Introducing digital literacy skills through IBL: A comparative study of UG and PG business information systems students

Griffiths, M; Kutar, M; Wood, J

Abstract

This paper reports a comparative study of Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) at Undergraduate (UG) and
Postgraduate (PG) levels at a university in the north west of England. Both student cohorts undertook a
professional, legal and ethical module centred on IT. This study focuses on how the different student cohorts
approached this style of teaching, and how it impacted on overall student engagement throughout the
semester. IBL was introduced in the 2009-2010 academic years; to the UG students in the first semester and
the PG students in the second semester. Key observations gained from the study were unexpected in that the
UG level students fully embraced the IBL approach, they maintained a high attendance level throughout the
semester, and all preliminary and formative assessment work/tasks were eagerly completed. Ultimately, this
developed students’ information literacy skills. PG students enjoyed the in-class IBL activities, but actively
avoided module preparation and formative assessment work/tasks, and so minimized their opportunities to
develop rich digital literacy skills. This study highlights potential enablers required to employ IBL techniques
successfully.

Citation

Griffiths, M., Kutar, M., & Wood, J. (2010). Introducing digital literacy skills through IBL: A comparative study of UG and PG business information systems students. ITALICS, 9(2),

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Nov 1, 2010
• Deposit Date: Oct 18, 2011
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 18, 2011
• Journal: Italics
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 2
• Keywords: IBL approach, digital literacy, information literacy, formative assessment, inquiry based learning.
• Publisher URL: http://www.ics.heacademy.ac.uk/italics/vol9iss2.htm
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