Shifting Understandings of Information Literacy in the Age of Generative AI: Insights From LIS Students

Information literacy (IL) is a foundational capability for professionals across the Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums (GLAM) sector, yet its meaning and enactment are being reshaped by rapidly evolving information practices and accelerating technological and social change. For Library and Information Studies (LIS) students, IL represents a dynamic and often ambiguous construct that spans academic learning, emerging professional practice, and everyday information engagement. Despite extensive scholarship on IL as both a pedagogical and professional construct, limited empirical research has examined how Australian LIS students conceptualise IL within this shifting landscape. This study addresses that gap through a phenomenological investigation of LIS students enrolled across three Australian universities. Data were collected through a mixed-methods survey and online focus groups and participants represented varied stages of their programs, providing insight into conceptual development across the course lifecycle. -Findings indicate that students’ development of the IL concept is shaped by the dual identity of the student-practitioner, as they navigate the demands of academic work while anticipating future professional responsibilities.- As GenAI reconfigures the IL landscape, the study argues that IL may possess the conceptual flexibility to respond to technological change, provided curricula foreground social, contextual, and transformative dimensions. These insights support more responsive IL pedagogy and highlight the need to integrate employer perspectives to ensure alignment with professional realities.