Information literacy in the new curriculum

Abstract

South Africa has undergone a decade of curricular change that has evoked much debate, study and even condemnation. New terminology has entered the public domain. However this huge curriculum revolution had a curious passenger : Information Literacy. Prior to the release of Curriculum 2005, a bold new curriculum for Information Literacy was introduced for use in schools. With the advent of Curriculum 2005, with its totally new paradigm, one would have expected that the Information Literacy curriculum would have disappeared. However, in a somewhat surprising move, it appeared within the curriculum for the new 'Learning Area' : Languages, Literacy and Communication. Within this learning area it was found, intact, as one of the four Specific Outcomes, which were seen as the subdivisions of the subject. In the revision of the curriculum called the National Curriculum Statement this changed. This paper studies the position of Information Literacy within this curriculum, within each of the Learning Areas. It also outlines a practical exercise with education students to pinpoint their understanding and recommends actions for the better implementation of information literacy in schools.