Information literacy: A means of preparing the students in Slovenia for the information society

Today, some of the most prominent policies in schools throughout the (post)industrialized world, and especially in developing Central and Eastern European countries, relate to the rapid introduction of information and communication technologies (ICTs). The concept of “information literacy” is the most common rationale for introducing educational ICTs. This concept is so poorly defined that it may best be investigated as a form of ideology. The arguments in justification of the presence of ICTs in classrooms are primarily vocational and market servitism. They are based on the assumption that ICTs will be pervasive in the workplace of the future and are soon going to be everywhere. Therefore, information literacy will prepare the students for living and working in the information society and increase a country's competitiveness on the global market. The more purely pedagogical arguments are secondary. By talking directly to 25 students from five Slovenian secondary schools, the research found an overall acceptance of this message