Surveys two populations, teachers of grade 12 English in the province of British Columbia and recent high school graduates who are now in English 100 at the University of British Columbia, to ascertain the differing perspectives held by those two groups toward certain literacy and communication skills deemed to be relevant to successful university or college study. Respondents were asked to rate the frequency of teaching of each skill, the strength of the average university-bound student (or the student respondent) in each skill, and the importance of each skill to university study. All student-completed questionnaires were considered usable. A 76% return was obtained from teachers in the Province. Results, reported in descriptive terms, were analyzed by computer using programs from SPSS Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. It was found that teachers agree with students as to the freguency of the teaching of skills and the importance of those skills to university study. However, students and teachers show less agreement in rating the strength that students have in individual skills. / Education, Faculty of / Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of / Graduate

Information literacy has become more important as more information is produced and communication has become easier. Better information skills are vital for individuals working in governmental organizations as well as in the business sector. Employees are expected to be confident and competent in interacting with information in their workplaces in order to deliver better service to customers and to the public. This study examines the differences in information literacy skills (ILS), computer literacy skills (CLS), and frequencies of use of information sources (FIS) among police officers, based on their socio-demographic characteristics, namely education, departmental affiliation, ranks, and experience. Information literacy process models developed in an educational environment are combined to explore information literacy process in the workplace. Bivariate and multivariate analyses indicated significant differences of ILS and CLS based on education, departmental affiliation, and ranks but no difference for experience. In addition, there were differences of FIS for all demographic variables except departmental affiliation. The findings of the study may guide both future researchers in the process of developing new models in understanding information literacy process and the managers in police organizations in planning better training programs by considering information and computer literacy skills and use of information sources of police officers.

Thesis (M. A. (Education)) -- University of Limpopo, 2016 / Poor performance, by English Language Learners (ELLs), in Science examinations remains a thorny issue in countries where English is not the home language. Research around the world and the Department of Basic Education in South Africa have long recommended the integration of Language Literacy skills in the teaching of Physical Sciences in order to solve this issue. Despite that, learners’ poor performance in Physical Sciences examinations has been found to be positively related to low language literacy skills. The questions are: Do Physical Sciences teachers integrate language literacy skills in teaching the subject?; If yes, to what extent is the integration of language literacy skills practiced in Physical Sciences classroom? In an attempt to answer the above questions, a quantitative survey was carried out in Riba Cross District of Sekhukhune Region of Limpopo Province in South Africa. 211 learners and five teachers from selected nine schools took part in the study and questionnaires were used to collect data. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 was used. The results indicate that Language Literacy skills are integrated into the teaching of Physical Sciences in Riba Cross District, despite concerns raised by the teachers. The areas of concern include letting learners to argue using evidences and writing reports. Furthermore, schools with large classes have challenges in integrating Language Literacy Skills in the teaching of Physical Sciences. Therefore, further studies are recommended which should integrate both qualitative and quantitative approaches in school contexts.

The need for an advanced research information literacy (ARIL) framework was motivated by challenges faced by several stakeholders at academic institutions to support postgraduate researchers in an academic context (e.g. supervisors, academic departments, academic libraries). This applies to the full postgraduate research trajectory stretching from master’s level to well-established researchers. Research must meet with institutional requirements, international standards and the expectations of industry and praxis. Information literacy skills are essential for successful conduct and reporting of research, as well as the dissemination of research results. What constitutes basic information literacy skills is well captured (although frequently revised) in standards of information literacy applied to various contexts, including the academic and workplace context. However, what constitutes ARIL remains a subject of research. This study therefore explored the concept from the subject literature before suggesting an ARIL framework that guided a case study with researchers on several levels of postgraduate research at a South African academic institution. Based on empirical findings, the conceptually inspired (based on a definition) ARIL framework was then reconsidered to recommend an ARIL framework for practical implementation that can also guide further research. Engineering researchers were selected for the empirical component as a group of researchers who need to meet the requirements of academic scholarship as well as industry. The study was guided by the following research question: How can an advanced research information literacy (ARIL) framework inform the development of programmes supporting the scholarly research process of engineers in a South African higher education environment? Six sub-research questions addressed various components of the research question: 1. What are the characteristics of introductory and advanced research information literacy programmes as reported in subject literature? 2. What are the documented information needs, information behaviour and information-related experiences of engineering researchers in academic institutions, as well as from industry? 3. What are the current self-reported ARIL skills of South African postgraduate engineering researchers? 4. How do information literacy skills, knowledge, and practices of engineers differ between master’s, doctoral, post-doctoral, established and expert researcher levels? 5. How can an ARIL framework assist to determine which skills need to be developed at various levels of the engineering research process? 6. Which guidelines and interventions are required to support the implementation of a comprehensive research information literacy framework for engineers? A mixed methods approach to a single case study was applied. Seven engineering departments from a South African institution with a leading faculty in engineering participated in the study. Data collection occurred between September and December 2015. A semi-structured, self-administered web-based questionnaire collected mostly quantitative data from 68 participants. Individual and focus group interviews collected mostly qualitative data. Twelve individual interviews were conducted, as well as three focus group interviews with 19 participants. A short, structured questionnaire collected demographic data from the interview and focus group participants. All participants gave written/electronically recorded informed consent for participation, as well as for the recording of interviews. Invitations were distributed to all master’s and doctoral students as well as staff in the department, through the department’s offices. Descriptive statistical analysis was applied to the quantitative data and thematic analysis to the qualitative data. Data collection was guided by typical phases in the full research lifecycle, including conceptualising a research topic, obtaining research funding, discovery of information, management and organisation of information, data collection/generation and analysis, data curation, creation of information formats, management of intellectual property rights, dissemination of findings and measurement of impact in a field of study. The thesis reports on findings for each. Three key themes are conspicuous: • Commitment to a culture of quality in postgraduate engineering research • Progression from dependent to independent and expert researchers • Preparation and positioning for impact in a specific field of study. The findings and recommendations from this study describe practices that could inform both theoretical and practical issues relevant to ARIL support for engineering researchers on all levels from master’s study to expert research. Keywords: Advanced research information literacy; Case study; Engineers; Engineering research; Information literacy skills; Postgraduate research; Research capacity building. / Thesis (DPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Information Science / DPhil / Unrestricted

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