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The proliferation of digital information technologies has underscored the heightened necessity for online information search. This study is directed towards the analysis of the strategies adopted by prospective teachers in the selection of digital content employed for accessing information, their preferences concerning the use of digital and online tools, and the rationale that underpins these preferences. To achieve this aim, the case study method was used. Employing the purposive sampling method, the study involved a participant pool of 72 teacher candidates in the 3rd and 4th grades within the faculties of education. To collect data, a personal information form, an online interview form, a focus group interview form, and a word association test were employed. The data were analyzed using the content and descriptive analysis methods. At the end of the study, the prospective teachers expressed a common tendency that when it comes to scientific research, they often prefer to search for articles whereas for more general inquiries, they have a propensity for utilizing internet searches. Most of the prospective teachers follow a step-by-step research process when accessing information. In addition, they employ both goal-oriented and general-content resources while in pursuit of scientific information. They pay attention to data reliability, accurate information, speed, and access to the Internet in the process of obtaining information. They consider the tools they use adequate and reliable. Teacher candidates establish complex conceptual networks among the array of tools they employ to access information. A comprehensive discussion concerning the outcomes of the research is also presented.

The academic study of harsh vocals has been gaining traction of late, as the physiology (Eckers et al., 2009), creative attributes (Di Lorenzo & Trantino, 2016) and socio-political ramifications (Heesch, 2019) of usage have been covered in some depth by existing literature. However, formalised pedagogical study around the technique is somewhat lacking, as each vocalist has a unique path to the style and it is highly unlikely to be the result of formal training. In Australia this situation is exacerbated by the relative isolation of the individuals learning due to its small population, large geographic size and relative lack of popularity of heavy metal. This research involved interviewing five active harsh vocalists about their journey to learning and revealed that individuals were unlikely to engage in formal training and were more likely to experiment, seek access to information online and engage with strategies from other vocal styles in order to develop their own sound.

Although many Nigerian universities are making efforts to provide access to digital library resources, the level of utilization of these resources have not been encouraging due to several factors. Information literacy has been identified as a major factor when considering the factors that enhance use of digital resources. In view of this, this study was designed to investigate how "information literacy skills" predict the utilization of digital library resource by university teaching staff. The study was built around two theoretical models, that is, SCONUL's information literacy model, and the Technology Acceptance Model. A correlational research design guided the study. The population consisted of 6,653 teaching staff from six federal universities in Southern, Nigeria, and six hundred and sixty-five (665) persons comprised the sample, proportionately chosen via stratified random sampling. The test instruments designed for this study were: Test tool titled "Skill Test on Information Literacy" (STIL), and a questionnaire titled "Usage of Digital Library Resources" (UDLR). The study used the Kuder-Richardson technique to determine the items' reliability yielding results of 0.77, 0.78, 0.75, 0.64, 0.81, and 0.81 for digital library resources usage. The study used multiple regression analysis for the research question. The findings revealed that in terms of extent, a weak positive relationship exists between the skills of university teaching staff in information literacy and utilization of digital library resources. On the whole, the findings showed a significant correlation between university teaching staff skills in information literacy and utilization of digital resources. It implies that in improving the usage of digital resources by university teaching staff, attention must be focused on their abilities to utilize these resources. It was recommended that librarians should have a strategy for training lecturers on digital skills as part of the overall plan for promoting the usage of digital resources by lecturers.

Information Professionals are avid users of data points to inform their practices, but have we flattened the data to such an extent that we have lost the emotional side of research that students experience? In this article, we will discuss our findings regarding student emotions and information beliefs and share ways in which this data can give depth to our practices. In this qualitative study, we used twenty interviews conducted in 2019 to uncover student information beliefs. Through exploratory data analysis we discovered students expressing a variety of emotions beyond anxiety, not all of which were negative. It is only when we examine student perceptions that we reveal the emotionally fraught process of research. Recommendations based on our findings fall into three categories: encouraging information professionals to find paths to removing access barriers, find ways to move into faculty development, and acknowledging the aspects of research that can make it hard but rewarding for students. Our findings and recommendations focus on how to establish practices that allow students to use their persistence in ways that enhance their learning rather than using cognitive energy on the intricacies of a library specific task.

Although research has extensively documented international students' adjustment and acculturation challenges, the role of academic advising in assisting with such challenges has received scarce empirical attention. This phenomenological study explored how international students' communications with their academic advisors influenced their educational adjustment and growth in a university setting. Semi structured interviews with 15 international students revealed three overarching themes: advisor-advisee interactions, quality of information, and advising limits vis-à-vis international student issues. Using validation theory, this study's discussion and recommendations centered on advising practices that fostered or hindered international students' perceptions of academic advising.

The aim of this study was to explore how autistic adults experienced using social media to find information about autism, and how they experienced online autistic communities. There is little research on the rationale why autistic people look for information on autism via social media, and on how such information is perceived from an autistic viewpoint. Twelve Norwegian autistic adults (aged 18-49 years) completed semi-structured interviews where they discussed social media and content specifically about autism and online autistic communities. Using reflexive thematic analysis, three main themes were developed. The themes were (1) Representation and Identity: An Online Journey; (2) An Unreliable, but Necessary Tool; and (3) Tensions and Discord. The findings indicated that even though social media was looked upon as an unreliable information source, the participants found information that helped them to learn about their experiences which had not been fully captured by the majority of the current research literature and online health sites. Also, social media groups for autistic people did not necessarily create a sense of community, as participants reported feeling alienated by hostile discussions. This study highlights the importance of having a greater variation and availability of information about autism online through official health channels.

