Changing anatomies of Information Literacy at the postgraduate level: refinements of models and shifts in assessment

In this paper fundamental principles that might inform an approach to Information Literacy (IL) on the postgraduate level will be identified. Those are based on following premises:the aims of postgraduate/doctoral studies are different in comparison to earlier educational levels and face specific challenges due to the heterogeneity of student populationsIL frameworks have  to acknowledge and address this challenge by  adjusting to specific needs of postgraduate students who operate in new information realmsnew modes of assessment are needed as a result of revolutionary changes in information landscapes and patterns of generation and use of scientific informationTeaching students in the scientific method and culture has long been recognized as the major focus of postgraduate education, an important precondition for research practices is the adequate performance in the realm of information handling and information management, i.e., information literacy. IL on postgraduate levels has a strong focus on the universe of scientific information, which itself went through tremendous changes in the last decade, particularly as a result of the appearance of the Web 2.0 (e.g. Science 2.0, Research 2.0). Such profound changes suggest renewed conceptions and focal points of IL at the postgraduate level which will take into account the fluid nature of current information environments. After discussing changes in information landscapes brought about the Web 2.0 and examining transformed premises of scientific work within such environments, the authors will plea for re-conceptualizations of IL on the postgraduate level and propose new principles of IL frameworks and modes of assessment that will recognize this transformation

Why are Croatian Higher Education Institutions Present on Social Networks?

Reasons why Croatian higher education institutions are present on social networks and their desired goals have not been researched yet. Previous research studies were mainly focused on the mere presence of institutions and the content they publish, but none of them looked into faculty’s opinions (or opinions of persons who are in charge of the official presence of institutions on social networks) about the institutions’ presence on social networks and if the outcomes of that presence were as expected. In this paper we will present results of a survey conducted in 2015. The goal of the survey was to find out what do persons that are in charge of the official presence of Croatian higher education institutions on social networks think about it and did it achieve the desired goals. When an institution is deciding whether it should establish presence on any social network or not, experience from other institutions is a valuable input. Therefore, in this paper, we will present some of the key findings on motivation and goal fulfillment of those institutions that have already been engaged on social networks

Libraries in Web 2.0 Environment

Changes in the Web environment have influenced all aspects of human professional and leisure behaviour. As libraries main purpose has always been to respond to its users’ information needs the transition currently affecting information environment has posed new challenges on them. Paper presents overview of the definitions and insights into the Library 2.0 concept looking at its both positive and negative aspects

Education in Virtual Environment

Students are our most precious resource, and as such should be cultivated with the utmost care in well-designed educational environments. If our goal is to assist the learner in developing the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to join society as a functioning member, we should be oriented towards the future creating successful learning systems. Virtual environment potentially provides such a interesting, instructive, interactive environment also for students in Croatia, but there are some possible detrimental educational consequences. Anyone who is engaged in education must be aware that many of the necessary skills people learn through direct interaction with others even without technological intermediaries. This paper will give a general overlook on the characteristics of education in virtual worlds, give insight in pilot study on implementing virtual world in university classes and discuss both positive and negative sides of education in virtual environment

