Monday, July 2, 2012

Millennials & Information Literacy


The summer quarter begins this week, and the online course I’m teaching – SOC 415 Global Social Change --  is on the information literacy curriculum map.   With the help of our college library, I have been developing a student research project to meet the information literacy outcomes for this course:

Students will keep a record of activities related to the process of information seeking, evaluating, and communication in order to reflect on past successes, failures, and alternative research strategies.

Information Literacy is “the set of skills needed to find, retrieve, analyze, and use information” (“Association of College & Research Libraries”).  One of the primary goals of information literacy is to help students learn critical thinking and research skills, for both their college years and for lifelong learning.

This is particularly important for the millennial generation.  While millennials tend to be “tech savvy”, research shows that “many students may have only limited knowledge about how to effectively evaluate online resources and use them appropriately” (Windham).

During the next eleven weeks students will research and write about global issues -- poverty, human rights, gender issues, education, population growth, health, etc. -- in their Global Research Journals.     Leslin Charles of the Berkeley College library will guide the students through researching global problems using library databases, journal articles, ebooks and websites.  During the research process, students will keep a research log where they will record their research activities, evaluate the quality and reliability of the information they find and reflect on the progress they have made with research strategies.   

Sources:
"Introduction to Information Literacy." Association of College & Research Libraries. American Library Association, n.d. Web. 1 Jul 2012. http://www.ala.org/acrl/issues/infolit/overview/intro/

Windham, Carrie. "Getting Past Google: Perspectives on Information Literacy From The Millennial Mind." Educause Learning Initiative. Educause, 2006. Web. 1 Jul 2012.

No comments: