LEARN Information Literacy Initiative

	Awards

All about LILI

These pages provide the reasons for LILI's creation by the LEARN Network of South Australian TAFE Libraries.

There are three underpinning philosophies to be considered in the development of an online information literacy module.

The first relates to the concept of being "information literate".

It is the right of every person to be provided with the opportunities to acquire the skills, knowledge, and understanding to be able to access, evaluate, and use information effectively. (refer to: Key Competencies, Keys to Information Literacy [Jackson and Doyle], LEARN Information Literacy Policy)
Equitable access to an information literacy program should be ensured for all students enrolled in both traditional and flexible delivery modes.
(LEARN Information Literacy Policy http://www.tafe.sa.edu.au/lsrsc/learn/inlitpol.html)

The second emphasises the relationship between lifelong learning and information literacy.

Ultimately, information literate people are those who have learned how to learn. They know how information is organised, how to find information, and how to use information in such a way that others can learn from them.
(Concept, challenge, conundrum: from Library Skills to Information Literacy, 4th National Information Literacy conference, Adelaide, December 1999 - opening address by Denis Ralph, South Australian Centre for Lifelong Learning and Development)
At the heart of information literacy are people who are able to effectively engage with their information world: to connect with, interact with, and use information meaningfully and purposefully to get on with their lives.
(4th National Information Literacy Conference - address by Ross Todd, University of Technology, Sydney).

The third relates to recommendations for flexible delivery, as a result of the 1996 ANTA National Flexible Delivery Taskforce report. Clare Murphy, project officer for the ANTA-funded project, made several recommendations, three of which are relevant to the provision of information literacy:

On-line learners in the VET sector are given ready access to interactive on-line learning materials aimed at developing the full range of computer and information skills in learners (Recommendation No. 7)
On-line information literacy materials provide students with the knowledge and understanding to enable them to make informed judgements about how to access, evaluate and use on-line information (Recommendation No. 8)
VET sector library staff provide electronic and other means of access to a wide range of services and resources (in both digitised and non-digitised formats), (Recommendation No. 10)

(The Virtual Library: Library Support for On-line Learners in the Vocational and Training Sector, December 1997)
Further,

"Students in the vocational education and training sector are increasingly expecting to use email, internet and intranet … They expect to … undertake research … through on line services."

(The State Strategic Plan for Vocational Education and Training 1998-2000, Part 4: Improving Training, Chapter 5 "Flexible Delivery")

As part of the project officer's work Susan Brunner mapped competencies in each module against the Australian Information Literacy Standards, to be found at :
http://ilp.anu.edu.au/Infolit_standards_2001.html

LILI, therefore, has been created to provide an online learning opportunity for TAFE students to gain useful skills in locating and using information.

LILI was funded by the South Australian TAFE Directors and was the work of Susan Brunner, Project Officer.

For information about how to use LILI, go to Introduction.

For the long list of thanks for project assistance, go to Credits.

Stephen Michael Barnett

Project Manager

(formerly of Torrens Valley Institute)

Gilles Plains

South Australia