Developing Information Literacy Skills for School Librarians...Developing Information Literacy...

D AV I D B I R C H E N A L L

J A N UA R Y 2 7 T H 2 0 1 2

Developing Information Literacy Skills for School Librarians

Key Changes Impacting Librarianship

Access to Information

Information Sharing

Academic Honesty

Evaluation of Sources

Synthesis Skills

Changing Role of the Librarian

Mike Eisenberg

DEAN EMERITUS AND PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON.

EISENBERG PIONEERED THE BIG 6 INFORMATION PROCESSING MODEL

The Big Six

TASK DEFINITION

Define the information problem

Identify the information needed to solve the problem

The Big Six

INFORMATION SEEKING STRATEGIES

Determine all possible sources (brainstorm)

Select the best sources available

The Big Six

LOCATION AND ACCESS

Locate sources (intellectually and physically)

Find information within the sources

The Big Six

USE OF INFORMATION

Engage (e.g., read, hear, view, touch)

Extract relevant information

The Big Six

SYNTHESIS

Organize from multiple sources

Present the information

The Big Six

EVALUATION

Judge the product (effectiveness)

Judge the process (efficiency)

Plan (Beginning)

When students get an assignment or a task before they start doing anything, they should think:

What am I supposed to do?

What will it look like if I do a really good job?

What do I need to find out to do the job?

Do (Middle)

In the middle the students do the activity. This is where they:

Read

View

Tell

Make a picture, etc.

Review (End)

Before finishing the product and turning it in, students should stop and think:

Is This Done?

Did I do what I was supposed to do?

Do I feel ok about this?

Should I do something else before I turn it in?

Super 3 Works Well With Stories

Information Problems

Your partner is getting sick and needs nursing care. How do you find the best, most affordable care?

Your employer is moving to another state. What are your prospects? Should you and your family move?

Your children want to travel to northern Italy to look up your grandparents’ family. How do you find out more about the region?

The teacher says your child is hyperactive and needs medical treatment. Where do you turn for the latest information?

You have to write a report on the feasibility of opening a new restaurant in Makati.

Let’s say that we have lost our cell phone and we want to buy another phone.

Eisenberg’s Wake-Up Call

Eisenberg claims that traditional school libraries are in crisis, partly due to cuts in funding.

The central problem are the variety and quality of library

programs. Our programmes are supportive but are they essential? Not accountable in terms of achievement.

Librarians are tied to old routines and technologies. We

need to have a makeover! We need a hard hitting library skills program.

Eisenberg’s Plan

Get an attitude!

Embrace the brand, mission and function.

School Librarian becomes Teacher Librarian

School Library becomes Media Center

Pie chart planning

Focus on accountable information literacy instruction

Do we need to re-think our approach?

What can you realistically do?

Rethink the sacred cows.

Overdue Materials?

Online catalogs?

Inventory?

Collection Development

What can you cut back on to do really valuable stuff?

Finally …

birchenalld@ismanila.org