Gender Influence on Information Literacy Skills in Completing Group Discussion Assessment Among Semester One Students at Selected Polytechnics in Malaysia

Abstract

This study aims to determine the level of information literacy possessed by semester one students to complete a group discussion assessment and identify gender-based differences in the information literacy skills possessed by semester one students who complete a group discussion assessment at two selected polytechnics in Malaysia (N = 51). However, the study on information literacy skills among Malaysian polytechnic semester one student to complete Group Discussion has not been widely researching in Malaysia hence the gap this study hopes to fill.  In this study, students completed 38 items on a survey from Marshall's Information Competency Assessment Instrument (ICAI). The inferential analysis (mean and standard deviation) was utilised to answer the research questions, while the independent t-test was employed to examine the research hypothesis. In completing the group discussion evaluation, students possessed various information skills, according to the study's findings. In addition, there were significant differences between the information literacy skills of men and women. As a nation's knowledge-based economy is a powerful asset, the findings suggest that educators in the twenty-first century should emphasise improving students' information literacy abilities.