Notes from Vicki E. Hancock's article "Information Literacy for Lifelong Learning" Eric Digest (1993, 4 pp., ED358870)
In an information literate environment, students engage in active, self-directed learning activities, and teachers facilitate students' engagement through a more adventurous style of instructional delivery.
THE IDEAL INFORMATION LITERATE STUDENT...
--seek a rich range of information sources;
--communicate an understanding of content;
--pose questions about the content being learned;
--use the environment, people, and tools for learning;
--reflect on their own learning;
--assess their own learning; and
--take responsibility for their own learning
--Info lit students are effective consumers of information resources. Learn that information packaged in a variety of ways, packaged using different techniques, servces a variety of interests (bias), and contains a variety of messages. When students must choose for themselves, are more critical/evaluative.
THE IDEAL INFORMATION LITERATE TEACHER...
--has thrown out the idea that teaching is telling, learning is absorbing, and that knowledge is static.
--they look beyond their classrooms for resources that will enrich the learning environment.
--they engage in collaborative activities which enrich their own professional development and their students' learning experiences. They seek the expertise of their school library media specialists as partners in the curriculum planning process.
--involve students in complex tasks that have purposes beyond the limits of the classroom and the teacher's critical evaluation. They also create collaborative situations to develop students' social skills and problem-solving skills.
--they are familiar with a variety of learning tools, both print-based and electronic, and they encourage their students to move beyond the textbook when seeking information and solving problems.
THE IDEAL ENVIRONMENT FOR INFORMATION LITERACY. . .
--Info lit thrives in a resource-based learning environment.
--"Aside from more traditional print resources--textbooks, encyclopedias, newspapers, magazines--they use technological resources such videotape and videodisc, CD-ROM, software tools, and simulation/modeling tools.
--They use computer networking and telecommunications for both data access and participation in learning communities. They use multimedia technologies as materials for gathering data and as production tools.
--They use their school library media centers to locate and use many of these resources."
--Effective learners also reach beyond classroom walls into their local communities for rich supply of materials and authoritative information provided by individuals, organizations, public/univ. libraries, mass media outlets....
BENEFITS OF THESE IDEALS....
For Students...
Information literacy...counteracts the information dependency created by traditional schooling, where students rely on teacher to dispense info (sage on the stage). An unhealthy "information dependency" leads to "learned helplessness," the student does not feel competent able ready to learn for him/herself. They graduate not being able to transfer the knowledge or to build on it and most importantly to continue to learn and adapt to new conditions and new information. Much better if teacher is a facilitator, instilling independence and confidence at every stage.
Resource-based learning accomodates varied interests and ability levels, is flexible.
When teachers encourage students to do their own research, students take responsibility for their own learning and retain more info they have gathered for themselves. Idea of student-generated queries vs. teacher-generated. Has been proven that individuals more motivated when they can drive/manage the process. Of course a balance must be struck between content learning and resource-based learning.
For Students who become Citizens...
--"To respond effectively to an ever-changing environment, people need more than just a knowledge base. They need techniques for exploring, making connections, and making practical use of information."
--Info lit folks know how to use info for their best advantage in all areas of life. Can identify the most useful info when making decisions like where to locate a business, how to vote, whether to have a child. They can evaluate and analyze news reports and information of interest to them. Is there data to substantiate a claim? Is the report using information in a flawed manner to suppport a point of view?
For Students who become Workers..."
--In "knowledge economy" the "raw information" must be transformed into knowledge that has been "cooked." Individuals need to be information "chefs." (!)
--The current workplace demands a new kind of worker. Reading and arithmetic ability are not enough. The deluge of info must be sorted, evaluated, and applied, and workers must be able to gather, synthesize, interpret and evaluate. Lack of these skills negatively effects productivity, services, products, ability to quickly adapt to changing conditions and needs.
--Workers will change jobs and careers. Info lit will allow them to make these changes effectively and to their best advantage.
I love it!! --Brian, Thu, 08 Mar 2007 09:33:54 -0500 reply
What do we have to do to create this ideal world. Is the pressure to cover content too great to over come? How does the ideal world realate to situated cognition and communities of practice?