Bill > S588

This bill directs the New Jersey Department of Education to develop and implement New Jersey Student Learning Standards for information literacy. Information literacy is defined as the set of skills needed to recognize, locate, evaluate, and effectively use needed information, including digital, visual, media, textual, and technological literacy. The bill establishes a committee, including certified school library media specialists and teachers from various subject areas, to develop the standards, which must include content on the research process, critical thinking, research methods, the difference between facts and opinions, accessing library resources, and the ethical production of information. School districts are required to incorporate information literacy instruction into their curricula for grades K-12, with input from school library media specialists. The State Board of Education must hold public hearings in different regions of the state to gather feedback on the standards before adopting them, which will be concurrent with updates to the broader New Jersey Student Learning Standards.