Living in an information age we need citizens who can make sense of the complex, detailed, overwhelming information environment in which they live. Students need to have more than basic literacy skills, they need so many different types of literacy now; traditional, digital, visual, technology, oral. To be literate is to have power. Being able to read, write, understand and command language gives you a huge advantage in life.
Our students receive and make meaning from information from many sources (Kalantzis & Cope, 2015). Everyone living in the digital age is bombarded with information constantly and we can become informed without actively seeking information (news tickers, social media, pop-ups). Students need to process all this information without becoming overwhelmed and need to learn the skills to navigate all the information presented to them.
As Teacher Librarian’s (TL’s) we are the information specialists. Uniquely placed, now that literacy is multimodal (Kalantzis & Cope, 2015), to facilitate literacy development using technology and information resources for independent research. We need to develop our student’s research skills as they are now a basic skill for everyday life (Maniotes & Kuhlthau, 2014). Inquiry learning is therefore important as “Research is embedded in Inquiry learning” (Maniotes & Kuhlthau, 2014). As TL’s our job is to meet student’s information needs by providing opportunities to learn and practice information seeking skills (Eisenberg, 2008).
Inquiry learning, in its’ essence, is perfect to teach students research skills – it combines getting students involved in and understanding the learning process while learning about the topic / course content required. Students feel empowered as they own their own learning (“Enquiry Based Learning”, n.d., para. 1). Inquiry learning in schools combines both skills and content. As a primary school teacher (NSW) it always bothered me that we spend the primary years teaching students skills, how to learn and be involved in the learning process, only to have them go into high school where the process seemingly becomes redundant because it is all about knowing the content so you could regurgitate it on a test. Inquiry Learning teaches students the skills to navigate the complicated digital information they are presented with and develop the skills to ask questions, find answers and create solutions to problems that they encounter (Fitzgerald, 2015). We also need to acknowledge that while students have grown up in a digital environment, they are not necessarily digitally literate. They are confident users of technology but not necessarily effective users when it comes to research (Coombes, 2009). So just as English speakers learn English, our students, while digitally savvy, need to learn digital skills.
By teaching using inquiry based learning TL’s can create a learning environment where processes are explicitly modelled. Inquiry learning can give students the skills and scaffolds they need to direct their own learning and research, while engaging students in a meaningful process, because they help determine what they are learning about. Inquiry Learning provides TL’s the opportunity to teach the virtual environment research skills that academic research shows our ‘digital native’ students are lacking (Coombes, 2009). It also allows students the opportunity to work together and work at their own pace, permitting TL’s the chance to work with students who need further assistance when they need it. From implementing Guided Inquiry first hand Kim Bedingfield states that she has found GI assists students working in small groups (Bedingfield, 2017) while Jill Rivers states that inquiry learning empowers students by providing ownership (Rivers, 2017.). As TL’s we know the importance of being able to work as part of a team or group (collaborative teaching anyone?) and how important it is to own what you are doing (lessons I actively participate in the planning of, are always more effective).
Looking back on my previous blog posts I want to ensure my students are not looking at a text blindfolded (Cornwell, 2017). I want them to have the literacy skills they need to fully grasp, engage with and use the information they are exposed to or actively seek. The NSW DET Library Policy – Schools (2016) states that teacher librarians are to facilitate development of information skills; and in an environment with such a vast variety of information, students need a collection of skills to use, such as those developed through inquiry learning (ASLA, 2013). This is one of the reasons I chose to use the NSW DET Information Process (ISP) model for my inquiry unit, while it is the one currently in use at my school, I believe it presents learning in a way that can be used in all information seeking activities, whether a school based task or a personal research project, it provides opportunity to learn a variety of skills and teaches skills which will be useful throughout life.
The way the NSW DET Information Process (ISP) model presents information literacy as an on-going cycle facilitating learning as a continuous, open-ended process appeals to the side of me which thinks learning never stops. The continuous cycle allows / encourages / requires revisiting early work and therefore supports the need to rework when needed; nurturing the concept that learning is always ongoing. As a teacher I believe this is a very important thing to learn – we are always learning, we should always be learning and we need to always be learning to stay fully engaged with society. Inquiry learning teaches skills students can use and adapt and provides life skills vital for the digital world our students will inherit, adapt and change.
References:
Australian School Library Association Inc. (2013) Future learning and school libraries. Retrieved from http://www.asla.org.au/site/DefaultSite/filesystem/documents/2013-ASLA-futures-paper.pdf
Combes, B. (2009). Generation Y: Are they really digital natives or more like digital refugees? Synergy, 7(1).
Bedingfield,K (2017, September 5) Guided inquiry [online forum comment]. Retrieved from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_26671_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_45051_1&forum_id=_91605_1&message_id=_1324951_1
Eisenberg, M. B. (2008). Information literacy: Essential skills for the Information Age. Journal of Library & Information Technology, 28(2), 39-47
FitzGerald, L. (2015) Opportunity knocks: The Australian Curriculum and Guided Inquiry, Access, 29(2) 4-17
Kalantzis, M. & Cope, B. (2015). Multiliteracies: Expanding the scope of literacy pedagogy. New Learning. Retrieved May 2016
Maniotes, L.K and Kuhlthau, C. (2014) Making the shift. Knowledge Quest. 43(2) 8-17
NSW DET Library Policy – Schools (2016) Retrieved from https://education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/library-policy-schools
Rivers,J (2017, September 18) Guided inquiry [online forum comment]. Retrieved from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_26671_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_45051_1&forum_id=_91605_1&message_id=_1324951_1
What is Enquiry-Based Learning (EBL)? (n.d.) retrieved from http://www.ceebl.manchester.ac.uk/ebl/
Cornwell, G (2017) What are literacy skills? In Gillian’s Blog. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/gillian/2017/09/14/what-are-literacy-skills-and-how-should-we-teach-literacy/
