Scaffolding the Research Process

04/07/23

Internet andThe Research

ProcessStudents, Teachers and LibrariansCarolyn Foote Elaine Leggett

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Information Literacy

“All which the school can or need do for pupils, so far as their minds are concerned, is to develop the ability to think.”

John Dewey as quoted in Mancall, et al.“Educating Students to Think”

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Information Literacy

Focus has been on “technological literacy” not on information literacy

the “physical” internet vs. “intellectual” internet

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Grounding ourselves Internet, students and teachers--

what research and models say

We have to be grounded in the understanding before we can change our practices

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The Process Carol Kuhlthau’s Information Search

Process as a model

Carol Kuhlthau“Information Search Process”

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The Process The importance of support at every step

Student in Carol Kuhlthau’s study-- “I guess it’s more grownup to say, “Here you have a

research paper. It’s due in four weeks, do it.” Its all on your own, I guess, research papers are. But they never ask during the four weeks, they never remind you that you’re doing a research paper. Just at the end of three and a half weeks they say, “Your research paper is due in three days.” The teacher could have done something in between…..I don’ t know what teachers expect because it seems they just say you have this research paper due. They don’t discuss it with you…In the meantime the teacher isn’t really being there.”Carol Collier Kuhlthau

“A Process Approach to Library Skills Instruction”

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The Process “’Being there involves seeing the

research through, from beginning to end…. They also need guidance in learning useful strategies to apply at various stages in the process.”

Carol Kuhlthau“A Process Approach to Library Skills

Instruction”

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The Process Teacher and librarian factors

assumptions students have the skills and vocabulary in a particular

content area to do a search students are able to determine what they need to know

and choose relevant information students readily transfer skills reporting = researching and information =

knowledge students know everything about the internet and know

how and where to searchRoss Todd“Research Column 3, 1997”

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How is internet research different?

Formulating the question The Search Sorting and Selecting Using information Synthesis Evaluation

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Formulating the question

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The question Formulating the question/topic Carol Kuhlthau--mood Studies

Students don’t know how to form questions Study showing that students have trouble

figuring out what they know and using it Vastness of internet One starting point vs. many

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The question “A well developed conceptual knowledge

of broadening and narrowing searches, of substituting alternative terms is essential.”

Celeste McNicholas and Ross J. Todd“New kids on the block”

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The question Strategies

Teacher and Librarian as coach Brainstorming--techniques (Inspiration, etc) Browsing directory sites Essential questions (Ted Sizer)

How are things, events, or people connected to each other? How do they fit together?

So what? Why does this matter? What’s new and what’s old? Have we run across this idea

before? What’s different?“Asking the Essential Questions”

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Thesearch

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The Search Student factors

“Students ability to complete or even begin a successful search is closely linked to their ability to design search paths.”

Knowledgenovice vs. expertcontent vs. strategies

Celeste McNicholas and Ross J. ToddNew kids on the box: is it worth the effort and investment?

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The Search The search for courage

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The Search Study showing assumption of students about

books (and internet) Lack of strategies--students often kept

repeating the same search over and over without making adjustments

Students give up or “make do”

Celeste McNicholas and Ross J. ToddNew kids on the box: is it worth the effort and investment?

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The Search “Thinking is not demonstrated by how many

answers students know; rather, it is demonstrated by how they behave when they don’t know.”

Arthur L. CostaDeveloping Minds: A Resource Book for Teaching

thinking

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The Search Strategies

Are students in the net generation developing new strategies?

“Students today learn by experimenting, trying various approaches until they find one that works for them….As Sherry Turkle has noted, today’s youth are learning computing by exploring.”

Swim analogy

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Survey students-- How do they begin when they don’t know? What search sites do they use? Why? What do

they do when they hit roadblocks? How do they regroup? When do they seek help? The role of serendipity?

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Brainstorming key words (example worksheet)

Modeling search strategies--”think aloud” Have students model their strategies Conferencing and peer groups Email conferencing Progress journals--

How did you begin? Where did you have problems?

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Sorting andSelecting

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Sorting and Selecting

Library is preselected.

“Enter the internet: a world where there is no process of selectivity other than that each surfer brings with them.”

Celeste McNicholas and Ross J. Todd“New kids on the box: is it worth the effort and investment?”

