Information culture of students (on the example of a regional university)

Abstract

The article presents an overview of scientific works on the topic «information culture», identifies aspects of scientific research of the multifaceted phenomenon of «information culture». A description of the structure of the concept of information culture of students, formed as a result of the inductive method of scientific cognition undertaken by the authors, is proposed. The definition of the concept of information outlook is given, the meaning of the concepts of information literacy and information hygiene is concretized. The article presents an analysis of the practical study of the components of the information culture of students as a buffer social group that is in the stage of its active formation — both personal and professional; analysis of the results of a sociological study among students of the Astrakhan State Technical University. The study uses a quantitative method of collecting social information — a written survey. The respondents were selected using a two-stage nested sampling method. The sample size was 300 full-time students (150 boys, 150 girls) in three areas of professional training: natural science, technology and technical sciences, social sciences. As a result of the conducted research, the authors found insufficient formation of students' information culture in the components of information outlook and information literacy; a correlation was revealed between the variables «technologies and technical sciences» and «knowledge of ways to identify «fakes», students understanding of information hygiene was determined. The practical novelty of this scientific work consists in measuring the formation of the elements of the information culture of students of a regional university identified by the authors on the basis of a representative sample, taking into account the profile and specialty of vocational training in a particular university. The theoretical significance of the research is due to the introduction of the concept of «information outlook» into scientific use, the justification of the study of the essential elements of the information culture of students, the analysis of scientific papers on the topic, which allowed to expand scientific ideas about the object and subject of research.