BINDURA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION

LIBRARY

INFORMATION SERVICES DEPARTMENT

INFORMATION LITERACY SKILLS TRAINING

Foreword This training module was developed using the American Library Association (ALA) information literacy skills (ILS) standards and the Eastern Cape Higher Education Association (ECHEA) benchmarks on ILS. The course is designed in such a way that the reader would independently learn step by step the necessary skills and knowledge with regards to ILS. It is expected that at the end of the course, the reader would be „information literate‟. By this we mean that after going through all the sections of this course, the reader is expected to:

1. Define his or her information need; 2. Find the needed information; 3. Evaluate the information s/he would have found; 4. Appreciate economic, legal, ethical and social issues surrounding the use of information; and, 5. Effectively communicate the information s/he has.

It must be noted that information literacy skills are not just necessary for academic purposes; the skills are highly necessary for lifelong survival. The course is split into the sections as follows:

Introduction

Unit 1 – defining your information need;

Unit 2 – finding the required information;

Unit 3 – evaluating the information found;

Unit 4 – using information legally and ethically; and,

Unit 5 – communicating information effectively.

Introduction Definition of information literacy There are many definitions of information literacy. Theories have also been developed on this concept. We are going to concentrate on two definitions of information literacy before we move on to highlight the key aspects expected from an information literate individual. The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) defined information literacy as “knowing when and why you need information, where to find it, and how to evaluate, use and communicate it in an ethical manner”. (CILIP 2011). Others defined information literacy as “a new liberal art that extends from knowing how to use computers and access information to critical reflection on the nature of information itself, its technical infrastructure, and its social, cultural and even philosophical context and impact” (Shapiro & Shelley 1996). According to Information literacy competency standards for higher education of the Association of College and Research Libraries (2000), an information literate individual is able to:

Determine the extent of information needed;

Access the needed information effectively and efficiently

Evaluate information and its sources critically;

Incorporate selected information into one‟s knowledge base;

Use information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose; and,

Understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information, and access and use information ethically and legally.

Information literacy in not just important for you to be a competent library user but it is a lifelong skill that everyone ought to have. We are living in an information economy (or knowledge economy) in which information plays a pivotal role. Information literacy skills training is fast becoming a trend in many academic institutions the world over. In some institutions it is conducted on a one-on-one basis while in others it is conducted in groups. In some situations, it is part of the library‟s user orientation programme whereas in others it is done at a later stage during the course of the academic programme. Some libraries, particularly university, college and research libraries have developed intensive training programmes which include an examination at the end. University libraries, in particular, have gone to an extent of incorporating ILS training in the curriculum. Zimbabwean university libraries offer ILS as an examinable component of communication skills, introduction to computers or some other related course offered by the university. At Bindura University of Science Education, ILS is offered as part of Communication Skills, a course done university-wide by all first year undergraduate students. This ILS training shall have five units which are:

Unit 1 – defining your information need;

Unit 2 – finding the required information;

Unit 3 – evaluating the information found;

Unit 4 – using information legally and ethically; and,

Unit 5 – communicating information effectively After going through these five units, one is expected to be an information literate individual. It is also anticipated that such an individual would be in a position to successfully sit for the ILS examination.

To make the learning of the skills easy, some self check activities will be posed intermittently in each unit. In addition to that, each unit shall have a summary of key concepts covered so that the reader can do a self assessment at the end of each unit.

References Association of College and Research Libraries (2000) Information literacy competency standards for higher education. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries. Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals. (2011). Information literacy: definition. [WWW document]. URL http://www.cilip.org.uk/get-involved/advocacy/learning/information-literacy/pages/definition.aspx. 1 June 2011. Shapiro, J.J. & Shelley K.H. (1996). Information Literacy as a Liberal Art. Educom Review, 31, (2) (Mar/Apr).

Unit 1 Defining your information need

Just like in our daily lives where a problem cannot be properly solved unless it is fully understood, the same applies to getting required information; one has to realise that an information need exists prior to looking for information to cater for that need. The first measure that one has to take is to acknowledge that an information need exists. Having done that, the next aspect would be to define that information need. There are a number of reasons one would require information. There are three broad categories why one would need information, viz:

1. Work-related or occupational – some people need information to carry out a task at work. As an example, a human resources officer may need information on contemporary ways of retaining staff following an alarming staff turnover at her organisation.

2. Academic or intellectual – an individual often requires information to write an assignment, prepare for an examination or to write up a research project proposal.

3. Recreational – information can be needed for leisure purposes, for instance, a tourist looking for more information about hotel facilities in a resort town.

Activity Considering that information need vary depending on type of need, i.e. occupational, academic or recreational need, how can this affect the way you would look for the information you want?

The process of defining the information need One cannot just jump into the process of looking for the information, there is need to clearly define the information need. By defining the information need we mean describing what one exactly wants; in other words one should have a clear picture of what s/he really needs. How do I start? A good starting point would be to ask yourself what you already know about the information need. This is helpful because it would be a matter of adding to what you already have in your knowledge base. Besides, past information searches could lead you to what you would be looking for. It is also important to come up with the clear scope of the information need; the depth and breadth of each information need vary and such depth and breadth determine how the information is searched for. In view of this, consider the following:

Is the information you want general or specific?

Is it a statistic that you want?

Is it history?

Is it information that could be influenced by bias? If so will that affect what you expect?

How detailed would you want the information to be? The above questions are important as you develop ways of getting the information you want. You also need to do some general reading about the topic so that you have some knowledge and understanding of it. The general reading also helps you to come up with accurate keywords you would use in executing the search later. The best tools that would help you in getting the best keywords include dictionaries, encyclopaedias and thesauri. These are often available in the reference section of libraries or in electronic formats from websites such as www.oxfordreference.com.

As you read about the topic, write some brief notes and do some brainstorming around the topic. This would help you choose the best keywords to use in searching for the information needed. Brainstorming As you read and think about the topic, write down the key terms you identify. After identifying these terms, think of other terms that would mean the same. These are called „synonyms‟. Synonyms are important because you can then use them to search for what you want in different databases. Different databases use different terms hence the need to brainstorm and write down as many synonyms as possible. Some terms are too broad or general to be used as search terms whilst others are too specific to yield any results. This is where the concept of broader and narrower terms comes to play. Hint: when you get to the point of searching for what you want and you retrieve too many results/hits, consider using narrower terms and when you retrieve very few results, consider using broader terms. Below is an example of some brainstorming that was done: Suppose you would like information on “Human Migration”, after brainstorming on the topic, the following could come out:

Migration

Voluntary migration

Involuntary migration / Forced migration

Slave trade

Human trafficking

Emigration

Immigration

Commuting

Tourism

Pilgrimages

Illegal migration

Job migration

International Organisation for Migration (IOM) The above terms can then be subdivided as follows:

Broader terms Narrower terms Related terms

Migration

Voluntary migration Involuntary migration / Forced migration Emigration Immigration Commuting Illegal migration Job migration International Organisation for Migration (IOM)

Slave trade Human trafficking Tourism Resettlement

The narrower terms can also be broken down into specific disciplines; this would depend on how exhaustive one would want to go.

Activity You have been given an assignment to research on pan-africanism. Can you do some brainstorming on the subject? Come up with broader, narrower and related terms for the concept pan-Africanism.

Spelling variations You should take note of words that have spelling variations as you brainstorm and read about your topic. Some words are spelt differently depending on the language used. For instance, British English and American English have some variations in spellings. Here are some examples:

British English American English

Colour Color

Favourite Favourite

Honour Honor

Analyse Analyze

Criticise Criticize

Centre Center

Theatre Theater

Analogue Analog

Dialogue Dialog

Cheque Check

Defence Defense

Licence License

Jewellery Jewelry

pajamas pyjamas

Tyre Tire

Programme Program

Plough Plow

You should, therefore, take note of the spelling variations that may arise depending on whether the database is using British or American English.

Activity Choose any three words from the examples of spelling variations provided above and go to your library‟s online public access catalogue (OPAC) and try using the words interchangeably for keyword searching. Note down the effects of changing the spellings against the results you get.

Summary This unit covered issues relating to defining an information need and included reasons for searching for information, brainstorming so as to derive keywords and breaking down these keywords into broader, narrower and related terms. Issues relating to spelling variations were also covered.

