Putting information literacy on the map

03 September 2010

By Stephane Goldstein

In 2008, the Research Information Network (RIN) published a report, Mind the Skills Gap, which concluded that training for researchers in the UK on information-handling and management is uncoordinated and generally not based on any systematic assessment of needs. The report called for better coordination between relevant organisations and interest groups to ensure that professional development programmes are provided for researchers.

Since then, there has been a certain momentum to put researchers' information literacy (and by extension, researchers' skills in areas such as data management and curation) onto the training agenda. RIN has been working collaboratively with a range of organisations - Vitae of course, but also BAILER, British Library, CILIP, DCC, HEA, RIN, RLUK, SCONUL, UKCGE, UUK... - to promote the importance of such skills for researchers' professional development, and of the consequent training needs. It is thus very gratifying to see the extent to which the RDF has addressed these issues, through the recognition of such competencies as information seeking, information management and publication.  

Along with Moira Bent, from the University of Newcastle, I will be at the conference and am happy to speak to anyone interested in information literacy. We are running a workshop on the subject on the Tuesday morning (session C7) - do feel free to register if you haven't done so yet.