Navigating and Using Information

LIS502

This course will equip you to identify and analyse an information need within diverse contexts, and to search for relevant information across a range of physical and online repositories and collections.

  •  
    Level
    5
  •  
    Credits
    20
  •  
    Cost
    2025
    2024
    $793 NZ Domestic
    $2,010 NZ International
  •  
    EFTS
    0.1667
  • Delivery type
    Online only
  • Teaching weeks 16 weeks
  • Workload Approximately 13 hours per week
  •  
    Prerequisites Check entry and other requirements under the qualification you are studying

You will evaluate and use the information you find using ethical, legal, cultural, and relevant evaluation criteria. You will share this knowledge with appropriate audiences.

For more information watch the course introduction video below.

Students who successfully complete this course will be able to

  • Analyse an information need using information literacy principles to determine the nature and extent of information needed to accomplish a specific purpose, and identify appropriate formats of information, repositories and collections.
  • Construct and apply simple and complex searches for information, evaluate the search, and explain the various search strategies used.
  • Evaluate the quality and appropriateness of the information located.
  • Apply the outcome of an information search and share it with an intended audience.

Course content

The nature of information and information literacy

  • The nature and value of information to people in diverse contexts, including how information searching and use is influenced by cognitive, affective, social and cultural dimensions of the individual
  • Information literacy and its relationship to other (multiple) literacies

Navigating information

  • Establishing an information need: critically and clearly defining the scope of inquiry
  • Understanding how information is created and presented in different formats to convey the intended message, and choosing appropriate types of information sources for a specific information need (including physical, digital, textual and multi-media, published and unpublished, records, archives, non-traditional, and Māori and Pasifika sources)
  • Identifying appropriate repositories and collections of information and knowledge.
  • Exploring different search tools and how they work (e.g. catalogues, databases, search engines and other finding aids; algorithms, result displays and defaults impact searching)
  • Applying search techniques in common search tools (natural language, controlled vocabularies, boolean operators, and subject searching)

Using information

  • Critically evaluating the authority and suitability of located information within the context of an information need
  • Understanding how to use information in ethical, legal, culturally appropriate and critical ways (including APA referencing, copyright & creative commons licenses, privacy)
  • Using the information that is found and sharing it with others, including how to synthesise different perspectives on a topic, and presenting a piece of work to a particular audience in an appropriate format

Assessment

100% internally assessed

Textbooks

No textbooks are required for this course

Computer and internet requirements

To complete this course you will need access to a laptop or desktop computer, reliable broadband internet connection and a data plan able to support online learning such as streaming of videos (including YouTube), downloading content, and writing and submitting online assessments. If you are unsure if your current computer or internet access allows you to complete your online learning with us, please contact us before applying to enrol.

How to enrol

Before enrolling in this course you need to:

  • choose the qualification you will study the course under
  • check the order that courses in the qualification should be studied in the Qualification Structure table. This is in the Choose courses and apply tab on the qualification page.

Work towards

You can do this course as part of these qualifications:

Diploma
Bachelor's Degree

Course availability over the next 12 months

Apr
May
Jun

June enrolment dates

Enrol by -
Course starts -
Course ends -
11 Jun 2024
24 Jun 2024
13 Oct 2024
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct

October enrolment dates

Enrol by -
Course starts -
Course ends -
8 Oct 2024
21 Oct 2024
9 Feb 2025
Nov
Dec
2025
Jan
Feb

Dates for this course are not finalised yet

Check back later

Enrol by -
Course starts -
Course ends -
To be confirmed
To be confirmed
To be confirmed
Mar
  •  
    Level
    5
  •  
    Credits
    20
  •  
    Cost
    2025
    2024
    $793 NZ Domestic
    $2,010 NZ International
  •  
    EFTS
    0.1667
  • Delivery type
    Online only
  • Teaching weeks 16 weeks
  • Workload Approximately 13 hours per week
  •  
    Prerequisites Check entry and other requirements under the qualification you are studying