Free «Annotated Bibliography: The Impact of the Internet on Information Literacy and Library» Essay

Baruchson-Arbib, S. & Yaari, E. (2004). Printed versus internet plagiarism: A study of students' perception. International Journal of Information Ethics, 1, 29-36.

In this study, the researchers explored students' perceptions of online plagiarism. The goal of the study was to identify and analyze the differences in students' perceptions of online and printed plagiarism. The sample included 284 students aged between 27 and 52 years. The results suggested that the prevailing majority of students were not familiar with the meaning of plagiarism and had poor knowledge of the accepted citation rules. Most of them perceived Internet plagiarism as less unethical and dishonest than printed plagiarism. These results have far-reaching implications for understanding the impacts of the Internet on information literacy and plagiarism, although future research is needed to explore the factors driving Internet plagiarism and possible ways to prevent it.

Breivik, P.S. (2005). 21^st century learning and information literacy. Change, March/April, 21-27.

The author defines the concept of information literacy and highlights the role of educators in developing students' information literacy skills. The article is particularly interesting in the context of recommendations provided by the author to help students and educators develop better information literacy skills. However, these recommendations lack any empirical basis and require further analysis to become an established practice.

Brown, J.S. & Adler, R.P. (2008). Minds on fire: Open education, the long tail, and learning 2.0. Educause Review, January/February, 16-32.

The authors suggest that social learning is based on the assumption that knowledge is socially constructed. The researchers go further to discuss the most essential aspects of social learning and the ways, in which it can be realized in higher education. They offer numerous examples of reflective and shared learning which, in their view, can successfully meet the growing demand for higher education. The major benefit of this article is that it provides practical examples of technologies that contribute to global learning and shared knowledge cultures. It could serve as a starting point in the analysis of the Internet and its impacts on students' information literacy.

Gray, K., Thompson, C., Sheard, J. & Hamilton, M. (2010). Students as Web 2.0 authors:

Implications for assessment design and conduct. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 26(1), 105-122.

In this study, the researchers investigated various methods of assessing student web 2.0 authoring, including grading criteria. The researchers evaluated 17 different cases of web 2.0 authoring by higher education students. The main finding is that not all web 2.0 authoring methods are appropriate for higher education. Future research is needed to evaluate the learning potential of web 2.0 and key assessment challenges. In this article, the researchers raise the questions, which are mostly ignored by educators, namely, the effectiveness of the existing methods against the emerging educational technologies. The findings can be used to evaluate the scope of the information literacy difficulties facing educators and the ways, in which the Internet impacts the effectiveness of the existing assessment methodologies.

Gross, M. & Latham, D. (2009). Undergraduate perceptions of information literacy: Defining, attaining, and self-assessing skills. College & Research Libraries, 70(4), 336-350.

]In this study, the researchers explored students' perceptions of information literacy, attaining information literacy, and self-views of information literacy. The results suggest that students assess their information literacy, based on the amount of interest and willingness to apply additional effort in learning. Meanwhile, they lack the library and literacy skills required to assess the quality of sources and predict the ethical and legal issues associated with information use. These results are valuable in the sense that they highlight the problems facing students with regard to their library and information literacy skills. These findings also suggest possible areas of improvement for students living in the information age.

Grosseck, G. (2009). To use or not to use Web 2.0 in higher education? Procedia Social andBehavioral Sciences, 1, 478-482.

=The author of this article sought to understand the nature and teaching implications of Web 2.0 technologies, while also promoting scholarly inquiry about the necessity and utility of Web 2.0 in the modern pedagogy. The researcher describes various types of Web 2.0 technologies and how they can be integrated into the higher education sector. One of the most essential aspects of this analysis is the list of advantages offered by Web 2.0. The author of the article sounds particularly positive about the educational potentials of Web 2.0. The article could be used by professional educators, who want to incorporate Web 2.0 into their educational field. Still, the article is too brief and theoretical to bring ubiquitous practical value to educators.

