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Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 1
The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy
Michael B. Eisenberg
Dean and Professor
The Information School of the University of Washington
Suite 370, Mary Gates Hall, Box 352840
Seattle, WA 98195-2840
Fax: (206) 616-3152
mbe@u.washington.edu
http://www.ischool.washington.edu/mbe
January 31, 2003
Introduction: Context for Information & Technology Literacy
Information and technology literacy is clearly the new “basic skill of the 21st century.” This is
widely recognized and accepted for all types of workers--entry level to top executives. For
example, the US. Dept. of Labor's SCANS report (Secretary’s Commission on Achieving
Necessary Skills [SCANS] Report, 1991) stated that competencies for all entry level employees
must include the ability to: (1) acquire and use information, and (2) work with a variety of
technologies. This is information and technology literacy for all.
On the top-end, Peter Drucker, well-known management guru stated that “executives have
become computer-literate...but not many executives are information literate.” (Wall Street
Journal Dec. 1, 1992), Drucker is saying that being able to use computers is not enough.
Executives must be able to apply computer skills to real situations and needs. Executives must
be able to identify information problems and be able to locate, use, synthesize, and evaluate
information in relation to those problems.
We need to make this same leap in education—from “computer skills” to “information skills.”
Educators and the general public agree that all students need to be proficient computer users or
“computer literate.” However, while schools are spending a great deal of money on technology,
there seems to be only a vague notion of what computer literacy really means. Can the student
who operates a computer well enough to play a game, send e-mail or surf the Web be considered
computer literate? Will a student who uses computers in school only for running tutorials or an
integrated learning system have the skills necessary to survive in our society? Will the ability to
do basic word processing be sufficient for students entering the workplace or post-secondary
education?
Clearly not. In too many schools, teachers and students still use computers only as the equivalent
of expensive flash cards, electronic worksheets, or as little more than a typewriter. The
productivity side of computer use in the general content area curriculum is neglected or grossly
underdeveloped (Moursund, 1995).
Recent publications by educational associations are advocating for a more meaningful use of
technology in schools (ISTE, 2000). Educational technologists are clearly describing what
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 2
students should know and be able to do with technology. They are advocating integrating
computer skills into the content areas, proclaiming that computer skills should not be taught in
isolation and that separate “computer classes” do not really help students learn to apply computer
skills in meaningful ways. There is increasing recognition that the end result of computer literacy
is not knowing how to operate computers, but to use technology as a tool for organization,
communication, research, and problem solving. This is an important shift in approach and
emphasis.
Moving from teaching isolated technology skills to an integrated approach is an important step
that takes a great deal of planning and effort. Fortunately, we have a model for doing so. Over
the past 25 years, library media professionals have worked hard to move from teaching isolated
“library skills” to teaching integrated “information skills.” They found that information skills can
be integrated effectively when the skills (1) directly relate to the content area curriculum and to
classroom assignments, and (2) are tied together in a logical and systematic information process
model.
Schools seeking to move from isolated information technology skills instruction will also need to
focus on both of these requirements. Successful integrated information skills programs are
designed around collaborative projects jointly planned and taught by teachers and library media
professionals. Information technology skills instruction can and should be imbedded in such a
curriculum. Library media specialists, computer teachers, and classroom teachers need to work
together to develop units and lessons that will include both technology skills, information skills,
and content-area curriculum outcomes.
A meaningful, unified information technology literacy curriculum must be more than a “laundry
list” of isolated skills, such as knowing the parts of the computer, writing drafts and final
products with a word processor, and searching for information using the World Wide Web.
While these specific skills are important for students to learn, the “laundry list” approach does
not provide an adequate model for students to transfer and apply skills from situation to situation.
These curricula address the “how” of computer use, but rarely the “when” or “why.” Students
may learn isolated skills and tools, but they would still lack an understanding of how those
various skills fit together to solve problems and complete tasks. Students need to be able to use
computers and other technologies flexibly, creatively and purposefully. All learners should be
able to recognize what they need to accomplish, determine whether a computer will help them to
do so, and then be able to use the computer as part of the process of accomplishing their task.
Individual computer skills take on a new meaning when they are integrated within this type of
information problem-solving process, and students develop true “information technology
literacy” because they have genuinely applied various information technology skills as part
Defining and describing technology skills is only a first step in assuring all our children become
proficient information and technology users. A teacher-supported scope and sequence of skills,
well designed projects, and effective assessments are also critical. Equally essential is
collaboration among classroom teachers, teacher librarians, and technology teachers in order to
present students with a unified and integrated approach to ensure that all children master the
skills they will need to thrive in an information rich future (Eisenberg & Lowe, 1999).
