Web Literacy for Educators by Alan November session 2

Session 2, Oct. 28, 2008 discussion highlights by the PLC of 11 staff members

Discussion focused around book’s chapter 3– Get REAL: How to Validate Information on the Web.

Key questions raised – What’s your source REALLY? And So what – What matters?

Important and random ideas shared and discussed by 8 participants included:

Discussion about preparing ORMS Spotlight application
PLC will meet on November 12 8 -9 to fill out application; expect to meet in the conference room.

Discussion about an Alan November annual conference – Expanding the Boundaries of Learning – Boston, MA, July 29-31. We will consider it further during our next meeting to determine interest in attending.

Discussion about the presence of the literacy blog from the ORMS loading page and how to keep the discussion going by adding comments between our face to face discussion times; some members will need to create Blogger accounts to directly participate and can see Danielle, Cathy, or Ellen for further assistance in doing this.

Chapter 3 Discussion
Decoding the grammar of the web:
REAL: Read the URL, Examine the content, Ask about the author and owner, Learn!
Experience with teen at home revealed a difference in approach as a result of applying techniques and incite from chapter 1 &2: rather than making student defensive or feeling challenged resulting in teen/parent struggle, the teacher-parent posed questions including What’s your source? And what’s your source agenda? This goes beyond just citing a source and into the REAL matter of a source.
Students have an inherent sense of digital learning and this needs critical thinking awareness.

Web Literacy has raised our awareness - this book makes us realize that our responsibility as educators has been raised and this teaching cannot be ignored. Our teaching job includes providing web literacy skills and strategies, including teacher page links, and lessons on why critical thinking about the web is important.
ORCSD has a new backplan with standards to be met which is a good venue for wrapping this web literacy into and having building oversight in monitoring this.
Team/department discussions need to explore together how to make purposeful use of school provided online database use and web literacy awareness.
Part of meeting the need of web literacy is through common language – Web Literacy provides terms to develop for word wall/glossary of common understanding.
End of quarter exhibition of learning could include students demonstrating how they access information.
Can we enhance learning by integrating areas of learning? (Second session this has been raised).

Parents need to be informed; growing this awareness involves moving beyond an assumption that an adult would ‘know’ this information.

Currently, many students first criteria for picking a web site is readability level or being returned on the first page at the top (this equates to must be good information, without critical thinking).
Lots of information can be located through searches but “so what?” – information is not in and of itself useful – providing essential questions to provoke reflection and create new ideas as well as the process of learning is meaningful learning and sometimes missing in student assignments.

Reader expressed that it is exciting to know how to deconstruct and decode our URL use (through knowing about the web’s grammar, syntax, and cross-referencing).

Many expressed
wanting/needing time to play and learn and gain more comfortable experience by using sources provided by November in the book/through his site as links
How can we use our time to create more collaboration for learning? Wanting more conversations to light up learning for educators?
A fear expressed of not ‘getting the curriculum done by the end of the year’ was laid to rest as not a concern now or in the past by administration – we need to prioritize curriculum for today’s children. This involves considering what to master, simplifying lessons for learning and thinking less is more.
Consider good ideas, including differentiation of approach for our teaching.
A key focus of learning in school is helping students know ‘how to learn’.
wanting to better understand how to help kids and locate best places for them to learn from.

Web Literacy for Educators by Alan November

Session 1, Oct. 21, 2008 discussion highlights by the PLC of 9 staff members

Discussion focused around book’s introduction, chapter 1 – web basics for critical thinking and chapter 2 – the empowered researcher

Key question raised - Do the kids know this?

Important and random ideas shared and discussed included:
 Discomfort in realizing how much is not known about web – increased desire to learn more.
 Kids are often naïve as are adults about assumptions regarding web use.
 Currently access to computers by each separate subject teacher is what drives how computers are used – sometimes this reduces focus on getting kids ready for the process of learning/searching so that the content can be accessed in limited computer availability slots. If teams could integrate curriculum, which involves compromise as curriculum approach changes, the planning for tools to support curriculum changes, and student’s studies are validated in different ways.
 Awareness of scaffolded learning important – what do elementary students coming here in grade 5 already know? Pre-test and post-test for incoming students would help establish MS needs.
 Learner needs are changing from awareness of software competency to understanding of the grammar of digital literacy.
 Creating glossary of terms for digital grammar would help all learners of today – adult and student. PLC teachers could offer parents some information to provide home support for their assisting their children learning new skills and understanding.
 Kids are not as capable as we like to think in using various digital tools thoughtfully, effectively, and efficiently – obligation for today’s educators to be aware and assist in this learning as in other traditional literacy learning.
 Between students unsure of how to proceed in their searching to students being allowed to decide for themselves where and how to search is an awareness of what type of learning and skills are needed for performing powerful searches, saving time, and reducing frustration.

For more information about the book, visit November Learning