A rationale for information literacy as a credit-bearing discipline

Purpose: While the need for comprehensive information literacy in today’s society is becoming increasingly apparent, and initiatives abound within local, regional, national and international educational venues, there is evidence that information literacy within higher education today is failing to meet its dual intentions of becoming credible within the academic community and pervasive within university programs. The goal of this paper is to present a more rigorous approach to information literacy as a credit-bearing discipline. Approach: Following a literature review, the paper will propose an educational rationale for information literacy as a discipline. Practical Implications: If a proper educational rationale can be determined for information literacy, this can become the basis for actual information literacy credit programming within institutions of higher education. Originality/Value: While the idea of information literacy as a liberal art or a discipline is not new, this paper is the most comprehensive attempt to date to provide a rationale for information literacy as a credit-bearing discipline.