Vrednovanje u području školskog knjižničarstva

Kroz povijest se kvaliteta knjižnice sagledavala prema veličini i broju zbirki. Promjene koje se događaju na globalnoj razini uvjetuju potrebu za drugačijim pogledom na definiciju uspješnosti knjižnice, a time i zahtijevaju implementaciju metoda i alate iz područja ekonomije. Prvenstveno je to iz razloga kako bi pokazale isplativost svojih usluga ili opravdanost uvođenja nove usluge. Knjižnice u obrazovnom sustavu, kao što su to školske, pred sobom imaju nove izazove jer dosadašnje metode vrednovanja, primjenjive u ostalim vrstama knjižnica, ne odgovaraju specifičnostima funkcioniranja u obrazovnom sustavu. U radu su, uz povijesni pregled razvoja metoda vrednovanja u knjižničarstvu, prikazani i različiti modeli vrednovanja primjenjivi u području školskog knjižničarstva u svrhu doprinosa jačanju modela povezanosti kvalitete školske knjižnice sa obrazovnim postignućima učenika. Vrednovanje kvalitete knjižničnih usluga i učinkovitosti moguće je primjenom kvantitativnih i kvalitativnih metoda, pri čemu prve nastoje vrednovati rezultate prema korisničkom iskustvu i mišljenju, a druge nastoje prikupiti konkretne podatke. Moderan pristup vrednovanju školskih knjižnica očituje se u dobroj uravnoteženosti ovih dviju mjera jer jedino tako pružaju cjelovitu sliku utjecaja školske knjižnice na obrazovni proces.Changes occurring on global level have influenced libraries, non-profit institutions by origin, in adopting methods and tools from the economic field. Showing profitability of the services offered or justification of introducing a new service are some of the primary reasons for this. Libraries in educational environment, such as school libraries, are experiencing new challenges in adapting and implementing methods that present the complexity of their environment and connection of quality service with the student academic success in the best way. It is indisputable that a school library influences educational program and quality of school but evidence that confirms best practices or points to the improvements should be gathered through systematic evaluation. The evaluation needs to have a purpose and to be coordinated with the school goals, mission and curriculum. A school library promotes learning, raises achievements and enhances pupils’ personal and social development. Therefore, evaluation of a school library quality should take into account the whole spectrum of tangible and intangible factors that are influencing the school mission and goals. In this paper a review of different evaluation methods implemented in evaluation of school libraries is given. Evaluation of services and efficiency of a school library can be measured by implementing quantitative and qualitative methods. The first are more subjective and show user attitudes and viewpoints, while the second are more objective and gather numerical data. Modern approach to evaluation, as suggested in the paper, presents a good balance between these two methods. Combination of the two methods, together with the different approaches to evaluation, such as internal, external and self-evaluation, provides the complete picture of the school library role in the educational environment. One of the approaches suggested in the paper is the evidence-based practice as a method to support the advocacy, inquiry learning, professional development and practice and showcasing the differences. Furthermore, evidence shows the necessity of having a highly motivated and professionally educated school librarian for success of a quality school library. Consequently, incorporating measurement of school librarian competences presents a vital element in the evaluation process

Open vs. Proprietary Source Software in Croatia

This paper shows differences between open source software and proprietary source software from the Croatian user perspective. These confronting approaches have their own positive and negative aspects which are viewed through present 2009 financial crisis and the need for lifelong learning projects promoted by the Croatian Ministry of Science, Education and Sports. User survey was conducted at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb

Teaching Quality Management at the Course Level

This paper presents quality assurance systems used in the countries of the world and presents processes for internal and external quality assurance in institutions of higher education. By analysis of existing systems for control of the quality of teaching, it has been found that all observed the quality of teaching only to the course level. The central part of this paper presents developed model for quality management at the course level that is based on continuous assessment during semester. Evaluation is conducted at the level of individual teaching topic using on-line questionnaire. The model presents a way of statistical analysis of the results obtained by evaluation of teaching quality. This has enabled improvement in teaching practices within each individual teaching topic, as well as the improvement of the entire course. Based on the model presented in this paper, researchers created on-line quality management system

Virtual Worlds : Heritage and Educational Challenge

The authors give a brief overview of the development and current trends in the field of virtual worlds. The emphasis is put on one of the social network virtual worlds - Second life and its usage in educational environment and heritage preservation. Furthermore, the first phases of creating of the extended educational environment of the Department of Information Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb are shown

Information Literacy in the Academic Context : Global Trends and Local Issues

Information literacy is generally perceived as the spiritus muovens of learning processes, reflecting the premise of information as the basic building block of education. This idea gained relevance and new facets with the proliferation of the Web 2.0, which has brought about new, speculative and concerning issues. In the first part of the paper the authors will discuss the importance of information literacy in the higher education sector. They will particularly discuss and reexamine the question what it has meant to be information literate in the print era, the digital era and in the context of the Web 2.0. Taking conceptual shifts between those different information ages as a point of departure, the particular cluster of competencies needed today to support educational processes in the higher education sector will be identified. After commenting global issues the authors will present preliminary results from a local (national) survey about the inclusion and integration of information literacy elements into Croatian new higher education (i.e. Bologna) curricula

Collaborative Tagging : Providing User Created Organizational Structure for Web 2.0

The Web 2.0, having the user both creating and organizing content, has changed much of how one approaches to and uses the Web. While the concept of user-submitted content is by no means new, user created organizational structure is. The article gives an overview of the organizational means and processes that enable it. To provide the general framework the article gives a short overview of Web 2.0. It then centres on the collaborative tagging process as a central organizational process and means for the Web 2.0 and provides definitions for the Web 2.0 terminology used. After describing the general process, its strengths and weaknesses and pointing out that, while useful, it cannot replace professional indexing tools and library and information science professionals the article goes on to describe collaborative tagging and its specific features in general. Some of the more common services to use collaborative tagging are then described