The Journal of Information Literacy (JIL) publishes innovative and challenging research articles and project reports that push the boundaries of information literacy thinking in theory, practice and method, and which aim to develop deep and critical understandings of the role, contribution and impact of information literacies in everyday health, education and workplace contexts. Articles within JIL are from both internationally renowned authors and library professionals who teach or undertake research into information literacy. JIL is published twice a year in December and June. Additional special themed issues are also possible and the editor welcomes suggestions. Please see our About page for specific information about the scope of the journal and our journal policies.
Copyright (c) 2025 Alison Hicks https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Book review of DeJong, M. 2024. Information literacy for science and engineering students: Concepts and skills.
Book reviews (and reviews of other relevant literature)
Copyright (c) 2025 Joanna Blair https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Book review of Whitworth, A. 2020. Mapping information landscapes: New methods for exploring the development and teaching of information literacy.
Copyright (c) 2025 Helen Bond https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Toward a coherent framework for school-based information literacy
This article presents the findings of a two-round Delphi study exploring expert perspectives on information literacy (IL) in Croatian primary and secondary education. The study examined which IL competencies and pedagogical approaches are considered essential, how school librarians perceive their instructional role, and what systemic challenges influence the implementation of IL. A total of fifteen school librarians participated in the study. In the first round, participants responded to 11 open-ended prompts addressing themes such as teaching strategies, assessment, curriculum integration, and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. In the second round, they evaluated 26 synthesised statements derived from a thematic analysis of the initial responses. The results reveal strong consensus on the need for a developmentally aligned and cross-curricular IL framework, encompassing skills from basic information seeking to independent inquiry and ethical information use. While school librarians are seen as key facilitators of IL, their efforts are often limited by time constraints, insufficient resources, and a lack of formal collaboration with teaching staff. Participants also expressed concern over students’ increasing reliance on generative AI tools, which may impede critical thinking and encourage superficial engagement. The study underscores the need for national IL standards, stronger institutional support for school librarians, and greater attention to the pedagogical and ethical implications of AI in education.
Research articles (peer-reviewed articles)
Copyright (c) 2025 Ivana Martinović, PhD https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
In the digital age, the rapid transformation of academic libraries is not merely about adopting new tools and technologies; it represents a shift in responsibility, enabling libraries to extend information literacy (IL) beyond campus boundaries. While public libraries traditionally provide services for underprivileged citizens, this paper examines how academic libraries in India support diverse disadvantaged communities and explores emerging approaches in Greece. By comparing these initiatives, the study highlights potential strategies institutions can adopt to expand their social impact. Today, libraries must move beyond routine operations and engage in social causes. By stepping outside traditional roles, they can meaningfully support marginalised groups, fostering inclusivity and equity. This shift is not only an opportunity but also a responsibility tied to the core values of knowledge access and public service. In India, academic libraries actively promote IL by educating village farmers and remote school students about grassroots challenges. Programmes such as the Village Adoption Programme and Science Outreach initiatives demonstrate direct engagement with rural communities. These efforts help farmers adopt sustainable practices and enable students to explore scientific advancements while promoting open-access resources for students, teachers, and local institutions. The global significance of these initiatives was recognised when presented at the American Library Association (ALA) Conference in Philadelphia, USA, June 2025. In Greece, academic libraries can play a crucial role in advancing IL for marginalised groups by strengthening citizens’ ability to locate, evaluate, and use information effectively. Economic crises and rising living costs have limited access to education and information, creating urgent demand for inclusive IL services. By becoming community hubs, academic libraries can provide free and user-friendly access to vital resources. Overall, this study underscores the transformative role of academic libraries in bridging the digital divide and advancing inclusive IL through cross-national learning and collaboration.