Hargittai, E. (2010). Digital Na(t)ives? Variation in internet skills and uses among members of the 'Net Generation'. Sociological Inquiry, 80(1), 92-113.

In this article, the researcher reviews the relationship between the Internet, information literacy skills, and social inequality. The author hypothesizes that differences in Internet use skills can be related to users' socioeconomic status, autonomy, and experience using the Internet. The results show that socioeconomic determinants greatly impact users' know-how about the Internet. For instance, women and ethnic minority individuals show lower levels of mastery with regard to Internet literacy, compared to whites. The results create a multifaceted picture of the digital age, in which the relationship between the Internet and information literacy is impacted by numerous factors. By addressing these factors, the society can promote more equitable approaches to Internet use.

Howard, R.M. (2007). Understanding 'internet plagiarism'. Computers and Composition, 24, 3-15.

The basic intent of this article was to explore the impacts of the Internet on the culture of authorship. One of the main conclusions is that the Internet expands the range of texts and facilitates access to them, while plagiarism-detection software highlights only ethics issues and does not evaluate intertextual factors. The author claims that the best response to plagiarism trends on the Internet is a combination of new institutional policies and thorough approaches to authentic pedagogy, which will enable students to understand the meaning and scope of plagiarism issues. This information sounds relevant and up-to-date. Unfortunately, the author does not specify what elements of authentic pedagogy could help students to avoid plagiarism in their works.

Savage, S. (2004). Staff and student responses to a trial of Turnitin plagiarism detectionsoftware. Adelaide: Proceedings of the Australian Universities Quality Forum.

To conduct the study, the author discussed the use of the Turnitin plagiarism detection software with 76 junior and 39 senior students, as well as with the teaching staff. Most students expressed considerable concerns regarding the use of plagiarism detection software, particularly in terms of possible technical issues and ethics violations (e.g., right to privacy). By contrast, the teachers were almost unanimous in their support of the electronic plagiarism-detection software. The article can be used to evaluate the ways, in which students and teachers perceive plagiarism and plagiarism detection software in higher education. The article can help identify and address plagiarism problems in the higher education system.

Scanlon, P.M. & Neumann, D.R. (2002). Internet plagiarism among college students. Journalof College Student Development, 43(3), 375-385.

The authors of this study performed a survey of college students to identify the incidence and contextual factors of Internet plagiarism. 698 students completed the survey 9.6% of them reported frequently copying texts from the Internet without appropriate citations, with another 19% did it from time to time. The results can be used to identify the scope of the Internet influences on information literacy and plagiarism among students. However, the fact that the researchers used self-report measures can substantially reduce the validity of the final results, since many students may not be willing to confess that they have been plagiarizing.

Scott, T.J. & O'Sullivan, M. (2000). The Internet and information literacy: Taking the first step toward technology education in the social studies. The Social Studies, May/June, 121-125.

In this article, the authors critically evaluate the implications of the Internet for information literacy in social studies. The central thesis of the article is that the Internet has a strong potential to improve teaching methods, but it also poses serious dilemmas for teachers and students. The authors assert that, without systematic provision of advanced information skills, students will hardly be able to realize the Internet's information potential to the fullest. The article is very useful in the sense that it sheds light on the positive and negative sides of the Internet expansion and helps evaluate the role of information literacy in this process.

Selwyn, N. (2008). 'Not necessarily a bad thing…': A study of online plagiarism amongst undergraduate students. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 33(5), 465- 479.

The goal of this study was to expand the existing knowledge of student online plagiarism in the UK. A questionnaire was administered to 1222 respondents making up a stratified sample of full-time undergraduate students in the UK. 61.9% of the sample reported having plagiarized in some form over the 12 months preceding the study. Students also reported that they were more likely to engage in online plagiarism than its offline forms, due to anonymity and fewer risks to get caught. These results are particularly interesting in the discussion of internet use and its implications for plagiarism. Yet, the results of self-reported measures may not fully reflect the scope and complexity of the plagiarism problem online.