Research on the Web

Will, at Weblogg-ed (an excellent resource for educators), discusses teachers, students and information literacy on the Web.

"I think it’s better for everyone if we just give them a list of sites they can use when they do their papers," the principal said, "and tell them they have to have a certain number of those resources in the final product."

Now, this is a loose transcript of the conversation, but the point is clear. Instead of teaching effective use of the tool, the easy way is to limit the reach of the tool, rein it in and limit its effect. If that is or will become the prevailing view, we are all in serious, serious trouble…

I see with my children (Grades 5 & 7) that research skills and media literacy are not developed at all in the New Brunswick school system. These are critical skills, especially since there are fewer resources in our school and public libraries. My own research has found two good online resources for students. The KVL Research Portal is easy to use and my son has found it quite helpful. The Big 6 Information Literacy site has some good information, but is not as dynamic as KVL’s. My perspective is that if the schools don’t teach information literacy, then it’s up to parents.

Any other recommendations would be appreciated. I put "Student Resources" sites on FURL for future reference.