TTT Workshop in Information Literacy for South and Central Asia concluded in India

A three daylong workshop in Information Literacy has successfully concluded on 7 November 2008, at Punjabi University in Patiala, India. This Workshop, which is one in the series of eleven IFAP-funded TTT workshops, is organized by the Department of Library and Information Science of Punjabi University from 5 to 7 November. The workshop was inaugurated through a colorful opening ceremony on 5 November 2008, at Senate Hall of the Punjabi University in Patiala, India.

Dr Amrik Singh, educationist and former Vice Chancellor of Punjabi University, inaugurated the Workshop. In his address, he stressed the importance of information literacy training at school level and of the need to promote wider use of knowledge and information through informal channels.

Mr. Sidhu Damdami, Editor of Punjabi Tribune (a daily newspaper), in his presentation of a media perspective of information literacy, observed that World Wide Web has taken the shape of 'wild wild web'. He emphasized the need to promote information literacy to save the innocent minds from further damage. He also felt that the information literacy campaigns should be directed towards providing knowledge to the adults.

The Workshop (The tenth UNESCO Training-the-Trainers (TTT) aims at providing a platform for creating a pool of trainers in information literacy who will impart information and media literacy skills to the graduate and post-graduate students and researchers in their respective institutions across the sub-regions.

About 50 participants and 10 resource persons from the South and Central Asia are attending the event, which is the successor of two information literacy sub-regional workshops held in South Asia:  

• International Workshop on Information Skills for Learning, organized by National Institute of Library and Information Sciences (NILIS) in Colombo from 1 to 5 November 2004; and 

• Empowering 8 International Workshop in South and South East Asia to Promote Information Literacy, organized by Punjabi University from 3 to 7 October 2005.

Resource persons and participants from Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Turkmenistan have stressed the importance of information literacy curricula for library and media schools in South and Central Asia. As a result of this discussion, a working group has been created in order to develop a model of such curriculum, in consultations with teachers, professional associations and other stakeholders in the respective regions.

Mr. G M Mourtoza, Director of CCD and renowned media activist of Bangladesh took part in the workshop as a resource person. CCD will arrange a number of such kind workshops and orientation courses on Information Literacy in Bangladesh in near feature.

Prof. Jagtar Singh, Head of the Department of Library and Information Science and Dean of Faculty of Education and Information Science of Punjabi University has successfully coordinated the workshop.

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