The ways that information is used vary greatly. Educators need to be aware of the multitude of information literacy skills students need to use so that they can ensure that they are hitting all of the skills. This is why the adoption of the new library standards is so exciting for teacher librarians. We are at a critical moment in the development of libraries and by having strong standards, we can guide our practices to ensure that we are protecting the future of libraries themselves. Classroom teachers are struggling to keep up with the educational mandates that determine what they teach. Many feel that they don't have time to teach information literacy. Those who do often become bogged down with technology issues and aren't able to transmit the necessary content. School librarians are aware of this and have made a move to take this content into their realm. I feel as if one of the key understandings regarding the teaching of information is
When designing a curriculum for teaching curriculum there are a number of accepted teaching points. The Big 6 is a popular method for teaching information literacy that highlights six skills that provide students with a strategy for dealing with any assignment or problem. The six stages include task definition, information seeking strategies, location and access, use of information, synthesis, and evaluation. Taken as a whole, these skills provide students with some of the most commonly accepted understandings regarding information literacy.
"As educators, we need to think about information use and its relationship with learning when we design learning" (Bruce, 2008, p. 3). Oftentimes, educators neglect to consider the bigger picture when designing a curriculum. We need to examine the specific skills that students need for success. This begins with topic selection, and performing successful search strategies, and then onto evaluating sources, analyzing and synthesizing information and using that to create knowledge.
Bruce, C. (2008). Informed learning. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries.
Eisenberg, M. & Berkowitz, R. (1987). Retrieved September 30, 2010 from Big 6 website, http://www.big6.com/
I found the concept of information literacy being the mandate of teacher librarians in your blog thought-provoking. My background is in a corporate setting, so I have little knowledge of the instruction of information literacy as a skill-set in schools. How does this dynamic work in the school? Do students have an actual course on information literacy with the teacher librarian? Or, is this done on an ad hoc basis? Is there resistance and push back from teachers in this area? I definitely agree with your thesis statement that teacher librarians are uniquely positioned to instruct information literacy skills.
ReplyDeleteI think you are absolutely correct that information literacy instruction has become a more integral aspect of the teacher librarian's role. But I think that the most powerful and effective method of fulfilling this role requires the cooperation and collaboration of teachers. Rather than assume these related tasks single-handedly, the lessons are far more powerful if integrated into classroom curricula and applied repeatedly to research topics across the disciplines (not just history!).
ReplyDeleteI also think the building block of "performing successful search strategies" relates to Amie's point about "asking the right questions" when engaging in research (though perhaps Google's new "smart search" platform can accomplish this task for students ~ just kidding!...but relevant to Mike's post!). Learning to formulate successful queries involves continual refinement *and* expansion of one's search parameters. This comes from instruction, surely, but also from consistent practice and experience.
I agree that this is an exciting time for teacher librarians; the formulation of standards for our profession. It almost feels more professional to be included in the ranks of other California disciplines with state standards to adhere to. It will also hopefully impart the importance of the profession to the school districts which have been drastically reducing the number of teacher librarians in the last ten years.
ReplyDeleteYour ideas of teaching the Big Six concepts for information literacy would be great in any school setting and I envision it much as Rachel stated in her response post as being part of a collaboration with teachers and the curriculum. So far true collaboration, from planning a unit through to integrating library skills within the unit, has not happened in my current position as librarian. Usually a teacher plans out a unit, signs up for the library, and then asks me to show the students how to access books (or pull books) and information on our databases. I usually assist the students in locating information, troubleshooting, and citing sources while they are in the library with their class. This has come to feel like a positive "lesson" with the class of students and supporting the curriculum. I think much would have to change at either school that I work at for true collaboration in teaching information literacy as discussed above. The first change would be not being pulled between two schools...