This paper presents findings from a series of focus group interviews with three groups of professionals in England, in the period immediately preceding the COVID-19 global pandemic, on the information needed by professionals to support migrant children with special educational needs (SEN) in the English education system. The data gathered were subjected to a thematic analysis revealing four themes: (1) Information about the needs of migrant children with SEN, (2) Information about parents and families, (3) Information about strategies to support migrant children with SEN, (4) The importance of clear and understandable information. The findings emphasise that when information is sought about migrant children with SEN, professionals must account for and understand the different experiences that the children and their families have experienced across different educational systems and the different educational ecologies associated with migration. Ecological theory helps identify potential tensions at different levels between and within different ecologies, but also suggests ways in which these may be bridged by information gathering, trust and relationship building within and across ecologies.

This paper compares website usability--specifically library users' understanding of library terms--for fifty-one original research studies between 2012-2021, with the findings of John Kupersmith's 2011 white paper "Library Terms That Users Understand." Studies reported approximately twice as many terms that users didn't understand than terms users did understand, with some terms appearing in both categories. Analysis of the findings suggests a majority of Kupersmith's guidelines remain applicable to today's online environment, with some adjustments related to technology advances. We propose an additional guideline that acknowledges the role non-library websites play in guiding how users interact with library terminology.

Two studies investigated students' critique generation, an elaborated form of content evaluation wherein students identify information selectively, inaccurately, or incompletely presented in text(s) and consider where such selective presentation may stem from. Critique generation, as an important critical reading outcome, was examined here, within the context of students' reasoning about two op-eds, presenting conflicting points of view on a controversial social issue -- whether or not Amazon should replace local libraries. Study 1 catalogued the types of critiques that students generated. Study 2 linked critique generation with both students' conceptions of what the task of critique entails and with students' reports of strategy use, although not with a host of, expected to be relevant, individual difference factors (e.g., need for cognition, media literacy). Both studies found critique generation to be significantly associated with performance on an argumentative writing task. Contributions of these two studies include documenting critique types that may distinctively emerge when students are asked to reason about a controversial social, rather than scientific, issue and identifying learner-reported strategies that constitute promising paths for fostering critique generation in future work.

Corrective feedback (CF) has long been a hot topic in language education circles and has received extensive research attention. However, there is still controversy over the effectiveness of CF use and error correction in language classes. To address this discrepancy, the current study probed the effectiveness of different CF types in improving grammatical accuracy in writing. We recruited 74 female English as a foreign language students within the age range of 16-21 at an intermediate proficiency level and divided them into four treatment groups and one control group. Four feedback types were used in the treatment, namely explicit correction, clarification request, metalinguistic, and elicitation. The experimental groups' grammatical knowledge of target structures (tense, voice, and agreement) was assessed before and after CF treatments and was compared with that of the control group. The findings revealed that all feedback groups outperformed the control group, highlighting the effectiveness of CF treatment. In addition, the metalinguistic feedback group outperformed all other experimental groups, with no difference observed between elicitation and clarification request groups. Further findings and implications are discussed in the paper.

In England the 2014 Children and Families Act introduced wide ranging changes to the assessment of and provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Guidance underpinning implementation was then published in the Code of Practice. Our study focuses on a key component of that legislation, known as the 'local offer', which requires local authorities to establish and maintain, clear, comprehensive, accessible and up to date information for children and young people with SEND, and their families, about available SEND provision. Local authorities are expected to involve children and young people and their families in co-designing and reviewing their local offer, alongside other key stakeholders, to ensure provision is responsive to local needs and aspirations. To support our assessment of local offers we first established six categories based on the criteria in the Code of Practice about expected availability of SEND-related information (e.g. financial support, health service information, accessibility information). We used these categories to evaluate the relevant local offer websites of all 151 English local authorities with legal responsibilities for SEND assessment and provision. We further assessed whether each local offer website included three common website accessibility functions. Our findings demonstrate variation in the availability of information at local authority level, therefore limiting the ability of some young people and families to make informed decisions about the support available to them. This provides further evidence to support growing concerns about 'postcode lottery' inequities for families and their children with SEND.

This review study aims to understand the concept of adults' digital health literacy (DHL), a recently emerging significant concept but still confused. For this, we seek to find the core competencies of digital health literacy by comparing those of existing relevant literacy concepts (i.e., health literacy and digital literacy). We identified seven core competencies of DHL across analytical, context-specific, and socioecological aspects: (a) traditional literacy, (b) information literacy, (c) media literacy, (d) health-related literacy, (e) technology literacy, (f) scientific literacy, and (g) socioecological nature. We also found the shared core aspects among DHL and digital and health literacies. The findings of this study contributed not only to grasping the concept of digital health literacy better but also to providing a fundamental basis for programs to enhance the DHL of adults. This article concludes with discussions about the findings and practical and academic implications.

