A comparative study of information literacy provision at university libraries in South Africa and the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to establish and compare the provision of information literacy (IL) skills to university students both at undergraduate and graduate levels in South Africa (SA) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This could in turn inform the development of appropriate/suitable IL programmes to support teaching and learning. Design/methodology/approach – A review of available scholarly papers is performed for information collection. Findings – The findings can identify variations in IL provision within and across disciplines, deficiencies in local current and ongoing research. Research limitations/implications – It must be noted that this is a review and conclusions from it are expected to reveal areas that require more in-depth study. Practical implications – The study’s contribution to the field of IL lies in its revelation of what is understood by IL provision and how the ACRL standards are used to guide practice in the two different regions of the world. Originality/value – The study is the first of its kind which compares IL practices at university libraries in SA and the UAE. It will assist policymakers and librarians in the development of appropriate IL programmes in support of teaching and learning.

Students’ perceptions of librarians as teachers of information literacy at a large African university

“…Among NWU LIS’ strategies is the strategy to support teaching, learning and researching through provision of information and digital literacy to library users (NWU LIS, 2018). Similar to the majority of universities in South Africa, most of the IL training offered at NWU is ad hoc , “once-off” and at the mercy of academics (Moyo and Mavodza, 2016; Noll and Brown, 2018). However, some faculties such as law are prepared to offer the library at least three contact sessions with their students including library orientation, although this has not been officially agreed upon.…”

Assessment of information literacy skills

“…This might be as a result of the different information literacy training programmes organized in university libraries and faculties to equip undergraduates with the needed skills (Baro and Keboh, 2012). According to Moyo and Mavodza (2016), the United Arab Emirates government expects all educators in universities to use methods that will bring out those skills in undergraduates to enable them to solve problems and make informed decisions. To conduct the effective academic investigation themselves, undergraduates must be taught the abilities to navigate and use information effectively.…”

Multi-lingual and multi-cultural information literacy: perspectives, models and good practice

“…Many students, and professionals, whose first language is not English find it necessary to use English language databases (Ishimura et al, 2007;Simon, 2014;Hicks, 2014;Ferrer-Vinent, 2015;Moyo and Madvodza, 2016); this may pose a problem for examples in non-English instructional materials. There are also particular problems for evaluation of sources in non-native languages (Saunders et al, 2015).…”

“…It may be difficult to distinguish issues due to culture from those due to language or previous educational curricula. Moyo and Madvodza (2016), for example, in a comparison of IL education in South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, emphasise the need to tailor IL standards and instruction to local cultural norms, and to the nature of the local student group, and note particular problems with expatriate instructors, unaware of local cultural issues. Petermanec and Šebjan (2017) have noted the modifications needed to survey instruments to assess IL levels, to allow for local variations in academic norms, and availability of resources and databases, in their case in Slovenia.…”