Copyright (c) 2025 Nihar K Patra, Panorea Gaitanou https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Mapping the core dimensions of information literacy in the critical and workplace domain
Despite its transformative promise, information literacy (IL) remains constrained by its narrow locus and siloed nature. This study confronts this by synthesising insights from critical (CIL) and workplace information literacy (WIL) domains, thereby advancing the conceptualisation of the critical workplace information literacy (CWIL) construct. It asks: how is IL conceptualised within these domains and what are its core elements across them? A reflexive thematic analysis of 54 peer-reviewed articles retrieved from Scopus through a PRISMA-informed process was conducted, employing a hybrid deductive-inductive coding strategy, guided by a critical-theoretical framework. Five main themes—core dimensions of IL across CIL and WIL—were constructed: functional skills and competences, cognitive skills and competences, social skills and practices, critical consciousness, and critical-pedagogical approaches. Findings reveal shared and divergent elements of CIL and WIL, confirming persistent silos. Both domains share a common baseline of generic functional skills, critical thinking, and the conception of IL as a socially situated information practice and a way of knowing. They diverge in teleology, with WIL emphasising functional, utilitarian-economistic conceptions, while CIL foregrounds political, emancipatory and critical-pedagogical dimensions. The study unpacks nuanced layers of IL, such as critical action, allowing for their integration into the emerging CWIL construct. Integrating functional and critical dimensions holds potential for advancing IL theory and conceptual coherence and fosters its teleological reconceptualisation as an action literacy capable of driving real-world impact and workplace transformation.
Copyright (c) 2025 Dijana Šobota https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Curriculum mapping for identifying and assessing information literacy teaching in humanities and social sciences libraries
Teaching librarians are regularly tasked with assessing their teaching output and aligning their student learning outcomes to frameworks. Whilst this has been explored extensively in libraries where teams of teaching librarians work together, there has been little exploration for how to assess separate teams working towards the same goals. Previous studies have also mapped teaching against widely used frameworks instead of bespoke institutional information literacy (IL) frameworks. This article outlines how a group of faculty and departmental libraries mapped their teaching to a bespoke IL framework for higher education students. Through doing so, it created a shared understanding of the four competencies included in the framework and identified information practices. These practices were then developed into performance indicators for teaching across libraries and a system was devised for scoring the intensity of the teaching. A set of curriculum matrices and heatmaps were used to explore the scope of teaching delivered and to ensure parity across all student groups. Three core matrices are identified to assess if students receive introductory and advanced tuition across all of the IL framework. The study recommends that curriculum mapping starts with a new interpretation of IL frameworks and that mapping exercises consider how data will be presented during the design stage.
Copyright (c) 2025 Paul Cooke https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Teaching critical information literacy through popular culture
This project report describes a 15-week undergraduate curriculum integrating Critical Information Literacy (CIL) with media studies theory for art and design students. Using multiple adaptations of The Wizard of Oz—Baum’s 1900 novel, the 1939 MGM film, The Wiz (1978), and Wicked (2024)—as primary case studies, the course replaces conventional library-based information literacy (IL) instruction with a critical and culturally engaged approach. Through these familiar texts, students interrogate the authority, bias, and power structures embedded in historical and contemporary information systems. The curriculum introduces theoretical frameworks including encoding/decoding, semiotics, adaptation theory, and algorithmic critique, progressively building students’ capacity to apply complex concepts to both historical and digital contexts. This model has increased engagement among creative students who often resist traditional IL teaching, with evidence of lasting transfer of CIL concepts into creative practice. The approach is adaptable across disciplines and demonstrates the value of popular culture as an accessible yet rigorous site for developing CIL.
Copyright (c) 2025 Daniel Williford https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Reflection as a means to assess information literacy instruction
Teaching is integral to the mission and purpose of academic libraries, but in our institutions and professional organisations, the story of our teaching is often reduced to numbers: How many sessions? How many hours? How many students? Within this framework, quantity dictates success, with more classes, time, and students meaning more impact. Yet as teaching librarians, we know that the story of our work doesn’t begin and end in the classroom. This project report outlines the development of a qualitative, reflection-based evaluative process and toolkit for our Libraries’ instruction programme that centres two critical domains: teacher-librarian self-efficacy and student learning. The implementation of both process and toolkit provides readers a model for examining how well their values align with their own instruction assessment and how to evaluate their teaching programmes in more meaningful ways.
