Microsoft Word - Book Review_Metaliteracy.docx Education Libraries, 38:1 (2015) © Education Division, Special Library Association Book Review Mackey, T. P., & Jacobson, T. E. (2014). Metaliteracy: Reinventing information literacy to empower learners. Chicago, IL: ALA Neal- Schuman. ISBN 978-1-55570-989-1 (Paper) REVIEWED BY: BARBIE KEISER Information Resources Management (IRM) Consultant, Washington DC This book has developed over time, having been “road tested” in articles (e.g., “Reframing information literacy as a metaliteracy” in College & Research Libraries (C&RL), January 2011, pp. 62-78), as well as through two MOOCs and a website (metaliteracy.org). It is extraordinarily well written and brilliantly edited—informative as well as simply being a pleasure to read. Each of the seven chapters begins with the authors, Thomas P. Mackey (Vice Provost for Academic Programs, SUNY Empire State College) and Trudi E. Jacobson (Head of the Information Literacy Department at the University at Albany, SUNY), telling the reader the purpose for the chapter and reviewing its composition, section-by-section. Each chapter’s conclusion summarizes the main points that were covered, with a look forward to the next chapter (and how the two are interrelated, with the next one building on the ideas expressed in the previous). A comprehensive list of references at the close of each chapter allows the reader to explore in-depth the ideas covered. Chapter 1, “Developing a Metaliteracy Framework to Promote Metacognitive Learning,” presents “a comprehensive framework for information literacy” (page number?). Metaliteracy promotes critical thinking and collaboration in a digital age, unifying multiple literacies, and expanding the traditional definition of information literacy (i.e., determine, access, locate, understand, produce, and use information) by placing greater emphasis on social technology and knowledge acquisition (collaborate, participate, produce, and share). The authors state that “[t]his approach requires an ongoing adaptation to emerging technologies and an understanding of the critical thinking and reflection required to engage in these spaces as producers, collaborators, and distributors” (p. 1). Information literacy for this postmodern social media age requires a different approach to building an integrated set of abilities, and the confidence that students need to self-assess their capabilities in every setting. Learners with high levels of metacognition take charge of their learning process, setting learning goals and determining the approach for acquiring knowledge as best fits their situation. The metacognitive learner is less reliant on “skills-based information literacy instruction”; now, the focus is on “knowledge acquisition in collaboration with others” (p. 2). Chapter 1 ends with the first glimpse of a metaliteracy model, “a circular visual representation of a collaborative approach to information literacy” (p. 24). In Chapter 2, “Metaliteracy in the Open Age of Social Media,” the authors examine “key trends in open learning and social media that have inspired our metaliteracy model,” exploring “how our understanding of information itself has changed,” and how this will “allow us to rethink our instructional practices and prepare Education Libraries, 38:1 (2015) © Education Division, Special Library Association our students for critical engagement with socially and technologically mediated information environments” (p. 28). Whereas in the previous chapter, the authors establish a theoretical framework for metaliteracy as a metacognitive approach to information literacy, in this chapter, they “examine the rapid expanse of social technologies that influence open and collaborative approaches to learning” (p. 33). In the post-information age, immediate access to information in multiple forms, for interaction with, creation/revision, and sharing (make, mix, and share) is “the new normal.” We need a flexible, open, and collaborative metaliteracy model to reflect these new socially constructed virtual spaces (p. 34). In Chapter 3, Mackey and Jacobson help the reader understand how metaliteracy relates to existing literacies. Here, the authors stress the need to integrate metaliteracy practices throughout the curriculum. This chapter, “Developing the Metaliterate Learner by Integrating Competencies and Expanding Learning Objectives,” discusses both discrete literacies (e.g., media literacy, digital literacy, cyberliteracy, visual literacy, mobile literacy, critical information literacy, health literacy) and combined literacies (e.g., transliteracy, new media literacy, ICT literacy, information fluency) beginning with an authoritative definition of each and its distinct characteristics. The second half of this chapter includes a section on the four “Metaliteracy Learning Goals and Objectives”: 1. Evaluate content critically, including dynamic, online content that changes and evolves, such as article preprints, blogs, and wikis 2. Understand personal privacy, information ethics, and intellectual property issues in changing technology environments 3. Share information and collaborate in a variety of participatory environments 4. Demonstrate ability to connect learning and research strategies with lifelong learning processes and personal, academic, and professional goals To participate fully in today’s world, individuals must be information literate. Chapter 4 examines global trends in information technology and emerging literacy frameworks, including initiatives of international organizations, such as UNESCO and IFLA, as well as regional efforts (e.g., the Bologna Process and Tuning Project in Europe). “Global Trends in Emerging Literacies” begins with a discussion of international trends in open education and open educational resources (OERs). The authors close the chapter by highlighting two evolving frameworks, Seven Pillars (United Kingdom) and Information Literacy Framework for Hong Kong Students. With Chapter 5, “Survey of the Field: From Theoretical Frameworks to Praxis,” Mackey and Jacobson shift from theoretical frameworks and factors related to the educational and information environment to the lens of practice, beginning with a discussion of a survey the authors undertook in 2012 (p. 127). (The survey instrument, Information Literacy as a Metaliteracy, is appended to this chapter.) The final two chapters of the book “examine the real-world practice of metaliteracy in teaching and learning…[presenting] case studies that show how metaliteracy encourages positive changes in learning design in ways that challenge our own assumptions about information literacy pedagogy in a social media age” (p. 157). In “The Evolution of a Dedicated Information Literacy Course Toward Metaliteracy” (Chapter 6), the reader begins to understand how academic institutions are gradually Education Libraries, 38:1 (2015) © Education Division, Special Library Association seeing information literacy as a general education requirement. The case illustrated here was the transformation of a final project in an information literacy course taught by librarians. The project was turned into a team-based learning activity for building a topic- specific wiki of resources to serve as a subject research guide. Lastly, Chapter 7 explores digital storytelling from a metaliteracy perspective, describing the institutional context for this emerging area of study, as well as the design of the course and its learning objectives. Students create digital stories and are “required to think about each production by answering a set of questions that promote metacognitive reflection” (p. 198). The chapter concludes by mapping the metaliteracy model to digital storytelling. This book is a “must read” for academic librarians who are considering how the new Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education might be implemented at their institution. Now that the foundation has been set, the authors are preparing a new volume, Metaliteracy in Practice, to be published in late 2015 or early 2016 by the American Library Association (ALA). I cannot wait for someone to take a similar approach and demonstrate how metaliteracy is taking hold outside academia, for example, as applied in the workplace or enhancements to tools (e.g., content management systems) already in use.