The advancement of information, data and media literacy as a key to successful participation in professional and daily life requires a systematic approach.

Various approaches have been tried and implemented. The table below gives a comparative overview of three relevant approaches.

Approach	Content-based orientation	Focus group	Subject
Swiss Standards for Information Literacy, 2011	Information literacy	Students at Swiss universities	Specific learning objectives/results with indicators for evaluation
ACRL Framework, 2017	Information literacy	Students at universities in German-speaking regions	General requirements and core concepts, practical skills and behaviors for participation in learning and research processes
Framework “Digital Literacies”, 2020	Digital literacy	Students, teaching staff and employees of the University of Basel	Practical skills for participation in daily work and research; can be used to formulate learning objectives and to measure levels of competence.

Content

Swiss Standards for Information Literacy, 2011

The Swiss standards¹ for teaching information literacy focus on the activities and skills necessary for productive and critical management of the flood of information:

• The first step focuses on identifying and precisely defining the need for information, so that a reasonable choice of information sources can be made.
• Next, it is important to gather information with the help of efficient tools and methods. It is often helpful to be able to trace the method by which information was gathered.
• This method or process and its results can then later be critically evaluated. This evaluation then leads to any necessary adjustments, which serve to narrow the search.
• The information found or generated should then be organized, saved and shared with the community. Digital tools and technology are increasingly being used for this organization of information.
• During application of information, new knowledge or products can be created that should be analyzed and integrated into the existing system. This process can lead to discussions in the community.
• Ultimately, competent handling of information is distinguished by responsibility. This extends from social, cultural and ethical awareness to the understanding of conventions and institutional norms to legally correct handling of information.

The Swiss Standards for Information Literacy rubric contains three to four specific learning objectives for each area listed above, formulated for beginners, advanced students and experts. From these, the possibilities to foster and further develop information literacy in the form of concrete assignments and teaching units can be easily derived.

ACRL-Framework, 2017

The ACRL Framework2 is used internationally. It provides a detailed description of information literacy for institutes of higher education. It was created and published by the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL). A research group at the University of Bamberg Library3 has promoted the framework’s dissemination and implementation in German-speaking regions. This framework postulates and describes six basic principles/frames for competent handling of information:⁴

1. Authority Is Constructed and Contextual
2. Information Creation as a Process
3. Information Has Value
4. Research as Inquiry
5. Scholarship as Conversation
6. Searching as Strategic Exploration

For each individual frame, the corresponding practices and dispositions are listed in the [next step].(https://tales.nmc.unibas.ch/en/information-data-and-media-literacy-30/what-is-information-data-and-media-literacy-175/the-six-basic-principles-of-the-acrl-framework-887)³

Framework “Digital Literacies”, 2020

The University of Basel’s Framework “Digital Literacies”5 describes general tendencies and defines practical skills for the corresponding competence areas. The term “digital literacies” refers not only to information literacy, but also encompasses several areas:

1. General ICT proficiency
2. Information, data and media literacy
3. Digital production, research and innovation
4. Communication, collaboration and participation
5. Digital learning and teaching
6. Digital identity, safety and wellbeing

The Framework formulates practical skills in each area that are critical for efficient and responsible action. The connections and synergy between the individuals aspects of the skills are particularly instructive, including within individual areas, such as in information, data and media literacy. The formulations provide, on the one hand, a conceptual understanding of what constitutes a particular literacy and, on the other hand, concrete implications for promotion and development of this literacy in students and lecturers.

The three approaches we have outlined here (Swiss Standards for Information Literacy, ACRL Framework and Framework “Digital Literacies”) differ in their details and may be more or less suitable for particular applications.

Regardless of the approach you choose, it is important to remember that the use and development of information, data and media literacy is a life-long endeavor. As Carl Friedrich Gauss said more than 200 years ago:⁶

«Truly, the greatest joy comes not from knowledge, but from learning; not from having, but from finding; not from ‘being here’, but from ‘getting there.»

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Literatur

¹ Stalder, P., Böller, N., Henkel, T., Landwehr-Sigg, S., Piccinini, S., Schubnell, B. & Stuber, B. (2011). Schweizer Standards der Informationskompetenz. Retrieved from: http://www.informationskompetenz.ch/doc/e-lib/1_d_schweizer%20standards.pdf (02.12.2021).

² Association of College & Research Libraries (2015). Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Retrieved from: http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework (02.12.2021).

⁵ Universität Basel (2020). Erklärung des Kompetenzrahmens «Digital Literacies». Retrieved from: https://digitalskills.unibas.ch/de/kompetenzrahmen/literacy-bereich-4-kommunikation-zusammenarbeit-und-teilhabe/ (29.10.2020).

³ Franke, F. (2017). Das Framework for Information Literacy. Neue Impulse für die Förderung von Informationskompetenz in Deutschland?! O-Bib. Das Offene Bibliotheksjournal / Publisher VDB, (4)4, 22-29. DOI: 10.5282/o-bib/2017H4S22-29

⁴ Sauerwein, T. (2019). Framework Information Literacy – Aspekte aus Theorie, Forschung und Praxis. BIBLIOTHEK Forschung und Praxis, 43(1), 126-138. DOI: 10.1515/bfp-2019-2027

⁶ Gauss, C. F. (1808). Schreiben von Carl Friedrich Gauss an Wolfgang Bolyai, Göttingen, 2. 9. 1808. In F. Schmidt & P. Stäckel (Hrsg.), Briefwechsel zwischen Carl Friedrich Gauss und Wolfgang Bolyai, B. G. Teubner, Leipzig 1899, S. 94. Ann Arbor, MN: University of Michigan. Retrieved from: http://name.umdl.umich.edu/AAS7555.0001.001 (02.12.2021) & im Internet-Archiv: http://www.archive.org/details/briefwechselzwi00gausgoog (02.12.2021)

Lizenz