Group items tagged

In a world of information overload, it is vital for students to not only find information but also determine its validity and appropriateness. Our information literacy material demystifies the process of finding and validating online information. These vital skills are needed as students prepare for our global economy.

A new and comprehensive research report reviews the literature about young people in the digital environment in order to provide a framework for interacting with quality information. Information quality is important today because the traditional gatekeepers and intermediaries that provided mechanisms for quality content standards have been replaced by the internet and media convergence. The need to understand how young people interact with information and use it has never been more important because information access and online social communities affect their social and cognitive development.

research on information evaluation values and approaches by today's youth

"Key findings from this survey highlight variability in ICT and Computing education internationally, as well as some areas of common ground. They are potentially useful in informing discussions about how to motivate students to pursue their ICT and Computing education. They may also be useful in considering what works or might usefully be developed in the curricula in the UK. Some key findings are presented below. Others are included in the report, along with more information about the survey. Key findings In some educational systems, the subject areas of ICT and Computing are not represented in the curriculum. In some they are optional and in others mandatory. The use of ICT is included in the curriculum more commonly than the technical aspects of Computing, such as programming. The age at which the teaching of ICT is expected by the curriculum varies, from introduction at or before age 6 in Ontario and Massachusetts to first introduction at the age of 12 in Singapore and 14 in Italy. There is evidence, however, that many students use ICT earlier than the curriculum implies. The introduction of more technical Computing skills occurs later, typically from the ages of 12-14 upwards. In terms of basic technical Computing skills, students are generally expected to know common terminology, to understand concepts such as 'hardware' and 'software' and to be able to name parts of a computer system, among other elements. Programming is covered in most Computing curricula investigated. In some, specific languages are identified, while in others, there is flexibility (e.g. Ontario simply specifies that programming languages should be 'industry standard'). Only the older students are exposed to the technicalities of networking and systems management, and then not in all countries/regions. Curriculum design varies. Most courses are linear, while Ontario offers a menu of Computing courses at the higher levels, from which students can select cours

Contains an exclusive video interview with cultural anthropologist Michael Wesh in which he discusses the tools today's students need to be good digital citizens.

""One of the challenges and important priorities for K-12 today has to be broadening our understanding of what it means to be a digital citizen," says Joseph Kahne, Davidson professor of education at Mills College in Oakland, CA, and chairman of the MacArthur Network on Youth and Participatory Politics, "so that we're talking about young people as producers and managers of information and perspectives, and not simply as people we need to keep safe and civil.""

Schools have always been charged with the task of producing good citizens. But how has our definition of a "good citizen" changed over the ages?

A recent research report of the take-up of laptops in a Sydney region of 14 secondary schools is very informative. The research examined the take up and use of laptops by 47 science teachers and 1245 students. The DER provided the laptops for the students whereas the schools provided the laptops for the teachers. The research developed a misalignment index that indicated differences between the use of laptops by teachers and by students that had implications for learning.

The learning needs of today's students no longer fit the traditional model. Rather than simply learning facts and basic skills, they need to acquire more complex skills in conceptualisation and problem solving. They need affective and metacognitive skills, and the capacity to work collaboratively and to work across disciplines. They need the dispositions required to pursue such learning. They also need learning experiences of the kind of tasks that they may expect to meet in adult life. Such learning requires authentic assessment, designed to demonstrate their grasp of the skills and competencies needed to address real-life problems, and formative assessment, or assessment for learning, designed to provide learners with feedback on their progress to inform their development. The article discusses the application of higher-level questioning, marking and feedback strategies, the establishment of shared learning goals between teacher and student, and peer- and self-assessment.

"Blumenfeld et al. (1991) identified six contributions that technology can make to the learning process: * enhancing interest and motivation; * providing access to information; * allowing active, manipulable representations; * structuring the process with tactical and strategic support; * diagnosing and correcting errors; * managing complexity and aiding production."

"Among teachers in a 1:1 or BYOD classroom, 15% use subject-specific content tools every week. 37% use information and reference tools every week. 18% of these teachers use teacher tools on a weekly basis. 20% of those surveyed use digital curricula weekly."

A good overview of the big picture - future happening now...

Good one Sarah. Only problem is to paraphrase the Riddler in Batman and Robin, "so much information, so little time"

Interesting in this 2006 essay on digital literacy that it assumes that all students are by definition digitally savvy as "digital natives". More recent insights such as reported in "Kids Closer Up: Playing, Learning, and Growing with Digital Media" by Lori Takeuchi, International Journal of Learning and Media, Spring 2011, Vol. 3, No. 2, Pages 37-59. point to more complex, multi-layed levels of student digital literacy.