Report by Alison J. Head, Ph.D., Barbara Fister, Margy MacMillan: “…Three sets of questions guided this report’s inquiry:
- What is the nature of our current information environment, and how has it influenced how we access, evaluate, and create knowledge today? What do findings from a decade of PIL research tell us about the information skills and habits students will need for the future?
- How aware are current students of the algorithms that filter and shape the news and information they encounter daily? What
concerns do they have about how automated decision-making systems may influence us, divide us, and deepen inequalities? - What must higher education do to prepare students to understand the new media landscape so they will be able to participate in sharing and creating information responsibly in a changing and challenged world?
To investigate these questions, we draw on qualitative data that PIL researchers collected from student focus groups and faculty interviews during fall 2019 at eight U.S. colleges and universities. Findings from a sample of 103 students and 37 professors reveal levels of awareness and concerns about the age of algorithms on college campuses. They are presented as research takeaways….(More)”.
