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Information Literacy Assessment

This guide is to assist in the development of tools to assess information literacy

Sample Business SLOs

Standard 1: The information literate student determines the nature and extent of the information needed.

  • Recognizes motive or bias in order to determine the purpose and audience of a potential resource

Standard 2: The information literate student accesses needed information effectively and efficiently.

  • Identifies gaps in existing information in order to determine if a search strategy should be revised

Standard 3: The information literate student evaluates information and its sources critically and incorporates selected information into his or her knowledge base and value system.

  • Evaluates a data source and the limitations of how information was gathered (e.g. clinical trials, surveys, informal polls) in order to determine the probable accuracy of information

Standard 4: The information literate student, individually or as a member of a group, uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose.

  • Chooses a style and format that supports the intended audience (e.g. scholars, executives, shareholders) in order to best communicate their message effectively

Standard 5: The information literate student understands many of the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and accesses and uses information ethically and legally.

  • Assesses whether an item needs permission for reuse in order to demonstrate an understanding of intellectual property, copyright, and fair use of copyrighted material

Authority Is Constructed and Contextual

  • Recognizes different types of authority (including scholarly, social, managerial, and governmental) in order to develop and maintain an open mind when encountering varied and sometimes conflicting perspectives

Information Creation as a Process

  • Distinguishes between primary and secondary sources (e.g. scholarly studies and business news items) in order to select appropriate resources for their research

Information Has Value

  • Credits the original ideas of others through proper attribution and citation in order to respect the original ideas of others

Research as Inquiry

  • Synthesizes ideas gathered from multiple sources (e.g. government reports, industry analysis, and scholarly studies) in order to develop new hypotheses

Scholarship as Conversation

  • Summarizes changes in scholarly perspective over time on a particular business topic (e.g. viral marketing) in order to recognize that scholarship is ongoing and not a finished conversation

Searching as Strategic Exploration

  • Refines needs and search strategies as necessary based on search results in order to understand that research strategies may need to be revised in order to locate desired information.