Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education

Information literacy is the set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued, and the use of information in creating new knowledge and participating ethically in communities of learning.

In earlier drafts of the Framework, Information literacy was defined as a spectrum of abilities, practices, and habits of mind that extends and deepens learning through engagement with the information ecosystem. It included:

• understanding essential concepts about that ecosystem;
• engaging in creative inquiry and critical reflection to develop questions and to find, evaluate, and manage information through an iterative process;
• creating new knowledge through ethical participation in communities of learning, scholarship, and civic purpose; and
• adopting a strategic view of the interests, biases, and assumptions present in the information ecosystem.