Academic library instruction on critical evaluation of sources and information : A content analysis of Swedish university library websites

Sammanfattning

This master thesis examines how Swedish university libraries are instructing their students on topics related to the critical evaluation of sources and information. The method of analysis was a quantitative and qualitative content analysis of the external websites of Sweden’s public university libraries to determine what modes of instruction are being offered, and how these services are being described and made accessible to their users. The coding of the websites divided their content into four main categories. The first two refer to asynchronous and inactive instruction: Information and Modules. The second two categories refer to synchronous and active instruction: Teaching and Tutoring. The results of the thesis indicate that the most popular modes of instruction related to critical evaluation of sources and information were informative webpages and active teaching which could either take the form of lectures or workshops with 12 out of the 15 libraries hosting or advertising these services. The thesis concludes that instruction on topics related to critical evaluation of sources and information appears to be central, as most of the university libraries offer several modes of instruction on the topic. However, there were still variations in regard to the accessibility of the services although online instruction still proved popular in tutoring sessions. Moreover, the analysis of terminology and recurring words indicated an emphasis on ‘lower-level’ library skills related to how to recognize scholarly sources rather than ‘higher-level’ critical thinking. Finally, the results suggest that Swedish university libraries are engaging with instruction surrounding evaluation of sources and information although the scope and modes of instruction on the subject vary. This is a two year master’s thesis in Library and Information Science.