INFORMATION LITERACY SKILLS: EFFECTIVE TOOLS FOR EQUITABLE AND QUALITY EDUCATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Abstract

This paper examined information literacy skills as effective tools for equitable and quality education in the 21st century. Information literacy skills such as searching, retrieving, utilising, storing and disseminating of electronic and digital born or converted (created) information resources in an ethical manner in this digital age are basic and fundamental to any productive activities including university education. The paper review covered the following sub-topics: information literacy skills; need for equitable education and information literacy, role of information literacy in education, effect of information literacy in achieving equitable education and the state of information literacy education in Nigerian universities. It concluded that information literacy skills are the pivots upon which equitable and quality education is hinged. The paper recommended the following among others. One, the National University Commission (NUC) should centrally review and harmonise the curricular of various universities with the hope of infusing more of information literacy courses with the goal of reflecting the current trend in the digital age. Moreover, Nigerian Library Association (NLA) needs to formulate or adopt a national information literacy standard that will help develop information literacy skills necessary for survival in the knowledge society.