For Students:

What is Information Fluency?

Think about a real-life situation.  You are trying to decide which bank's checking account is the best for your budget.  There is a lot of information out there about various checking options, but being information fluent means that you would be able to gather the information about various banks' options, evaluate which account options are best for you, and use this information to find the best deal.  This is what being information fluent is all about - finding the best information, evaluating the the information you find, and using that information to make a decision about which options are best for your particular situation. Information fluency will be very important in today's competitive job market - employers are particularly concerned with their potential employee's knowledge management skills.

UCF defined information fluency as “the ability to perform effectively in an

information-rich and technology-intensive environment.” Simply put, information fluency is the ability to gather, evaluate, and use information in ethical and legal ways. Information fluency encompasses and integrates three important skills: information literacy, technology literacy, and critical thinking. These three skills are not mutually exclusive but overlap in many areas.  Using these skills means having the ability to communicate information in appropriate and effective ways, which is an important measure of information fluency.

Fluency means not just accessing information on the Web, but creating your own Web pages. Not just downloading MP3 music files, but creating your own digital-music compositions. Not just playing SimCity, but creating your own simulated worlds. (Resnick 2001)

Why do I need to be information fluent?

Research has shown that information fluency is vital to university students' academic achievements and professional successes and will contribute to their lifelong learning processes. Increasing your information fluency quotient (IFQ) will make you more valuable to employers and to corporations as you move beyond the university environment and into the workplace.  Improving your ability to think critically and to extrapolate useful concepts and ideas from existing information into new applications will continue to be a valued and crucial skill in the 21st century work place.

How can I improve my information fluency skills?

One way to become more information fluent is to find out where you are.  By taking a critical thinking skills test, such as the ICT, you can get an idea of how information fluent you are right now, and if there are any areas that you might need to work on in order to improve your information fluency skills.  You can also use the UCF Library and the University Writing Center to help you become more information fluent.  The Library and UWC have resources to help you learn to research and communicate more effectively in your classes and in the workplace.

What will I be able to do when I learn these skills?

As an information-fluent graduate of UCF, you will be able to:

• articulate the problem in a selected context
• recognize the need for information to address the problem
• identify the available information sources (domain)
• iteratively collect, analyze, and assess (evaluate critically) the relevant information
• integrate new information with pre-existing knowledge and context
• draw conclusions
• effectively communicate results and decisions
• follow up on actions

What is UCF doing to help me become more information fluent?

UCF is beginning the process of integrating and infusing information fluency into both the curriculum and the culture on campus.  Individual departments and professors are implementing information fluency initiatives into their classrooms, and the office of Information Fluency is providing support to students, faculty, and staff as we begin the process of bringing our QEP focus on information fluency to UCF.

What info can I find on this website and what will be available in the future?

Visit the UCF if website frequently for updates on what’s going on with UCF and information fluency.  We will offer grant opportunities for both students and faculty, if contests and prizes, and updates about critical thinking skills tests and resources. 

What is the ICT literacy assessment?

The ICT literacy assessment is one of several tests designed to measure information fluency and critical thinking skills that will be administered at UCF over the coming months.  Some students, including 158 Nursing students, have already taken the ICT to help the University assess where we are now with regards to information fluency, and more tests will be offered during the Spring semester.

Are there any grant opportunities for students?

We are offering grants to students in the Spring 2007 semester for developing their own information fluency enhancement projects.

Is there another Information Fluency question you would like to have answered? Click here to send us an email and let us know about it.