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In the past four decades considerable efforts have been taken by higher education to understand learner’s differences and learning. Learners have different levels of learning ability associated with their different learning motivations, attitudes and thoughts which are built through years of studying at university. The more the researchers understand the learner's differences the better results they will achieve in covering all levels of learning abilities providing the effective learning for learners. The focus of this study is about studying learning thoughts of academic learners which are scientifically called as the epistemological beliefs. Studying the epistemological beliefs from different angles is important to explore its vital role in learning development. The main aim of this study is to investigate the general and specific epistemological beliefs of undergraduates who study information literacy modules as part of information science. The study focuses on the influence of the independent variables (gender, major and academic level) and the interactions between the independent variables and information literacy on undergraduates’ epistemological beliefs. Two questionnaires are used to measure the general and specific epistemological beliefs of the undergraduates; the Schommer Epistemological-Beliefs Questionnaire (SEQ) and the Discipline-Focused Epistemological Belief Questionnaire (DFEBQ). The participants in the study are undergraduates from the College of Education at Kuwait University. SPSS is used to test the internal consistency of the data against the questionnaires. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is used in order to analyse the data. The study confirms that undergraduates hold both general and specific-domain beliefs while they hold more general beliefs in their first year in the college they develop toward more specific domain beliefs in the fourth year. A final result shows that the undergraduates specific domain beliefs – rather than their general beliefs – are more affected by the variable of previous knowledge of information literacy, as well as a clear impact of the interaction between the independent variables but is not so clear on the general beliefs.

Ce travail porte sur les représentations de l’adolescence dans le cinéma indépendant contemporain. Il s’agit d’examiner la mise en images et en discours de ce phénomène social dans six films issus d’Europe et d’Amérique et sortis en salle entre 2009 et 2014. En nous inscrivant en Sciences de l’Information et de la Communication, nous articulons une approche sémiotique et pragmatique afin de rendre compte des aspects plastiques, esthétiques et communicationnels des films du corpus. Notre analyse poétique et socio-politique explore simultanément le langage cinématographique, les conditions de production et l’horizon d’attente auxquels renvoient les œuvres.La première partie rend compte de la construction du cadre analytique et de la démarche analytique qui articule adolescence, cinéma et représentation. La deuxième partie de la thèse saisit les formes et les effets de sens des films. Le corps y est analysé comme le fondement de la représentation de l’adolescence, un objet sémiotique, social et politique. La troisième partie de la recherche s’intéresse à l’émergence d’images des corps adolescents et de discours susceptibles d’engendrer un regard sur l’adolescence cinématographique en tant que construction symbolique et sociale.La thèse conclut que ces films en tant que discours sur l’univers adolescent, invitent à une interprétation délibérative sur le monde social, historique et culturel qui est convoqué dans les films. L’angle sémio-pragmatique met en relief la manière dont les discours sur l’adolescence constituent des discours sociaux qui prônent une prise de position sur la place allouée à la jeunesse dans le monde social. / This work focuses on the representations of adolescence in contemporary independent cinema. It is a question of examining the presentation in images and in discourse of this social phenomenon in six films coming from Europe and America and released in room between 2009 and 2014. By situating ourselves in the domains of Sciences of the Information and Communication, we articulate a semiotic and pragmatic approach to account for the plastic, aesthetic and communicational aspects of the films of the corpus. Our poetic and socio-political analysis simultaneously explores the cinematographic language, the conditions of production and the horizon of expectation to which the works refer.The first part sets out the theoretical categories and the method to follow to detect the relations between adolescence, cinema and representation. The second part captures the forms and effects of meaning of the films. The body is taken as the foundation of the representation of adolescence, a semiotic, social and political object. The third part focuses on the emergence of images of adolescent bodies and discourses likely to engender a look at cinematographic adolescence as a symbolic and social construction.The thesis concludes that these films constitute discourses on the adolescent universe, invite to deliberation, using a set of filmic forms that lead to reflections on the social, historical and cultural world that is deployed there. The semio-pragmatic angle makes it possible to interpret the messages that feature films want to deliver on the content of these representations in the frameworks of societies, the way in which the discourses on adolescence conform to social discourses that advocate a stance on this phenomenon.

The study aimed to examine high school student usage of licensed databases available through public libraries in Atlanta-USA. A descriptive quantitative survey was conducted via a web-based questionnaire among 135 East Cobb high school students. The findings revealed that most students are aware of these licensed databases, but their usage is low (1:10) compared to Google. However, as students advance in grade levels, their database usage increases and GALILEO is the most-used licensed resource. Factors that influence student database usage include: specific academic needs; teacher instruction to use specific databases and frequent Digital Information Literacy (DIL) instruction. Most students receive DIL instruction at school, but their DIL skills are still inadequate. To increase usage of licensed databases as reliable information resources, the study recommends collaboration between public libraries and high schools, including incorporation of Generation Y's digital information preferences such as Google-type simplified interfaces, cutting-edge technology and time-saving search features. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science)

The study aimed to examine high school student usage of licensed databases available through public libraries in Atlanta-USA. A descriptive quantitative survey was conducted via a web-based questionnaire among 135 East Cobb high school students. The findings revealed that most students are aware of these licensed databases, but their usage is low (1:10) compared to Google. However, as students advance in grade levels, their database usage increases and GALILEO is the most-used licensed resource. Factors that influence student database usage include: specific academic needs; teacher instruction to use specific databases and frequent Digital Information Literacy (DIL) instruction. Most students receive DIL instruction at school, but their DIL skills are still inadequate. To increase usage of licensed databases as reliable information resources, the study recommends collaboration between public libraries and high schools, including incorporation of Generation Y's digital information preferences such as Google-type simplified interfaces, cutting-edge technology and time-saving search features. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science)