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 3
Using information and technology to solve problems as described above is embodied in the
mostly widely-used information and technology literacy approach, the Big6 (Eisenberg and
Berkowitz,
Information Problem-Solving: The Big6 Explained
The Big6 is an approach that can be used whenever people are faced with an information
problem or with making a decision that is based on information. Students—K-12 through higher
education—encounter many information problems related to course assignments. However, the
Big6 is just as applicable to their personal life.
The Big6 Skills comprise a unified set of information and technology skills (see Figure 1). Taken
together, these skills form a process. The process encompasses six stages from Task Definition
to Evaluation. Through the Big6, people learn how to recognize their information needs and how
to progress through a series of stages to solve information problems effectively and efficiently.
Many problem-solving models provide a set of specific activities, or outline of isolated skills.
These models may encourage a lockstep strategy that forces one specific method for problem-
solving and decision-making. Like these others, the Big6 approach is systematic, however, it
differs in a significant way. Big6 Skills provide a broad-based, logical skill set that can be used
as the structure for developing a curriculum or the framework for a set of distinct problem-
solving skills. These fundamental skills provide students with a comprehensive set of powerful
skills to conquer the information age.
But the Big6 is more than simple a set of skills—it is also an approach to helping students learn
the information problem-solving process. Learning more about the Big6 as a process and as an
approach should make it easier and more useful for teachers and their students. For teachers, the
Big6 provides a definitive set of skills that students must master in order to be successful in any
learning context. Teachers can integrate lessons about the Big6 into subject area content and
assignments. For students, the Big6 provides a guide to dealing with assignments and tasks as
well as a model to fall back on when they are stuck. The Big6 represents “metacognition” – an
awareness by students of their mental states and processes.
Figure 1: The Big6
Task Definition:
1.1 Define the problem.
1.2 Identify the information needed.
2. Information Seeking Strategies:
2.1 Determine all possible sources.
2.2 Select the best sources.
3. Location and Access:
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 4
3.1 Locate sources.
3.2 Find information within sources.
4. Use of Information:
4.1 Engage (e.g., read, hear, view).
4.2 Extract relevant information.
5. Synthesis:
5.1 Organize information from multiple sources.
5.2 Present information.
6. Evaluation:
Judge the result (effectiveness).
Judge the process (efficiency).
From experience and research, we found that successful information problem-solving does
require completing each stage at some point in time: defining the task; selecting, locating, and
using appropriate information sources; pulling the information together; and deciding that the
task is in fact completed. However, the Big6 is not linear and prescriptive (see Figure 2). It’s not
necessary to complete the stages in order, however all the stages must be completed for overall
success.
Figure 2: The Big6 as a Feedback Process
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 5
Task
Definition
Information
Seeking
Strategies
Location
and Access
Information
Use
Synthesis
Evaluation
Figure 2 illustrates that the Big6 is not necessarily a linear, step-by-step process. For example,
imagine that after students have defined a task and decided on their information seeking
strategies in terms of 3 sources, they find them unavailable. In that case, they would loop back
to information seeking strategies to reformulate your plans. Or, suppose when writing a paper
(synthesis), students aren’t sure if they have done everything the teacher asked. Here, they
would jump back to task definition to review the problem and requirements.
The point is to be flexible and able to move back and forth in the process, but to be able to do
what is essential in each stage.
Themes of the Big6
To explain the power of the Big6 Skills approach to information problem-solving it is necessary
to begin by describing the general features of the process. A number of important and basic
themes characterize the Big6. As explained below, each of these unique themes is a distinct
aspect of the overall process approach to information problem-solving.
(1) The Big6 process can be applied in all subjects, with students of all ages, and across all
grade levels (K-20); and the Big6 is not just for kids.
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 6
The Big6 has been used with students and teachers in all subject areas and in all grade levels and
in various work situations. In school, students must complete assignments and solve problems in
every class, in every subject, and in every grade. Each time, to be successful, the students need to
figure out what they must do, and then gather and work with some information to finally produce
something (even if it’s a short answer on a quiz), and make sure it’s okay before turning it in.
That’s what the Big6 is all about.
