MIDLANDS STATE UNIVERSITY

LIBRARY DEPARTMENT

COURSE: INFORMATION LITERACY SKILLS (HCS135)

OBJECTIVES

This course is designed to fulfill the following objectives:

1. To introduce students to the concept of (Mingaleva & Mirskikh 2013) information literacy and
equip them with skills that enhances their lifelong learning capabilities.
2. Enable students to effectively use information in different formats
3. To understand the legal and ethical issues surrounding the use of (Walker 2015) information.
4. To equip students with information retrieval skills

OUTCOMES

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. Determine the extent of information needed.

2. Access the needed information effectively and efficiently.(Grimm & Anderl 2013)
3. Evaluate information and its sources critically.
4. Incorporate selected information into one`s knowledge base.
5. Understand the legal and ethical issues surrounding the use of information.

COURSE OUTLINE

1.0 Overview of Library Services and Facilities – Physical Tour of the Library
 Library orientation
 Library organization
 Library rules and regulations

2.0 Introduction to Information Literacy and the Basic Library Research Process
 Information literacy: An overview
 Importance of being information literate
 Attributes of an information literate person

3.0 Organization of Information and Access to Information in Libraries

 Importance of organizing information
 How information is organized
 Types of information sources
 Formats of information sources
 Categories of information sources

4.0 Information Access Tools and Information Retrieval

 Define access tools
 Identifying access tools
 Developing search strategies
5.0 Information and its Sources
 Information need
 Rationale for evaluating information sources
 Criteria for evaluating information sources

6.0 Reference sources and Periodicals

 Introduction to reference sources
 Characteristics of reference sources
 Types of reference sources
 Introduction to periodicals
 Characteristics of periodicals
 Types of periodicals

7.0 Academic integrity and Plagiarism

 Definitions of Plagiarism, Referencing and Citation
 Types of plagiarism
 Plagiarism software
 Citation styles

8.0 Search Strategies and Evaluation of Internet Sources of Information

 What is the Internet
 Uses of the Internet
 Evaluating information on the Internet
 Online searching

9.0 Database Access and Utilization

 Importance of electronic publications in academic research
 Navigate and search the MSU electronic publications

10.0 The MSU Institutional Repository

 Understand the concept of Institutional Repositories

 Benefits of Institutional Repositories.
 Navigate and search the MSU Institutional Repository

11.0 Use of Social Media in Libraries

 The concept of Social Media
 The benefits of using social media in libraries
 The use social media in accessing library resources and services

ASSESSMENT:
 Coursework 30%
 Examination 70%

METHODOLOGY

 Lectures
  Group Presentations
 Oral Presentations
 Assignments
 Tests
 Practical

