October is Information Literacy Awareness Month

On October 1, 2009, President Barack Obama issued a proclamation establishing October as National Information Literacy Awareness Month. Information literacy, or the ability to find, evaluate, and use information effectively, is key in preparing students for being actively involved in a democratic society and seeking highly skilled jobs. Information literacy skills lay a solid foundation for lifelong learning.

Governors in ten states have issued Information Literacy Awareness Proclamations. Ohio is among the states working on the proclamation drafts to submit.

The University of Cincinnati Libraries are celebrating Information Literacy Awareness Month by highlighting resources and services that help students to acquire and develop research and critical thinking skills and become lifelong learners.

Librarians invite faculty and students  to comment on what the Libraries are doing to help with developing these crucial skills and what else we can do. You can do so through social media, comment boxes in libraries, or by contacting librarians.

This week we are unveiling a virtual book exhibit featuring resources for faculty and librarians related to information literacy instruction. These resources provide ideas and case studies for integrating research and critical thinking skills into various disciplines as well as suggestions on increasing student engagement and assessing student learning. We hope to extend this guide in the future by adding more resources in a variety of formats. You are welcome to contribute your favorite resources by using the “comments” link on the virtual exhibit page.

Watch this blog as well as the Libraries Facebook page for more about Information Literacy as the month progresses.

For more on Information Literacy, visit http://tinyurl.com/9hnybau.