Everyone goes through the same general process (but often not in the same order) when solving
problems or completing tasks. Elementary school students are confronted with information
problems every day as are secondary school students and college students. Even very young
children go through the various stages of the Big6 when completing a task or an assignment. As
students get older, the reflecting and questioning at each stage may get more complex, but the
overall process is the same. Adults also are confronted with information problems in their work
situations and in their personal lives.
People have different styles for completing tasks and solving problems. Exactly how information
problems are resolved depends upon the tasks themselves and one’s own degree of
sophistication, but in almost all cases, the steps taken to solve these problems are very close to
the Big6 approach. Some people are very systematic and like to go in order: 1-2-3. Others are
less systematic. They prefer to follow their instincts. The Big6 does not assume or require that
people go through the process in a fixed, linear way. If a student prefers to just start writing or to
grab a resource and begin reading when given an assignment, that’s fine.
Successful completion of assignments, however, does require completing each of the Big6 steps
at some point in time. Students may not always be aware that they are working on a step—
defining the task, using information, evaluating the result—but if they are successful, they are
doing so.
The bottom line is that the Big6 Skills are useful whenever someone has an information problem
or a decision to make based on information. And that’s most situations!
(2) The Big6 is an adaptable and flexible; it can be applied to any information situation.
The Big6 approach can be used whenever students are in a situation, academic or personal, that
requires information to solve a problem, make a decision, or complete a task. This model is
transferable to school, personal, and work applications, as well as all content areas.
One of the major differences between the Big6 Skills approach and other information skills
models is its broad applicability. In addition to school projects, reports, research papers, and
assignments, the Big6 is also applicable to everyday information problems, needs, and situations.
Examples include deciding what TV show to watch or movie to attend on Saturday night,
selecting a birthday present to buy someone, making stock market or investment decisions, or
considering job or career choices.
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 7
Talking through a typical personal decision-making situation from a Big6 perspective can be fun,
enlightening, and helps students learn the process.
(3) Technology skills take on meaning within the Big6 process.
Technology skills—word processing, multimedia production, web use and creation—should not
be considered or taught as a separate set of learning objectives. Rather, they should be presented
and learned as part of the overall information process. Technology is integral to the information
problem-solving process.
Eisenberg and Johnson (2002) offer a fully integrated view of computer and related technology
skills within the Big Six model. Figure 3 summarizes some of the ways in which students can
make use of various technologies at each stage in the Big Six as identified by Eisenberg and
Johnson.
====================================================================
Figure 3: Technology in a Big6 Context
Big6 Stage
Use of Technology
1. Task Definition
Students use e-mail, listservs, newsgroups, chat,
videoconferencing, and other online communication
methods to clarify assignments and brainstorm
use software to generate timelines, organizational
charts, etc. to plan and organize complex problems.
2. Information Seeking
Students identify and assess computerized
Strategies
resources as they develop information seeking
strategies toward their problem.
3. Location and Access
Students use online catalogs, searchable periodical
indexes, electronic encyclopedias, Web search
engines, and other online searching tools to locate
useful information.
4. Use of Information
Students connect to and access online or locally stored
electronic information sources, view, download, and
decompress files, and use copy-and-paste features
to extract relevant information.
5. Synthesis
Students organize and communicate their results
using word processing, database management,
spreadsheet and graphics software, and distribute their
projects via e-mail, Web publishing, or other media.
6. Evaluation
Students evaluate the impact of the technology they
used, including its effectiveness and efficiency
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 8
=====================================================================
During Task Definition/Defining (Big6 stage #1), students often use e-mail, listservs and
newsgroups to clarify assignments and to brainstorm problems with teachers, fellow students,
and others in their school or in the global online community. Videoconferencing, instant
messaging, net telephone, and text or graphic chats are online communication methods that also
facilitate Task Definition/Defining. During stages #2 and #3 of the Big6 (Information Seeking
Strategies and Location and Access) students identify and assess computerized electronic
resources as they develop strategies to seek useful information for their problem. Students may
rely on online catalogs, searchable indexes of periodicals, electronic encyclopedias, and other
full-text sources. Students also search the World Wide Web using Internet search tools such as
Yahoo, Google, or Alta Vista.