Despite the proven effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in preventing severe illness, many individuals, including older adults who are most susceptible to the virus, have opted against vaccination. Various factors could shape vaccination decisions, including seeking health information (HI). The internet is the primary source of HI today; however, older adults are often referred to as those missing out on digital benefits. The study explores the correlations between information and communication technology (ICT) use, online HI seeking, socioeconomic factors, and COVID-19 vaccination readiness among individuals aged 50 and above in Estonia. The survey data were gathered from 501 people aged 50 and older after the first lockdown in 2020. The outcomes revealed that vaccination readiness positively correlated with factors such as higher educational attainment, greater income, male gender, access to ICT, a readiness to employ digital technologies for health-related purposes, a greater demand for HI, and a higher frequency of seeking it online. There was some discrepancy in the preference of HI sources; for example, vaccination consenters preferred online versions of professional press publications and specific health portals. Based on the findings, it is advisable to encourage older adults to utilize the internet and new technology for health-related purposes. This practice expands the range of information sources available to them, ultimately enabling better decision-making regarding their health behaviors.

This paper presents "rational inattention" as a new, transdiagnostic theory of information seeking in neurodevelopmental conditions that have uneven cognitive and socio-emotional profiles, including developmental language disorder (DLD), dyslexia, dyscalculia and autism. Rational inattention holds that the optimal solution to minimizing epistemic uncertainty is to avoid imprecise information sources. The key theoretical contribution of this report is to endogenize imprecision, making it a function of the primary neurocognitive difficulties that have been invoked to explain neurodivergent phenotypes, including deficits in auditory perception, working memory, procedural learning and the social brain network. We argue that disengagement with information sources with low endogenous precision (e.g. speech in DLD, orthography-phonology mappings in dyslexia, numeric stimuli in dyscalculia and social signals in autism) constitutes resource-rational behaviour. We demonstrate the strength of this account in a series of computational simulations. In experiment 1, we simulate information seeking in artificial agents mimicking an array of neurodivergent phenotypes, which optimally explore a complex learning environment containing speech, text, numeric stimuli and social cues. In experiment 2, we simulate optimal information seeking in a cross-modal dual-task paradigm and qualitatively replicate empirical data from children with and without DLD. Across experiments, simulated agents' only aim was to maximally reduce epistemic uncertainty, with no difference in reward across information sources. We show that rational inattention emerges naturally in specific neurodivergent phenotypes as a function of low endogenous precision. For instance, an agent mimicking the DLD phenotype disengages with speech (and preferentially engages with alternative precise information sources) because endogenous imprecision renders speech not conducive to information gain. Because engagement is necessary for learning, simulation demonstrates how optimal information seeking may paradoxically contribute negatively to an already delayed learning trajectory in neurodivergent children.

Objective: This paper examines the ways in which young people in Eastern Canada learn about menstruation and construct personal period pedagogies through embodied experiences and encounters with digital and social media. Design: A qualitative exploratory approach was undertaken to elicit the stories and voices of young people who menstruate. Menstruation is conceptualised as a deeply bio-social phenomenon and knowledge was understood as created, contested and negotiated across settings and contexts. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine university students (ages 19-23 years) in Eastern Canada as part of a pilot project informing a broader study about menstruation education and menstrual experiences. To be eligible for inclusion, participants were required to have experienced one menstrual cycle in the past 6 months and engaged with social media at least once per week. Setting: This project was conducted in a small University town in Maritime Canada. Results: Young people interviewed learned about menstruation through knowledges assembled from conversations family members and peers, educational and medical settings and content encountered on social and digital media. Three themes were developed from the analysis. The first two capture how young people actively try to 'Fill in the Gaps' left by conventional menstrual education approaches and therefore turn to informal and narrative knowledges circulating on social media in efforts to answer the question 'Am I normal'. The third theme describes how participants actively 'Balance Authority and Intimacy' when seeking menstrual information that resonates with their embodied experiences. Conclusion: Substantial gaps exist in the menstrual knowledges available to young people, particularly in relation to the embodied and emotional dimensions of having and managing a period. Digital and social media have the capacity to contribute to personal period pedagogies by acknowledging and exploring aspects of menstruation not adequately addressed in other contexts.

Sourcing and intertextual integration skills are critical to the development of young students' digital literacy skills. Sourcing skills include identifying source parameters (e.g., recognizing the author, publication date, publisher) and analyzing the author's expertise. The objective of this study is to investigate which sourcing skills used by students in document selection are most associated with intertextual integration skills. A total of 165 students attending lower secondary school participated in the research. Students completed a sourcing inventory, an intertextual integration task (after reading multiple texts), and control variables measures (prior knowledge, prior beliefs, and text comprehension). The results of exploratory factor analysis showed three dimensions for sourcing, namely source identification, author's competence, and judgment on website choice. Furthermore, hierarchical regressions showed that author competence was the only sourcing factor associated with intertextual integration skills, after controlling for the effect of control variables. These results suggest that even younger students pay attention to author expertise when choosing texts to use for their assignments, and doing so enhances their competence in integrating information across sources.

