Information and digital literacies; a review of concepts <s> Information Literacy <s> EDRS PRICE HF-$0.75 HC-$1.85 PLUS POSTAGE DESCRIPTORS *Data Bases; Federal Programs; *Information Needs; *Information Services; Tnformation Sources; Information Systems; Library Automation; Library Cooperation; National Programs; Professional Education; Program Evaluation; *Publishing Industry IDENTIFIERS Information Industry; *Information Literacy; National Commission Libraries Information Science; National Program for Library and Information Ser <s> BIB001 </s> Information and digital literacies; a review of concepts <s> Information Literacy <s> What are the benefits and challenges of an increasingly information conscious society? What role can information play in improving the conditions of poor people and others who do not derive their full measure from modern life? And how can educators prepare the general population for day- to-day life in a world where sophisticated information sys tems will be commonplace? These and other questions are discussed pragmatically, recognizing that predictions of the future are often ethereal. <s> BIB002
This term seems to have been first used by Paul BIB001 . Its early usage, and in particular its emergence as a close relation to ideas of educational reform, particularly in the USA, are reviewed by Behrens (1994) , Doyle (1994),  , and Kuhlthau (1987). Zurkowski's initial usage of term, however, in a submission to the US National Commission on Libraries and information Science in 1974, in his capacity as president of the US information Industries Association, was rather different. Describing the information service environment within the USA, and focusing on the private sector, Zurkowski suggested that national information literacy within a decade was a reasonable goal. He saw information literacy as emerging from the transformation of traditional library services into more innovative private sector information provision, and the policy issues associated. Information literacy was associated with the effective use of information within a working, probably commercial, environment, and specifically with problem solving: 'People trained in the application of information resources to their work can be called information literates. They have learned techniques and skills for utilizing the wide range of information tools as well as primary sources in moulding information solutions to their problems'. A somewhat similar early use of the term, again emphasising problem-solving, was given by Burchinall (1976): 'To be information literate requires a new set of skills. These include how to locate and use information needed for problem-solving and decision-making efficiently and effectively' However, even at this early stage, a view was being expressed of information literacy as something serving a wider function than simply efficient problem solving in a work setting, and extending to the functions of citizenship -e.g. 'beyond information literacy for greater work effectiveness and efficiency, information literacy is needed to guarantee the survival of democratic institutions' (Owens 1976) -while the US Information Industries Association in 1979, though retaining a problem-solving emphasis, had broadened Zurkowski's original definition away from a strictly work-related focus, defining an information literate person as someone who 'knows the techniques and skills for using information tools in molding solutions to problems' BIB002 . Taylor (1979) introduced the term to the library literature in much the same terms, while broadening its scope: 'an approximate definition of [information literacy] would include the following elements: that solutions to many (not all) problems can be aided by the acquisition of appropriate facts and information; that knowledge of the variety of information resources available (who and where) is a requisite of this literacy; that the informing process, which is continual, is as important as the spot information process, which is occasional; and that there are strategies (when and how) of information acquisition.' 25 years later,  defined the term in a more succinct statement of similar principles: 'information literacy is the ability to access, evaluate and use information from a variety of sources'. Another early, and very different, usage of the term was by Hamelink (1976) , who used it to refer to the need for the general public to be liberated from what he saw has the oppressive effects of news media, which provided too many 'pre-digested explanations', and which could be overcome only by provision of news channels free from control by political or economic interests. This view of information literacy as the ability to obtain an individual and independent view of news events does not seem to have been followed subsequently, though it has something in common with media literacy, as noted above. Thus, from the earliest time of its usage, 'information literacy' has had very varied connotations. Arp, writing in 1990, noted that the phrase's meaning was unclear, especially to those outside the library community, where some measure of consensus, albeit limited, had arguably been reached at the time of Arp's article. In the intervening years, little progress seems to have made in clarifying matters. In 1997, Snavely and Cooper still had to conclude that 'disagreement over the term information literacy is fairly strong and seems to be widespead'. One prevailing problem appears to be the enthusiasm of many commentators to give a single all-encmpassing definition of information literacy, whereas it has been recognised from an early stage as a multi-faceted topic. 'True information literacy is made up of the effective combination of a number of knowledges and skills .. the kinds of knowledge and capabilities that any educated person will need to operate effectively in an informationrich technological society' (Taylor 1986). In an illustration of this, McClure (1994) , after pointing out that information literacy must deal with information in whatever format, i.e. encompassing both print and electronic formats, positions it at the intersection of four other literacies -traditional, computer, media and network -and within a wider set of information problem-solving skills.  suggests that information literacy can be seen as a hierarchy of skills, at three levels. In ascending order of complexity, these levels are: • simple information skills using a single information tool, e.g. a library catalogue • compound information skills combining simple information skills/tools, e.g. preparing a bibliography by searching several databases • complex/integrated information skills making use of a variety of information networks, evaluating and repackaging information Tuckett argues that this model can be used in the design of training programmes, and also suggests that it illustrates the intimate relation between information literacy and computer literacy, since the latter provides a set of skills needed at each level of the hierarchy.