on how the study was carried out to measure the information literacy skills among BAC academics. It will also elaborate the results of the study, the content covered as part of rectifying and closing the information literacy gaps.
Introduction
Information literacy is a concept that evolved as a result of efforts to move technology-based instructional and research efforts beyond the concepts previously associated with "computer literacy. Information literacy has been proclaimed as a foundational literacy of the twenty-first century by many researchers, library practitioners, and international agencies.It is a central tenet of academic Librarianship.
CILIP (Chartered Institutes of Librarians and Information Professional) describes information literacy as a process of knowing when and why you need information, where to find it, and how to evaluate, use and communicate it in an ethical manner.
I take it that it means the ability for people to:
1) Know when they need information
2) Know where to find information
3) Evaluate information
4) Process information
5) Use information to make appropriate decisions in their lives.
The basic characteristics of an information literate person as stated by the American Library Association (ALA) Presidential Committee on information Literacy(1989): To be information literate an individual must recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate and use effectively the information needed. Ultimately information literate people are those who have learned how to learn. They know how to learn because they know how information is organized, how to find information and how to use information in such a way that others can learn from them (p.1).From this description, several characteristics can be identified regarding the information literate person:
1 Engages in independent, self-directed learning;
2 Implement information processes;
3 Uses a variety of information technologies and systems;
4 Internalized values which promote information use;
5 The information literate person has a sound knowledge of the world of information
6 The information literate person approaches information critically.
7 The information literate person has a personal information style which facilitates his or her interaction with the world of information.
BAC validation process to partner with the University of Sheffield Hallam UK (a trigger for the information literacy skills)
BAC as an institution went through a validation process with the University of Sheffield Hallam in the UK. The main purpose of the validation process was to ensure quality services and control within all BAC academic department. The BAC library went through the validation and the findings in the areas of Information Literacy were as follows.
(a) For BAC to institutionalise a development plan to improve its ICT infrastructure to facilitate greater access to T/L resources (Staff & Students).
The plan was as follows:
- . Carry out a survey among BAC community to measure the use of ICT for learning resources.
- Do Data analysis for the study carried.
- Compare results based on the study, the gap between SHU and BAC ICT infrastructure that support the library services, particularly on business Data-bases.
- Identify and recommend best ICT tools to be used in accessing the teaching and learning resources based on the survey..
(b)For BAC to use the library to broaden students information literacy skills (to facilitate greater access to T/L resources)
The plan was as follows:
- To carry out a survey to identify information literacy gap among BAC students.
- Do the analysis of the study and come with recommended solutions.
- Work hand in hand with all academic HODS, in seeing how the recommendations could be implemented.
- Implement and introduce session on Information literacy for all BAC students and staff based on the agreement between the Library department and other academic department
BAC library status on information literacy skill as a principle service, strategy