Effective Search Strategies
There are a lot of good strategies both in the reading and on the web for helping students search appropriately and accurately. The internet today has morphed into this complex world of knowledge some of which is accurate and credible and a lot of which is not. Reading Literacy 2.0 was particularly interesting because some of the strategies discussed were strategies I had never heard of or used. For example, advanced search operators are particularly useful to limit the search either to a site, links to a site, having the keyword within the url, or having the keyword in the title of a particular article or page all (Frey et. al., 2010, p. 40). Boolean search tools is another strategy I had never heard of before and have never used. Boolean operators help students really narrow down their search.
I really liked that the authors in Literacy 2.0 outlined a necessary skills checklist to help students learn how to search effectively. From their list and the chapter reading, I have determined that there are some basic skills that students should have to make sure that they can pinpoint the specific information they need for their research. Those skills include:
- Knowing that there are multiple search engines available (not just Google)
- Knowing that there are specialized search engines available. These are usually focused on academic sources of information like research articles. This is particularly important for science courses
- Knowing how to do more precise searches using Boolean operators and more advanced operators
In order for students to develop those skills, teachers need to have the resources for incorporating the skills into their lessons. I don’t think this is a particularly difficult task. Doing research particularly at the collegiate level can be very frustrating, so I think students will be more engaged. I find they are good listeners when you introduce any information with the phrase “I am trying to make your life easier”. Teachers can model how to do effective searches and use handouts to help remind the kids how to use specific strategies like Boolean operators (because frankly that is some lengthy information).
Below I have listed some links that describe advanced search operators and Boolean operators:
Using Boolean Operators
Student Handout for Boolean Operators
Using Advanced Search Operators
Reference
Frey, N., Fisher, D., & Gonzalez, A. (2010). Literacy 2.0: reading and writing in 21st century classrooms. Moorabbin, Vic.: Hawker Brownlow Education.
"In order for students to develop those skills, teachers need to have the resources for incorporating the skills into their lessons. I don’t think this is a particularly difficult task."
ReplyDeleteIt is always interesting to get a high school teacher's perspective on all of the topics within this course. As a fourth grade elementary teacher, I have realized how important it is to provide my students with appropriate research tools as they are not seasoned enough in online research to be able to meet a lesson's objective. I can definitely see your need to release some of that control to prepare your learners for collegiate level courses. You have a much larger task to teach them good research habits and provide them with a checklist to look into the credibility of the content. It makes me wonder if I am not doing my part in preparing them for research skills later in their learning careers. Perhaps, I need to step up my game!
"I have determined that there are some basic skills that students should have to make sure that they can pinpoint the specific information they need for their research."
ReplyDeleteThis is such a good idea and will make teaching these skills so much more manageable. When I first started teaching third grade, I had just come from 2 years of teaching elementary technology. It would frustrate me to try and work on something in technology class, even with 6th graders, and have to teach them some basic skill such as how to search for something. When I knew I was getting a class of third graders with 1:1 devices, one of the first things I did was make a list of things I considered "key technology skills" that students should have. Believe it or not, one of the skills was something you mentioned, "Knowing that there are multiple search engines available (not just Google)". Before we bookmarked pages, when told to go to a website such as Moby Max, students would just type "moby max" into the address bar. When it took them to the Google search results page, they were so confused! However, it is so important to teach those basic skills at the beginning in order for our students to be successful throughout the rest of the year in our classrooms.
I also agree with you about teaching your high school students about Boolean Operators. I think they are old enough to understand and use this tool well!
April,
ReplyDeleteRE: "In order for students to develop those skills, teachers need to have the resources for incorporating the skills into their lessons. I don’t think this is a particularly difficult task. Doing research particularly at the collegiate level can be very frustrating, so I think students will be more engaged."
Here are two chrome extensions you might be interested in:
BOOL: helps students construct Boolean searches:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/bool/cfpmoigmhcehoegokjllchipdiindpkc/related?hl=en
Google Scholar: adds a browser button to Google Scholar to make it easier to find academic information
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-scholar-button/ldipcbpaocekfooobnbcddclnhejkcpn?hl=en
Dr. Dell