A diverse and fluid range of digital tools are increasingly being used in university libraries as students absorb, create and communicate their academic understanding. Information and digital literacy (IDL) is central to this work; blending the transferable graduate attribute of information literacy with digital tools and skills enhances the development of actively engaged students. Emerging pedagogical approaches, which are central to the University of Sheffield’s Learning and Teaching Strategy, are placing students not as passive recipients of knowledge and learning in our society but as active knowledge creators. Engaging with information in a critical and ethical way allows for deeper understanding. The synthesis or ‘remixing’ of information, often using a highly visualised approach, creates and communicates new meaning.
This paper will present the development of our new vision for information and digital literacy and will outline what our distinctive offer will mean to current students and Sheffield graduates. The Library’s Learning Services Unit are driving this initiative and have explored national (UK) and international perspectives of IDL, before drawing on a narrative based approach to collaboratively write a vision for the future. The thought leadership at Sheffield has been influenced by work Anne previously led at Deakin University in Australia, shared at earlier IATUL conferences.
At Sheffield, collaborations with external stakeholders are now informing the development of a university wide framework for IDL whilst our workshops and online tutorials are being co-designed and co-delivered with a team of Student Associates. The paper will end by presenting the latest developments in this work before inviting IATUL delegates to continue to participate in dialogue around IDL and its interpretation and relevance in different institutional contexts.