Black men have a greater risk of prostate cancer as well as worse quality of life and more decisional regret after prostate cancer treatment compared to non-Hispanic White men. Furthermore, patients with prostate cancer who primarily obtain information on the internet have significantly more decisional regret compared to other information sources. Our objective was to explore the perspectives of Black patients on the use and impact of the internet for their prostate cancer care. In 2022-2023, we conducted seven virtual focus groups with Black patients with prostate cancer (n = 22). Transcripts were independently analyzed by two experienced researchers using a constant comparative method. Online sources were commonly used by participants throughout their cancer journey, although informational needs varied over time. Patient factors affected use (e.g., physical health and experience with the internet), and family members played an active role in online information-seeking. The internet was used before and after visits to the doctor. Key topics that participants searched for online included nutrition and lifestyle, treatment options, and prostate cancer in Black men. Men reported many downstream benefits with internet use including feeling more empowered in decision-making, reducing anxiety about treatment and providing greater accountability for research. However, they also reported negative impacts such as feeling overwhelmed or discouraged sorting through the information to identify high-quality content that is personally relevant, as well as increased anxiety or loss of sleep from overuse. In summary, online sources have the potential to positively impact the cancer journey by reinforcing or supplementing information from health care providers, but can be harmful if the information is poor quality, not representative, or the internet is overused.

Research on the development of active learning and information search behaviors has been growing rapidly, drawing interest from multiple disciplines, from developmental psychology to cognitive science and artificial intelligence. These different perspectives can open pathways to understanding how preschool-age children grow into adaptive and efficient active learners. However, the lack of a shared vocabulary, operationalizations, and research paradigms has led to limited cross-talk and some conflicting findings. In this article, we advocate for using a shared operationalization of a "good" information-search strategy, as a function of its "efficiency" and "effectiveness" within a given ecology, based on the information-theoretic measure of expected information gain and observed behavioral outcomes, respectively. We also discuss factors that should be considered when designing experiments that examine children's information-search competence, specifically, using formal models as performance benchmarks and accounting for children's prior knowledge, assumptions, and self-generated goals.

While significant progress has been made in broadening information literacy's (IL's) scope, its conception of the user and their relationship to information remains painfully limited. This is particularly evident when the affective or emotional factors of information seeking behaviour are considered. Thus far, IL's models and discourses have failed to acknowledge emotion's fundamentally disruptive nature and have either ignored, repressed, or misrepresented users' emotions. This has resulted in a deeply limited and inaccurate conception of the user's information needs, and this has a particularly harmful impact on marginalised users and users engaging with affectively fraught information. This article seeks to address this oversight, initially by outlining the origins of IL's repression of emotion and then examining the consequences of this repression in the standardised IL models; specifically in Carol C. Kuhlthau's Information Search Process and the ACRL's "Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education." Subsequently, this essay will examine several critical models of librarianship and IL--including Holocaust librarianship and Indigenous conceptions of relationality--in order to illuminate models of IL that adopt a relational perspective that enables an engagement with the affective elements of the user's information needs. Finally, this essay will suggest that these relational perspectives facilitate the adoption of an ethics of care that helps address the insufficiencies inherent to our current conceptions of IL.

This case study describes how the authors incorporated the principles and practices of open pedagogy into a three-credit Honors College course focused on information literacy and undergraduate research. It included using literature review sources to help edit Wikipedia articles, registering a research project proposal with the Open Science Framework (OSF), and the creation of an openly licensed toolkit crowdsourced with students' tips and suggested resources for other students new to research. Students demonstrated improved understanding of several information literacy concepts, such as the role of copyright. The use and benefits of open pedagogy were, however, hindered by unrelated classroom issues, like low enrollment and, at times, a lack of student engagement. Nevertheless, the authors' general approach and the activities and assignments they developed could be adapted and used in other library instruction contexts.

Using a transnational lens, this narrative study examines the online information literacies of six Chinese international graduate students in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data of the study were collected from phenomenological interviewing, weekly information-seeking dairies, and focus group discussions. This study illuminates Chinese international students' transnational information literacies in navigating the pandemic online information environment. These students stayed attuned with the pandemic conditions and relevant regulations in order to inform their important decision-making concerning health, safety, visa issues, and international travel. The study also highlights participants' cultural ways of information seeking and pragmatic approaches to information credibility assessment. Results from the study show the importance of understanding and empowering the information literacy of international students, especially during a global health emergency.

The aim of this study is to contribute to a pragmatic understanding of critical information literacy (CIL) by positioning it as a context-specific interpersonal practice. Using phenomenography to explore how information work is experienced by social workers in social and health care settings, this paper provides an example of critical information practice that can be used to operationalise and activate CIL as a theory and inform approaches to critical pedagogy. CIL as a concept is generally theorised, practiced, and taught in academic contexts, and relatively few examples of how theory can be defined and put into practice outside a classroom setting are available. This study builds on our understanding of CIL by exploring professional information practice and suggests a model for teaching to engage learners in connecting information to action in social systems.

