Building information research skills in the Pacific region

Abstract

Purpose Information literacy (IL) enables individuals to discover new ways of thinking and new knowledge across a range of platforms, tools and media. It hopes to enable them to fit into the world of research and scholarly communication. This paper aims to describe the development and current practices in IL program at the University of the South Pacific (USP). This case study puts emphasis on how IL at USP reflects the educational priorities of the University and the region. Discussions on socio-cultural context hope to provide insights on developing a framework based on global standards that address the cultural aspect within students’ learning environment in the 12 member countries. Design/methodology/approach This paper mainly used desktop research and document analysis to present the IL model which is cohesively embedded within the University’s strategic plan and research skills development framework. Findings The results are summarized in three sections: paradigms and models as basis, current content and mode of delivery, methodologies and design for instruction and socio-cultural insights. Research limitations/implications At present, this study will cover Fiji (the Main Campus) and Vanuatu (School of Law). Other member countries with USP presence such as Cook Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga and Tuvalu are considered as part of the future design. Ultimately, a comprehensive model that is applicable for 21 other campuses in the ten member countries will be designed. It also hopes to be replicable in the entire Pacific context. Practical implications This study provides baseline data to develop future strategies for implementation in the regional level. Originality/value This paper deals with definitional issues of IL related to Pacific cultural contexts that goes beyond a single country, one national identity as it deals with 11 countries, a different model for networked paradigm for IL.

Information literacy: a desideratum of the 21st century

“…The educational institutes, be it pre-school or university, now has a great responsibility in enabling individuals to acquire information literacy skills. The studies conducted by (Aharony and Gazit, 2020; Alenzuela et al , 2019; Baji et al , 2018) show that information literacy has been used to improve students' self-efficacies, computer competencies and critical thinking abilities of the students. The focus is more on the students because they are the future workforce and as graduates, they are required to work in an information-rich environment.…”

“…The educational institutes around the globe are actively advocating information literacy to individuals of the 21st century. The institutes in the following countries have already begun using suitable information literacy frameworks:Hong Kong (Fan, 2021; Reichert et al , 2020);Turkey (Aslan and Yilmaz, 2021; Suna et al , 2020),Australia (Hanbidge et al , 2018; Hudges et al , 2017),Greek (Perifanou and Economides, 2020; Sideri et al , 2019);Iran (Baji et al , 2018), Singapore (Shaheen et al , 2016),India (Hanchinal and Hanchinal, 2018),The US (Bausman and Ward, 2016),New Zealand (Suhasini et al , 2020),United Kingdom (Zdanevych et al , 2020),Fiji (Reddy et al , 2020c; Alenzuela et al , 2019). …”

“…Moreover, information literacy is the set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, understanding the production of information, and using the information to create new knowledge and participate ethically in communities of learning (ACRL Board, 2015). Since information literacy has become a necessary 21st-century skill that every individual must have, researchers have stated that it should campaign at educational institutes (Guo and Huang, 2020; Alenzuela et al , 2019; Moto et al , 2018; Solanki and Dongaonkar, 2016). Since the youths, consisting of high school students and university newcomers, are the majority group seen to be using technology and available information, advocating information literacy and measuring the competencies amongst the senior students must be given importance.…”

“…The country is actively advocating the concept of digital literacy to its citizens through education mediums and online platforms, where one of the trending categories of digital literacy is information and computer literacies. There have been initiatives by the Fijian government related to information and computer literacies in high school education (FijiTV, 2019; Ministry of Communications, 2014), however, with limited research on digital literacy (Reddy et al , 2020b, c) and information literacy (Alenzuela et al , 2019). These provided motivation and laid the foundation for this research study.…”

“…The phenomena of the digital revolution are also impacting the behaviour of the individuals-the younger generation making digital technology part of their daily lives (Johnson et al , 2021; Prasad et al , 2021; Sharma et al , 2019b; Reddy et al , 2017; Sharma and Reddy, 2015). Due to the increasing dependence on digital devices and digital platforms, the education sector has evolved from traditional teaching and learning to a technology-driven education (Volpe, 2021; Alenzuela et al , 2019). The authors (Johnson et al , 2021; Prasad et al , 2021; Reddy et al , 2020c; Nand and Sharma, 2019; Reddy et al , 2019; Sharma et al , 2019a, b; Vula, 2019; Raturi, 2018; Reddy et al , 2017; Reddy et al , 2017; Ravindra et al , 2015) have researched on various aspects of technology-driven education.…”