NICE Evidence Search: Student Peers' Views on their Involvement as Trainers in Peer-based Information Literacy Training

This research seeks to contribute to the understanding of peer-based models of information literacy training, through gathering insights from peer trainers (champions) in a scheme designed to promote the use of a national health and social care information portal, Evidence Search (ES), amongst university students mainly in the health professions. Specifically, this article focuses on the benefits and learning that the peer trainers derive from their involvement in the scheme. This article reports on focus groups conducted with student champions. Findings suggest that champions believe that they have learnt a lot about information searching and evaluation from their engagement as champions, and have developed their teaching, planning and organisational skills. They now reported using Evidence Search as a first port-of-call for information for an assignment, although they still used Google. Students' choice of queries for their training session was influenced by their recent experience with study units or placements. In addition, many acted as advocates, making recommendations to friends (for study) or colleagues (in practice settings). Questionnaire data showed that champions regarded Evidence Search as credible, trustworthy and reliable, and that their approach to searching for and evaluating information is comparable to that of an expert.