The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of information literacy (IL) and digital literacy under the circumstances and challenges of the Web 2.0 environment.
Desk research was done in order acquire a picture about the nature of the Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 in regard to their influence on literacy requirements. The hypothesis that differential literacies have to be offered to diverging groups of users, similarly to traditional library services that cater for different user needs depending on the type of the given library was tested.
Professional goals characterize first of all different groups of professionals, teaching staff and researchers, as well as students. Thus, their need in information is different from that of other categories of users. Consequently, they require literacies similar to services traditionally offered by academic and special libraries. Amateur content is more compatible with the mission of public libraries and it is more suitable for Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 applications.
New principles of IL are outlined in this paper which will help practitioners in designing goal‐oriented IL education.
The practical implications need to be studied in the course of further research.
The findings represent a small but valuable asset to the discussion about new approaches towards IL education.