BASIC TEXTS

1. Anglia Rusking University, 2011. Guide to the Harvard Style of Referencing. 3rd ed. Cambridge:
Cambridge & Chelmsford
2. Breivik, P.S., Information literacy and lifelong learning : the magical partnership. Available at
<http://acquire.cqu.edu.au:8080/vital/access/manager/Repository/cqu:1964>
3. Chowdry, G.G., 1999. Introduction to modern information retrieval. London: Library Association
Publishing.
4. Cook, A., 1999. Authoritative guide to evaluation of information on the Internet. Neal-Schuman
NetGuide Series. New York: Neal-Schuman.
5. Department of Psychology, 2010. Information Literacy. Available at
<http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~ITL/InfoLit%20v.2.0/>
6. Dochartaigh, N. Ó., 2007. Internet Research Skills. London: Sage.
7. Haynes, D., 1990. Information Sources in information Technology. London: Bowker-Saur.
8. Humes, B., 1999. Understanding Information Literacy. Available at
<http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/UnderLit/understanding.html>
9. Kartz, W. A., 1978. Introduction to Reference work: Basic information sources. Vol. 1. New York:
McGraw Hill.
10. Plotnick, E., 1999. Information literacy.(PDF) Available at
<http://gpnp.net/backshelves.gpnp.net/the%20shelves/shelf12/Eric%20Plotnick%20Information%20
Literacy.pdf>
11. Old Dominion University Libraries, 2010. Information literacy Modules. Available at:
http://www.lib.odu.edu/genedinfolit/6citin/index.html
12. Zimbabwe Copyright Law Chapter 26:05
http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text.jsp?file_id=130486
13. Grimm, M. & Anderl, R., 2013. Intellectual Property Protection and Secure Knowledge
Management in Collaborative Systems Engineering. Procedia Computer Science, 16,
pp.571–580.
14. Mingaleva, Z. & Mirskikh, I., 2013. The Protection of Intellectual Property in Educational
Process. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 83, pp.1059–1062.
15. Walker, S.P., 2015. Accounting and Preserving the American Way of Life. Contemporary
Accounting Research, 32(4), pp.1676–1713. Available at:
http://doi.wiley.com/10.1111/1911-3846.12128 [Accessed August 3, 2016].
16. McCabe, Donald L., et al. Cheating in College : Why Students Do It and What Educators
Can Do about It, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2012. ProQuest Ebook Central,
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/msuz/detail.action?docID=3318632
Created from msuz on 2020-06-26 08:44:35. [Accessed 27 June 2020]
17. Cambridge Dictionary 2020 by cambride university press.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/integrity [Accessed 27 June 2020]
18. dictionary.com Integrity
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21. Academic Integrity in the Information Age: Virtues of Respect and Responsibility Tracy S.
Manly ■ Lori N. K. Leonard Cynthia K. Riemenschneider
22.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323906170_Construction_of_academic_inte
grity_scale [Accessed 27 June 2020]
23. Australian Government. Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (2017) Good
Practice Note: Addressing contract cheating to safeguard academic integrity October
2017https://www.teqsa.gov.au/sites/default/files/good-practice-note-addressing-
contract-cheating.pdf?v=1507082628 [Accessed 28 June 2020]
24. Cavico, Frank J., and Bahaudin G. Mujtaba(2009) Making The Case For The Creation
25. Of An Academic Honesty And Integrity Culture In Higher Education:
26. Reflections And Suggestions For Reducing The Rise In Student Cheating
file:///C:/Users/lib/Downloads/Making_The_Case_For_The_Creation_Of_An_Academic_Ho.
pdf [Accessed 28 June 2020]
27.
28. The Center for Academic Integrity October 1999. The fundamental values of academic
integrity.
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integrity student survey. https://www-tandfonline-
com.access.msu.ac.zw/doi/full/10.1080/03075079.2013.777406
31. Dayakar, G. (2018) ‘Use of E-Resources in higher education: Advantages and Concerns’,
Journal of Applied and Advanced Research, 3(S1), p. 17. doi:
10.21839/jaar.2018.v3is1.160.
32. Egberongbe, H. S. (2011) ‘The use and impact of electronic resources at the university of
Lagos’, Library Philosophy and Practice, 2011(JAN).
33. ‘Use of E-Resources in Higher Education: Advantages and Concerns.’ (2016) International
Journal of Advanced Research, 4(12), pp. 2476–2481. doi: 10.21474/ijar01/2672.
34. Berzins, K. and Hudson, A. (2011) ‘The Use of E - resources . London LLN partner
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35. Noreh, A. (2009) ‘Impact of Electronic Resources on Academic and Research Programs of
the University’.
36. Parthasarathy. R (2009). Impact of Electronic Resources on Academic Program in arts
and science colleges Tiruchirappalli A study. Retrieved from:
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37. ACRL (2010) ‘Introduction to Information Literacy’, 4(August 2014), pp. 22–25. Available
at: http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/issues/infolit/overview/intro/index.cfm.
38. Cortes Ramirez, J. A. et al. (2006) ‘The Knowledge-Creating Company’, Organization
Studies, 5(1), pp. 14–37. doi: 10.1016/S0969-4765(04)00066-9.
39. Foster, N. F. and Gibbons, S. (2005) ‘Understanding faculty to improve content
recruitment for institutional repositories’, D-Lib Magazine, 11(1), pp. 1–10. doi:
10.1045/january2005-foster.
40. Gibbons, S. (2009) ‘BENEFITS OF AN INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORY’, in Library Technology
Reports, p. 1. Available at:
http://miracle.si.umich.edu/publications/American_Archivist_IRs.pdf.
41. Gonzalez, A. B. (2007) ‘Guidelines for the creation of institutional repositories at
universities and higher education organisations’.
42. Hunt, D. P. (2003) ‘The concept of knowledge and how to measure it’, Journal of
Intellectual Capital, 4(1), pp. 100–113. doi: 10.1108/14691930310455414.
43. Kietzmann, J. H. et al. (2011) ‘Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional
building blocks of social media’, Business Horizons. ‘Kelley School of Business, Indiana
University’, 54(3), pp. 241–251. doi: 10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005.
44. Nández, G. and Borrego, Á. (2013) ‘Use of social networks for academic purposes: A case
study’, Electronic Library, 31(6), pp. 781–791. doi: 10.1108/EL-03-2012-0031.
45. Noreh, A. (2009) ‘Impact of Electronic Resources on Academic and Research Programs of
the University’.
46. Patricia Margaret Alexander (2003) ‘Ch.3 Data Information and Meaning’. Available at:
https://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/27367/03chapter3.pdf.
47. Prabhakar, S. V. R. and Rani, S. V. M. (2018) ‘Benefits and Perspectives of Institutional
Repositories in Academic Libraries’, Scholarly Research Journal for Humanity Science &
English Language, 5(25). doi: 10.21922/srjhsel.v5i25.10948.
48. Sims, J., Wolf, M. and Yang, H. (2017) ‘Social Media ? What Social Media ?’, Sage Jornal,
p. 17.
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94. doi: 10.1016/j.acalib.2016.10.013.
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Media and Communication, 4(4A), pp. 63–65. doi: 10.17645/mac.v4i4.793.

57. Swatman, P. (2012) ‘Ethical Issues in Social Networking’, Ethics in Social Media Research,
2018(October), pp. 0–10. doi: 10.13140/rg.2.1.4289.6080.
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59. Fidiyani, R., Sulistianingsih, D. and Pujiono, P. (2017) ‘Law and Ethics in Social Media
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61. Kietzmann, J. H. et al. (2011) ‘Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional
building blocks of social media’, Business Horizons. ‘Kelley School of Business, Indiana
University’, 54(3), pp. 241–251. doi: 10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005.
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63. Swenson-Lepper, T. and Kerby, A. (2019) ‘Cyberbullies, Trolls, and Stalkers: Students’
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Plagiarism, Referencing and Citation

Introduction
At university we advance knowledge by building on the work of other people. Academic integrity
means that we are honest and accurate in creating and communicating all academic products.

Acknowledgement of other people’s work must be done in a way that does not leave the reader in
any doubt as to whose work it is.

Academic integrity means trustworthy conduct such as not cheating on examinations and not
misrepresenting information.

“Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible
manner. Academic integrity is a basic guiding principle for all academic activity”
http://academicintegrity.dal.ca/Files/Syllabus_Statement_%28Aug_2011%29.pdf)