Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft (HTW) Chur
info@informationskompetenz.ch

Information literacy at Swiss universities

Information literacy describes the ability to handle information efficiently and competently as a result of having specific expertise, and being able to structure and select data to meet requirements. It is the ability to localise, evaluate and use information. In today's information society, it is an essential prerequisite for success at school and at work, and a fundamental requirement for lifelong learning.

"Information literacy at Swiss universities" is a national project being sponsored by seven institutions involved with universities and universities of applied sciences in Switzerland. The aim of the project is to provide services in the field of information literacy to support this area of work and make it accessible to students.

Three objectives have been set for the "Information literacy at Swiss universities" project:

• To set teaching standards for Switzerland and an associated scale of learning objectives (competency grid)
  Having these same standards throughout Switzerland, and the associated competency grid, will help university libraries in planning and evaluating their teaching. They will also add to the pressure for information literacy to be included as a key qualification in the curriculum.
• To set up a web-based specialist centre with a repository for teaching materials
  The platform serves as a teaching support centre for those organisations conveying the information and helps them in their daily work by gathering training material on information literacy and making it centrally available. Smaller university libraries with fewer staff will also benefit from this service.
• To create a concept for the training and continuing education of library staff
  By working with the project partners at the training institutions, the teaching of information literacy is to be incorporated into librarianship training. The training concept for organisations providing information will therefore include both teaching and specialist aspects.