Experiential and self-discovery learning in digital literacy: developing the discernment to evaluate source reliability

In our modern digital and information-rich educational contexts, students are increasingly faced with conflicts between popular media and scholarly content. As a result, discerning source reliability can be considered as a key threshold concept in tertiary information literacy curricula. In this study, the author describes the development of an online tutorial designed to teach this threshold concept using experiential and self-discovery learning. Evaluation of students’ learning journeys as they progressed through the tutorial provided insight into students understanding of the concept of discerning source reliability. Therefore, the author proposes that this online tutorial is an effective pedagogical tool to help students develop their personal epistemology regarding source reliability.