Unit 2 Finding the required information

Introduction In this unit, we will be looking at three major aspects of finding the required information. The three aspects are:

1. Information searching techniques; 2. Information finding tools; and, 3. Information sources.

Information searching techniques There are various ways by which one can search the libraries‟ online public access catalogues (OPACs), Internet search engines, CD-ROM databases and other online databases. In this section, we will be looking at:

Keyword searching;

Phrase searching;

Boolean logic;

Truncation; and,

Wildcards. Keyword searching Keywords help us retrieve the articles we want. When given a topic, brainstorm and come up with a number of keywords or phrases that you may use to search for the information you want. Ask yourself whether the keyword you would have chosen is the best. For instance, would Agriculture be a better keyword instead of Farming? Also note that different databases use different keywords; be familiar with the keywords used by the databases you use. Phrase searching Instead of using keyword searching, one can use phrase searching so as to retrieve a string of words. An example could be organised crime. For this example, you will be looking for search results where the two words appear either together or separately. When you want the words to appear next to each other, phrase searching would require the phrase to be in quotation marks. In that case, the example above would be entered as “organised crime” or „organised crime‟ depending on the database being used. Boolean logic The Boolean logic enables you to combine, limit or widen the variety of items found using link terms which are AND, OR, and NOT. AND AND narrows the search, for example: Agriculture AND Technology retrieves articles where the two terms appear.

OR OR widens the search, for example: Horticulture OR Botany will retrieve articles containing either of the two terms or both.

NOT This operator restricts the search by excluding some terms from the search for example: Road transport NOT Rail transport retrieves articles containing the former term but do not contain the latter.

Activity Go to http://www.google.com and execute a search using the Boolean operators AND, OR and NOT. What is the effect of each operator on results retrieved?

Truncation (*) Truncation uses word stems to retrieve several words or phrases. As an example, Librar* retrieves articles containing the following:

Librarian Librarians Librarianship Libraries Library Library schools Library science

Agriculture

Agriculture AND

Technology Technology

Horticulture Botany

Road

Transport

Rail

Transport

Wildcard (?) Wildcard is used to retrieve articles using different spellings (usually British and/or American spellings). Examples:

Neighbo?r for Neighbor and Neighbour Colo?r for Color and Colour.

Information finding tools We will focus on three information finding tools which are:

Online public access catalogue (OPAC),

The Internet; and,

Research databases. Online public access catalogue (OPAC) An online public access catalogue (OPAC) is an electronic database of titles a library has in stock. The titles include books, journals, compact disks and any other sources of information the library has in its collection. Before getting to the libraries shelves, for instance, it is advisable to check what the library has in stock by consulting its catalogue. The catalogue guides a library patron to the library‟s holdings. There are three main ways of searching for a library‟s holdings on the OPAC. These are:

Author

Subject

Title The author is the creator of the information source. An information source may have two or more authors. Some titles also have editors. These can be used for searching whatever information source one wants (as long as the author(s) or editor(s) is/are known. The subject refers to some form of controlled keyword. Librarians do not just assign keywords to cover certain disciplines; they use some form of agreed and standardised keywords or phrases which are known as subjects or subject headings. Each information source has got a title and that title may be used to locate the information source using the OPAC. We now turn to some examples. We are going to use the example of the Bindura University of Science (BUSE) Education Libraries OPAC. The OPAC for BUSE libraries is Internet- or web-based hence it may at times be referred to as a WebOPAC. Getting access to BUSE OPAC Step 1 Go to the BUSE home page available at http://www.buse.ac.zw. Here is how the page looks like:

Step 2 Click on the Library link to be directed to the Library‟s web pages.

Step 3 Here is a screenshot of the BUSE Library home page.

You then click on the link titled „Library Catalogue‟. This will take you to the BUSE WebOPAC shown in Step 4 below.

Step 4 On clicking the titled „Library Catalogue‟ link, the BUSE Web OPAC page appears. Below is the screenshot of the home page of the BUSE WebOPAC:

Suppose we know the author of the book we would like to search for, here are the steps.

Searching for an item in the Library Step 1

a) Type the author‟s surname in the search box. b) Narrow down the search by clicking on the icon for “AUTHOR” to indicate that you are

searching for an information source through the author‟s name. In the example provided we will use the author Pete Giacoma.

Author‟s surname NB: search is limited to an „Author search‟ Click on „Search‟ to execute search

Step 2

After retrieving the brief results, click on „Details‟ to get the bibliographic details of the item. This would take you to more information on where the book is available. If it is on loan, you get details on when it will be returned to the library. Here are the details for the book by Pete Giacoma we are looking at:

Activity Using the demonstration provided above, go to the library and search for the following:

a) Books written by Yvonne Vera b) A book entitled Historical dictionary of Zimbabwe c) Books on agricultural economics.

The above process can be done when searching for information sources by subject and title. You can also open up the search and conduct a general search by opting for searching „Anywhere‟. An „anywhere‟ search, then, will not be restricted to the author, subject or title field. The Internet The Internet provides access to billions of information sources available the world over. The information could be in the form of text, audio, video, etc. Books, journals, reports and so on are available on the Internet. More details on the Internet shall be dealt with in the Information Sources section later in this unit. Research databases A research database is a standardised collection of information on a given subject discipline or a number of disciplines. The databases could include book chapters, indexes of journal articles, theses and dissertations. In formation searching techniques earlier discussed are often used to search these research databases. Some research databases are accessible free of charge whilst others are accessible upon payment of a subscription fee. Examples of research databases include Google Scholar, Scirus, Scopus, Oxford Journals Online, Emerald Insight and Academic Search Premier. There different types of research databases as described below:

Type Description

Bibliographic databases These provide citation details of the full text articles in journals, newspapers, etc

Full text databases Such databases provide full text access to the articles. Examples include Oxford Journals Online and Sage Journals. The full text articles could be in varying formats that include portable document format (pdf) and hypertext mark-up language (html) format.

Numeric databases Numeric databases provide numerical data such as statistics.

Hybrid databases Hybrid databases provide a blend of records that include abstracts or full text or both.

Information sources Information sources can be said to be primary, secondary or tertiary. The category in which information sources belong is based upon originality of the information and its proximity to the source or event it records. Primary sources are at times referred to as grey literature and as Saunders (2003) put it, they „are the first occurrence of a piece of work‟. Examples of primary sources of information include autobiographies, diaries, patents, interviews and surveys, newspaper articles written at the time of the incident, photographs, music and art work, law reports, and parliamentary papers and debates. Such

sources of information have the major advantage of providing first hand and in depth information. They may also be helpful in identifying other sources of information to consult. Secondary sources analyse, interpret and comment on primary information. Other examples of such sources include biographies, newspaper articles offering commentary or opinions and literature reviews. Tertiary sources of information. These are used to identify and locate primary and secondary sources of information. Others prefer to call them reference sources or search tools. We are now going to look at various sources of information which fall into the categories stated above. Dictionaries A dictionary contains an alphabetically arranged list of words and their meanings. Dictionaries fall into the category of tertiary or reference sources. These are available in the reference collection of a library. There are various types of dictionaries as shown below:

Type of dictionary Examples

Language dictionary Oxford English dictionary, English-Shona Dictionary, Dictionary of contemporary slang

Subject dictionary The Concise Oxford dictionary of botany, A Dictionary of philosophy

Biographical dictionary (a dictionary providing an account of people‟s lives

An African biographical dictionary, The Australian dictionary of biography

NB: please note that dictionaries can be available print or electronically on CDs and on the Internet. Dictionaries available on the Internet are often referred to as „online dictionaries‟. Examples of online dictionaries include The Australian dictionary of biography online and Cambridge dictionary online. Encyclopaedias An encyclopaedia is a book containing articles of different topics. The topics are often arranged alphabetically. Encyclopaedias can be broad and general or subject specific. One encyclopaedia can be a set of several volumes of books. Encyclopaedias are reference sources of information. Here are some examples of encyclopaedias:

Type of encyclopaedia Examples

General encyclopaedia The Cambridge encyclopedia

Subject encyclopaedia The social science encyclopedia, Philosophy of education : an encyclopedia

Atlases An atlas is a book containing maps. It may, however, contain related information in the form of charts, tables and statistics. It provides information on places or locations and populations. Atlases may be general or subject specific as some deal with history, religion, language, the human body, etc. Atlases belong to the category of reference sources of information. Examples of atlases include Harare street atlas, Philip's atlas of the world and World atlas of desertification. Almanacs Almanacs are books containing factual information of various subjects such as population statistics, politics, sports, etc. These are often published annually. Examples include The world almanac and book of facts.

