Facts, Feelings, and the Challenge of Information Literacy

By: Amy Fyn, Assistant Professor and Business Librarian at EMU on October 10th, 2022

What do conspiracy theories about the 2020 U.S Presidential elections, researching for a paper, and preparing for a job interview have in common? Each is an opportunity to put information literacy skills to the test. But what does information literacy look like? And how can we as faculty support its development in students?

Information literacy is broadly defined within disciplines. To librarians, info lit is acknowledged as a “set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued, and the use of information in creating new knowledge and participating ethically in communities of learning” (Association of College and Research Libraries’ Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education). At EMU, the library suggests a longer-term goal that extends beyond the classroom and matriculation: “Information literacy is the set of capacities that students must develop to become wise consumers of information and life-long learners” (Information Literacy research guide). Few, if any, would argue that these are undesirable skills, yet we may not see how to integrate this development into our classes or how to make the connections clear to our students.

The problem with info lit lies not in the definition, but in the ways in which we interact with information in formal and informal situations. Especially when we have an emotional response or investment associated with the topic, we all struggle sometimes to separate fact from fiction. How do we overcome our confirmation bias telling us that information is accurate if it aligns with our own beliefs? Evaluating sources has changed in response to the proliferation of websites, self-published materials, and predatory journals (journals that promote profit over accuracy and valid research methods, better defined by Nature here). Beyond dialing back our feelings, we also need to update our evaluation methods. Checklist-based strategies developed before the internet became social, such as the memorable “CRAAP Test”, don’t address the sheer volume and variety of information sources we have at our fingertips. While information literacy in each of our disciplines contains discrete nuances, cross-pollination and reinforcement helps us all contribute to this critical component of student skills.

Consider the example of the U.S. presidential election of 2020 to illustrate the challenges faced by many who were unsure how to wade through the rhetoric, claims, and counterclaims. Was the election stolen? How can you tell? An analysis from multiple disciplinary lenses that dissects mis- and disinformation would make a fascinating book. Until that’s written, try one fast, effective strategy: lateral reading. While reading or viewing news or social media claims, open a browser and check facts, figures, writers, and organizations for independent confirmation of data, reputation of sources, or reviews of sites or publications before accepting or sharing information.

Mike Caulfield, director of blended and networked learning at Washington State University Vancouver and author of Web Literacy for Student Fact Checkers promotes lateral reading in addition to four moves for evaluating sources. These moves—Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, Trace claims, quotes, and media to the original context, or SIFT (read more about this strategy here) —can be applied to conspiracy claims about the election, or stories that tug at your heart, and mediate some personal bias. Caulfield models fact checking-strategies and other info-lit-adjacent topics such as recognizing common tropes used by conspiracy theorists. Class discussions could focus on a number of examples, such as this Scene-Level Trope: Voting Location Cameras Covered Up.

Reliable nonprofit organizations, including some founded by journalists, maintain fact-checking pages that can be referenced or used as examples in a class discussion or assignment. Politifact devotes a page to coverage of the 2020 election and continues to cover statements made by both Biden and Trump. Similarly, Factcheck.org maintains an Archive of Election 2020 (and its aftermath) coverage, continuing to follow stories related to claims about the election.

Resources supporting the growth of an information literate person can be more hands-on, too. These recommendations can inspire or fit into curricular content by being integrated into a class session, or assigned to students in groups or individually:

• Evaluating News Sources, one of our library tutorials, uses real-world news examples to practice determining what is news and what is not.

• Factitious is a gamified challenge to determine if brief, published news articles are real or fake. I enjoy this format so much that I’ve toyed with making my own version to use with classes.

• The Crash Course catalog includes the Navigating Digital Information series, ten videos focusing on specific topics such as Data and Infographics, and Using Wikipedia. These free and engaging videos each run about 15 minutes or less.

• COR for the Science Classroom provides lesson plans for developing evaluation skills using examples pulled from science-related topics such as climate change and using lateral reading about renewable energy.

We can continue to develop our skills and those of our students through discussions, modeling, and projects designed to advance information literacy abilities. Information literacy is, at its best, a skill set that helps us all overcome our biases and limitations to more effectively determine the accuracy of a piece of information, no matter where the information originates. Many of the current strategies focus on evaluating news, entertaining stories, and other content found online; few delve into evaluating the types of sources that librarians often help students find to meet assignment requirements or quality standards.

Want to dig deeper into information literacy? Collaborate with your department’s librarian subject specialist (find us here). We can discuss assignments, resources, research sessions, and other ideas that support your students’ further development of these lifelong skills, and help you enhance how you treat information literacy in your classes.