Aligning the American College of Research Libraries Framework with the Information Literacy Knowledge and Skills of Undergraduate Students at the University of Zambia

Information literacy (IL) is central to student success, it provides lifelong skills that can support their academic career. This study aimed to assess the IL skills of undergraduate students at the University of Zambia (UNZA) by applying the American College of Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework. Specific objectives of the paper were to examine how students' IL skills align with the Framework's six Frames and their accompanying knowledge practices and dispositions and to explore the feasibility of adopting the Framework for Information Literacy (IL) instruction at Unza. An exploratory qualitative methodology was used, with 22 purposively selected participants placed in four focus groups. Discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using NVivo 12. Participants demonstrated some, but not all, knowledge practices and dispositions across the Framework's six concepts. They understood key IL attributes such as assessing source credibility using authority measures, citing sources of information, and interacting frequently with peers. Furthermore, it was clear that participants used the Internet to complete their assignments. Despite being aware of the wealth of information and credible resources in databases, they lacked guidance on how to search and access them. Additionally, they indicated that they had received no IL training and had limited awareness of the librarian's role. Knowing that UNZA students already possess some information literacy skills, it is feasible to build on their existing prior IL knowledge to integrate the Framework concepts into any library instruction.