Yearbooks Yearbooks often contain general information and in some cases they may accompany encyclopaedias. Yearbooks provide information on historic events that took place during the year, political events, etc. A good example is The Europa world yearbook. Books Books, which are sometimes referred to as monographs, are usually written to serve a specific audience. They are usually of an academic nature and have a broader scope as compared to journals. Some books are now available electronically whereas others have learning support material available via the Internet. This is usually meant to cater for the changes that take place after the book has been published. Some important sections of a book Let‟s have look at some sections of a book that are of importance. The cover – the cover wraps a book and protects it. The cover could be a hardback or paperback. Some hardbacks may then have a book jacket or dust jacket. Title page – this page provides details such as the title and sub-title, the author(s) and/or editor(s), the publisher and in some cases the date of publication and series title. You should then critically look at the title to determine whether it reflect what you will be looking for. However, some titles are misleading. You must, therefore refer to other sections of the book such as the contents page to get more details. Imprint page – is also referred to as the verso page. This page provides information about editions and reprints, copyright notices, and other details that would have been left out on the title page. The imprint page is of good use especially with regards to the currency of the book. The date of publication may be verified on this page. Contents page – provides the outline of the book include the pages where the information is available. The contents page provides an excellent overview of the usefulness of a book. The contents page is helpful not only for pointing on the specific location (pages) where to get the required information but also for the detailed information on what the book has. Index – an index is located at the back of a book and it provides an alphabetical list of people, organisations, topics and sub-topics that were covered in the book. The index also refers the reader to the specific page where s/he would the indexed entry. If you have got some keywords already, the index becomes a very useful tool – you can look up your keywords in the index and go to the specific pages where the information is.

Find on book and identify the important parts of a book that have been described above. Suggest how each of these sections would be of good use to the reader.

Electronic books Books are more and more becoming available in electronic format on CDs, localised databases and on the Internet. Google Books provides access to some electronic books. Another Internet-based source of electronic books is the Ebrary. Periodicals/journals Journals are sometimes referred to as periodicals. These are printed on a regular basis that is why others would also call them serials (but not all serials are journals!). Most of them are available in print

form but recent developments have seen many of them being available electronically. Some table of contents and abstracts for journals are available on the Internet with those subscribing gaining full text access. It is highly recommended that you use refereed academic journals that are peer- reviewed prior to

publication. These contain scholarly and scientific information. Bear in mind that not all journals are

refereed and some journals belong to some professional bodies and may therefore be biased.

Examples of journals include the Journal of Engineering Education, American Educational Research

Journal, Sociology of Education, MIS Quarterly, Reading Research Quarterly, Southern Africa Journal

of Science Education and Technology (SAJEST), Zimbabwe Journal of Educational Research (ZJER),

Organization Science and Strategic Management Journal.

We now take a step-by-step approach to getting information from electronic journals. Step 1 Go to the BUSE home page available at http://www.buse.ac.zw. Here is how the page looks like:

Step 2 Click on the Library link to be directed to the Library‟s web pages.

Step 3 Clicking on the „Library‟ link takes you to library home that looks like the screenshot shown below.

Click on the link titled „Electronic Resources‟. The link takes you to the list of electronic databases the library has access to as shown in Step 4.

Step 4 You then select the databases of your choice, click on the link and you will be taken to its website. In this example, Sage Journals Online was chosen as highlighted.

Step 5 You need to log on to the website of the database you want. In this example we will be using Sage Journals Online available at http://online.sage.com. After logging in, the website must recognise you as a „visitor‟ from Bindura University of Science Education. This only applies for electronic databases that provide access by Internet protocol (IP) recognition. Some (like AGORA, HINARI & OARE) are accessible through password login whereas others (like DOAJ are on open access)

Step 6 Once logged in (whether by on IP-based / password-based or open access databases), you must then enter your search term. The search term could be a keyword, a phrase, an author‟s name etc. In our example provided below, the search term is „citizenship education‟. You then click on „Go‟ execute the search.

NB: There are several other options on how to get to the full-text articles including browsing the journal‟s list from where you would then select a journal title of interest, select a volume, then issue, until you finally reach a full-text article of desired interest. Once logged on to a database, the links available usually help you to navigate through until you get what you need.

Step 7 After executing a search, some search results or hits come out. The results are often ranked by relevancy. There may be options to also rank the results by date, author, etc. You then go through the results list and click on the respective links to get to the full-text articles. Some articles are available in HTML (hypertext mark-up language) format, which appears like an ordinary Internet webpage or in PDF (portable document format) in which you would require Adobe Acrobat Reader to read the article. In our example, below, the full-text article is in PDF.

Step 8 The author chose the article by Aaron T. Sigauke entitled Citizenship and citizenship education: a critical discourse analysis of the Zimbabwe Presidential Commission Report. Below are the details: Article title Author Bibliographic details

Link to full-text article in PDF

Step 9 After clicking on the link to the full-text article, the full-text article is retrieved as shown below.

Here are the bibliographic details of the article on the first page of the full-text article.

Step 10 You can then read the full-text article online if you want. There are options to print, save and at times email the article as shown by the icons below. Print Save Email

As shown in the screenshot above, many electronic journals publishers provide an abstract of the full-text article for the readers.

Newspapers Newspapers play a pivotal role in providing information on current and topical events. Some newspapers are published daily, others weekly. They also provide some detailed information on current developments and reports on special issues. Many are now available online. However, it must be borne in mind that newspaper articles are not peer-reviewed (even if they go under some editorial process). Therefore, such articles cannot be equated to journal articles.

Activity Go to http://www.emeraldinsight.com Search for articles on Zimbabwe. From the articles you retrieved identify the oldest and latest articles.

Below is a list of some newspapers published in Zimbabwe and their Internet addresses:

Newspaper Website Address

The Herald www.herald.co.zw

The Sunday Mail www.sundaymail.co.zw

The Standard www.thestandard.co.zw

The Independent www.theindependent.co.zw

The Financial Gazette www.financialgazette.co.zw

Newsday www.newsday.co.zw

Daily News www.dailynews.co.zw

Internet The Internet is a worldwide, publicly accessible series of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol (IP). It is a "network of networks" that consists of millions of smaller domestic, academic, business, and government networks, which together carry various information and services, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked Web pages and other resources of the World Wide Web (Wikipedia, 2008). The Internet and the World Wide Web are not one and the same. The Internet is a collection of interconnected computer networks, linked by copper wires, fiber-optic cables, wireless connections, etc. In contrast, the Web is a collection of interconnected documents and other resources, linked by hyperlinks and uniform resource locators (URLs). The World Wide Web is one of the services accessible via the Internet, along with various others including e-mail, file sharing, online gaming and others (Wikipedia, 2008). According to Bradley (1995), the Internet took off as a project named ARPAnet that was meant to network scientists and researchers from the government, military and universities in the United States. The network continued to grow with more organisations joining. As Bradley states, the Internet grew much rapidly in the 1990‟s and this saw the number of Internet users rise to between 20 million and 30 million in 1994. Features and Functions of the Internet Unlike the misconception that many people have that the Internet and the World Wide Web are synonyms; the Internet is comprised of a number of features and functions that include the World Wide Web. Below are some of the widely used ones: Electronic Mail Electronic mail is one of the widely used functions of the Internet. It is affectionately known as „email‟. Email is a function that is used to deliver messages anywhere on the Internet or other networks with an Internet connection (Bradley 1995). Usenet Usenet is short for „user network‟. It is a network of newsgroups or bulletin boards accessible via the Internet and at times on other networks (Bradley 1995). On a newsnet, people participating share views and discuss on topics of interest. Others call such Usenet newsgroups discussion forums. Mailing Lists Mailing lists are almost similar to Usenet newsgroups. However, for mailing lists one has to subscribe to get access to the messages. The messages are sent directly to one‟s email account.

Telnet This is a remote login facility for users who are connected to the Internet or are on a network. Telnet allows one to login a remote computer and execute some commands as if one is using the actual host machine (Bradley 1995). Ftp As Bradley (1995) puts it, ftp stands for file transfer protocol. Ftp is a method that can be used to transfer files from one computer to another on the Internet and other networks. Anonymous ftp Using the ftp protocol, one can login to a remote computer so that s/he can transfer some files. With this function, one can have access to files in various formats such as text and audio. Archie Archie is a method of finding files on the Internet for anonymous ftp (Bradley 1995). Gopher Gopher is described as „a method of accessing the Internet using menus‟ (Bradley 1995). Veronica Veronica is short for „very easy rodent- oriented net-wide index to computerised archives‟. Veronica is a tool used to search gopher menus on the Internet (Bradley 1995). The World Wide Web The World Wide Web allows one to search information using hyperlinks and it is the most used component of the Internet. Internet Relay Chat This is „real time‟ chat facility available through the Internet. Using this facility, people can converse over the Internet real time. Note: our major concern when undergoing information literacy skills training is using the Internet to access information resources.

