The important role of information literacy and learning in the development of lifelong learners: How well prepared are our teachers and students?

There have recently been increasing numbers of published articles lamenting school students’ lack of information literacy skills. All strongly state the urgent need for improvement. The problem may arise from classroom teachers’ lack of knowledge of information literacy skills and their related pedagogical practice but there is little research. This presentation reports on a project, involving a cluster of New Zealand schools, which investigated both teacher’s and students’ understanding of information literacy and classroom practices. The results have established the need for better teacher understanding and practice. One solution will be to trial appropriate professional development.