Abstract
Digital literacy enables individuals to confidently engage with electronic devices and digital resources. While many adults use these tools to search for information, some still lack the essential skills to do so effectively. This pragmatic paper investigates the basic digital literacy skills of adult patrons at Adriaanse Public Library in Cape Town. Framed by SCONUL Seven Pillars of Information Literacy through a Digital Literacy “lens”, we employed a sequential mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative pre- and post-tests with qualitative interviews among 30 purposively selected participants. Quantitative data was analyzed statistically while thematic analysis was used for qualitative data. The findings revealed that the participants had basic online search skills but lacked advanced search techniques, algorithmic literacy, critical source-evaluation skills, and the ability to resolve technical problems of electronic devices. The simple keyword searches they used produced information overload that made it difficult to locate specific relevant content. This highlights the need for face-to-face digital literacy programs for adult social inclusion and independent engagement with contemporary technologies.
Recommended Citation
Smit, S., & Momoti, N. G. (2026). Enhancing Digital Literacy Programmes for Advanced Search Skills of Adult Public Library Patrons. Urban Library Journal, 32 (1). Retrieved from https://academicworks.cuny.edu/ulj/vol32/iss1/2