Activity Of the features and functions of the Internet discussed above, which one if popularly used at your university? Why is that so?

Basic Internet Explorer Icons We are going to look at some of the basic Internet Explorer icons that are useful as you navigate on the Internet.

Icon Icon Image Description

Back Button

Clicking the back button will take you back to page you were previously viewing.

Forward Button

This button will take you forward to the next document if you have previously browsed several pages and had then backed-up to the page you are currently viewing.

Stop Button

The button halts current operations by the web browser.

Refresh Button

This button will reload the current document that you are viewing. It is recommended to use it whenever a page fails to load.

Home Button

This button will take you to the page you have selected as the default start-up page for Internet Explorer.

Favourites Button

By clicking the button you will open the Favourites menu. Favourites are pages you are interested in and may wish to visit later. You can add pages of interest to the favourites menu.

Getting information on the Internet You need to locate information available on the Internet. There are tools for that; below is a liof some of them:

Search engines

Meta search engines

Subject directories How do search engines work? Search engines allow you to look for Web pages containing some words or phrases from an automated search index. Words appearing in Web pages are indexed by the search engines. The search engines use software called a crawler, spider or robot to do the searching. Most of the search engines do not, however, index common words such as “a, and, in, to, the” (Schwartz 2005). Recommended Search Engines The author would like to recommend the following search engines:

1. Google; 2. Ask.com; and, 3. Yahoo! Search.

However, it must be noted that some more search engines are emerging and the strength of the search continues to change from time to time. It is advisable to keep on checking on the strengths of each search engine from time to time.

Explore two of the search engines you know. How do they differ? Which one do you prefer and why?

Meta-Search Engines Meta-search engines transmit your search query simultaneously to several individual search engines and their databases available on the World Wide Web. Results presented are retrieved from all the search engines queried. Meta-search engines simply query search engines and their databases and give you the results. Examples of meta-search engines that one may consult include the following:

1. www.dogpile.com; 2. www.surfwax.com; 3. www.clusty.com; and, 4. www.copernic.com.

The advantage of using meta-search engines is that one can simultaneously conduct a search and get results from a number of search engines over a short time. This is helpful if one has limited time. However, the results retrieved might be too many for the searcher to have time to browse through and decide on the best hits to take. Directories Whereas a search engine allows you to search the Web using words and phrases, a web directory is more of a subject index, a library‟s indexed catalogue or a book index. The index for a web directory is determined by a human being (Schwartz 2005). Some of the most used web directories include the following:

1. Librarians‟ Internet Index available at: www.lii.org; 2. Infomine available at: infomine.ucr.edu; 3. About.com available at: www.about.com; 4. Google Directory available at: directory.google.com; and, 5. Yahoo! available at: dir.yahoo.com

Grey literature All literature that is not accessible through the normal book selling channel is referred to as grey literature. Grey literature includes, but is not limited to, trade literature, reports, technical notes, brochures, pamphlets and ad hoc publications. Grey literature can be a good source of current information that may not be available through the usual publishing channel. Broadcast media Broadcast media refers to communication means like television, radio, newspapers, magazines and other materials supplied by the media and press. Latest information, such as speeches, documentaries, interviews, financial markets is available through broadcast media. Spot FM, Radio Zimbabwe and National FM are among some of the Zimbabwe‟s radio stations where one can tune in to get latest information. Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation also cast television programmes such news bulletins such as Good Morning Zimbabwe, Lunch Time News, Nhau, Indaba and News Hour. Conference papers and proceedings/reports A conference is a large official meeting where participants having the same interests come together to discuss their views on a subject(s). Conference papers and proceedings offer valuable information that is often up to date such as research and its findings by specialists in a given discipline. Examples of conferences whose proceedings may provide valuable information include the Agricultural and Biotechnology International Conference, International Conference on Science in Society, Distance Education & Teacher Education in Africa, International Conference on Biomedical Engineering and

Biotechnology, Symposium on Environmental Management, Annual International Conference on Qualitative and Quantitative Economics Research, The International Society for the Social Studies Annual Conference and the International Conference on Distance Learning and Education. Government publications Materials published by government are called government publications. These include acts or statutes, law reports, government gazettes, commission reports and parliamentary debates. Government publications are good in that some are up to date, informative and at times are the only sources of information on a subject area. Here are some examples of government publications:

Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act.

Baseline study on the status of human capital development and training institutions in Zimbabwe: baseline data and statistical information.

Census 2002: National report. Standards A standard is an established (or ratified) norm or requirement about technical systems, practices, or operations. They may be national or international and some are governed (and/or recognised) by professional, trade and industrial organisations. In Zimbabwe we have some standards from the Standards Association of Zimbabwe whilst the International Standards Organisations (ISO) has a lot of international standards. As an example, ISO standard 3929:2003 specifies methods for the direct measurement of the concentration of exhaust gas emissions from road vehicles during inspection or maintenance. Archives An archive is a collection of records, often historical; a place where such records are kept is also called an archive. Archives are useful sources of research information especially history. In Zimbabwe, the National Archives of Zimbabwe is responsible for collecting, managing and providing access to archives at national level. Quite a number of organisations (both public and private) may have their own archives too.

Activity Go to your library or to the Internet and identify the following: a pamphlet, a conference report, an act of parliament and a standard. Are these important for your researches? In what way?

Summary Unit covered a number of aspects with regards to getting the required information. In short the unit covered the following three broad areas which are information searching techniques, information finding tools and information sources. References Bradley, JC (1995) A quick guide to the Internet. Elmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing.

Schwartz, L (2005) A+ research and writing for high school and college students [WWW document] URL http://ipl.org/div/teen/aplus/internet.htm. 7 July 2010. The Wikipedia (2008) [WWW document] URL http://en.wikipedia.org/woki/Internet. 16 April 2008.

Unit 3 Evaluating the information found

After conducting a search, you may find lots of information. You do not necessarily need to use all the information you retrieve. You need to consider whether the information you have retrieved is suitable for your information need. Evaluation is meant to assess whether information accessed meets the needs of the reader or is able to help the reader to accomplish a task s/he has. Information must be of high quality besides meeting one‟s needs. This Unit is aimed at equipping you with some skills to evaluate information sources you would have managed to access. The following factors must be considered when evaluating information sources:

1. Relevance and scope; 2. Reliability and validity; 3. Authority; 4. Bias; 5. Currency; and, 6. Accuracy.

Relevance Relevant information is needed so as to complete a task properly, for example answering an assignment question. The following should be considered when one is assessing the relevance of an information source, be it a book, website or an article in a journal:

Recurrence of your keyword in the abstract or the article itself;

Depth of information;

References- usually these are expected to complement knowledge you have already;

Language- the language used reveals who is the intended audience of the information. The more technical or complicated the language is, then the more distant the information is from being referred to by anyone apart from experts searching for detailed information on the subject.

Reliability and Validity The best way to ascertain whether an information source is reliable is by checking its editorial control. If an information source goes through editorial control or peer-reviewing then its reliability is higher. Information sources that do not go through editorial control are prone to have a lot of errors such as grammar and spellings. It is, therefore, advisable to look for information that has gone through some editorial control. In this case, articles published in peer-reviewed journals would be ideal. Publishers such as Cambridge, Oxford, Taylor and Francis, Elsevier and Blackwells have their journal articles peer- reviewed by subject experts. Refereed journals have higher levels of accuracy and reliability since they seek to produce authoritative information. Authority It is important to know who the author of a book, article or website is. In varying situations, the author could be an individual, a group or an organisation. Information sources with anonymous authors carry less weight than those whose authors are known. Knowledge of the author of an information source is also useful in determining the authenticity of the information source. The author‟s biography on the information source e.g. in the preface or „about the author‟ section is important. A website might have a section entitled „about us‟ or „about this site‟; such information is key to determining the authoritativeness of an information source. Be wary of information sources without authors ascribed to them.