The 21st century has been riven by information challenges, from mis/disinformation campaigns, fake news, and propaganda to online conspiracy theories. At a time when more people are literate than perhaps at any other time in history, we still see the rise and viral global spread of unhinged conspiracy theories across the web. The existence of such crowd-sourced conspiracy theories presents unique challenges for scholars and teachers of information literacy (IL), who face intractable challenges in inculcating healthy information practices. This is especially visible when we compare current IL frameworks with principles espoused within these conspiratorial movements. The online conspiracy theory QAnon demonstrates a particularly thorny problem for IL efforts because QAnon operates according to many of the same principles espoused in literacy frameworks. Since its inception in 2017, QAnon has become one of the most complex online conspiracy theories precisely because it relies on a complex set of informational practices enacted by thousands of followers known as anons. In this article, I argue that internet conspiracies such as QAnon weaponise IL through incitement to "do your own research". I apply a qualitative approach to compare established principles advocated by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) to social media posts by Q and his anons to demonstrate the striking similarity in orientation toward questions of authority, context, literacy and research. In my analysis, we need new models for IL to combat conspiracism through a better understanding of the political contours of information ecosystems precisely because these similarities preclude effective engagement, and I conclude by gesturing toward future interventions.

The agricultural industry lacks qualified workers, suggesting students may not participate in opportunities that effectively develop their employability skills. We used a phenomenological case study approach to investigate Texas A&M University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences students' career-readiness and factors influencing career-readiness. We conducted interviews with 19 juniors and seniors. Open coding procedures revealed five emergent themes--"Career Advice-Seeking Behavior," "Employability Skills Development," "Network Establishment," "Relevant Experiences," and "Personal Growth." Findings indicate that students do not take advantage of University resources to help them with career preparation. Findings also revealed a lack of employability skills development, especially relating to students' communication and science communication skills. Students identified high-impact experiences they believed improved their employability skills. We recommend strategies for educators to improve agriculture students' career-readiness and offer research recommendations to examine career-readiness factors that may help prepare students to meet 21st century agricultural workforce demands.

Despite the democratised access to digital media, there are still gaps in uses and opportunities according to age, sex, socioeconomic level, and location. In addition, the study about the use of digital media by children and adolescents has focused more on the risks than on the opportunities. This study analyses the relationship between different uses of digital media (socialisation, socio-political, and learning purposes), with school civic engagement. A sample of 524 students (M[subscript age]=12; 43.7% girls) from Santiago de Chile participated. Structural equation modelling with latent variables was used to test a parallel mediation model in which the use of socialisation in digital media is related to school civic engagement, through digital media use for socio political purposes and the digital media use for learning purposes. In addition, multigroup analysis by sex was tested. The main results showed that digital media use for socialisation has a positive effect on school civic engagement through the parallel mediation of digital media use for socio-political purposes and the digital media use for learning purposes. The multigroup analysis showed that mediation is significant in both boys and girls. The results have contributed to the expansion of knowledge about the opportunities of digital media on civic engagement in formal school contexts.

Seeking to better understand the longitudinal association between online usage of library-licensed content and short- and long-term student performance, we linked EZproxy logs to institutional university data to study how library usage impacts semester and cumulative GPAs. Panel linear mixed effects regression models indicate online library usage is significantly associated with both semester and cumulative GPAs. The library usage effect is larger for semester GPA, and varies by on- and off-campus residency. The effect on semester GPA is larger for off-campus students, while for cumulative GPA the effect is larger for on-campus students. Longitudinally linked library-institutional data offers key insights on the library's value.

The main purpose of the study was to validate the Use and Gratification (U&G) theory and examine the effect of U&G (entertainment, information seeking, and socializing) on the theory of planned behavior (Perceived behavioral control and attitude toward behavior) among students regarding mobile technology usage in COVID-19. Quantitative research design was employed for conducting the study. Data was collected using the survey method. The population consisted of students currently enrolled in a public sector university in Lahore. A questionnaire in online form was used for collecting data from students. SPSS software was used for descriptive analysis and SmartPLS was used for path analysis and hypotheses testing. The study identified that there was an insignificant impact of getting entertainment on students' attitudes and their perceived control toward mobile technology use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings showed that students used mobile technology for information seeking and socializing as there was a significant impact of information seeking and socializing on their attitude toward the use of mobile technology. Current study provides insight into the usage behavior of students regarding mobile technology during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also provides, how mobile technology motivators (getting entertainment, information seeking, and socializing) work for mobile technology usage behavior in crises, especially COVID-19 pandemic. Findings are helpful for government authorities in decision-making regarding the provision of information through mobile technology during emergencies.

This article reports on the third phase of a project studying the integration of information behavior theories and concepts into professional education for reference and information service (RIS). It also provides a synthesis of the results of all studies in the project, including a syllabus study, an interview study, and the survey. Results of the project show that Kuhlthau's information search process model, along with several other key theories, models, and concepts, is perceived by instructors of introductory RIS courses in North America as important for RIS practice. Instructors feel that students are generally receptive to conceptual content in the course, although most teach a more practice-focused course or a course with a balance of conceptual and practical content. Still, 10-31% of introductory RIS courses do not include any information behavior content, suggesting that the relevance of theory to practice remains an ongoing debate.

Folklife, a type of inquiry that focuses on "ways of life" as its central lens, is constantly changing. Rather than focus on cultural loss or salvaging, folklife inquiry is more powerful when it is positioned to offer insights about human experience through the sharing of personal lived histories in safe and supportive environments. At Vermont Folklife, much like museums, libraries, and historical societies, often serves as a bridge between schools and other learning spaces that want to bring community members and their life experiences into their classrooms. This article examines some of the learning activities featured in the "Teaching with Folk Sources Curriculum Guide."

