Information and Digital Literacy Framework

Introduction

Information and Digital Literacy: For education, employment and citizenship.

Information and digital literacy (IDL) enables engaged learning. It blends information literacies with digital capabilities transcending technological skills and tools to identify with learning, living and working in a fluid digital world. IDL enables learners to discover and absorb information in a critically engaged manner, innovate in active pursuits of creative scholarship, demonstrate integrity by acknowledging the work of others and make a contribution for others to share.

Information and digitally literate students are appreciative and discerning and are able to locate, evaluate and interrogate texts in a critical manner. They can produce, share, use and remix digital information within an ethical context. Intrinsic to this is the ability to understand and apply copyright regulations. IDL embraces a range of media, and engages with societal shifts towards a highly collaborative and hyper-visualised world. Information and digitally literate students are responsible and empowered citizens who develop positive and influential digital identities.

The IDL model, framework and animation presented here communicate the six broad literacies supported at the University of Sheffield, namely: discovering, understanding, questioning, referencing, creating and disseminating. These literacies interconnect and develop throughout the curriculum, taking learners from novice to expert, supporting student transitions and underpinning a transformational learning experience. IDL is shaped by the context. It recognises and transcends conventions to enhance inter-disciplinarity.

Familiarity with a range of digital devices, and confidence in seeking out and applying guidance, when required, underpins IDL. Information and digital literacy is one of the core Sheffield Graduate Attributes. The University is committed to ensuring that all our students have the support to develop information and digital literacy to enable a research-led university experience. This will position them well for graduate level employment and will equip them with life skills which are transferable to the demands of an increasingly complex digital world.

What is Information and Digital Literacy? Watch the video for more information.