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Contribution to Book
Merging Critical Thinking and Information Literacy Outcomes - Making Meaning or Making Strategic Partnership?
ACRL Publication in Librarianship No. 64
  • Robert Schroeder, Portland State University
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
1-1-2012
Subjects
  • Information literacy,
  • Academic libraries,
  • Critical thinking
Abstract

The following book chapter will look at critical thinking, how librarians perceive its relationship to information literacy, and what useful strategies can result when these two concepts are combined. To set the stage a few of the major psychological and philosophical theories of critical thinking will be briefly noted. In order to gauge our profession's understanding of critical thinking and its relationship to information literacy, a survey of library literature will be performed. The more rigorous articles from this survey will then be discussed in order to discern the range of positions librarians have taken on the relationship of these two concepts. Moving from theory to practice, the next section will showcase five different models of campus-wide learning outcomes that combine critical thinking and information literacy into one outcome. A special note will be made of unique features of each of the combined outcomes, in the hopes that readers will find that one or more of the models resonate with the learning outcomes at their own institution. Next a recent survey of almost 200 librarians will be analyzed to discover librarians' feelings around the idea of a merged critical thinking and information literacy outcome, as well as the perceived benefits and liabilities of such a merger. Finally, for those information literacy librarians considering adopting strategic partnerships (such as combining critical thinking and information literacy at their campus), some practical advice will be given.

Rights

Used by permission.

Description

Chapter 6 in Transforming information literacy programs : intersecting frontiers of self, library culture, and campus community.

DOI
10.1016/S0268-4012(98)00045-0
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/7328
Citation Information
Schroeder, Robert (2012). Merging critical thinking and information literacy outcomes - making meaning or making strategic partnership. In Carroll Wetzel Wilkinson and Courtney Bruch (eds.), Transforming information literacy programs : intersecting frontiers of self, library culture, and campus community (131-151) Chicago. Association of College and Research Libraies