This study aims at exploring communication practices between students and supervisors in thesis projects. The study conducted a comparison between face-to-face and mediated communication through the use of emails. The researcher used the autobiographical reflection to document examples of information communicated during the two interactions. Furthermore, it utilized semi-structured interviews with three students who were conducting their thesis in the Information Studies Department at Kuwait University. Then, the researcher conducted interviews with four students' from other masters' programs. The study used a qualitative method to analyze the results. The findings showed that students used face-to-face meetings and mediated communication to seek different types of information. The topics discussed varied between the face-to-face and mediated interaction. Face-to-face communication was perceived as more effective and productive, while mediated communication was easier and faster. Students used e-mails to set appointments with their supervisors, ask questions and get feedback on assignments. Students faced some communication barriers such as difficulty of sense-making and experiencing the "black-hole" phenomenon. The study suggested applying an electronic supervision system to facilitate students' communication with their supervisors. This study has practical significance as it helps students and supervisors interact successfully during different thesis writing stages.

The present study explored where and how college students sought assistance and information for themselves and their family or friends who may have needed behavioral health and substance abuse disorder assistance. Two hundred and fifty-nine college students responded to the questionnaire at one of the 50 largest public higher education institutions in the Southeastern United States. Findings confirm that help-seeking is a multifaceted process involving social and professional support. Participants indicated that they would seek assistance earlier than they had and also make personal changes in their lives to address well-being. These findings can guide higher education administrators, faculty members, counseling staff on campuses, funders, and policymakers in designing and developing accessible and user-friendly programs and services for increasing student success on campuses.

Background/purpose: This study investigates how the teaching intervention and familiarity with the search topic enhance Greek students' behaviour while solving information problems. Materials/methods: Seven university students solved three information problems on the same search topic during an academic semester. After the first and before the last two information problems, a didactic intervention was implemented to familiarize the undergraduate students with the information problem-solving process based on the Big6 model of Eisenberg & Berkowitz (1990) and the use of essential online search tools. Qualitative data was collected via observation as well with the think-aloud protocol. Results: The results indicated that after the didactic intervention and familiarity with the search topic, the participants could realize a greater variety of actions to locate the required information. Conclusion: The findings deepen the comprehension of how the students' information behaviours evolve and indicate suitable interventions that could support students in performing effective internet searches.

There are few references that critically evaluate the different ways of searching the literature on scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), or how these are related to researchers' goals. We use an academic literacies perspective as a lens with which to explore the different ways that literature searches may be undertaken. While searching the literature is often presented as a scientific objective process, the reality is much messier, nuanced, and iterative. It is a complex, context-dependent process. We provide a practical, critical guide to undertaking SoTL literature searches and argue that these need to be seen as socially constructed processes. There is no one right way of searching the SoTL literature. The academic literacies perspective leads us to emphasise the variety of different purposes for carrying out a literature search. We distinguish between using comprehensive tools and selective sources. We end by arguing that there is a need for SoTL researchers to be less insular and take purposeful steps to search for, cite, and amplify diverse voices. This article complements a separate one where we review and synthesise the SoTL literature. [For Part 2, see EJ1375466.]

There are few sources that critically evaluate the ways of reviewing the literature on scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). We use an academic literacies perspective as a lens with which to explore the ways that literature reviews may be undertaken. While reviewing the literature is often presented as a scientific, objective process, the reality is much messier, nuanced, and iterative. It is a complex, context-dependent procedure. We provide a practical, critical guide to undertaking SoTL literature reviews. We distinguish between embedded reviews that present a review contextualising the research that follows, as in most SoTL articles; and freestanding reviews that synthesise research on specific topics. We discuss the nature of embedded reviews, and evaluate systematic and narrative review approaches to undertaking freestanding reviews. We contend that the claims of the superiority of systematic reviews are unjustified. It is important that contextually-sensitive judgements and interpretation of texts associated with narrative reviews are seen as central to the reviewing process, and as a strength rather than a weakness. This article complements a separate one, where we apply an academic literacies lens to reviewing the literature on searching the SoTL literature. Together, they present a narrative review of searching and reviewing the SoTL literature undertaken systematically. We call for studies investigating the lived experiences of SoTL scholars. We illustrate this argument with an auto-ethnographic account of the often-serendipitous nature of our hunt for sources in preparing this review and the way our thinking and writing evolved during the writing of the two articles. [For Part 1, see EJ1375465.]

Canadian middle and high school students (N = 2,278) completed a "CTRL-F" curriculum teaching them how to evaluate online information by reading laterally to investigate sources, check claims, and trace information to original contexts. A subset of CTRL-F students (N = 316) were in classes with teacher-matched control groups (N = 287). Some CTRL-F students (N = 994) completed a delayed posttest. At pretest, students indicated preference for some lateral reading strategies, but preference rarely translated into use. Following instruction, CTRL-F students showed greater preference for and use of lateral reading than controls and greater alignment between preference and use. The curriculum's impact varied by demographic factors but not by differences in implementation. Gains were maintained from posttest to delayed posttest. Direct instruction and practice in lateral reading appear to strengthen connections between students' preferences and utilization of these strategies to evaluate online content relevant to academic and personal life.

