Open AccessInformation literacy in adult returners to Higher Education: student experiences in a university pre-entry course in a UK university
Author(s) -
Tony Anderson,
Bill Johnston,
Alexandra McDonald
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
library and information research/library and information research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2752-7336
pISSN - 1756-1086
DOI - 10.29173/lirg546
Subject(s) - information literacy , metacognition , psychology , psychological intervention , medical education , focus group , pedagogy , mathematics education , sociology , medicine , cognition , neuroscience , psychiatry , anthropology
This paper reports a qualitative investigation of the experiences of 18 students taking a year long, part-time pre-entry course designed to help participants choose a course of study and develop confidence in their ability to study at first year university standard. The particular focus for the research was information literacy, and the study sought to illuminate students’ reasoning underlying their information use. It was found that interviewees expressed greater confidence in the veracity of textbooks than websites, but that this contrast appeared to be based on a relatively unsophisticated epistemology. The interviews also suggested that students’ metacognitive awareness and control, particularly over the critical thinking processes by which candidate information is selected or rejected for study, were somewhat weak. The core characteristics of information literacy for this group are discussed and suggestions for follow-up studies and interventions to assist in improving matters are provided.