Introducing Information Literacy Collections in Learning Lab

Introducing Information Literacy Collections in Learning Lab

Smithsonian Libraries and Archives wants to help you gain a better understanding of
information literacy
and further your skills in this crucial area. In an age where there are myriad sources of information, unending news coverage, and a vast, often unregulated digital world, how can you tell which sources to trust for reliable information? We’ve just launched a series of interactive, online collections on
Smithsonian Learning Lab
that are dedicated to helping users think critically about how they identify, find, evaluate, and use information effectively.
Information Literacy collections available on
Learning Lab
.
As we’ve arrived at the Smithsonian’s 175th anniversary, we felt this was the perfect time to kick off this series of collections. While we reflect on nearly two centuries as a
trusted source
, we invite you to examine how and why the Smithsonian has this reputable status and use it as a case study to help you consider what makes a source trustworthy.
Education and trust with the public have been at the heart of what the Smithsonian does from the start. Founding donor James Smithson wrote in his will that the Smithsonian Institution would be a place for “the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” For 175 years, the Smithsonian has worked to fulfill that mandate and become a reliable repository of history, facts, and information in the United States and around the world. Here are some interesting tidbits from the Smithsonian Institution Archives that provide insight into this development:
George Brown Goode, director of the United States National Museum (later known as the
Arts and Industries Building
) from 1881 to 1896 and a leader in museum theory and practice, believed that “inherent in its mandate was the notion that the Smithsonian had a broad responsibility for the use of knowledge for the public good.” He worked with
Secretary Spencer Baird
to transform the Smithsonian from a random collection to a trusted institution for exemplary objects, records, research, and education. Together, they, along with many other researchers and staff, established the legitimacy of the Smithsonian as a long-lasting, reliable resource.
Photograph of George Brown Goode. Smithsonian Institution Archives,
Record Unit 95, Box 9, Folder: 28B
.
Gaining the
public
’s trust
would come through
transparency
, like
making
things such as
datasets and annual reports accessible to anyone.
But beyond that,
the intention
was
to support
Smithsonian’s mission to increase and diffuse knowledge. From the outset, one of the Smithsonian’s primary purposes was to build access to knowledge through the mutual exchange of scholarly publications. In 1849, the Smithsonian and its fledgling library created the International Exchange Service to share resources between peer scientific and literary societies. By publishing lists of correspondents, the participating learned societies, and the periodicals rece…