This article argues that it is necessary to develop new approaches to media and information literacy (MIL) education to respond to information seeking on YouTube. The article draws on data from a survey of adult Australians (N=3,510), focusing on their media literacy attitudes, experiences, and needs. A subset of this data focuses on respondents who use YouTube to seek information for a purpose. The article interrogates the data to ask who uses YouTube to access information when they need to make a decision; how these adults' critical dispositions compare to people who do not use YouTube to seek information; and what level of media ability they have compared to other groups. A total of 45% of adult Australians had used YouTube to seek information and make a decision in the month prior to completing the survey. While this group shared a critical disposition towards media and information, they lacked confidence in their own media abilities. We argue that it is necessary to develop new MIL approaches to assist this group. In addition, we argue that this group is more likely to respond to MIL initiatives that are available on YouTube itself and are unlikely to seek MIL learning in community institutions like libraries or community centres.

The objective of this study was to identify university student profiles with different levels of predisposition and usage of digital competences in social communication and collaborative learning (CSCCL) as well as technology use in information search and treatment (CSTI). The sample comprised 383 students from three state universities in Spain. The study employed a questionnaire called "basic digital competences 2.0 in university students" (COBADI). Chi-squared automatic interaction detection (CHAID) algorithm was used for data analysis due to its capability to handle both quantitative and qualitative variables, enabling profiling and the generation of predictive models with easily interpretable graphical representations (decision trees). The results revealed a high level of digital competence in socialization and execution of tasks online, managing digital tools for planning study time, and using resources for information searching and browsing. These findings align with previous works on collaborative writing on the Internet and digital competence. However, students demonstrated low digital competence in data analysis processes and image production using social software apps, which has been linked to task complexity and heavy workload in other studies. Interestingly, the students' sociodemographic characteristics (age, sex, and university attended) did not influence their predisposition towards the analyzed digital competences. In conclusion, enhancing effective digital teaching in higher education can be achieved by incorporating the teaching of critical analysis of information, addressing information overload, providing instruction on social software apps, and emphasizing collaborative learning. These strategies aim to help students acquire and apply knowledge relevant to the current job market.

The junior and senior high school student experiences regarding their knowledge, attitude, and practices during the COVID-19 pandemic need to explore. This qualitative research uses a phenomenological technique with 20 students (10 JHS and 10 SHS) as a sample. Students learned about the illness through multimedia, filtering misinformation, self-driven data gathering, community support, and teacher-facilitated discussions. They also cultivated their attitude toward the disease through personal experiences and reflection on the pandemic, conducting activities such as experiments to test their acquired knowledge, considering community influences, and due to their self-motivation and appreciation of the right attitude during the pandemic. Finally, they executed practices toward COVID-19 with their parents' and peers' influence and support, collaborative team planning, learning from expert demonstrations, and participating in activity-driven action. JHS and SHS students have had a wide range of experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic regarding knowledge acquisition, inculcation of attitude, and practice implementation toward the disease. The student experiences are eye-openers to science educators. With this, there should be improvements in science education curricula that address the current pandemic and other unforeseen health issues.

Amid the landscape of digital literacies and frameworks is a common assumption that contemporary youth, frequently dubbed "digital natives," intuitively understand and use online technologies. While their use of these technologies may be frequent and highly skilled in some respects (e.g., communicating with friends), their use and abilities in other areas, such as those valued in school settings and the workforce, may differ. This survey of 350 college students examines how they use an array of online platforms for everyday life information-seeking purposes, including the frequency with which they engage in different networked knowledge activities. Findings show that while students often use platforms associated with personal networking, such as Instagram, professional platforms like LinkedIn are less commonly used. Students are much more likely to engage in passive online activities than active ones. In particular, skills related to tagging, writing, and creation are infrequently used. Additionally, about half of these college students do not believe social media, which fosters these networked knowledge activities, is relevant to their careers. These findings show opportunities for better developing college students' digital skill sets, with guidance for skills that might be targeted, taught together, and supported through learning activities in online spaces to prepare college students for digital information tasks in the workplace.

The purpose of this paper is to better understand how emerging artists use information to navigate the transition out of university, using their changing ideas of failure, success, information literacy (IL), and transition to frame the qualitative data. A literature review is used to frame the current understanding of emerging artists and feed into the creation of the interview questions. Four emerging artists participated to elicit qualitative accounts. Descriptive and process coding was used to analyse the interviews to form the findings. The findings present how emerging artists use information to shape their criteria for success and failure during the transitional period after leaving art school education. Three core information practices -- sharing, feeding, and balancing -- were observed within the interviews. With this framing insights into the emerging artists' past (learning from historic failings) and the future (envisioning future success) begin to be formed. Furthermore, this paper contributes to the knowledge of emerging artists' information practices, including the impact of their digital media usage and self-referencing as IL. The study uses the work of other IL scholars with the information practices of emerging artists and frames them through three key ideas: IL, transition, and success and failure. This intersection of study has not been explored previously. The results will provide direction for information professionals serving emerging artists, and for art educators preparing their students for their careers outside of university. It also deepens the understanding of the field of transition and information practices of new practitioners across fields.