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“The study revealed that the classroom teacher and students searching the Internet were woefully under-prepared for the diversity and enormity of search results.”


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“I just pick the first good site I come to if it has the information I’m looking for.”

7th grader

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“How do we develop in students this important skill of discrimination, evaluation, and selection so that they can manage the vast, ambiguous Internet?”


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Strategies Coaching “If ever there was a need for coaching students to use

their minds well, it’s now….It’s naïve to think that even with technology kids are going to be able to make meaning of this incredible glut of information without learning to make connections between things, ask the right questions, make logical selections.”

Kathy Juarez in“Technology in the Essential School”

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Strategies Coaching Selecting--Print only one article Selecting--Harvest, and then rank articles Modeling--How to select sites Website evaluation activities Progress checksheet--What source did you

pick today and why?

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UsingInformation

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Using Information The problem--The buffet--Jamie McKenzie

“We see students..downloading and saving files in a great rush of data gorging which rarely includes reading. Hundreds of files and pages accumulate without sorting, sifting or discrimination. They search the web, find twenty thousand hits and light up with joy. Confusing quantity and sheer volume of information with success, they greedily scoop up everything within their reach….”

Jamie McKenzie“Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info- Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-Glimmer”

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Using Information “We must not let information displace

wisdom….If you approach information without good habits of mind you only become its victim.”

Mark Gordon “Asking the Essential Questions: Curriculum Development”

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Using Information Deep reading vs. horizontal reading

Sven Birkets--Gutenberg Elegies

Less is more “Wisdom has more to do with distillation and

reduction than volume. While we may want to search widely, we must harvest sparingly and wisely.” Jamie McKenzie

“Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info-Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-Glimmer”

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Using Information Time

Studies show that “rarely is there enough time for students to work through the process under the guidance of librarians and teachers.”

Carol Kuhlthau“Information

Search Process”

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Using Information Strategies

***Time*** Conferencing

Peer, teacher, librarians, email is the engagement between people more important than the

information?

Progress journals What did you find out today? What else do you need

to know?

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Synthesis Incubation

“We must step out of the activities long enough to consider the meaning of what we are finding.”

Jamie McKenzie“Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info-Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-Glimmer”

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Synthesis Strategies

Progress journals/check sheets-- How can I pull these ideas together?

Build in time “Making our way toward inspiration and illumination-the

“Aha!” phenomenon - usually requires much time and a supportive environment, an incubation period during which the elements of the new idea dance and spin around each other….this musing cannot be forced or rushed.”

Jamie McKenzie“Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info-Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-Glimmer”

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Evaluation “What has frequently been diagnosed as a

writing problem in student research papers is actually a thinking problem.Students have not sufficiently thought through their topics to write an intelligent research paper. The thoughts need to be developed during the library research process.” Carol Kuhlthau“Information Search Process”

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Evaluation Evaluate the process

survey students progress journals class discussions

Evaluate the assignment informal teacher questionnaire evaluation as a learning tool

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Teachers “Understanding the process by which

teachers approach and structure instruction is central to working in partnerships with teachers.”

Linda Lachance Wolcott“Understanding how teachers plan”

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Teachers Changing roles

Internet is driving change

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Teachers

Seize the marmot

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Teachers Strategies

hold teacher study /discussion groups

anchor your “message” to faculty’s technology usage (anchor to what they know)

seek your principal’s support for planning time and inservice opportunities

seek your curriculum office’s support for the same

attend department planning meetings and spread the word

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Next Steps Young people will be finding out about their

worlds in ways which differ considerably from the learning of decades past. Because this learning will require great independence, skill and courage, teachers must redesign schooling to show students how to make their way across this new landscape.”Jamie McKenzie

“Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info-Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-Glimmer”

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Next Steps “We must take our schools and students

way past Information to understanding, wisdom and insight.”

Jamie McKenzie

“Deep Thinking and Deep Reading in an Age of Info-Glut, Info-Garbage Info-Glitz and Info-

Glimmer”

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On the web Westlake High School Library

www.eanes.k12.tx.us/whs/[email protected]

Presentation for Internet Librarian West Conference October 2000.

Carolyn FooteElaine Leggett

mailto:[email protected]

Economy & Finance

Scaffolding the Research Process