LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCES STUDENTS’ DIGITAL LITERACY AS A PREDICTOR OF THEIR ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Abstract

This study investigated the perceived level of digital literacy, academic performance, and the effect of digital literacy on academic performance among the library and information sciences (LIS) students enrolled in the top four LIS schools in Pakistan. A quantitative research approach and a survey questionnaire were used to collect data from 245 LIS students recruited through a convenient sampling technique. The descriptive analysis exhibited low to moderate perceived digital literacy and academic performance among LIS students. Hence, the regression model depicts a positive and significant effect of LIS students’ digital literacy on their academic performance. These results provide pragmatic insight to LIS educators on the value of digital literacy in fostering LIS students’ academic performance in Pakistan. This research is a substantial contribution to the existing literature as empirical reference was lacking in the literature that examines digital literacy and academic performance among LIS students simultaneously in the Pakistani context.