Information Literacy and Fantasy Sports

Paul Waelchli at Research Quest has a brilliant post an applying fantasy sports to the ACRL Information Literacy Compentency Standards at National Librarian Sport Declared. I am reproducing part of it here with his permission.

From Waelchli:

Standard 1: "The information literate student determines the nature and extent of the information needed."

- Indicator 1: "The information literate student defines and articulates the need for information literacy."

--The strengths and weaknesses of the team

--What positions are required

--What player match-ups exist

--Explores general information sources to gain a focus

-Indicator 2: "The information literate student identifies a variety of types and formats of potential sources for information."

--Identifies a variety of sources (printed guides, websites, interviews, peer conversations
Constructs information from the raw data (game stats) from primary sources

-Indicator 3: "The information literate student considers the costs and benefits of acquiring the needed information."

--Determines what info is available free and what is fee and the benefits of each

-Standard 2: "The information literate student accesses needed information effectively and efficiently."

--Indicator 2: "The information literate student constructs and implements effectively -designed search strategies."

---Identifies what terms (positions, players, keywords) to search

---Implements search through various methods and retrieval

-Indicator 3: "The information literate student retrieves information online or in person using a variety of methods."

--Fantasy players use chats, forums, call-in shows, interviews, email letters to gain primary information

-Indicator 4: "The information literate student refines the search strategy if necessary."

--Assesses the quality the information and determines if they have enough to make roster, player, draft decision

--Identifies gaps in their information and repeats search in order to make informed decision

-Indicator 5: "The information literate student extracts, records, and manages the information and its sources."

--Many players create their own organizational systems (spreadsheets, draft cheat sheets)
Tracks citation sources in order to come back to them ("future reference") during the season

Standard 3: "The information literate student summarizes the main ideas to be extracted from the information gathered."

-Indicator 1: "The information literate student summarizes the main ideas to be extracted from the information gathered."

--Reads source content and selects the key data that applies to need (roster, team, match-up)

-Indicator 2: "The information literate student articulates and applies initial criteria for evaluation both the information and its sources."

--Determines the reliability, bias, validity, authority and timeliness of sources in order to make roster and drafting decisions

--Recognizes prejudice potential in fan based sites compared to professional sites

-Indicator 3: "The information literate student synthesizes main ideas to construct new concepts."

--Recognizes trends and relationships in stats (primary sources) and commentaries
Often uses spreadsheets and tables to construct comparison charts and rankings for drafting

-Indicator 4: "The information literate student compares new knowledge with prior knowledge to determine the value added, contradictions, or other unique characteristics of the information."

--Decides if they have enough information to make a draft / roster decision

--Draws conclusions based on evidence that effect the season/week/day gameplay

--As the season progress, the players integrate new and ongoing information with previous knowledge to make timely decisions

-Indicator 5: "The information literate student determines whether the new knowledge has an impact on the individuals' value system and takes steps to reconcile the differences."

--Players encounter commentaries and information that contract their own beliefs on teams/athletes and their value

-Indicator 6: "The information literate student validates understanding and interpretation of the information through discourse with other individuals, subject-area experts, and / or practitioners."

--Engage in personal and electronic discussions about players and decisions

--Expert opinions are sought through weekly shows and chats conducted by paid professionals (ESPN, NFL, CBS)

Standard 4: "The information literate student, individually or as a member of a group, uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose."

-Indicator 1: "The information literate student applies new and prior information to the planning and creation of a particular product or performance."

--Articulates the knowledge gained in the drafting process and weekly roster moves (end product)

--Manipulates digital data (league websites and team pages) to reflect knowledge

-Indicator 2: "The information literate student revises the development process for the product or performance."

--After every match-up, the player reflects on the process and the results (win/loss) to determine future strategies