Introduction and definitions 

This guidance supports teachers to guide school students with finding, assessing and using information both online and physically. 

This is sometimes described as information literacy, or a similar concept such as media literacy or digital literacy. Ultimately, it is about embedding critical thinking skills at all ages, when sources of information vary significantly; the potential harms of mis- and dis-information and inaccurate conspiracy theories are significant.  

The professional body for librarians (CILIP) has an agreed definition of information literacy here: https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.cilip.org.uk/resource/resmgr/cilip/information_professional_and_news/press_releases/2018_03_information_lit_definition/cilip_definition_doc_final_f.pdf. 

Information literacy is defined in various ways here: https://infolit.org.uk/definitions-models/#Definitions. 

A shortened summary of the CILIP definition is that ‘Information literacy is the ability to think critically and make balanced judgements about any information we find and use. It empowers us as citizens to develop informed views and to engage fully with society’. 

The rest of this guide will help with trusted sources, spotting mis- and dis-information, and how to assess your own practice.  

Trusted sources 

Children and young people should look for information that is reliable, accurate and credible. They should use sources that are transparent about their information, cite their evidence, and avoid bias or misinformation. This: 

• is essential for learning accurate and reliable information 

• develops critical thinking skills 

• avoids spreading mis- or disinformation 

• supports stronger research, better arguments and more meaningful conversations.  

Examples of trusted sources include: 

• BBC Bitesize: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize  

• National Geographic Kids: https://kids.nationalgeographic.com  

• Common Sense Media: https://www.commonsensemedia.org  

• Newsround (BBC): https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround  

• Kiddle (a search engine for children by Google): https://www.kiddle.co  

• Fact Monster: https://www.factmonster.com. 

* Note about Wikipedia (https://www.wikipedia.org)

Wikipedia is a fantastic information tool for school pupils because it offers a vast, easily accessible starting point for research on almost any topic. It involves community verification and collaboration to ensure its sources are accurate (although pupils should double check sources where possible).  

Evaluating information sources 

Here are a couple of ways children and young people can evaluate sources: 

• Look for clues: Author (are they trustworthy?), Date (is the information still current?), Purpose (does the source inform, sell, persuade or entertain?) 

• Strategy: SIFT – Stop, Investigate source, Find better coverage, Trace claims to original context. 

Children and young people should always remember to provide sources they use. As well as helping them find reliable information, it adds credibility to their work! 

Spotting mis- and disinformation  

Children and young people should check whether any information, from any source, is reliable. While online sources, especially social media sources, are often suspected, even printed books can at least have biases.  

However, recent research has found that misinformation and disinformation are mostly about today’s socio-political matters.  

There are a host of techniques to check whether information is true but firstly children and young people need an attitude of constant vigilance. Only if they routinely suspect information they receive will they apply these techniques. 

Reliability-checking 

In addition to SIFT and Author – Date – Purpose, the following have also recently been recommended by school librarians: 

• CRAAP (Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose):  https://commons.emich.edu/loexquarterly/vol31/iss3/4 

• SVC (Stop, Verify, Correct), from ​(CILIP, 2024)​: https://www.cilip.org.uk/news/679140/STOP-VERIFY-CORRECT-How-to-combat-misinformation-online-and-beyond-.htm.  

There are several other models listed on the CILIPS website here: https://www.cilips.org.uk/media-and-information-literacy-resources.  

In general, children and young people should check several sources, and where possible make sure they don’t all link back to the same original source. The gold standard reliable sources are those that have been peer-reviewed, that is checked by experts for accuracy, reliability, verifiability etc. Most academic journals are peer-reviewed, but they can be very costly to access. 

Fact-checking services 

In case it’s not possible for your students to check information, there are fact-checking services. These include BBC Verify and The Ferret. 

Don’t rely on AI! 

It’s very tempting to rely on AI, especially the AI summaries that appear at the top of Google search results. However, these summaries do not state how they assessed the sources that they draw from. Worse, when researching during the preparation of this document, some Google AI summaries were based on sources that either weren’t related to what we were searching for or were suspect in other ways.

In short, AI currently isn’t fully reliable, and doesn’t help children and young people be sure of what they find. There is no substitute for searching several sources, and critically thinking about what is found.  

Other useful resources 

The following may help you prime your students about mis- and disinformation (these will also be updated regularly here: https://www.cilips.org.uk/media-and-information-literacy-resources.  

What are misinformation and fake news? 

• Fake news and its impact on children’s wellbeing and safety online, from InternetMatters.org: https://www.internetmatters.org/issues/fake-news-and-misinformation-advice-hub/learn-about-fake-news-to-support-children  

• Advice from Get Safe Online: https://www.getsafeonline.org/personal/articles/misinformation-fake-news. 

Educational resources for use in the school library or classroom 

• Addressing Conspiracy Theories – what teachers need to know (UNESCO toolkit): 

https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000381958  

• Educate Against Hate, developed by the Department for Education and the Home Office: https://www.educateagainsthate.com/fake-news-misinformation-disinformation 

• Teaching resources on fake news from the BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/articles/zfv7kty  

• Learning resources from the Scottish Book Trust: https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/learning-resources/misinformation-and-fake-news. 

Advice and support aimed at children and young people 

• How to spot and fight disinformation for students aged 15+ https://learning-corner.learning.europa.eu/learning-materials/how-spot-and-fight-disinformation_en. 

• Escape Misinformation in the library – https://esc-misinfo.eu/  

Assessing your own practice 

It is important to not only develop effective information literacy skills but also to assess how these can impact our own everyday work. Understanding how information literacy development can bring positive benefits to our pedagogies and to our classrooms is a critical step towards embedding this into our wider everyday professional practice.  

One approach to this assessment is to utilise an information literacy framework to measure the range and depth of skills at use in a particular setting. Formal frameworks (such as the Media and Information Literacy Alliance’s model) essentially provide the conceptual tools to break down information literacy practice into its component parts, making it easier to measure and to explain what these mean in everyday practical terms. Frameworks can help establish skill levels, competencies and awareness of information literacy practices in a wide variety of different learning environments and can be useful to both teachers (in understanding information literacy needs) and children and young people (in understanding where they may need assistance). Frameworks are often easy to use and can produce straightforward digestible outputs, uncover existing areas of strength and provide insight into ongoing development opportunities. 

Assessing information literacy skills in our own settings is therefore a crucial step towards developing targeted and sustainable critical thinking skills. Using an established information literacy framework to measure our work is therefore the best way to understand these needs and to embed good practice into our individual approaches to teaching. 

Using the school library 

If you have access to a staffed school library, please do consult with your school librarian about information seeking skills. An extensive body of evidence highlights the contribution of school librarians to improved attainment, and their role in creating a safe, supportive and inclusive learning environment where all children and young people have equitable access to curriculum related learning resources. 

School librarians support children and young people’s preparation for the challenges of life in the 21st century in areas such as media, information and digital literacy and librarians are also experts in matters of ethics, and censorship. Many school librarians will be well placed to support children, young people and teachers with these skills and please do have a chat with them to see where and how they can help.  

For more information on all the above please visit the CILIPS website – www.cilips.org.uk and get in touch if needed.