Tech Play 4: Information Literacy

What is Information Literacy?

Information literacy is the knowledge and capability to find, evaluate, organize, use, and communicate information in all its various formats. It requires decision making and problem solving through the combination of research skills, critical thinking, computer technology aptitude, and communication skills. Information literacy has quickly become a requirement in the 21st century for academic success, workplace effectiveness, and participation in society as knowledgeable citizens.

Information Literacy Tools

• Edmodo: Edmodo is a learning platform that effectively addresses blended learning and remote learning with communication and collaboration features. Edmodo merges familiar social networking features with those frequently found in classroom management systems. It provides a safe and easy way for students to connect, share content, and access homework and school announcements. This tool supports the visual literacy, computer literacy, and critical thinking skills needed to become an informationally literate learner. It does neglect research and library skills which are critical tools needed for the 21st century. However, teachers and students could use Edmodo to share artifacts of learning and assignments that require students to learn and share their sources and Boolean search processes to develop these skills that Edmodo doesn't hit on directly.

• Diigo: Diigo is a social bookmarking website that allows users to bookmark and tag webpages. It also allows users to annotate web pages and PDFS directly online, organize links, references, and personal input to create a structured research base, and share their research easily with others. Diigo supports the development of information literacy skills by building students computer literacy, research, and critical thinking skills, yet neglects the area of information ethics. Since students will be bookmarking information directly from webpages, sources will naturally be cited which helps in the justifying the lack of informational ethics and helping students learn to identify and use credible and authoritative sources.

• Whooo's Reading: Whoo's reading is a website that challenges students to think critically about what they read. Students answer open-ended questions about the book they are reading and write reviews using audio or typed submissions. Students can see what their classmates are reading and offer recommendations to one another. This encourages students to think critically about what they are reading and to collaborate with their peers to gain reflective insight about unfamiliar text. This is a tool geared directly towards critical literacy that overall neglects the other informational literacy skills listed in the graphic above. The justification for using this tool despite the skills it neglects is in how strongly it helps develop critical reading and thinking skills. These skills are practically a prerequisite that students have to have to be able to effectively develop and learn the other NFIL skills listed in the infographic.

• Common Sense: Digital Passport: Digital Passport by Common Sense is a suite of 6 interactive games that hit on issues that students face in today's digital world. Students learn important digital citizenship skills that teach them to use technology responsibility to create, learn, and collaborate. The interactive games address creating safe and secure passwords to protect your security online, online multitasking and the benefits of focusing on one task at a time, deciding what information is appropriate and inappropriate to share with others online, cyberbullying, using effective key words for searching online, and using media content to create a new piece while giving proper credit to sources they used. This is a great tool that addresses each of the skills needed to be informationally literate listed in the infographic. 

Collaborative Research Projects

In small groups based on topics of interest either chosen or assigned, students will use Diigo to collaborate, share sources, and critically think through sources. This activity transforms learning to the modification level of technology integration because Diigo allows for significant task redesign of research through the learning affordances it provides.

Content (C): 5. 7 E- Students will interact with sources in meaningful way such as notetaking, annotating, freewriting, or illustrating.

Pedagogy (P): Inquiry-based learning pedagogy uses teaching and learning strategies that include student-centered research and investigation. It fosters the development of critical thinking, reflection, and authentic, meaningful discussion. 

Technology (T):  Diigo allows users to bookmark digital items as well as highlight and add sticky notes to keep track of specific sections. These annotations can then be shared with groups created by the teacher, leading to greater, more effective collaboration with their peers as they determine which sources are useful, engage in critical thinking discussions, practice appropriate commenting, learning how to tag items for archiving, and ultimately simulating an authentic learning experience where students participate in the exchange of information and critical thinking in a way that adult professions do.

Social Book Review Activity with Whooo's Reading

Students will use critical reading skills to compose a book review recommendation once per grading period that will be added to the class's bookshelf on Whooo's Reading website by analyzing plot development, text structure, and author's purpose. Students will then choose a book by reading classmates' recommendations and collaborating with their peers about books using critical reading skills. This activity transforms learning to the augmentation level of technology integration.

Content (C): 5.7B Students will write responses that demonstrate understanding of texts, including comparing and contrasting ideas across a variety of sources.

Pedagogy (P): Learner-centered pedagogy creates an environment that speaks to the heart of learning. It involves students by engaging them in the material through discussion and reflection. This activity allows students to share their opinions and thoughts about text through using their critical thinking and reading skills. to  

Technology (T): Whooo's Reading allows students to give a book a rating and review once they have finished reading it. Students rate the book with 1-5 stars and then respond to a prompt that guides their review. The review prompts are different each time to keep students engaged and thinking. Students book reviews are shared with the class on the classroom's class shelf to help other students discover what their classmates recommend or don't recommend and why.