Southeastern NEWS

                                                       Southeastern Louisiana University
                                           Public Information Office
                                           publicinfo@selu.edu
                                           SLU 880, Hammond, LA 70402
                                           504/549-2341/fax 504-549-2061
    Date: 3/3/99
      Contact:                           Carol Dotson 84

INFORMATION LITERACY WORKSHOP AT SOUTHEASTERN 
     HAMMOND -- Betsy Wilson, associate director of libraries for Research and
Instructional Services at the University of Washington, will give a workshop on Information
Literacy at Southeastern Louisiana University on March 26.
     The workshop, which will be presented in two sessions, is scheduled for 9-11am and
1:30-3pm  in the Alumni Center. 
     Wilson is the co-administrator of the award-winning Uwired program at the University of
Washington, which is a program committed to helping educators and students incorporate
meaningful applications of information technology and information literacy education into
teaching and learning. 
     She has held numerous leadership roles in the American Library Association and the
Association of College and Research Libraries. Wilson is a member of the National Information
Literacy Institute steering committee, the recipient of the 1995 Miriam Dudley Instruction
Librarian Award, and an author and speaker on teaching and learning in libraries, collaboration,
information, technology and assessment and evaluation.      
     According to Southeastern's user education librarian Laverne Simoneaux, the workshop
coordinator, Information Literacy is the ability to recognize an information need, and then locate,
evaluate and effectively use the needed information. Proponents say that students must become
competent and independent users of information to be productive citizens of the 21st century. 
     Although the workshops are geared toward librarians and faculty, Simoneaux says the
sessions are open to anyone who wants to know more about Information Literacy. 
     "This workshop is for anyone who realizes they have an information need," said
Simoneaux. "Everyone needs to be able to locate, evaluate and use the information to complete
any project they're doing, whether for school or work."
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Info Literacy Workshop/ADD ONE
                                 
     Simoneaux also notes that today there is much more information readily available.
"We're bombarded with information sources. Everyone can put something on the net. But just
because it's there doesn't necessarily make it a good source. Information literacy is crucial in
determining whether your source is a good one," said Simoneaux.
     In the morning session, Wilson will discuss "Integrating Information Literacy Into the
Curriculum: Why and How." The afternoon session will be a panel discussion. In addition to
Wilson, panel participants will include Leslie Dollinger, head of reference for St. Tammany
                                                                      Parish library and Ponchatoula High School librarian
Rita Neal.       
     Simoneaux says her goal is also to work more closely with faculty at Southeastern and in
the high schools. "Sometimes faculty members will design assignments for their students and
they don't know if the library has the resources they need. Some of the high school teachers will
send their students here to do research and we don't have what they need or the students aren't
sure of what it is they need. We want to work with them and make sure they have a good
experience."
     The workshop is sponsored by the Sims Memorial Library through a grant from
Southeastern's Center for Faculty Excellence. To register for the workshop contact Simoneaux at
549-3965 or by email at lsimoneaux@selu.edu
                                 

                                          -SLU-
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