Information Fluency

An information fluent person is one who can satisfy their changing information needs, pursue independent lifelong learning, and contribute to the development of an informed society in a seamless process.

There has been, and continues to be, an explosion of knowledge and enormous advances in technology as society moves to the future. As a result, we live in an information environment characterised by:

• an expansion of the range of sources of information
• the transient nature of information

It is essential for students to develop fluency in using information as part of the knowledge, skills, behaviours and attitudes necessary for lifelong learning. People who are aware of information sources and literacy, who have the confidence to approach them, and the flexibility of thinking to use them, have the basis for a better quality of life than those who are unable to pursue their information needs.

Schools need to provide planned opportunities for students to develop towards information fluency.

The Library Policy – Schools, indicates that one purpose of the school library is

to enhance teaching and students’ learning within the total program of the school by … providing opportunities for students to develop information skills and use them confidently and competently.

The Information Fluency Framework is the primary source of information outcomes and processes for teacher librarians and school staff to use together with Information skills in the school, as a support document to the Library Policy.

When partnered with the Department’s Quality Teaching model, the Information Fluency Framework incorporates:

• a broad range of curriculum outcomes
• the general capabilities
• digital literacies
• cross-curriculum priorities

The Information Fluency Framework enables inquiry learning and learning across the curriculum. The Information Fluency Framework is divided into five elements:

• Social
• Literate
• Innovative
• Critical
• Ethical

Developing fluent information users

People who use information successfully display the following characteristics:

• they are able to add to their core knowledge and frequently do so
• they use a variety of information sources and the necessary technology
• they are able to process the information which surrounds them
• they are confident in their ability to use information effectively

The school plays an important part in developing these characteristics in students by focusing on specific information-related competencies. Such competencies are sometimes referred to as inquiry skills.

Integrating information fluency into the curriculum

The responsibility for integrating information fluency into the curriculum rests with the whole school. This responsibility is reinforced by executive supervision of classroom and specialist teachers who are facilitators of the process with students.

Students at any stage, from Kindergarten to Year 12, require opportunities to develop information fluency. As students become along the progression, they can complete increasingly sophisticated and difficult tasks. This also applies to the resources they can use.

To create a learning environment which fosters the development of information fluency, schools should provide a program which allows for teacher and student flexibility in exploring curriculum tasks and problems. Such flexibility would allow:

• consideration of available resources
• inclusion of students' existing knowledge
• provision for individual differences in skill development and learning styles when information skills are incorporated into student learning

The information process

The information process is the series of steps that anyone takes to complete an information task. It is a model of information processing.