ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


C&RL News  March 1998/ 171■

C O N F E R E N C E  C I R C U I T

Information literacy: 
The professional issue

Subjects addressed at the Third National Australian Conference

by Hannelore B. Rader

O n December 8-9, 1997, the University of South Australia Library in associa­
tion with the Australian Library and Infor­

mation Literacy Taskforce sponsored the 

Third National Australian Conference on In­

formation Literacy at the Canberra Institute 

of Technology in Canberra, Australia. The 

theme of the conference dealt with infor­

mation literacy in the professions and fea­

tured keynote speakers who addressed in­

formation literacy in the context of various 

types of learning.

The key co m p eten cy fo r life lo n g  
le a rn in g
Mark Latham, federal shadow minister for 

education and youth affairs, addressed infor­

mation literacy as the foundation of skills and 

knowledge required for lifelong learners in 

professions and industry. He stressed the im­

portance of being information-wise for all citi­

zens and quoted President Clinton’s goal to 

help all citizens in the United States gain tech­

nological and information skills to become 

productive citizens in the 21st century.

Rep airin g the plane in f lig h t
Philip Candy, deputy vice chancellor at the 

University of Ballarat, discussed developing 

information literacy in professional practice 

in detail. Candy’s extensive education and 

training in adult education helped him to

place information literacy in the area of life­

long learning practice. His extensive research 

on self-directed learning and his work as 

principal investigator for a Higher Educa­

tion Council project on Developing Lifelong 
Learners Through Undergraduate Education 
(1994), has influenced Australia and other 

countries in the debates on the purpose of 

higher education and its relationship to other 

areas of education and training. Candy used 

his expertise to elaborate on the importance 

of information literacy and the role of li­

brarians in this major debate occurring in 

higher education.

In form ation  literacy and the 
w o rkp lace
Christine Bruce, lecturer at the School of In­

formation Science at Queensland University 

of Technology, talked about her research re­

garding information literacy in the workplace. 

She provided details about her doctoral re­

search regarding educators’ perceptions of stu­

dent learning and information literacy. Bruce 

explained that information literacy is experi­

enced in seven qualitatively different ways by 

people who rely on effective use of informa­

tion to practice their chosen profession.

T e ch n o lo gy convergence and 
in fo rm ation  literacy
Barbara Lepani, executive director of the

About the author

Hannelore B. Rader is university librarian at the University o f Louisville; e-mail: hbrade01@gwise.louisville.edu

mailto:hbrade01@gwise.louisville.edu


172/C&RL News March 1998 ■ 

Australian Center for Innovation and Inter­

national Competitiveness at the University 

of Sidney, discussed her research to assist 

individuals and organizations to develop 

learning strategies to meet the opportuni­

ties and challenges arising from social and 

technological change. Her experience and 

knowledge in the area of education, in­

dustry, and urban futures provided a chal­

lenging and creative contribution to the 

conference.

The conference also featured a panel 

session on Professional Associations and 

Industry with representatives from com­

puting, nursing, adult and community edu­

cation, and National Training for the Cul­

tural Industries. Each representative elabo­

rated on the need for information and tech­

nological skills in their particular profes­

sion and industry.

Another panel addressed information 

literacy and the professions from the in­

ternational perspective. Speakers on the 

panel were:

• Hannelore B. Rader, who discussed 

information skills in terms of business and 

industry needs, professional needs, and 

accrediting mandates within the United 

States;

• Celia Walter from South Africa, who 

spoke about the difficult realities of edu­

cation in South Africa after apartheid;

• Elizabeth Jones from New Zealand, 

who spoke about the need for better devel­

opment of information skills in the country 

and the fact that the country’s curriculum 

framework required eight essential skills in­

cluding information skills; and

• Bonnie Cheuk from Singapore wh

discussed her research on information use 

in the workplace where she is studying 

members of the Internal Auditors profes­

sion in terms of their need for and use of 

information skills.

Two discussion sessions helped the 75 

participants address information literacy 

training for library personnel and infor­

mation literacy training for members of 

other professions.

This su ccessfu l conference 
w as m ost e n lig h te n in g  in an 
area o f in fo rm a tio n  literacy 
not yet w ell e xp lo re d —the 
p ro fessio n s.

This successful conference was most en­

lightening in an area of information lit­

eracy not yet well explored— the profes­

sions. It was apparent that the issues fac­

ing librarians regarding information lit­

eracy are global and should be shared for 

future success.

Conference proceedings will be pub­

lished in the near future and will be avail­

able from Library Publications, University 

of South Australia; fax: 08-8302-6756.

During the conference, a new publi­

cation was also introduced, Christine 

Bruce’s The Seven Faces o f Inform ation 
Literacy (A delaide, Australia: Auslib 
Press) 1997. ■

o 



C&RL News ■ March 1998/ 173