The COVID-19 pandemic has flooded the public sphere with large amounts of information, engendering what some specialists have dubbed the infodemic. Among the mechanisms used to mitigate the effects of the infodemic, critical media literacy has proven a valuable approach. This study aimed to analyze the critical media skills (CMS) of young people and adults in relation to the variables of infodemic awareness (IPA), infodemic and wellbeing (ISW), emotional reaction (ERI), and media trust (MTC). A cross-sectional online study with 404 participants (Mage=32.8) was conducted in two virtual communities in Mexico during the first semester of 2021. Descriptive analysis revealed highly critical media skills in participants. Adults showed high levels of IPA, while young people presented high levels of ISW, ERI, and MTC. Observations by the age group indicated an association between CMS and ISW, and CMS and MCT, while the association between CMS and IPA was null. The COVID-19 outbreak has intensified the consumption of digital media and access to untrustworthy information. Critical media literacy may protect individuals from the risks of infodemic by enhancing critical roles and attitudes toward media discourse. This study supports the recommendation to promote media literacy initiatives that inoculate critical media skills as mechanisms to counteract the misinformation in health crises.

This paper presents an up-to-date overview of how students in Compulsory Secondary Education (ESO) in Spanish public schools, aged between 11 and 16, approach the media, how they inform themselves, the degree of journalistic discrimination they have, and how they deal with the news in times of an infodemic and disinformation. In addition, it explores the opinion of teachers on the media deficits they perceive in their students. The main research technique used in this study was a descriptive, cross-sectional survey of 1,651 ESO students from all over Spain with a confidence level of <95% and a ±3% sampling error. In order to delve deeper into some of the main aspects pointed out by students, 77 in-depth interviews were conducted with teachers from all over Spain. The main results highlight that high school students are mainly informed through social networks, television, and their family or friendship groups; that they have difficulties in discriminating between information and opinion; and that, although they consider themselves capable of differentiating between news and hoaxes, more than half are unable to distinguish between fake and real news. According to the teachers in some of these schools, media consumption among students is non-critical, fuelled by the compulsive consumption of audiovisual and digital media.

Federal legislation and regulations addressing educational practices have provided clear mandates that educators when designing educational intervention use systematic decision-making processes to identify instructional strategies and methods that are evidence based. This study employed a survey to examine how familiar early interventionist/early childhood educators, who serve young children aged birth to eight, seek information on evidenced-based practices (EBP) prior to implementing a practice. This study also explored methods that educators use and prefer to access information about EBPs. A total of 223 educators completed the survey that included four identified subgroups (teachers, related service providers, administrators, and faculty/researchers/trainers). We found that most respondents, across the groups, reported being familiar or somewhat familiar with research evidence for their practices and chose discussion with colleagues as the most frequently used strategy to learn and make decisions about a new practice. Implications for future research and professional development are discussed.

Purpose: This study aims to explore the use and perceptions of social media among university students before and during their transition from high school to higher education. Design/methodology/approach: This exploratory, cross-sectional study uses an online survey of 312 undergraduate students at a large public research university in the USA. Findings: Active participation was prevalent for connecting with peers, while passive use was high when learning about university-related topics. While at university, social media was most useful for finding campus events and connecting with classmates, but least effective for connecting with instructors. Most participants experienced meaningful change in their social media use from high school to university, which is often attributed to personal growth. Social media intensity correlated weakly but positively with usefulness and sense of belonging. Research limitations/implications: The study's sample from a single university limits generalizability. While similar institutions might show comparable results, variations due to student demographics and differing institutional practices could emerge. The retrospective approach for reporting high school behaviors also poses a limitation. Future research could longitudinally follow students from university search to enrollment and attendance. Practical implications: The study recommends universities adjust social media strategies by prioritizing social content, using student ambassadors and customizing feeds. Universities should support students both online and offline, recognizing diverse pathways to belonging. Originality/value: This study examines the transition period by asking university students to retrospectively reflect on high school experiences and also report current experiences. It also offers insights into student perceptions of whether their social media use has changed in meaningful ways.

A previous study of creative writers' self-reports revealed important differences between research as it is carried out in the context of creative writing and the more scholarly types of research academic librarians often focus on. However, that study left many questions open. For this follow-up study, the author interviewed published creative writers about the role of research in their creative process. This study offers new insight into creative writers' attitudes toward the use of creative license. Though the sample was relatively small, the findings support the results of the original research.

This study reports faculty experiences regarding the discovery of scholarly content, highlighting similarities and differences across a range of academic disciplines. The authors interviewed twenty-five faculty members at a public, high-research university in the Midwest to explore the intersections of discovery, browsing, and format from diverse disciplinary perspectives. Although most participants rely on similar discovery tools such as library catalogs and databases and Google Scholar, their discovery techniques varied according to the discipline and type of research being done. Browsing is not a standard method for discovery, but it is still done selectively and strategically by some scholars. Journal articles are the most important format across disciplines, but books, chapters, and conference proceedings are core for some scholars and should be considered when facilitating discovery. The findings detail several ways in which disciplinary and personal experiences shape scholars' practices. The authors discuss the perceived disconnect between browsability, discovery, and access of scholarly literature and explore solutions that make the library central to discovery and browsing.