Impact of Information Literacy and Discourse Synthesis Strategy Use on Multimodal Information‐Based Integrated Writing Among Secondary School Students

ABSTRACT Integrating multimodal information in writing has become a key competency in the information society. Based on the information‐based model of academic writing (IBAW), the present study explores the impact of information literacy and discourse synthesis strategy use on multimodal information‐based integrated writing (MIIW). The participants, 223 secondary school students from mainland China, completed an MIIW task involving multiple modes (videos, news articles, papers, and forum discussions presented on a thematic website) and filled out questionnaires measuring information literacy and discourse synthesis strategy use. Structural equation modeling analyses revealed that information literacy significantly impacts three key discourse synthesis strategies: selection, organization, and connection. Furthermore, the organization and connection strategies fully mediate the relationship between information literacy and MIIW performance. Pedagogical implications based on the findings are offered.