Having identified potential sources, students then “engage and extract” the relevant information
(Big6 stage #4: Use of Information) by connecting to and accessing online or locally stored
electronic information sources; viewing, downloading, and decompressing files as needed; using
copy-and-paste features and word processing software to take notes and record citations; and,
filtering out non-relevant information. To synthesize (Big6 stage #5), students must organize
and present the results. Much of the computer software used in schools and business are
designed to assist with synthesis—e.g., word processing, database management, spreadsheet,
graphics software, multi-media, presentation. Students can also present their projects via e-mail,
web publishing (creating their own pages), and other electronic media. Finally, students
evaluate/assess the process they used and the product they created, including the impact of the
technology they used (Big6 stage #6). And, they can share their evaluations with teachers and
others using the same technologies noted in Big6 stage #1, Task Definition. As you can see, at
each stage, technology can boost the information problem-solving process.
Beyond using technology within the information problem-solving process, we can use the
information problem-solving models to help improve the technology tools themselves. For
example, analyzing the web from a problem-solving perspective provides a framework for
effective web design. Web sites can be vastly improved if staff and students designing sites
consider how end-users will be approaching the overall Web as well as specific sites for
information problem-solving.
(4) Using the Big6 is not always a linear, step-by-step process.
While the Big6 process is usually presented in a stepwise fashion (from task definition through
evaluation), people do not always work in this way. Some students respond by "chunking"
different aspects together and then bringing those chunks into a final solution. The Big6
approach encourages a variety of alternatives while maintaining its fundamental integrity as a
problem-solving strategy. This is accomplished by the concept of "looping." Students are able,
and often encouraged to "loop" back to previous Big6 steps (see Figure 2). For example, students
may find it necessary and appropriate to redefine the task more narrowly, or confirm that they
have all the appropriate information, or that they have accomplished the task as defined. Because
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p. 9
all students do not approach learning in the same way, the Big6 approach recognizes the
fundamental weakness in "lock step" systems for information problem-solving.
It does seems, however, that successful information problem-solving requires successful
completion of each of the Big6 stages at some point in time. However in a given situation,
individuals may jump around, branch off, or loop back. Therefore, the Big6 approach advocates
developing competence in each of the Big6 Skills areas, but not a prescriptive linear application
of the skills.
(5) The Big6 Skills is an ideal curriculum for integrating information literacy instruction
with all subject area curricula at all grade levels.
The skills that are required to successfully solve information problems in science are the same
skills needed in social studies, language arts, art, or any of the other content areas. All students
have information problems to solve, whether it is in a kindergarten lesson about community
helpers, a 7th grade unit which requires students to compare igneous, metamorphic and
sedimentary rocks, or a 12th grade Economics class which requires students to describe the
relationship between the world trade and stock markets. The Big6 is easily adapted to meet the
unique requirements of students at all age and ability levels, and is easily adapted to all
instructional situations. Students benefit from the integrated instruction of Big6 Skills in each of
these curriculum-based information-problems. Additionally, the Big6 Skills are basic and
adaptable. These are fundamental skills that can be used beyond the classroom to solve
information-based problems in real world contexts.
In fact, Eisenberg and Berkowitz (1990, 1999, 2000) emphasize one essential guideline for
implementing information skills instruction—integration with the classroom curriculum. From
experience and research, we know that teaching information skills is most effective when
combined with subject area units, lessons, and assignments. Techniques such as curriculum
mapping (Eisenberg and Berkowitz, 1990), provide a means for teacher-librarians to document
and review classroom curriculum for opportunities to integrate information skills instruction.
Teacher-librarians and classroom teachers can then collaborate on planning integrated units as
well as lessons and exercises to introduce and reinforce specific steps of the models. For
example, the Trash-N-Treasure method of note-taking described by Jansen (2002, 1996) gives
students practice in recognizing and extracting relevant information from information sources.
One would teach Trash-N-Treasure when students are working on an subject area assignment
that requires them to recognize and extract relevant information.
(6) The Big6 Skills provides a broad and top-down structure for information and
technology literacy curriculum.
While information and technology literacy is receiving significant attention across the globe
(e.g., the 21st Century Literacy Summit in Berlin, Germany, March 7-8, 2002
www.21stcenturyliteracy.org sponsored by the AOL Time Warner Foundation and the
Bertelsmann Foundation), many information or technology curricula are little more than laundry
lists of isolated skills. The Big6 Skills approach avoids this. With the Big6, the process is used as
a framework for an entire information and technology skills curriculum. Individual skills can be
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p.
10
developed as part of the appropriate broader skill area skills (e.g., selecting a topic is part of Task
Definition, learning word processing is part of Synthesis, communicating via e-mail facilitates
Evaluation, and considering the accuracy of an information source relates to Information Seeking
Strategies or Use of Information). The scope of the Big6 Skills curriculum includes the entire set
of skills and sub-skills; the sequence is the overall information problem-solving process.
