Information Literacy as the Ability to Know What Information is Needed to Solve a Problem - Assignment Example

Information Studies - 6 Exam Essay Questions Educational Testing Service, your old pals of SAT fame, has recently introduced an information literacy test. Investigate their Web site (http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.1488512ecfd5b8849a77b13bc3921509/) on the subject and reflect on what you see. Do you think this is a credible test for information literacy Why or why not To answer this you need to be clear about what you mean and define information literacy. Of course, credible readings from the following aspects should be helpful: think about the notion of social capital and problems of the digital divide. Based on my readings, information literacy is the ability to know what information is needed to solve a problem, the skill to organize that information, and the intuition to know that a source of information is credible with the knowledge of where to look elsewhere. The concept of information literacy, then, is related to the epistemological problem of what is knowledge and what are the credible sources of knowledge, using modern terminology and more practical goals. For the Educational Testing Service, their assessment of Information Literacy is valid but it is not sound. The people in ETS have assumed that the population is more or less homogeneous. If that's the case, any result would be conclusive, and any mistake will like stem from an incompetent administrator of their assessment tool. However, their testing instrument is not sound since the population is more or less heterogeneous. They completely ignored the role of social classes. Different people from different classes will have different values on certain information. The better off a person, the larger is his or her social capital. This has created a digital divide. Formerly, it was just a problem of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. Now, it is a problem of the rich knowing more and more by which to get richer and richer, while the poor will not learn enough to get rich or even a decent living. Until these issues are resolved, I hold that the Educational Testing Services must revise their instrument, assumptions, and methodologies so that information literacy can be accurately and reliably measure across differently types of people in the country. 2. A group of software developers has recently published a letter to president Obama encouraging the new administration to adopt open source software in the government's IT infrastructure. Imagine what arguments they may have to support the use open source software by government agencies. What might be some of the drawbacks associated with the government's use of open source software Using the pros and cons you outline, draw your own conclusion about whether the federal government should use open source software. Arguments for the use of open source software are as follows: With the global financial crisis hitting the major economies worldwide and the US government on deficit spending, it is only logical that the government should cut costs. Government financial officials are injecting taxpayers' money to salvage ailing financial institutions, even at the risk of hyperinflation due to artificially low interest rates. It is a fact that every few years, or even months, commercial software companies like Microsoft will release updates or new versions of commercial software. If governments or corporations will like the new features, they will have to purchase updates. Hence, more costs are involved. This can be prevented through the use of open source software. Since they are free, the government could save much from potential expenditures. Besides, monopolies like Microsoft must not be tolerated. If the government could show some support to independent software developers, then true competition and capitalism could help lower the cost of commercial software. The public will benefit, and improved features can be expected. The arguments against the use of Open Source are as follows: Open Source software are not as used as commercial software. It would cost the government much time and effort training employees to use an Open Source application. Thus, expect decreased or inefficient productivity. Open Source applications are not as well developed as commercial software. Commercial software has undergone more research and development than any open source software. Independent software designers cannot match and replicate the leveraged efforts of software development teams in Microsoft, Apple, and others. My take on this: The crisis that we are facing is as real as ever. The government should seriously consider the use of open source software notwithstanding the criticisms against it. I believe that the federal government could consider having some not so important agencies use open source in order to cut cost. Let the shift to open source be gradual. And it should make sure that employees will be trained properly to use them. The government should also show some support in helping open source software developers work harder in improving their craft. This way, better applications could be produced even if they are free. 3. Offer what you think are two examples of good interfaces, one in the information world and one not, and two examples of poor interfaces, again, one in the information world and one not. In passing, you might want to consider the question of whether some poor interfaces might be a consequence of closure not having yet been achieved. Defend your positions using two to three of Tog's principles to support your argument for each interface. Two examples of good interfaces are the EBSCOhost Research Databases and the CNBC information strips. EBSCO features consistently its green interface this makes viewing less of an eyesore. Also, it is very learnable. Anyone can easily learn it. It features basic, visual, and