Broadening the landscape: Information literacy in foreign language education

Citeable URL: https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/articles/3t945r493

Abstract

This article reports on the implementation of a Spanish information literacy tutorial and its effects on undergraduate research capacities. Information literacy, which refers to the ability to locate, evaluate, and use information, is key within the wider realm of digital literacy yet has oſten been overlooked in foreign language education. This article explores the use of an online tutorial to examine the desirability and feasibility of integrating information literacy into the foreign language curriculum. Drawing on concepts of culturally specific information, the tutorial, which was designed in Spanish, focuses on situating learners in an authentic Spanish information environment. Pre- and post-class questionnaires as well as an end of semester reflection illustrate that students showed increased conceptual understanding in finding, evaluating, and citing foreign language information resources. Bibliography grades also demonstrate a successful practical application of these concepts. The overarching goal of the article is to foster an understanding of information literacy and to begin to examine its role in the foreign language curriculum

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