Information Literacy (IL) refers to the ability to recognize a need for information and to find, analyze, and synthesize related material from books, articles, websites and more.

How Can IL Benefit Students?

A 2017 survey of 42,000 students in more than 1,700 courses at 12 major research universities showed that

• Retention rates were higher for students whose courses included IL instruction.
• Students whose courses included IL instruction reported higher average first-year GPAs than those whose courses did not.
• Students who took IL instruction successfully completed 1.8 more credit hours per year than students who did not.

How Can IL Benefit Faculty?

Students who are information literate are better able to come up with workable topics for their papers, research those topics independently, and write papers that conform to rigorous academic standards.

How Can Critical Thinking Skills Benefit Students?

Employers highly value critical thinking skills too, with a 2013 AAC&U study showing that “a candidate’s demonstrated capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than their undergraduate major."

It's not easy to teach students to adopt a new thinking style; in today's polarized environment, it can even be difficult to impart to them the importance of deliberate and critical thinking.