ACS Information Fluency Survey 2001

Created by the Assessment and Evaluation Task Force, this survey collects data
on instructional activities related to information fluency at ACS Institutions.

ADD RECORD Page
From here you can enter your survey information into the database. The link above can be copied into other pages, allowing you to initiate Add Record from as many places as you wish.

SEARCH DATA Page
From here you can specify a search of the database. The results of the search will be returned as a "hit list". From the hit list you can perform additional actions, depending on what you specified in the assistant. The link above can be copied into other pages, allowing you to initiate Search from as many places as you wish.

Click here to see Samples of the Completed Survey (PDF) or search the database under "Institutions" for "Southwestern".

Explanation

Dear ACS colleagues:
We seek your cooperation in filling out this brief but strategically important survey
about instructional activities related to information fluency on your campus. ACS recognizes that an important challenge facing liberal arts education today is to anticipate how emerging technologies will change the traditional ways we have taught and learned. We are therefore fortunate that the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded ACS $600,000 to support information fluency initiatives on our member campuses. Information about this grant and initiatives can be found on the website. Once again, ACS hopes to confirm the power of collaboration on such complex and important issues.

What is information fluency?
Information fluency may be envisioned as the optimal outcome when critical thinking skills are combined with information literacy and relevant computing skills. That is, we hope that our students will be able to collect the information necessary to consider a problem or issue, employ critical thinking skills in the evaluation and analysis of the information and its sources, and formulate logical conclusions and present those conclusions in an appropriate and effective way. In the context of this survey, 'instructional activity' would be any interaction between student, faculty, and staff that promotes the use of information literacy, computer literacy, and critical thinking. We recognize that this broad definition could technically apply to almost all courses and activities that take place on a liberal arts campus. We ask that you use your judgment in selecting those activities that have a particular focus on information fluency or that reflect significant changes brought about by the new technologies. You can find links to samples of two completed surveys on the survey page itself.

What will the survey results be used for?
This data will be of significant assistance to the members of the Information Fluency teams. First, we hope to establish a benchmark by which we can measure our progress as we undertake new initiatives. Second, we hope to begin sharing those best practices that will benefit all of our member schools as we strive to help our students succeed in our current information rich environment. Third, ACS recognizes that the creative uses of technology are legitimate endeavors in pedagogy and faculty development, and should establish rewards/merit program for outstanding faculty projects through juried recognition. The information obtained through this survey will assist us in developing guidelines for standards which might be used as a baseline for assessment.

If you have any questions, please contact a member of the Information Fluency Team on your campus or any member of the ACS Information Fluency Assessment Task Force, the group that is initiating this survey. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. We will do our best to disseminate our results in a manner that will be most beneficial to you, and we welcome your input into that process.

The ACS Information Fluency Assessment Task Force