Beyond the textbook and enhancing scholarly literacy through specialized courses: evaluating pre and post-test scores in scholarly publishing literacy of LIS master’s students

The investigation aims to evaluate the scholarly literacy of postgraduate Library and Information Science (LIS) students through pre- and post-test assessments. A unique course curriculum is developed to address the publishing literacy gaps specified by this experimental study. After estimating students’ foundational knowledge with a pre-test, a training module highlighting essential aspects of scholarly literacy is given. The effect of the curriculum is then evaluated utilizing a post-test, and the results are compared statistically. Seventy master’s students participated in the study, and their literacy was assessed using 46 multiple-choice questions (MCQs). The pre-test results indicated little knowledge. However, the post-test outcomes demonstrated substantial improvements. The results show how well the program has functioned to enhance students’ proficiency in scholarly publishing. This study makes a unique addition by methodically evaluating the effectiveness of a specialized course planned to address gaps in postgraduate Library and Information Science (LIS) students’ knowledge of scholarly publications in Bangladesh. With an evidence-based technique that may guide curriculum design and professional development programs that promote advanced academic and scholarly communication mastery, the results emphasize the requirement to integrate specialized literacy modules into LIS curricula. Education institutions looking to enhance the scholarly abilities of aspiring LIS professionals and other domains would find this study especially beneficial, as it will ultimately advance the field of scholarly publication literacy.