Geoff Walton

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• PhD Information Science
• Reader at Manchester Metropolitan University

This short think-piece describes my journey of discovery through the information landscape (from 2004 to present) and the development of a theory of information discernment which unpacks one aspect of information literacy (IL)—that of the cognitive, metacognitive, affective and physiological states that shape how people make judgements about the in...

This short think-piece describes my journey of discovery through the information landscape (from 2004 to present) and the development of a theory of information discernment which unpacks aspects of information literacy (IL)—the cognitive, metacognitive, affective and physiological states that shape how people make judgements about the information t...

This work brings together health information practitioners with a huge variety of experience across health information work within healthcare knowledge and library services in the NHS. If there is one over-arching message that can be taken away from this book it is that healthcare knowledge and library services offer a very valuable gift to their m...

Introduction In this chapter, we explore definitions of health literacy in relation to individuals and wider society. We will examine which groups in society are more likely to be affected by low health literacy and describe how having low health literacy impacts on a person’s health and wellbeing and the services that support them. We’ll also set...

Objective The development of serious games for mental wellbeing is a topic of growing interest. The increase in acceptance of games as a mainstream entertainment medium combined with the immersive qualities of games provides opportunities for meaningful support and intervention in mental wellbeing. Method We conducted a systematic review and explo...

Purpose This paper intends to explore the relationship between participants' eye fixations (a measure of attention) and durations (a measure of concentration) on areas of interest within a range of online articles and their levels of information discernment (a sub-process of information literacy characterising how participants make judgements about...

We consider the extent to which information literacy (IL) appears in academic literature outside the discipline of library and information studies (LIS). Members of the Forum on Information Literacy will each present findings from an ongoing project to show how key IL terminology and concepts have been adopted within other research disciplines. Kno...

Information literacy forms a key concept within Library and Information Science, where it forms the focus of scholarship, conferences, journals, and teaching librarian practice, alike. However, little is known about how other fields and disciplines have employed these outputs within their own research and practice. This paper examines how the conce...

This paper provides an analysis of ShelfMap, an online wayfinding tool which was the centrepiece of a mixed methods case study which aimed to improve understanding of the information practice of students interacting with classification schemas in order to find material in the stacks. It measured changes in wayfinding skill levels resulting from the...

This paper uses a content analysis methodology to investigate the potential of immersive journalism and interactive documentary (I-Docs) to cover climate change content. Interactive documentaries convey information in many innovative formats, yet changing patterns of media consumption and the negative impact of misinformation can reduce their commu...

Academic libraries and their staff are increasingly involved in the Research Data Management (RDM) practices and processes in their universities. This article explores the impact that such initiatives have on the image and identity of academic libraries. This paper proposes that involvement in and leadership of RDM university practices has the pote...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine to what extent a person’s psychophysiological well-being is affected by misinformation and whether their level of information discernment has any positive or negative effect on the outcome. Design/methodology/approach Participants ( n = 48) were randomly and blindly allocated to one of two groups:...

Academic libraries and their staff are increasingly involved in the Research Data Management (RDM) practices and processes in their universities. This article explores the impact that such initiatives have on the image and identity of academic libraries. This paper proposes that involvement in and leadership of RDM university practices has the pote...

Educational preventing violent extremism (EPVE) programs have had (to date) little if any theoretical underpinning. Given their proliferation in jurisdictions such as Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and other European countries, such an absence is notable but not unexpected given the political sensitivities attached to them. These programs r...

Educational preventing violent extremism (EPVE) programmes have had (to date) little if any theoretical underpinning. Given their proliferation in jurisdictions such as Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom (UK) and other European countries such an absence is notable but not unexpected given the political sensitivities attached to them. These progr...

The focus of this article is on the combination of enquiry-based learning, information literacy and e-learning and how they are embedded in an online peer assessment exercise. What it shall present is a structure and strategy that aids student learning in the short and long-term. Ninety-eight students completed a questionnaire before and after a th...

This is a preprint of a chapter accepted for publication by Facet Publishing. This extract has been taken from the author's original manuscript and has not been edited. The definitive version of this piece may be found in Informed Societies-Why information literacy matters for citizenship, participation and democracy, edited by Stéphane Goldstein,...

This article is to examine how emotions affect the doctoral student’s journey by analyzing diverse aspects of the information behaviour that emerged from their narratives through a phenomenographic perspective. Narratives are a rational way of communication that focuses on how people perceive different phenomena regarding themselves, their inner th...

Se traduce al castellano la nueva definición de alfabetización informacional de CILIP (Reino Unido), cuyo original se publicó en 2018. Se trata de una definición con enorme potencial, que enfatiza la relevancia de la ALFIN en la sociedad actual, para todas las personas, no sólo en el contexto educativo. This is the Spanish translation of the new CI...

