Stakeholders' perceptions of the importance of information literacy competencies within undergraduate education

The problem. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent that undergraduate students, faculty, and administrators perceive information literacy competencies are important and if these skills are being taught/learned. An underlying purpose of this study was to create an awareness of these skills for these stakeholders.; Method. A volunteer sample of stakeholders at “Private University” completed a self-designed questionnaire and interview. “Performance Indicators” and “Outcomes” in Standard Two of the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education (2000) were addressed. To control content validity, eight information literacy experts provided input in designing the instruments.; Survey questions focused on specific skills. Open-ended interview questions invited stakeholders to express their opinions. Clustered bar graphs and tables displayed percentages of responses. The researcher post-coded questionnaire comments and interview responses into categories. To apply the results in a practical way, the responses were compared with “Stages of Concern” described in the organizational change theory entitled Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM).; Results. Responses were collected from 141/428 undergraduates and 24/71 faculty/administrators. Participants overwhelmingly agreed that these skills are important. Many faculty/administrators perceived students have learned these skills from librarians/faculty but many students responded they had not learned these skills or they were self-taught.; Ten findings emerged: (1) students' first choice for research was the Internet/WWW; (2) no formal plan existed to teach these skills at “Private University;” (3) stakeholder groups' perceptions differed regarding technology; (4) confusion existed between understanding the meaning of information literacy and computer literacy; (5) librarians were an untapped resource; (6) students lacked knowledge about performing effective online searches; (7) many faculty did not assess students' references; (8) faculty requirements impacted students' choice of references; (9) students/administrators provided more feedback than faculty; and (10) stakeholder collaboration was needed.; Stakeholders “Levels of Concern” about information literacy competencies varied. An action plan to implement this construct was suggested and is being reviewed at “Private University.” Objectives should be to (1) develop a formal information literacy action plan; (2) promote an understanding of the differences between information literacy and computer literacy; (3) increase the use of research databases and decrease the use of the Internet/WWW; and (4) mandate faculty/librarian collaboration regarding these objectives. These actions should lead toward collaborative teaching and learning among all stakeholder groups.