The Warp and Weft of Information Literacy:

Changing Contexts, Enduring Challenges

Abstract

In this personal exploration of information literacy instruction at one institution, I look back at three decades of my involvement with pedagogy and how our local practices have reflected national conversations about the field. Anxiety about the identity and purpose of academic libraries in higher education has shaped the ways we have conceptualized and argued for the value of IL, yet in spite of spirited efforts to reformulate our purpose, many of the challenges we face have consistently resisted solutions.