The Big6 Skills can be viewed as the framework for an entire curriculum. From this perspective,
information problem-solving, information skills instruction, information literacy are
synonymous. The notion of an information literacy curriculum outline in six skills and twelve
component skills is appealing. The skills are translated via an integrated model into actions.
These actions comprise the implementation of the scope and sequence of Big6 Skills. Each
school, teacher, or team of teachers can determine the focus of instruction by grade, content area,
or course. Additionally, each school, teacher or team can create their own, unique instructional
units or lessons, or adapt existing units or lessons to focus on one or more of the Big6 Skills.
(7) The Big6 reflects critical thinking as an information problem-solving process.
Inherent to the Big6 approach is its concern with students' cognitive development. Thinking and
reasoning skills are important skills that are central to the Big6 Skills approach. Through its
attention to a process approach, the Big6 Skills:
o helps students learn to ask good questions.
o teaches students to independently organize and assess information.
o teaches creative, higher order thinking processes such as analysis, synthesis and
evaluation.
o allows teachers, library, information, and technology specialists to set challenging
performance.
o provides students with a strategy to logically and systematically solve information
problems and evaluate solutions
Students need to have a dependable strategy for solving information-based problems. Many
students do not. Many students are less successful than they otherwise might be because they do
not have a reliable approach to solve school and non-school related problems. Still other students
may have a system that they use, but they may use it subconsciously, with little thought to its
value. The Big6 approach provides a systematic way for students to make decisions and solve
problems. The process becomes the focus of how students view and engage information-based
problems. Students learn how to recognize when they need the Big6 approach, how to determine
the level of complexity, and how to progress through a patterned series of steps to solve the
information problem effectively and efficiently.
Through proper instruction, using an integrated model, students are introduced to concepts and
tactics that can make them competent information problem-solvers. Teachers are able to help
students learn, review, remediate and provide practice and extension activities from a Big6
perspective. Whether used as a total information problem-solving method, or with a series of
specific skills, this powerful approach provides students with the tools to be successful in school.
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p.
11
Research as well as practice shows that successful problem-solving involves a series of steps or
stages. Of particular note is the work of Carol Kuhlthau (see. Kuhlthau, 1993), whose
investigations uncovered a series of steps that typically occur in successful information
searching. There is a close link between the information search process steps identified by
Kuhlthau and the stages of the Big6 (see Figure 4).
Figure 4: Comparison of Information Models
Kuhlthau
Eisenberg/Berkowitz
Information Seeking
Information Problem-Solving
(The Big6 Skills)
1. Initiation
1. Task Definition
2. Selection
1.1 Define the problem
1.2 Identify info requirements
4. Formulation
(of focus)
3. Exploration
5. Collection
2. Information seeking strategies
2.1 Determine range sources
2.2 Prioritize sources
(investigate
(gather
3. Location & access
information
information
3.1 Locate sources
on the
on the
3.2 Find information
general
focused
topic)
topic)
4. Information use
4.1 Engage (read, view, etc)
4.2 Extract information
5. Synthesis
6. Presentation
5.1 Organize
5.2 Present
7. Assessment
6. Evaluation
(of outcome/
6.1 Judge the product
process)
6.2 Judge the process
=====================================================================
(8) The Big6 process is necessary for solving problems and completing tasks.
Each of the Big6 steps is necessary for success in completing assignments. Some may refer to
these steps in different terms, but successful information problem-solving is a process that
includes each of the Big6 steps. Again, you may not always be aware that you have done a
step—lots of us brainstorm possible sources quickly, and select what we consider to be the best
without really thinking about it carefully—but we are still completing that step. Therefore, one
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p.
12
way we can help kids is to ask them to reflect on the various steps in the process, so we can see
where they might be having difficulty.
Another way to look at this is to work back from unsuccessful situations—not doing well on a
paper or failing a test. If children do not do well, have them think about where they might have
gone astray in terms of the Big6. Did they fully understand the task? Did they gather the
information needed? Were they able to understand the information resource and pull out needed
information? Were they able to express themselves in a clear and meaningful way?
Conclusion
Although the Big6 Skills approach to information problem-solving instruction was specifically
within the American educational context, the flexibility of the Big6 makes it highly adaptable to
a range of educational systems and approaches. Over the past few years, the Big6 has been
translated into a number of languages (see
http://fp3e.adhost.com/big6/enewsletter/languages.shtml).
