Abstract
In a rapidly evolving information landscape shaped by artificial intelligence, data literacy and digital fluency have become integral to contemporary information literacy. This presentation reports on Teesside University Library’s pilot participation in JISC’s Digital Transformation through a Library Lens project—one of seven UK university libraries selected to explore how libraries can drive institutional digital transformation. The project seeks to shift both strategic direction and professional practice, positioning the Library at the forefront of defining and embedding student AI and digital competencies within the curriculum.
The Teesside pilot is designed to engender digital cultural change across the institution by reframing the Library’s role as a professional lead in developing students’ AI literacies. Building upon established information literacy frameworks (e.g., the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy, JISC Digital Capabilities Framework), the project extends traditional understandings of information literacy to encompass responsible AI use, data awareness, and digital content creation. This re-conceptualisation aligns with an emerging research consensus that information literacy must evolve to address AI-driven academic and workplace contexts.
Method and Approach
The project is structured around four interconnected workstreams:
1. Defining student digital and AI competencies within the curriculum;
2. Coalescing university-wide digital skills support within a Library setting;
3. Developing digitally enabled Library spaces;
4. Embedding digital and open resources within curriculum design.
A mixed-methods approach is employed, combining student co-creation workshops, curriculum mapping, staff interviews, and benchmarking against national frameworks. This participatory methodology ensures the competencies developed are evidence-based, inclusive, and responsive to institutional and disciplinary needs.
Findings and Changes in Practice
Initial findings indicate that the Library’s traditional remit around information literacy has broadened to include leadership in AI and digital fluency. This transformation is influencing practice in several key areas:
• Curriculum Integration: AI and digital competencies are now being mapped to learning outcomes and assessments across disciplines.
• Coalesced Support Model: University digital and AI skills initiatives are being unified under the Library brand, creating a coherent institutional offer.
• Digitally Enabled Spaces: Library environments are being redesigned to facilitate blended, AI-supported learning, embedding information and digital literacy within physical and virtual spaces.
• Student Partnership: Students are co-defining competencies and co-creating resources, reinforcing principles of inclusion and partnership.
Originality and Contribution
While earlier studies (e.g., Secker & Coonan, 2019; JISC, 2023) have explored the convergence of digital and information literacies, few have examined how libraries can operationalise AI fluency within curriculum design at scale. The Teesside pilot offers an original contribution by developing a Library-led institutional model that integrates information, digital, and academic literacies within a unified framework.
Takeaways for Delegates
Delegates will gain:
• Insight into how information literacy frameworks can evolve to include AI and digital fluency;
• A practical model of Library leadership in digital transformation;
• Examples of co-created AI competency frameworks embedded in curricula;
• Evidence of measurable cultural change through enhanced digital confidence and engagement.
This presentation contributes to current debates on redefining information literacy for the AI era and demonstrates how libraries can lead in shaping ethically grounded, digitally fluent learning communities.
References
Coonan, E. and Secker, J. (2011) A new curriculum for information literacy (ANCIL): Curriculum and supporting documents. [Working paper] Cambridge: University of Cambridge Repository. Available at: http://www.dspace.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/244638 (Accessed: 12 November 2025).
Jisc (2023) Building digital capability: The six elements of digital capability. Available at: https://www.jisc.ac.uk/rd/projects/building-digital-capability
(Accessed: 12 November 2025).