Copyright (c) 2025 Natalia Kapacinskas, Veronica Arellano Douglas, Erica Lopez, Mea Warren https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Copyright (c) 2025 Ileana Thomson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Copyright (c) 2025 Mary Hickford https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Copyright (c) 2025 Kerrianne Orriss https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Using Nuthall’s ideas to conceptualise and support children’s information needs
Much research has been undertaken over many years into the information needs of children and young people. A frequent outcome has been the creation of typologies which set down the categories of information youngsters require in their lives. Often, however, these breakdowns treat the types of information as discrete entities, when in the real world a single situation may be responsible for needs of several related kinds. There is also the problem that certain needs may be pigeon-holed into more than one of the defined categories. The present paper, which is devoted to UK children aged between four and eleven, offers a new model intended to address these complications. The types of needs featured within the model are outlined, then their interactions are conveyed diagrammatically and examples of the interactions are described. Subsequently, the issues raised are discussed in terms of relevant literature and the model’s limitations are acknowledged. The paper concludes with consideration of the model’s value and utility. In particular, the importance of teachers taking a holistic approach to learning is emphasised, with practitioners encouraged to exploit interests that their students have developed privately in order to enhance motivation and build on the knowledge they have gained in these outside contexts.
Copyright (c) 2025 Andrew Shenton https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Copyright (c) 2025 Karl Weis-Fogh https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Copyright (c) 2025 Maria King https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Integrating service-learning into information literacy education
This study examines a gap in Library and Information Science (LIS) education in the Philippines: the limited integration of practical, community-based learning within traditional Information Literacy (IL) courses. Conventional IL instruction often falls short in fostering the critical thinking, civic engagement, and real-world application of knowledge essential for future information professionals. To address this gap, the research investigates the incorporation of service-learning (SL) into an undergraduate IL course within an LIS program and explores how it can effectively enhance IL instruction. The existing IL course was revised to include key SL components: academic integration, meaningful service, and structured reflection and 12 undergraduate students from a Philippine university participated in the redesigned course. Qualitative data, gathered through small group discussions and reflective journals, were thematically analysed, revealing significant student learning outcomes in academic, civic, and personal domains. Results indicate that SL significantly enriches the LIS IL course by enhancing critical thinking, encouraging reflective learning, and preparing students for socially responsible roles. This approach offers a powerful pedagogical model for LIS educators, moving beyond traditional methods to cultivate holistic student development and bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application. The study highlights the real-world impact of SL in equipping LIS graduates to address complex information needs within communities, underscoring the need for further research into its broader applicability and long-term effects on LIS education.
Copyright (c) 2025 Ana Mae Cantel, Eun Youp Rha, PhD https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
What does it mean to be information literate for an autistic librarian in the academic library workplace?
This study centres on the experiences of autistic librarians in academic library workplaces, delving into how they become information literate—an intricate process influenced by social, epistemic, and physical modalities. Through a qualitative approach combining survey responses from 43 participants and detailed interviews with two autistic librarians, the research sheds light on the conscious, active labour often required to interpret social expectations, navigate sensory inputs, and engage with explicit knowledge. The findings highlight the unique, often hidden, efforts autistic librarians invest in their roles, bringing to the forefront the micro-decisions and strategies they employ daily. This research bridges the fields of IL and neurodiversity, broadening our understanding of workplace inclusivity. By giving voice to autistic librarians and drawing attention to their lived realities, the study invites reflection and action toward creating work environments that not only accommodate but celebrate neurodiverse talents.
Copyright (c) 2025 Amelia Haire https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Book review of Merga, M. 2023. Creating a reading culture in primary and secondary schools.