English public libraries are increasingly adopting a hybrid approach to volunteer use, whereby volunteers plug the gaps created by reductions in paid staff, in response to local authority cuts arising from the Conservative Government’s austerity measures. This article builds on an initial phase of research reported in a previous article from 2015,...

Cambridge Core - General - Digital Literacy Unpacked - edited by Katharine Reedy

Purpose This paper aims to focus on investigating information literacy (IL) capabilities and IL self-assessment of Vietnam’s upper secondary students. Design/methodology/approach The investigation was conducted in two upper secondary schools in the country using a multiple-choice questionnaire. The questionnaire was based on the IL competency-leve...

Introduction. The aim of this study is to understand how university researchers behave in the context of using and sharing research data in OA mode. Method. An online questionnaire survey was conducted amongst academics and researchers in three countries – UK, France and Turkey. There were 26 questions to collect data on: researcher information, e....

The aim of the project was to motivate school students to learn about the national literature of their own and others’ countries. Engagement was fostered via the creation of digital artefacts (or “e‐artefacts”) such as online comic strips, live videos or animations. The pedagogical rationale was based on Papert’s constructionism and Bloom’s revised...

Introduction. This paper presents the results of a study investigating the information literacy and search skills of young people in Scotland. Method. The participants, secondary school pupils between the ages of 13 and 14 (n=57), completed two out of four different search tasks from the TREC HARD collection, for which the correct answers (i.e. rel...

Introduction. This paper presents the results of a study investigating the information literacy and search skills of young people in Scotland. Method. The participants, secondary school pupils between the ages of 13 and 14 (n=57), completed two out of four different search tasks from the TREC HARD collection, for which the correct answers (i.e. rel...

Purpose This study aims to identify the ways in which information literacy (IL) in-practice initiatives are framed for Vietnam’s upper secondary students and to suggest an appropriate IL teaching model for schools in the country. Design/methodology/approach The research used a qualitative multiple case study approach, including two phases of dat...

Online distance learning (ODL) continues to expand rapidly, despite persistent concerns that student experience is poorer and retention lower than for face-to-face courses. Various factors affect ODL quality, but the impact of recommended learning activities, such as student interaction activities and those involving feedback, have proven difficult...

Introduction. The aim of this study is to understand how university researchers behave in the context of using and sharing research data in OA mode. Method. An online questionnaire survey was conducted amongst academics and researchers in three countries – UK, France and Turkey. There were 26 questions to collect data on: researcher information, e....

The Assignment Survival Kit (ASK) is a web based tool designed to support undergraduate students encountering their first assignment. In June 2007 it was awarded the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) University, College and Research Group (UC&R) Award for Innovation. ASK is the work of the Information Literacy (IL...

Cambridge Core - General - Rethinking Information Literacy - edited by Jane Secker

Cambridge Core - General - Information Literacy Meets Library 2.0 - edited by Peter Godwin

A participatory action research approach was employed to investigate school students’ information discernment capabilities. Placing school student participants at the centre of the research process enabled them to define the problem in their own words and begin to find solutions to the issue of how to choose good quality information. Findings confi...

In this paper we consider how aspiring undergraduates are utilising social media to meet their information needs during their application and transition into university. In particular, we ask who some of the prominent online actors are during this period. We want to know whether hopeful students are consulting social sources online, and if so, who...

Many government and funding bodies around the world have been advocating open access to research data, arguing that such open access can bring a significant degree of economic and social benefit. However, the question remains, do researchers themselves want to share their research data, and even if they do how far they are prepared to make this hap...

This paper considers the findings of recent qualitative research, which examined volunteer use in public libraries, focussing on the perceptions of four groups of stakeholders (the library managers, front line staff, volunteers and library users) in the light of recent austerity measures in two English case study library authorities. A complex pict...

Purpose This paper presents a qualitative investigation into whether online textual postings, produced by undergraduate students as part of an undergraduate module, can demonstrate their information literacy (IL) capabilities as a discursive competence and socially-enacted practice. It also asks whether these online postings embody power relations...

The purpose of this paper is to consider the preliminary findings arising from two case study library authorities in the North East of England, examining current volunteer use in Public Libraries. Specific reference to quality and professionalism will be discussed, to identify key trends and ways forward. This research involved a series of intervie...

The theory of information discernment discussed here is firmly based on models, research and scholarship of information literacy coupled with theory and research in information behaviour. This paper will explore original research conducted by Walton and Hepworth and how it has developed over the last 10 years - the pilot study was reported in the v...

