The Mona Information Literacy Unit (MILU) was established in January 2001 to coordinate all the instruction/teaching in the Library. Information Literacy competencies have the potential to assist individuals to become critical thinkers and lifelong learners. The Unit therefore collaborates with faculty, librarians and administrators to ensure that students receive the requisite training, to develop these competencies and ultimately produce better research papers. These competencies are based on international standards.

The training empowers students to:

• Locate academic/scholarly resources efficiently
• Acquire/improve research skills
• Improve the quality of academic assignment
• Reference work correctly to avoid plagiarism

Definition of information literacy
Information Literacy is a set of attitudes and skills [competencies] related to

• Understanding when we need information
• Where to locate it effectively and efficiently
• How to analyze and evaluate the information we find
• The use of information responsibly and ethically
• The technological skills needed to use the modern library as a gateway to information.

Definition of an information literate person

An information literate person is able to:

• Access the needed information effectively and efficiently
• Evalauate information and its sources critically
• Incorporate selected information into one's knowledge base
• Use information effectivley to accomplish a specific purpose
• Understand the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information, and access and use informaiton ethically and legally.

Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education," American Library Association

     http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/informationliteracycompetency