Copyright (c) 2025 Ciara Murray https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Information preservation, a neglected component of information literacy
The issue of information literacy (IL) in contexts where people do not have easy access to libraries and to sources of information has not received much attention in IL research. In particular, rural areas in developing countries where there are no public libraries and travelling to town to access information is arduous and time-consuming need a different approach to IL than what is recommended for societies served by public libraries. This article reports on the findings from 52 semi-structured interviews conducted in January 2023 with villagers in two remote and marginalised areas of Bangladesh where an Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) project had been conducted in 2016-2019. The findings presented in this paper are based on a thematic analysis of the interview transcripts with a particular focus on the interrelationships between IL and information preservation. The interviews revealed an improvement in IL among the participants in the ICT4D project, as well as among those who had not participated in the project, but had benefited from it indirectly, particularly in relation to preserving information that is useful to them. The authors argue that an important component of IL programmes in marginalised rural communities should be information preservation literacy, that is an awareness of and the skills to keep information that can be useful later on.
Copyright (c) 2025 Viviane Frings-Hessami, Lisa Kruesi https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Book review of Hinton, E. G., and Young, L. M. (Eds.). 2019. Framing health care instruction: An information literacy handbook for the health sciences.
Copyright (c) 2025 Isobel Eddyshaw https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Book review of Julien, H., Gross, M., and Latham, D. (Eds.). 2020. The information literacy framework: Case studies of successful implementation.
Copyright (c) 2025 Abdulkader Abdulkader https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Integrating information literacy in multicultural education: the "Pyxida" example
Like other European nations, Greece has experienced a substantial influx of refugees, immigrants, and migrants in recent years. Primary schools, secondary schools, and libraries serve as information centres that can play a critical role in the socio-economic integration of these populations. This is achievable through collaborative information literacy (IL) programmes involving teachers and librarians, focusing on multicultural education. IL plays a vital role in empowering migrants and refugees, as it not only enhances their academic success but also equips them with the skills necessary to integrate into new communities and make informed decisions. In this context, this article discusses the implementation of an IL programme for immigrant and refugee children of the Intercultural Center “Pyxida”. The two-month programme aimed to integrate IL into Greek literature lessons using the Big6Skills model. It aimed to improve students’ Greek language abilities, assess their educational levels, and promote critical thinking. In collaboration with Pyxida’s coordinators, the librarian facilitated lessons that included grammar and syntax exercises, dictation, comprehension questions, paraphrasing tasks, and debates. The research question that arises is whether the collaboration between coordinators and librarians could empower cognitive skills of displaced students through the implementation of an IL course. The results indicate that students improved their critical thinking skills and expressed a desire for the programme’s continuation. The findings suggest that IL programmes can be effectively integrated into multicultural education, particularly benefiting immigrant and refugee students in terms of social inclusion.
Copyright (c) 2025 Georgia Katsira, Professor Alexandros Koulouris, Professor Dimitris Kouis, Professor Eftichia Vraimaki https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Cultivating critical information evaluation through motivational confidence
From checklists, to processes, to models, information literacy (IL) instructors have sought to better teach students how to evaluate the information they encounter, increasingly through critical information literacy (CIL) pedagogies. CIL engages high-impact pedagogical practices as students direct their learning through dialogue and problem-posing, but there are persistent barriers to implementing CIL pedagogies at scale. Drawing from motivational design can empower librarians to advance CIL and empower students to critically evaluate information. Although many evaluation pedagogies employ general motivational strategies, there is a gap in the literature exploring the application of one specific component of motivation: confidence. This conceptual and exploratory study aims to: 1) determine the connections between motivational design and IL pedagogy, specifically related to confidence-building strategies and critical approaches to evaluating information; and 2) map the integration of confidence-building design and CIL practices to provide suggestions for practical application. The researchers employ a crosswalk analysis to demonstrate how IL instructors can overcome barriers to implement CIL instructional practices through confidence-building design that illuminates students’ abilities to learn and make a meaningful impact. In taking a confidence-building, critical focus to designing evaluation instruction, IL instructors reframe information evaluation as a participatory place for critical questioning, exploration, creative expression, and dialogue.