Bias A bias is “a predisposition or prejudice” (Pearsall & Trumble 1995). Assess whether the information source is a marketing tool, has some political motives behind it or is merely advocating for a cause. Therefore, when evaluating the bias of an information source, it is ideal to consider why the information was produced (whether for objective reasons or not), the depth and breadth of the information (some information is just sketchy), and the language used (some information shows lack of in-depth knowledge about the subject discipline being dealt with). Information should be sufficient to cater for your needs. Verify whether the information is factual, an opinion or mere propaganda. Currency Depending on your research requirements, some researches require up to date information. Furthermore, some information is useful regardless of publication date, for example information on a historic event. The date of publication can be verified on the preliminary pages of printed sources such as books and journals. It is, however, different with online information sources such as websites. Websites have got a section (usually the bottom of the web page) indicating when the website or specific web page was last updated. With websites, you have to be careful with the „last updated‟ note because in some circumstances the owners of the website simply change the update this section alone without updating the rest of the content. Accuracy To verify the accuracy an information source, the following must be considered:

Check whether calculations, if any, were done properly and error-free;

Check whether there are no typing and grammatical mistakes;

Check whether the author(s) cite(s) other renowned or reputable authorities (and are cited correctly without falsehoods);

Check whether there are others who quote the source (this can be verified search engines such as Google);

Check whether information was properly presented and easy to comprehend.

Activity For the last assignment you wrote, take one information source you cited and evaluate it in terms of the following:

a) Relevance and scope; b) Reliability and validity; c) Authority; d) Bias; e) Currency; and, f) Accuracy.

Summary This brief unit looked at six key aspects that an information user has to consider when evaluating information. These are:

1. Relevance and scope; 2. Reliability and validity; 3. Authority; 4. Bias; 5. Currency; and, 6. Accuracy.

References Pearsall, J & Trumble, B (1995) The Oxford reference dictionary, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Saunders, M, Lewis, P & Thornhill A (2003) Research methods for business students. (3rd ed). Patparganj, Delhi: Pearson Education,.

Unit 4 Using information legally and ethically

When you have obtained the information that you want, you do not just use it. An information literate individual does not only have the skills to search and retrieve information. Information literacy goes beyond that; an information literate individual is one who is also able to communicate ethically the information s/he would have gathered. This implies that an information literate individual understands and respects intellectual property (including copyright) and is able to avoid plagiarism. There are some legal and ethical obligations that you need to take note of. Intellectual Property Intellectual property refers to „property that is the result of creativity and does not exist in a tangible form, such as patents, copyright, trademarks, etc‟ (Pearsall & Trumble 1995). Copyright Copyright is „the exclusive legal right, given to the originator or his or her assignee for a fixed number of years, to print, publish, perform, film, or record literary, artistic, or musical material and to authorise others to do the same‟ (Pearsall & Trumble 1995). The copyright notice © reminds users that the work is protected and in most cases the copyright owner is indicated immediately after the copyright sign, for example: © Bindura University 2008. Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act In Zimbabwe, the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act [Chapter 25:01] of 2000 governs the use of certain forms of intellectual property including:

1. Literary works- e.g. Journal articles, computer programs, poems, song lyrics, novels, tables of statistics;

2. Dramatic works- e.g. Plays, film scripts, choreography; 3. Musical works- e.g. Compositions; 4. Artistic works- e.g. Paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs, architectural models; 5. Sound recordings and films; and, 6. Television and radio broadcasts.

Some may then wonder whether any copyrighted information can be used. Yes, it can be used as long as that is done properly and fairly (fair dealing). Fair Dealing „Fair deal‟ simply means fair treatment (Pearsall & Trumble 1995). As someone using other people‟s ideas and creation, it would be fair to acknowledge them and use their intellectual property in a manner

that would not deprive them of their rights and potential benefits. Fair dealing covers the following: 1. Using information for research or private study as long as there is no commercial gain; and, 2. Criticism and/or review of the information.

More details on what fair dealing is are obtainable from the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act [Chapter 25:01] of 2000. Plagiarism To plagiarise is to take and use (the thoughts, writings, inventions, etc of another person) as one‟s own (Pearsall and Trumble 1995). Plagiarising may be avoided by citing all works that you use in your assignments, reports, etc. You will be accused of plagiarism if you fail to cite other people‟s ideas or if you cite incorrectly.

In summary, plagiarism is: 1. Copying other people‟s ideas and using them as if it they are your own; 2. Using other people‟s ideas in your own your work without acknowledging; and, 3. Claiming that other people‟s ideas are your own;

However, quoting or acknowledging other people‟s ideas and discussing them do not constitute plagiarism. Penalties for plagiarising

1. Failing your assignment / course 2. University disciplinary action (which could be expulsion from the university); and, 3. Lawsuit i.e. legal action being taken against you by the copyright owner.

Activity Go to http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text.jsp?file_id=214697 or visit your library and get a copy of the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act. What does the act say on the issue of photocopying an entire book? Does that reflect fair dealing?

Referencing/Citation Referencing is a standard way of acknowledging the information sources you have used. The information you would have used may be some facts, figures, ideas or words. Referencing is important in that:

1. It shows respect shows your respect of intellectual property; 2. It helps you (and the reader as well) to make a follow up on the source you would have

consulted; 3. Where the reader refutes or doubts your facts, he or she can verify them with the original

source of information; 4. It adds authority to what you are presenting. In other words, referencing makes your writing

more persuasive; and, 5. It is an academic practice of showing gratitude to the author.

Citation Styles Saunders (2003) stressed the importance of citing, particularly the fact that it gives credit to authors. He also added that the citation must be consistent and complete for readers to easily follow up on cited information sources. There are several citation styles in use, below are some of them:

1. American Psychological Association (APA) style; 2. Harvard style; 3. Modern Languages Association style; and, 4. Numeric style;

Check with your faculty or department on which of these or any other style they use. In this module we are going to concentrate on the APA and Harvard styles. In-text referencing As you write, you may quote some authors. You can quote directly or paraphrase. We are going to have some examples of direct quotations and paraphrasing using the APA and Harvard styles. When acknowledging an information source within the text, you should include the following:

1. Name of author; 2. Date of publication; and, 3. Page number(s).

The above details would be presented as follows:

Mangena (2010, p.56) for APA style.

Mangena (2010:56) for Harvard style. The other details about the information source are obtained from the end of text reference or bibliography. Direct quotations

APA Style Harvard Style

Mangena (2010, p.56) is of the opinion that agricultural policies must be developed in direct consultation with farmers....

Mangena (2010:56) is of the opinion that agricultural policies must be developed in direct consultation with farmers....

Paraphrasing

APA Style Harvard Style

“Agricultural policies seriously impact on farmers‟ performance. In view of that, policies ought to be developed with direct consultation with the farmers” Mangena (2010, p.56).

“Agricultural policies seriously impact on farmers‟ performance. In view of that, policies ought to be developed with direct consultation with the farmers” Mangena (2010:56).

End of text reference or bibliography One thing you should bear in mind is that the in-text and end-of-text references must match; it is unacceptable to find an in-text reference missing on the end-of-text reference list and vice versa! Let‟s now look at how various information sources can be cited in the bibliography. Article from a journal that has a volume number and issue number

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume of journal, (number of issue), page reference, date of issue. Example: Tsuro, D., & Pasteur, H. (2011). The human factor. Journal of Management and Culture, 5, (3), 70-86.

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume of journal (number of issue):page reference, date of issue. Example: TSURO, D., & PASTEUR, H. 2011. The human factor. Journal of Management and Culture, 5(3): 70-86

Article from a journal that has a seasonal date

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume or number of issue, page reference, Season. Example: Huni, T. (1986). Overcoming hunger in stressful moments. Journal of Human Survival, 9, 44-45, Winter.

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume or number of issue: page reference, Season. Example: HUNI, T. 1986. Overcoming hunger in stressful moments. Journal of Human Survival, 9:44-45, Winter.

Article from a magazine

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume or number of issue, page reference. Example: Gutu, M. (2004, May 3). Count down to a new era. Seasons, 175, 183-188.

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume or number of issue: page reference. Example: GUTU, M. 2004. Count down to a new era. Seasons, 175:183-188, May 3.

Article from a newspaper whose author (reporter) is known

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of newspaper, page reference, Month and day. Example: Edwards, D. (2000, April 1). Cultivating a culture of conserving nature. Nature Unlimited, p.3.

Author. Date. Title of article. Title of newspaper: page reference, Month and day. Example: EDWARDS, D. 2000. Cultivating a culture of conserving nature. Nature Unlimited: 3, April 1.

Article from a newspaper whose author (reporter) is not known (anonymous)

APA Style Harvard Style

Title of article. Date. Title of newspaper, page reference, Month and day. Example: New ways of water harvesting unveiled. (2011, March 16). The Daily Tribune, p. 2.

Title of article. Date. Title of newspaper: page reference, Month and day. Example: New ways of water harvesting unveiled. 2011. The Daily Tribune: 2. March 16.

