Enhancing digital literacy programmes for advanced search skills of adult public library patrons

Abstract

Digital literacy enables individuals to confidently engage with electronic devicesand digital resources. While many adults use these tools to search for information,some still lack the essential skills to do so effectively. This pragmatic paperinvestigates the basic digital literacy skills of adult patrons at Adriaanse PublicLibrary in Cape Town. Framed by SCONUL Seven Pillars of Information Literacythrough a Digital Literacy “lens”, we employed a sequential mixed-methodsapproach, combining quantitative pre- and post-tests with qualitative interviewsamong 30 purposively selected participants. Quantitative data was analyzedstatistically while thematic analysis was used for qualitative data. The findingsrevealed that the participants had basic online search skills but lacked advancedsearch techniques, algorithmic literacy, critical source-evaluation skills, and theability to resolve technical problems of electronic devices. The simple keywordsearches they used produced information overload that made it difficult to locatespecific relevant content. This highlights the need for face-to-face digital literacyprograms for adult social inclusion and independent engagement withcontemporary technologies.