Copyright (c) 2024 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
Combating the spread of misinformation is a struggle that has inspired considerable research in the fields of psychology, education, political science, and information science, among others. Such research has found that “prebunking” or “inoculation” techniques—strategies that reduce the acceptance of misinformation before one has encountered it—have had marked success. However, there is little evidence that librarians are deliberately employing inoculation techniques in their information literacy (IL) instruction. Via a quasi-experimental study, this research explores the effect of prebunking techniques in an IL instruction session on undergraduate students’ ability to recognise misinformation. The prebunking techniques are delivered through a competitive game called Chaos Creator, based on the Bad News game developed by researchers at Cambridge University. Results of the study show that misinformation inoculation techniques are more effective than the popular source evaluation tool, the CRAP test, in helping students identify misinformation. However, misinformation inoculation techniques can backfire, causing students to become overly sceptical of trustworthy messages.
A mindfulness-based information literacy framework for the current information environment
This paper proposes a new information literacy (IL) framework, based around mindfulness, that is suited for the contemporary informational environment. This framework results from a weeklong interdisciplinary dialogue among scholars, theorising and incorporating mindfulness as a significant aspect of healthy information seeking and interpretation. Our framework builds on existing IL frameworks but encourages information consumers to recognise their emotional responses and political biases while providing reminders that information always contains political components. By doing so, this framework updates existing IL guidelines to better reflect the current era of rising polarisation and affective media consumption. We present a mindfulness framework for IL that combines mindfulness practices with critical thinking in addressing the emotional impact of mis/disinformation and conspiracy theories on the current information society.
Already invested or absolutely incandescent?
Book review of Medaille, A. 2024. The librarian’s guide to learning theory: Practical applications in library settings
Past, present and future of information literacy in Latin America
This article synthesised the origin, evolution, current state, and future trends of information literacy (IL) in Latin America. This study employed a quantitative and qualitative review of documents published by Latin American authors to map out IL's development in the region, which was structured around four pivotal moments: 1) beginnings (1997-2007), marking the initial phase of IL's introduction and early development in Latin America, characterised by foundational texts and the organisation of critical events that set the stage for IL's growth in the region; 2) advances-positioning (2008-2019) pre-pandemic, it reflects a period of significant growth and establishment of IL, with the emergence of digital platforms, the creation of regional declarations, and the integration of IL into educational curricula, indicating a broader acceptance and institutionalisation of IL practices; 3) main trends (2020-2023), it focuses on the adaptation and innovation in IL practices influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the shift toward critical thinking, addressing misinformation, and integrating IL with other competencies in response to digital advancements; and 4) some perspectives (2024-…), which includes future directions for IL in Latin America, emphasising the need to adapt IL training to new technological realities such as generative artificial intelligence, and proposing IL as a dynamic research area poised for further integration with global educational and societal goals. The article emphasises the necessity of IL's continuous evolution in Latin America, advocating for its adaptation to technological advancements and its critical role in promoting informed citizenship and lifelong learning. Through the lens of these moments, the study offers a comprehensive overview of IL's progression and potential future impact in the region.
information and communication technologies
Integrating basic artificial intelligence literacy with media and information literacy in higher education
This paper addresses the question of how to introduce basic artificial intelligence (AI) literacy skills to learners in higher education. It proposes that a feasible approach is to integrate AI literacy components into existing media and information literacy (MIL) programmes. The paper discusses elements of intersection between the two literacies, such as search techniques, evaluation, and responsible use of information. The author posits that the MIL curriculum needs to be updated by enhancing the intersecting elements and adding new concepts such as AI algorithm literacy, data literacy, AI ethics, and limitations of AI technologies. The author argues that libraries are best poised to take on the role of delivering basic AI literacy. To this end, MIL frameworks need to be reviewed, and librarians will be required to obtain additional skills through AI courses, workshops, and participation in communities of practice. Pioneering libraries such as the FIU Libraries (comprising the Green Library and Hubert Library) in Florida, US, and Massachusetts Library Systems are demonstrating that libraries have the capacity to deliver basic AI literacy to higher education learners. The author has analysed existing attempts at mapping AI literacy to the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education and built on these initiatives by mapping suggested new AI literacy-related knowledge practices and dispositions to the relevant frames of the framework. The paper concludes by making a clarion call to librarians to rise to the occasion and revamp existing MIL programs to include basic AI literacy.