Book – corporate author

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: Farm Orphan Support Trust. (2010). Agriculture simplified for you. Harare: FOST.

Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: Farm Orphan Support Trust. (2010). Agriculture simplified for you. Harare: FOST.

Book – single author

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. (Date). Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: Choto, Adrian. (1998). Chimurenga story retold. Bindura: Bindura Printing Press.

Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: CHOTO, Adrian. 1998. Chimurenga story retold. Bindura: Bindura Printing Press.

Book – multiple authors

APA Style Harvard Style

Authors. (Date). Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: Garwe, B., Matora, E., Mafuwa, J.D. & Huruva, H. (2005). The tenets of moral philosophy. Gweru: Mutapa Press.

Authors. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: GARWE, B., MATORA, E., MAFUWA, J.D. & HURUVA, H. 2005. The tenets of moral philosophy. Gweru: Mutapa Press.

Book – no author

APA Style Harvard Style

Title: subtitle. (Date). Place: Publisher. Example: History of the town of Bindura. (2011). Harare: Fast Publishing.

Title. Date. Place: Publisher. Example: History of the town of Bindura. 2011. Harare: Fast Publishing.

Book – chapter from a book with different contributors

APA Style Harvard Style

Authors. (Date). Title: subtitle of the chapter. In Editors of book (eds.), Title of book. (Page number). Place: Publisher Example: Hammond, A. (2009). Peace-building at village level. In R. Michaels & P. Moyo (Eds.), Peace-building in Southern Africa (p. 17-36). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Authors. Date. Title: subtitle of the chapter. (In Editors of book (eds.), Title of book. Place: Publisher. Page references.) Example: HAMMOND, A. 2009. Peace-building at village level. (In Michaels I. & Moyo, P. (eds.), Peace-building in Southern Africa. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. p. 17-36.)

Book – edition other than the first

APA Style Harvard Style

Authors. Date. Title: subtitle. Edition. Place: Publisher. Example: Hart, C. (2011). Artistic impressions: The works of selected artists in Zimbabwe (2nd ed.). Bulawayo: Press Club.

Authors. Date. Title: subtitle. Edition. Place: Publisher. Example: HART, C. 2011. Artistic impressions: The works of selected artists in Zimbabwe. 2nd ed. Bulawayo: Press Club.

Book – editors (or compilers)

APA Style Harvard Style

Authors. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher Example: Hove, T., & Thames, G., (Eds.). (2008). Small scale agriculture in the lowveld. Masvingo: Great Zimbabwe University.

Authors. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: HOVE, T. & THAMES, G. (eds). 2008. Small scale agriculture in the lowveld. Masvingo: Great Zimbabwe University.

Book review – author of review indicated

APA Style Harvard Style

Author of the review. Date. Title of the book being reviewed, Author of book. Reviewed in: Title of journal review is published in, volume:page reference, Date of issue. Example: Paulos, W. 2009. Unfinished business, by Peter Howe. Reviewed in: Business day, 56:14, July 18.

Author of the review. Date. Title of the book being reviewed, Author of book. Reviewed in: Title of journal review is published in, Issue:Page reference, Date of issue. Example: PAULOS, W. 2009. Unfinished business, by Peter Howe. Reviewed in: Business day, 56:14, July 18.

Book review – author of review not indicated

APA Style Harvard Style

Anon. Date. Title of the book being reviewed, Author of book. Reviewed in: Title of journal review is published in, volume:page reference, Date of issue. Example: Anon. (2001). Penny farthing, by Shingi Moto. Reviewed in: Monthly Gazette, 156:12, December 17.

Anon. Date. Title of the book being reviewed, Author of book. Reviewed in: Title of journal review is published in, Issue:Page reference, Date of issue. Example: ANON. 2001. Penny farthing, by Shingi Moto. Reviewed in: Monthly Gazette, 156:12, December 17.

Book – two items by the same author in the same year

APA Style Harvard Style

Authors. Date(a). Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Example: Nyati, Gillian S. (2011(a)). The impact of dollarization on small-scale business enterprises in Bindura. Bindura: Bindura University of Science Education. (PhD thesis). Nyati, Edwin V. (2011(b)). Small-scale business enterprises survival techniques in a dollarized economy. Southern Africa Journal of Education Science & Technology, 3(1):49-61, March.

Authors. Date(a). Title, Place: Publisher. (Qualification). Example: NYATI, Edwin V. 2011a. The impact of dollarization on small-scale business enterprises in Bindura. Bindura: Bindura University of Science Education. (PhD thesis). NYATI, Edwin V. 2011b. Small-scale business enterprises survival techniques in a dollarized economy. Southern Africa Journal of Education

Science & Technology, 3(1):49-61, March.

Brochures

APA Style Harvard Style

Name of organisation that produced the brochure. (Date). Title of brochure (edition) [Material type]. Author. Example: Bindura University of Science Education. (2010). Report writing guidelines. [Brochure]. Gwata AR,: Author.

Name of organisation that produced the brochure. Date. Title of brochure. edition. [Brochure]. Author. Example: Bindura University of Science Education. 2010. Report writing guidelines. [Brochure]. Gwata, AR: Author.

Conference proceedings

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. (Date). Title of paper. Title of published document, Place and date of conference, page reference(s), Place (of publication): Publisher. Example: Sithole, Nevermore. (2008). University libraries in a changing playing field. Proceedings of the Inaugural E-learning Conference of the Africa University, Mutare, 23-24 February 2008, pp. 45-54. Mutare: Africa University.

Author. Date. Title of paper. Title of published document, Place and date of conference, page reference(s), Place (of publication): Publisher. Example: SITHOLE, Nevermore. 2008. University libraries in a changing playing field. Proceedings of the Inaugural E-learning Conference of the Africa University, Mutare, 23-24 February 2008, pp. 45-54. Mutare: Africa University.

Correspondence

APA Style Harvard Style

Author of the letter. Date. Description of the type of correspondence, Date of correspondence. [Note of location of the original document] Example: Hamandishe, Y. (2009). Letter to the Librarian of Bindura University, 16 November. [Original copy in records of the Librarian of Bindura University.]

Author of the letter. Date. Description of the type of correspondence, Date of correspondence. [Note of location of the original document] Example: HAMANDISHE, Y. 2009. Letter to the Librarian of Bindura University, 16 November. [Original copy in records of the Librarian of Bindura University.]

Course notes

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. (Date). Title: sub-title. Place: Name of Institution. [Indicate that these are course notes] Example: Nare, S. (2004). Object-oriented programming. Bulawayo: Bulawayo Polytechnic. [Course notes.]

Author. Date. Title: sub-title. Place: Name of Institution. [Indicate that these are course notes] Example: NARE, S. 2004. Object-oriented programming. Bulawayo Polytechnic. [Course notes.]

Database abstract

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. (Date). Title of article in the journal. Title of journal, volume (number of issue): page reference. [name of database and reference number of abstract] Example: Kayera, Z. (2011). Mushroom harvesting in Marondera. SAJEST, 3(2):34-45. [Abstract in the ERIC database, ref. no. 89561234.]

Author. Date. Title of article in the journal. Title of journal, volume (number of issue): page reference. [name of database and reference number of abstract] Example: KAYERA, Z. 2011. Mushroom harvesting in Marondera. SAJEST, 3(2):34-45. [Abstract in the ERIC database, ref. no. 89561234.]

Dictionary

APA Style Harvard Style

Title: subtitle. Edition. (Date). Place: Publisher. Example: Shorter Oxford dictionary. (9th ed.) 1993. Oxford: OUP.

Title: subtitle. Edition. Date. Place: Publisher. Example: Shorter Oxford dictionary. 9th ed. 1993. Oxford: OUP.

Encyclopaedia – author indicated

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopedia, volume of encyclopedia, page reference. Example: Masauso, X. (2010). Rock rabbit. BUSE encyclopaedia of wild animals, 17:152-177.

Author. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopaedia, volume of encyclopaedia, page reference. Example: MASAUSO, X. 2010. Rock rabbit. BUSE encyclopaedia of wild animals, 17:152-177.

Encyclopaedia – author not indicated

APA Style Harvard Style

Anon. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopaedia, volume of encyclopaedia, page reference. Example: Anon. 2004. Rock paintings. Encyclopaedia Malawiana, 4:116-123.

Anon. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopaedia, volume of encyclopaedia, page reference. Example: ANON. 2004. Rock paintings. Encyclopaedia Malawiana, 4:116-123.

Government publication – department

APA Style Harvard Style

Correct name of country. Name of department. (Date). Title. Place: Publisher. Example: Zimbabwe. Department of Information and Publicity. (2010). AIPPA explained. Pretoria: Government Printer.