Regardless of the situation, information problem-solving skills will affect the total outcome of
education. We, as educators, need to understand this trend and speed up the process of
integrating information skills instruction into the educational systems and curriculum of various
countries. The following are some suggestions we would like to make with regard to the
application of the Big6 to improving information literacy in any country.
First of all, by examining the Big6 model, teachers can see the full range of skills that students
will need in coping with the vast amount of information and the increasingly complex social and
political environment. It becomes clear that the traditional model of learning and teaching from
textbooks and repetitive exercises only contributes to two of the Big6 Skills: use of information
and synthesis. What students don't learn in this model are, in encountering a problem situation
on their own, how to analyze the situation and determine the task needed to solve the problem,
what information strategies are suitable, how to locate and access vital information, and how to
evaluate the results of the task. As we set the goal to educate students to become critical and
independent thinkers who will be able to lead, to create, and to succeed, the passive
learning/linear teaching model is no longer sufficient and we need a better framework to assist
students in achieving this goal. The Big6 Skills presents such a valuable and useful framework.
Secondly, the spectrum of the Big6 exposes teachers to a number of skills that may fall outside
of their area of expertise, namely, the information seeking strategies and the implementation of
the strategies. As information sources multiply and diversify at such a fast rate, information
seeking becomes increasingly complex and problematic. The Internet, for example, can be a
valuable teaching tool that provides a wealth of information for both teachers and students.
However, in the current state, it is extremely difficult to keep up with the development of the
Internet, for it lacks standards and organization. Librarians as trained information professionals
have the necessary knowledge and skills to master this incredible information universe. In
realizing the importance of librarians, hopefully, teachers at all levels will work more closely
with librarians, making librarians' expertise complementary to their own in curriculum planning
and implementation.
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p.
13
Thirdly, the Big6 approach may assist teachers and students in fostering an education culture that
acknowledges and values different learning and problem-solving styles. It has long been known
to educators that people have many different learning styles. For example, a holist usually
surveys a whole range of possible information resources before selecting relevant ones. In
contrast, a serialist prefers a sequential approach and uses information resources one or a few at a
time as they are encountered without forming a holistic picture first. Since we all learn more
effectively when applying our own styles, accommodating various styles must be a priority in
education. In learning the Big6, students can find out, with the teacher's help, more about their
own tendencies. Therefore, they may proceed at their own pace and work on their individual
strengths and weaknesses, making learning more effective as well as more enjoyable.
Finally, as pointed out earlier, the adaptability and flexibility of the Big6 makes it easy to be
applied broadly, not just to classroom learning but also to daily problem situations. Teachers
should emphasize this relevance in the curriculum and provide opportunities for students to
apply the Big6 to solving everyday problems. In turn, students will then be able to make the
connection between formal education and their daily life. This kind of education is clearly more
meaningful and more useful than the kind of education that is separate from reality.
References and Suggested Readings
American Association of School Librarians. (1998). Information literacy standards for student
learning. Chicago: American Library Association.
American Association of School Librarians & Association for Educational Communications and
Technology. (1998). Information power: Building partnerships for learning. Chicago:
American Library Association.
American Library Association. (2000). Information literacy community partnerships toolkit.
http://library.austin.cc.tx.us/staff/lnavarro/communitypartnerships/toolkit.html
AOL Time Warner Foundation and the Bertelsmann Foundation. (2002) 21st Century Literacy
Summit, Berlin, Germany, March 7-8, 2002 www.21stcenturyliteracy.org (see white paper).
Association of College and Research Libraries. (2000). Information literacy competency
standards for higher education. Available online: http://www.ala.org/acrl/ilintro.html
Bawden,D. (2001). Information and digital literacies: A review of concepts. Journal of
Documentation, 57 (2), 218-59.
The Big6 in Many Languages. [Online].
http://fp3e.adhost.com/big6/enewsletter/languages.shtml
The Big6 skills information problem-solving approach. [Online]. Available:
http://www.big6.com .
Eisenberg: The Big6 Approach to Information and Technology Literacy ©2003 p.
14
Bruce, C. S. (1997). Seven faces of information literacy. Blackwood, South Australia: Auslib
Press.
Bruce, C. S. (1997). The seven faces of information literacy in higher education. Available
online: http://www2.fit.qut.edu.au/InfoSys/bruce/inflit/faces/faces1.htm
California Media and Library Educators Association Staff. (1993). From library skills to
information literacy: A handbook for the 21st century. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited,
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