Abstract
Information literacy is not simply a basic and universal set of skills that can easily be transferred and applied in multiple contexts (Tuominen et al., 2005). Rather, information literacy is enacted in epistemic communities, each of which has its own preferences and values for engaging with and creating knowledge. In postsecondary education, research assignments are a common practice of the epistemic community to help learners develop and demonstrate their information literacy, as well as to evaluate learning and assign grades. Many learners are simultaneously interacting with different epistemic communities – i.e. disciplines – as they complete their course of study. This can be disorienting and frustrating, especially if the subtle differences in the information literacy-related values of each discipline are not made explicit. Furthermore, there are multiple levels of power dynamics that could affect if and how learners are supported by educators, adding to learners’ frustration or disorientation.
Racialized differences in the educational experiences of learners at all levels are well-documented in the United States. Black and African Americans, who are one of the largest racial minorities in the US, experience some of the most significant and persistent equity gaps in terms of educational attainment. Scholarship spanning several decades has documented the ways in which historical racialized violence, oppression, marginalization, and discrimination have a contemporary legacy in formal learning environments. Many Black and African American students are navigating educational institutions and disciplines that were built by and for white people and from which they were mostly excluded for almost a century.
The role that race plays in how learners develop or enact information literacy remains underexplored. This is especially important in that many of these BIPOC students are expected to perform within primarily white educational paradigms in learning environments led by mostly white educators. Students' sense of belonging and psychological safety in their learning environments may affect curiosity and intellectual risk-taking, including reaching out for help. Educators who do not share the same racialized educational experiences, including librarians – the majority of whom are white in the US - might not realize how both implicit and explicit racial bias manifest in the classroom and how that affects learning.
At last year’s LILAC, Darren Flynn introduced the concept of information hinterlands – arguing that information literacy is often approached from the present or the future - but the past that informs both of those tends to be ignored. In this presentation, we share preliminary findings of a research study exploring Black and African American students’ experiences with research assignments in secondary and postsecondary education. Using critical race theory as a lens, we explore the students’ information hinterlands – experiences doing research and developing their information literacy during high school – to understand the implications of those hinterlands for their collegiate scholarly experiences. We hope to uncover ways in which educators of any race can support and empower Black and African American students, even if they have previously experienced racialized educational trauma, as well as uncover practices that may continue to perpetuate harm for these students.
References
Flynn, D. (2025, April). The information hinterland of UK academic librarians [Conference presentation]. LILAC 2025, Cardiff, Wales.
Tuominen, K., Savolainen, R., & Talja, S. (2005). Information literacy as a sociotechnical practice. Library Quarterly 75(3), 329-345.