Correct name of country. Name of department. Date. Title. Place: Publisher. Example: ZIMBABWE Department of Information and Publicity. 2010. AIPPA explained. Harare: Government Printers.

Government publication – laws

APA Style Harvard Style

Name of country (jurisdiction). (Date). Title of act. Place: Publishers. [Material type]. Example: Zimbabwe. (2000). Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act, No 25:01 of 2000. Harare: Government Printers. [Laws.]

Name of country (jurisdiction). Date. Author. Date. Title of act. Place: Publisher. [Laws.] Example: ZIMBABWE. 1982. Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act, No 25:01 of 2000. Harare: Government Printers. [Laws.]

Internet

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. (Date - last updated). Title of website. [Electronic document]. URL (Internet address). Date you accessed the site. Example: Kapuya, G. (2010). ILS training in colleges. [WWW document]. URL http://www.ils.ac.zw. 30 May 2011.

Author. Date (last updated). Title of website. [Online]. Available: URL (Internet address). [Date you accessed the site]. Example: KAPUYA, G. 2010. ILS training in colleges. [Online]. Available: http://www.ils.ac.zw. [30 May 2011].

Interview

APA Style Harvard Style

Name of person interviewed. (Date). Description of interview with day, month and year. [format] Example: a) Foya, E. (2009). Interview with the author on 6 May 2009. Harare. [Cassette recording in possession of author] b) T. Mangoma (personal communication. April 5, 2011).

Name of person interviewed. Date. Description of interview with day, month and year. [format] Example: a) FOYA, E. 2009. Interview with the author on6

May 2009. Harare. [Cassette recording in possession of author]

b) MANGOMA, T. 2011. [Personal communication]. April 5 2011.

Telephone conversation

APA Style Harvard Style

Name of person conversed with. (personal communication. Month Date, Year). Example: D. Chirima (personal communication. July 8, 2010).

Name of person conversed with. (personal communication. Month Date, Year). Example: CHIRIMA, D. (personal communication. July 8, 2010).

Television broadcast

APA Style Harvard Style

Name of producer. (Title of producer). (Date). Title programme. Place: Broadcast service. Month and day. Example: Chiriseri, H. (Executive Producer). (2006, June 4). Sunday edition. Harare: Zimbabwe Television.

Name of producer. (Title of producer). Date. Title programme. Place: Broadcast service. Month and day. Example: Sunday edition. 2006. Harare: Zimbabwe Television. June 4.

Theses and dissertations

APA Style Harvard Style

Author. Date. Title of article. Title: subtitle. Place: Academic institution. Degree. [Format if other than print] Example: a) Chipa, O. (2010). The effectiveness of talkshows in promoting HIV and AIDS awareness amongst young adults. Bindura: BUSE. B Sc-Counselling. [CD-ROM]. b) Jari, D. M. (2010). Undergraduate students‟ attitudes towards electronic information services. Unpublished master's thesis, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Author. Date. Title of article. Title: subtitle. Place: Academic institution. Degree. [format if other than print] Example: a) CHIPA, O. 2010. The effectiveness of talkshows in promoting HIV and AIDS awareness amongst young adults. Bindura: BUSE. (B Sc-Counselling). [CD-ROM]. b) JARI, D. M. 2010. Undergraduate students’ attitudes towards electronic information services. Harare, Zimbabwe. University of Zimbabwe. (MSc-thesis.)

Video

APA Style Harvard Style

Title: subtitle. Date. Place: Publisher. [format]. Example: a) The road to freedom. (1981). Harare: New Ziana. [Video recording] b) Home sweet home. (2011). Producer, Cole Mudiwa; director, Asa George. Bindura: GIG Films. 1 DVD (VHS) (129 mins). [Video recording]

Title: subtitle. Date. Place: Publisher. [format] Example: a) The road to freedom. 1981. Harare: New Ziana. [Video recording] b) home sweet home. 2011. Producer, Cole Mudiwa; director, Asa George. Bindura GIG Films. 1 DVD (120 mins). [Video recording]

Summary This chapter covered intellectual property issues particularly copyright, the concept of plagiarism, and referencing or citation styles as they relate to ethical and legal use of information. References

Pearsall, J and Trumble, B (1995) The Oxford reference dictionary, Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Unit 5 Communicating information effectively

Introduction This unit will cover how facts may be presented orally and in writing. It also provides suggestions on how this can be done. Please take note that the unit is brief and has been added to just guide you. Detailed information on effective communication is available from your Communication Skills Module. Some of the information available in this unit is provided as general guidance, for example the section on report writing. The detail and University approved guidelines are available from the Research Methods and data Analysis techniques Module. The other guidelines are available from your respective departments. Selecting Your Evidence When you have managed to get what you want, go through it ensuring that it is relevant to what you want. Avoid the temptation of getting information that appears to be interesting but not relevant to your own need. With the information you want before you, decide on what exactly is required, e.g. information to answer an assignment. Not everything gathered could be required for the question; even the depth and breadth of the content you would have obtained does not necessarily have to be used „as it is‟ in the assignment. Decide on this yourself. It is, therefore, ideal to take major points from what you would have gathered. Present these points logically. Writing Skills Writing is a necessity. At one point or another, you find yourself presenting information, news or your own ideas in writing. We write letters, memoranda, reports and emails to our friends, relatives, supervisors, etc. At times we contribute our views or opinion to newspaper editors, discussion forums and blogs. It is all writing! Writing is essential when it comes to communication for both academic and social purposes. When you are presenting your information to others in writing ensure that you comply with the rules of your faculty or department. When you write, ensure that you know and present the information in the style required by the audience, who in this case might be your lecturer. It is also important to stick to the stipulated length and presentation format. When writing be sure to:

1. Be clear and concise; 2. Avoid using the same words and/or phrases repeatedly; and, 3. Acknowledge any sources you would have consulted.

Writing „Tone‟ It is important to follow „house rules‟ set out by your faculty or department. There is a choice of either using an „active' or „passive' voice. Here are some examples:

Active Voice Passive Voice

„I propose the use of…‟ „It is proposed that the use of …‟

Whereas the active voice allows you to write short but effective sentences, passive voice is considered to be more formal for academic writing. Presenting Your Written Information Having finished writing, it is nice to revise your work and ascertain that it answers the question before submitting it. Essays and Reports You might have realized that your academic studies require you to write essays and report frequently. Because of this reason, it is befitting to take a moment to discuss these two. An essay is „a composition, usually short and in prose, on any subject‟ where as a report is „an account given or opinion formally expressed after investigation or consideration‟ (Pearsall & Trumble 1995). Mind you, these are some of the major ways you communicate with your lecturer or supervisor. It counts to be a good essay or report writer. Earn some credit out of it. How to Present Your Work Essays and reports aim to enlighten the reader about a given subject matter. It becomes important, therefore, to ensure that readers grasp what you are communicating. This can be achieved by using simple or straightforward language and presenting your facts logically. An essay is expected to have the following:

1. Introduction; 2. Body; and, 3. Conclusion.

Points should flow logically. Put one point in a paragraph and put related points one after the other in order of importance or precedence. Where necessary, put subheadings which will act as signposts to the reader. Structure of the Essay As highlighted by the definition above, essays are pieces of information on a specific subject matter and are therefore expected to logically flow such that readers easily grasp what you intend to point out. Below is a brief explanation of how essays are supposed to be like. Introduction The introduction puts your presentation in the context of the question. It shows whether you understood the question or not. It also summarizes the entire essay. It is at times ideal to write the introduction last after having completed the body of the essay. The Body The body develops your ideas and arguments. Where necessary, examples and detailed explanations must be given. Providing these show the reader that you have done some research and have understood the topic under discussion. Ensure that you: 1. Put each point in its own paragraph for clarity. 2. Have your points flowing logically and related points should come one after the other in order of

importance or precedence. 3. Balance your essay by avoiding dwelling too much on a single point.

4. Present each paragragh with a topic sentence and some developers. The topic sentence must introduce your point with developers expanding and clarifying the point.

Conclusion The conclusion is meant to summarize your key issues discussed in the essay. It should provide a brief answer to the question being answered. The conclusion must also relate to the introduction. References or Bibliography It is important to provide a list of information sources you would have consulted. This shows that you did some research and therefore adds weight to your essay. Acknowledging sources referred to is an academic practice. Reports Reports should be easy to read. Therefore, they must be formal and should have some headings and sub-headings to act as signposts to the reader. Below is a suggested structure of a research report:

1. Title page 2. List or Table of Contents 3. Acknowledgements 4. Abstract 5. Introduction 6. Main Body

a. Literature review b. Methodology c. Results

7. Conclusion(s) 8. References 9. Appendices

Title Page The title page should include the following:

1. Your name; 2. Date of submission; 3. Course or module or title of the research; and, 4. Institution or department where the report is to be submitted.

