3.2: Literacy Landscape
- Page ID
- 328972
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)What is information literacy?
In college, you are expected to find and use information in the form of research. Having information literacy helps you do that.
Literacy, in its simplest form, is the ability to read and write. At a more advanced lever, it is being competent in a specialized language.
Information literacy is being able to understand and use information. As a student, you need to know how to find it, analyze it, and use it to support your arguments.
There are other ways besides conducting research to be information literate. You also consume social media, shop, watch shows, find reviews, and communicate. All of them require information literacy. If you have a job, you've probably noticed that you need a specialized type of knowledge. That's another kind of information literacy.
What you learn and practice in your research applies everywhere. The information skills you learn in school will go with you to other classes, careers, and life in general. We call the different types of information literacy that you encounter in school the literacy landscape. They are depicted and explained below.
This diagram of the literacy landscape is explained below.
Notice how the circle for information literacy is in the middle. It overlaps with all the other types of Literacies. It includes critical thinking and evaluation because those are skills crucial in finding and using credible information.
Academic literacy, which you use often, includes ways you learn and improve reading and writing skills. It intersects information literacy in areas of study skills and academic writing/research.
New Literacy includes the new ways you use information to learn. This might look light moving from pen and paper to a laptop or using new technology in school. It overlaps information literacy with information literacy in how they involve many media and technologies as it develops.
Media literacy is how we communicate without writing or speaking. Examples of this are graphics, images, visuals, sound, movement, or body language. It intersects information literacy in critical analysis, which implies that we analyze by looking and listening to more than words to understand messages at a deeper level.
You are probably familiar with digital literacy, though you may not call it that. This is your knowledge on technology, computers, searching online, using different apps and communication media. It overlaps with information literacy in that you need to know digital skills to conduct research.
Overall, you can see how you might use one, two, or all of these Literacies when writing a research project. The more you understand and use these Literacies, the more adept at them you will become.
Media attribution
Literacy Landscape is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.