advance searching options. So use this, whatever makes you feel comfortable. CNBC features a good ticker of stocks. Anticipation is key. Users can predict when useful information will appear in their TV screen. Also, according to Fitt's Law, relevant data must appear in strategic places. By placing the ticker below, and some market data always, in the lower left and right, viewers can appreciate the data while not being distracted from the broadcast. Two examples of bad interfaces are Facebook and Siemens. I am having trouble using it with its lack of visible navigation. Some people like it, but I do not. I have an account but I do not maintain it as much as more popular social networking sites like Multiply. It is also not readable. It features a small font, which is good for loading but not for reading. You have to enlarge the page, but that would distort picture quality. Siemens like many cell phone units that are not Nokia and Ericsson are really bad. The confusing and not so user-friendly navigation screen makes making a message among other things makes efficiency thrown out of the window. This also has invisible navigation. I simply do not like it. I prefer the Nokia units than this. I wonder why this has not yet collapsed. 4. Given the traditions of First Amendment free speech rights in the US, many here disdain censorship. Is all censorship bad Where might it be appropriate Should libraries censor the Net And if so, how Refer to outside credible source to support your stance and give specific examples of censorship cases. In your response, you should also address 2 of the government's most common arguments favoring censorship: "national security" and "morality". You should also take into account the ethical guidelines of librarians' organizations on these issues. In your response, be as specific as possible when discussing national security and morality, as these concepts mean very different things to different people. The context of establishing the Bill of Rights was the prevention of suppression of civil rights, which were inherent in monarchies during the days of our forefathers. However, such threat to our rights is no longer our problem. Our problem, which calls for censorship, is the abuse of freedom of speech and expression. These rights have been abused to the point of violating the rights of other people. Hence, censorship is not really bad, as long as the intention is to protect another's right. It depends on the policies of an individual library to censor. But, there are cases when censorship should be implemented. Imagine a library where students can access pornography and other useless stuff. This situation defeats the very purpose of having internet-enabled computers in a library. Hence, whenever something similar could be anticipated, libraries should exercise due discretion in implementing internet censorship. The issue of national security is valid, but I don't believe that governments should infringe on rights. There should be regulation but not full censorship. 5. Professor Z has consistently argued that knowledge is power and has provided many examples of rulers, institutions, governments, etc. acting as gatekeepers to information and knowledge. Elaborate further on this concept: what does Professor Z mean exactly What kind of power does control over knowledge provide Beside people and institutions, interfaces can also implicitly serve "gatekeeping" functions. Provide at least 2 examples of people, institutions, governments, or interfaces acting as "gatekeepers". The examples can be taken from history or currently. Professor simply means that whoever has access to useful economic, political, and other important information first could better position them to get advantageous terms or situations. For example, whoever gets information on the newest business opportunity first could quickly position him so that he will earn much higher than anyone who will avail of that business. Brokers could also be gatekeepers to information. Perhaps, people have been too busy to look for first-hand information. So, they trust their broker, who may or may not tell the truth or at least the best choice available. Even worse are those institutions that block the spread of bad news. Without these brokers and gatekeepers, perhaps more people could have divested their portfolio away from ENRON before it was too late. But so, it illustrates that knowledge is really power. 6. Recall the $100 laptop initiative. What is the target population in this project What is its objective and how do its creators intend to achieve it As they begin to implement it, what factors do you think its creators should take into consideration to make sure it succeeds What potential pitfalls can they encounter How could these pitfalls be overcome In your answer use readings from at least 2 different modules and make sure you have clear definitions of "information literacy" and the "digital divide." The target population was the poor people, especially in Africa. They wanted those people to be able to enjoy technology, and use it to improve their lives. The founder, Nicholas Negroponte, intended to use the available technology to produce cheap but disposable laptops, i.e. such laptops will no longer be operable after a certain number of uses. Of course, this would not come easy. Critics would just say that it's a ploy. There are hidden charges; they would say. But if the founder were really sincere, this could be overcome through patience in explaining to the world that such is feasible and ethical. However, we should keep in mind that if these people were to bridge the digital divide, they would have given real laptops for free or at the fraction of the regular cost. These cheap laptops are not really that good. They mask that great divide for those who can afford regular laptops and those who could not. And such programs are no guarantee that people will be financially literate. Read More