When asked what makes an information source such as a book or an article, credible, college students often suggest statistics or data. However librarians know, from being critical users of information, that the data itself can be false, ambiguous, disorganized or used in incorrect or intentionally misleading ways. Hence data literacy should be an integral part of information literacy education.
But how do you start a data literacy instruction program with no data librarian? This presentation will describe how to introduce data literacy into an established information literacy instruction program using liaison librarians. The presentation will detail the three-pronged approach we took at Eastern Michigan University to: 1) get liaison librarians interested in data literacy, 2) engage with faculty about data literacy and 3) deliver self-service and in-class data literacy instruction to students.
I am a Library liaison to the College of Business and the department of Economics, and a self-designated champion of Data Literacy at Eastern Michigan University.
