Metaliteracy among the students of IITs in South India.

Abstract

Information literacy has transformed significantly over the years, encompassing digital, media, cyber, transliteracy, metaliteracy, etc., reflecting the evolving landscape of information and technology. This study attempts to assess the metaliteracy among students of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in South India, providing valuable insights into the state of the art of metaliteracy among the students and strategies to improve the current status. This topic has been relatively underexplored, particularly within the Indian context. Metaliteracy involves the ability to evaluate information for its bias, reliability, and credibility, and to apply this evaluation in the context of knowledge production and sharing. The study employed a mixed-method research design, combining quantitative and qualitative approaches with three objectives. The primary objective is to develop and validate a comprehensive Metaliteracy Scale (MS) based on Boateng et al.'s scale construction model, which involves three phases: item development, scale development, and scale evaluation, comprising nine steps. Initially, a pool of 62 items is generated based on a framework of metaliteracy goals and learning objectives across four domains (metacognitive, cognitive, behavioral, and affective), later refined to 56 items through expert validation at the national and international levels, including input from the developers of the metaliteracy framework, such as Trudi E. Jacobson and Thomas P. Mackey. The scale is administered to 824 students across five IITs in South India after pretesting it with four students at IIT Hyderabad. Finally, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were conducted to determine the latent structure by using a split- data strategy into two datasets. The final MS demonstrated high reliability and validity, with a Cronbach‘s alpha of 0.945 and a Spearman-Brown Coefficient of 0.914. Secondly, the study assessed the metaliteracy levels among students of five IITs in South India. For that, fourteen metaliteracy factors were extracted using EFA (Lifelong Learner, Informed Prosumer, Metalearner, Collaborator, Value-oriented,Active & Critical Evaluator, Digitally Literate, Affective, Ethical & Responsible Engagement, Metacognition, and Inquisitiveness) and six independent variables (Institution, Department, Course, Age, Gender, and Socioeconomic status) were analyzed statistically using SPSS (version 28) and R (version 4.2.1). The findings reveal a high level of metaliteracy skills among the students among the five IITs, regardless of the independent variables. However, significant differences in students' metaliteracy levels were observed across various independent variables such as department, course, age, and socioeconomic status, as their p value s were less than the significance threshold. However, other variables like institution and gender did not show significant differences in students' metaliteracy levels. Finally, qualitative insights were gathered through WhatsApp interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis based on Braun and Clarke's six-phase framework. Four main themes emerged: Digital Citizenship, Critical Thinking and Reflective Practices, Collaborative Learning and Participation, and Ethical Information Use. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of enhancing educational strategies to foster metaliteracy skills for critical evaluation and ethical information practices among students, preparing them effectively for todays and future complex information environments. These insights contribute to the broader discourse on educational approaches that promote comprehensive metaliteracy across diverse academic settings.