What information sources do engineering students use to address authentic socio-technical problems? Findings and conclusions.

In this study we investigate the information sources used by engineering students to address authentic socio-technical problems. Informed by discussions of information literacy in academic disciplines, we examine the information seeking behaviour of a class of engineering students engaged in problems that in their ambiguity and open-endedness mimic the problems faced by professional engineers. Our study has implications for librarians wondering about the allocation of library resources and the effectiveness of in-class presentations, and for instructors concerned that students garner relevant and authoritative information as they propose problem solutions. It also relates to the current interest in life-long learning. Both librarians and instructors would benefit from gaining insight into how best to prepare students for a global workplace with unknown constraints and limited information resources.