Information literacy (IL) received much attention from researchers and practitioners in recent years. However, an understanding of IL in the educational context of Vietnam is limited. Therefore, this project employs a mixed-method approach to investigate the practice of IL teaching and learning in Vietnamese upper secondary schools. The study uses...

Information literacy (IL) research has been hitherto dominated by the USA, Australia and the UK [22]. Vietnam, however, remains under-represented and there is no IL work in upper secondary schools in the country to date. This paper, which is part of an ongoing PhD research, presents preliminary findings of the study to understand IL level of studen...

Purpose: This research presents preliminary findings of qualitative research examining volunteer and staff perceptions at 2 case study libraries in the North East of England – considering volunteer use. Specific reference to quality and professionalism will be considered, to try to establish key trends and ways forward. Methodology: This research i...

Purpose: This research presents preliminary findings of qualitative research examining volunteer and staff perceptions at 2 case study libraries in the North East of England – considering volunteer use. Specific reference to quality and professionalism will be considered, to try to establish key trends and ways forward. Methodology: This research i...

Information discernment is an important skill that is part of studying in Higher Education, although it often seems that students might not be aware of this crucial part of academic practice. This paper presents the evaluation of a visual method for introducing students to the provenance of secondary sources, using the metaphor of sea creatures liv...

Introduction. This paper presents a qualitative investigation into whether online discourse, produced by first year undergraduate students, can demonstrate their information capabilities as a socially-enacted practice and be used to assess their information literacy. Method. Discourse analysis was used to categorise online discussion board postings...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical discussion on the nature of research into people's information behaviour, and in particular the contribution of the phenomenological approach for the development of information solutions. Design/methodology/approach – The approach takes the form of a conceptual analysis drawing on the re...

The objective of this paper is to outline a fresh approach which seeks to harness students' predilection for communication by exploiting its value as a learning tool to teach information literacy (IL). This approach was used in the first-year undergraduate core module Research and Professional Development. Inquiry-based learning, IL (particularly i...

The Fishscale of Academicness, inspired by the work of Dr Claire Penketh, is a visual learning idea employed to engage undergraduate students in questioning the provenance of information sources. This is an intellectual endeavour which is often absent from student researchers' academic practice (Hepworth & Walton, 2009). Developed by Dr Alke Gröppe...

This chapter gives a general overview of the book, indicates the rich diversity of information literacy (IL) and information behaviour (IB) work carried out and is organised into four broad areas moving from the strategic to the highly contextualised. The four areas are specifically: strategic view; delivering information literacy education; the li...

This research sought to determine whether a blended information literacy learning and teaching intervention could statistically significantly enhance undergraduates' information discernment compared to standard face-to-face delivery. A mixture of face-to-face and online activities, including online social media learning, was used. Three interventio...

Focusing on important information literacy debates, this new book with contributions from many of the main experts in the field highlights important ideas and practical considerations. Information Literacy takes the reader on a journey across the contemporary information landscape, guided by academics and practitioners who are experts in navigating...

Purpose This paper seeks to identify the changes in cognition associated with becoming information‐literate, specifically, in relation to the evaluation of information. Additionally, it puts forward a model for a teaching and learning intervention that engages the learner and leads to higher order information literacy (IL) thinking. From a theoreti...

Alison Pope, Keith Puttick and Geoff Walton have been involved in the information literacy aspects of a project to help students improve their research skills and they report on this and the wider current debates on information literacy with an emphasis throughout on legal research skills.

The study reported here shows that students regard online collaborative learning (online social network learning) motivating, productive and enjoyable which tutors have found leads students to a better understanding of their subject. This chapter seeks to argue that the lessons learnt from this research can be harnessed to provide us with a generic...

In a world where computing power, ubiquity and connectivity create powerful new ways to facilitate learning, this book examines how librarians and information professionals can utilize emerging technologies to expand service and resource delivery. With contributions from leading professionals, including lecturers, librarians and e-learning technolo...

This paper has two main aims, to present the current position of information literacy education in UK-based academic institutions and to propose a strategy that ensures the integration of this phenomenon in learning and teaching institutional practices. The first part of the paper offers an insight into the perceptions of information literacy by ex...

Purpose The purpose of this study was to encourage Sport & Exercise Level 1 students to use the discussion board facility in the Blackboard Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) in order to engage them in online collaborative learning of This was achieved by using notions of scaffolding, reflection and situated learning in delivering the information l...

This set of conference proceedings derives from the Information Literacy: Recognising the Need conference at Staffordshire University, 17 May 2006. The papers in this book discuss key themes in information literacy and have been written by several renowned experts in the field. Information literacy is not just about finding information: it is a tru...