List or Table of Contents The table of contents helps the reader locate specific sections of the report. It shows page numbers for each section including charts, graphs and tables included in the report. Acknowledgements Where necessary, acknowledgements may be included. Abstract The abstract, which others prefer to call executive summary or just summary, is a short paragraph summarizing the main contents of the report. It highlights in short the main purpose of the report, the research method(s) employed, conclusions reached and any recommendations put forward.

Introduction The introduction gives the reader a clear idea about the main issue covered in the report and its justification. Furthermore, it includes some research questions and objectives in the research and also gives a general background to the subject (Saunders 2003).

Literature Review Literature review or „review of related literature‟ as some put it, sets out your study within its context and shows how your own study complements other studies. The review of related literature is usually one chapter but may go beyond one in some cases (Saunders 2003). Methodology This chapter or section explains why, how and when your study was carried out. It includes some research instruments that were used e.g. questionnaires and why these were used (Saunders 2003). Results In this section, you are expected to be presenting the facts you discovered. It is also good to present some of the findings verbatim from the respondents (Saunders 2003). It is also recommended that you present your findings logically say:

1. Thematically; or, 2. In descending order of importance.

Conclusion Chapter(s) As Saunders (2003) put it, the conclusion shows whether you would have answered the research questions and the implications of the implications of study. Others add a section on discussion in which they explain the meaning of the findings and the implications of the findings to existing literature on the subject, organizations and the society at large. References It is important to provide a list of information sources that you would have cited in the report. There are various ways of presenting the references. Details on these are available below on the citation styles section. Appendices Appendices provide supporting information that includes sample questionnaires, maps, etc that you might have used in the research. The appendices should be as minimum as possible. Presenting Your Information Verbally Many people often overlook the importance of good public speaking. However, good public speaking skills are essential for those pursuing their academic studies. At one point in your college life, you are expected to give an oral presentation before your class, you might also be asked to justify your project proposal before a panel and most importantly you might also be called to defend your research project or dissertation before a panel of examiners. Presentation skills are therefore essential in one‟s academic endeavour and an information literate individual is obviously expected to possess these skills. There is need for you to prepare for your presentation. A good presentation depends on your preparation. Do your research thoroughly and decide on how you are going to make the presentation, that is, whether you will use an overhead projector, a flipchart or some other visual aids.

The situation surrounding your speech becomes very important here. Situation refers to the context in which the speech occurs (Gregory 2002). The time and place in which you are to make your presentation also count. Critical Issues to Consider

1. Say the truth- when you do your research, present the information you would have gathered correctly. Do not alter the information or exaggerate e.g. inflating statistical figures. Avoid misleading the listeners! This is an ethical standard (Gregory 2002).

2. Respecting the audience- As Gregory (2002) puts it, a good speaker treats the listeners with dignity and courtesy. Even if the audience has little knowledge about the subject you are presenting to them, it is always good to respect them.

3. Stereotyping- Gregory (2002) says stereotyping is dangerous when you are dealing with an audience. As a speaker, have a positive attitude towards the audience even if it is made up of individuals of different beliefs, backgrounds, ages, cultures or even races.

Preparing Your Speech Do your research thoroughly. There is no way you can make a wonderful speech without preparing it. Gather as much information as required. Where examples are required, find some and incorporate them in your presentation. Information is obtainable from books, journals, magazines, newspapers and websites. The listeners expect to get detailed and accurate information from you.

You must then organise your information logically. It would be good to present your ideas in some prescribed format. As an example, you can present your points in the order of importance, by date or by sequence. Ideas must flow in a manner that is easy to comprehend.

Ensure that you know what you want to present to your audience; it is recommended that you prepare your ideas as brief notes which you would then periodically refer to during the presentation. Avoid a situation whereby you constantly refer to your script thereby loosing eye contact with the audience. You might prepare a full paper which you will later on distribute to the audience as a handout. If you decide to use an overhead projector, make the notes as brief as possible so that the audience will not struggle to read them or copy them down. If the notes are lengthy, the audience might end up concentrating on them and copying them down rather than paying attention to you. Just make the notes brief and memorable. Rehearsing is important as well. Rehearse your speech so that you will not have problems when you are in front of your audience. NB- do not memorise the speech; this will cause greater problems to you! If you memorise, there will be disaster if you fail to recall part of the speech and consequently you will be embarrassed. The Presentation The presentation generally takes the same format as any other ordinary presentation in writing. This implies that it should have the following:

1. Introduction; 2. Body; and, 3. Conclusion.

The introduction must include some brief information about yourself if you are presenting to an audience that has no background knowledge about you. You must then move on to highlight key issues of your presentation. For instance you might say, „In my presentation I will discuss the following

issues…‟ If there are any terms that need to be defined, do that at the onset as well. Having introduced yourself and/or the topic, you then move on to the main body of your speech. Deliver your main points one at a time. Ensure that the audience is moving along with you. If there are points they require further clarification, do so. Make sure that you present your points in some systematic fashion, for instance, if it is a topic on the historical development of education in Zimbabwe, move from one period to another from far back until today. Related points should also come one after the other. Delivering Your Ideas You must be confident about yourself. Don‟t be nervous. Show interest in what you are presenting. As the speaker, your own interest and enthusiasm will motivate the listeners to develop keen interest in what you are presenting. Eye contact is very important. You must not avoid the audience; this is a sign of being shy and probably being frightened! Boldness and interest are shown by maintaining eye contact. You must avoid reading your notes to the audience. Instead, your notes should simply guide you as you go along with your presentation. If your presentation is on paper, avoid shuffling the papers unnecessarily; this obstructs concentration and irritates the listeners. Get to the podium with all your notes and handouts well arranged. Constant shuffling of papers unnecessarily is a sign of unpreparedness and fear. Speak to the audience with your natural voice and pronounce words properly. Do not try to imitate other renowned speakers‟ voices! Ensure your words are audible. Do not talk at a fast speed because the audience needs time to hear what you are saying and put some thoughts into it. Verbal fillers such as uh, ah, um, er, okay, eh must be avoided at all costs (Gregory 2002). These can distract the listener. They are irritating and can be a sign of nervousness. Dealing with the Audience Note that the audience will be keen to learn from you. They expect something great from you and are not at all interested in your fears. Even if they stare at you like monsters, they soon will be smiling! Managing Your Time Stick to the allocated time. Going beyond expected time creates some uneasiness on the audience. Avoid creating, facing and fighting this discomfort and displeasure. Communicating on the Internet We must treat the Internet like a domain with its own „principles‟ governing how we should communicate. The fact that you can communicate with someone at some distant place from you does not warrant you to use abusive language. Take your communication say by email or on a discussion forum as if you were talking to the person sitting next to you. The Internet has its own etiquette which some people often refer to as „netiquette‟ (Bradley 1995). Proper netiquette entails writing your mails properly and proof reading them, maintaining intellectual property and upholding ethical and moral principles, among several others.

Activity Go to any search engine of your choice search for sites that discuss the concept netiquette. Read through the suggestions and assess how they have helped improve the way you communicate online.

Summary This unit looked at how information can be presented orally and in writing. Some suggestions were also given. References Gregory, H (2002) Public speaking for college and career, Boston: McGraw-Hill. Pearsall, J & Trumble, B (1995) The Oxford reference dictionary, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Saunders, M, Lewis, P & Thornhill A (2003) Research methods for business students. (3rd ed). Patparganj, Delhi: Pearson Education. Further reading Brown, R (2006) Doing your dissertation in business and management : the reality of researching and writing. London: Sage. Fisher, C (2010) Researching and writing a dissertation: an essential guide for business students. Harlow, England: Prentice Hall. Fitzpatrick, J (1998) Secrets for a successful dissertation. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Glatthorn, A (2005) Writing the winning thesis or dissertation: a step-by-step guide. (2nd ed). Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin Press. Muranda, Z (2004) Dissertation writing: concepts and practice. Harare: University of Zimbabwe Publications. Parsons, T (1995) How to do your dissertation in geography and related disciplines. London: Chapman. Walliman, N (2008) Your dissertation in education. (rev. ed.). Los Angeles: Sage. Walliman, N (2004) Your undergraduate dissertation: the essential guide for success. London: Sage.