UNIV 2001 (Karrer): Cross Cultural Perspectives

This is the course guide designed to help Prof. Karrer's UNIV 2001 students. Please don't hesitate to reach out to your librarian(s) if you have any questions!

Your Librarian: Brooke Duffy b.duffy@fdu.edu

2/8/2024: Visit to Computer Lab to discuss media literacy and critical reading techniques

Today we will: 

• discuss and define different types of information

• evaluate web-based information and media sources

There are a number of different definitions of information literacy and media literacy, and some combined definitions. Here is one definition:

"Information literacy is the ability to think critically and make balanced judgements about any information we find and use. It empowers us as citizens to developed informed views and to engage fully with society." (Secker, 2018)

Here are some questions to think about:

"Judge the credibility of a media message by answering 3 basic questions:

1. Who is the author?
2. What's the purpose of this message?
3. How was this message constructed?" (Hobbs, 2011, p. 16)

Misinformation and Disinformation defined

"Algorithms are step-by-step instructions that computers follow to complete tasks, solve problems, and make automated decisions. They use data to make predictions about people, including their preferences, attributes, and behaviors. Algorithms power nearly everything we see online, including search engines, social media, video games, online dating, and smartphone apps. They are used to shape and filter content on the platforms many of us interact with daily, such as Google, YouTube, Instagram, Netflix, Facebook, Amazon, Twitter, and Spotify. For example, algorithms determine which websites you see first in your Google search results, which posts you see on Facebook, and which videos YouTube “recommends” and autoplays for you." (Butler, W. D., Sargent, A., & Smith, K., 2021, ch. 1)

Algorithms, Bias and Polarization

• Algorithms and more defined, Penn State Libraries

• Algorithmic Justice League

• Launching the AI Elections Initiative, Aspen Digital

• Brookings - Algorithmic bias detection and mitigation: Best practices and policies to reduce consumer harms

Critical reading

• Get ready to question everything you read, but with a mind open to learning from trusted sources!

  • Skepticism, but not cynicism (Reading on the dangers of information cynicism)

Critical Reading Toolkit

• Ask questions of the text as you are reading as if you are having a conversation with it - if you are conducting research this will give you a natural segue into what research questions you want to investigate and support with outside evidence (sources) 

• Hunter College - Guidelines for Critical Reading

• Wikihow: Understand a Word Without Using a Dictionary

• The 5 W's and 1 H - "To help me understand details of what I read"

Fact Checking

• Evaluate and investigate the arguments, evidence given to support arguments, opinions, biases, etc. in the sources you encounter

• SIFT Method - Seek verification from multiple, credible sources and trace original sources of evidence

• Stanford History Education Group - How Fact Checkers Evaluate Information Online

Butler, W. D., Sargent, A., & Smith, K. (2021). What are algorithms? In Introduction to college research. essay, LibreTexts.

Hobbs, R. (2011). Empowering Learners with Digital and Media Literacy. Knowledge Quest, 39(5), 12–17.

Secker, J. (2018). The revised CILIP definition of information literacy. Journal of Information Literacy, 12(1), pp. 156-158. doi: 10.11645/12.1.2454