This is a reflection on a semester well spent. A semester not without its own ups and downs. A semester of lockdowns and digital classrooms. A semester of learning.

The main takeaway from this semester has been the critical role of Information Literacy (IL).

Why?
UNESCO defines IL as “essential for individuals to achieve personal, social, occupational and educational goals” (UNESCO, 2008, p. 9). A set of skills enabling students to become learners for life; information consumers and creators (UNESCO, 2008, p. 9).

As an IB educator, when I found out that in ETL-401 we would be learning about inquiry learning, my initial thought was I know this. Kath Murdoch practically invented it. This should be easy. Start with a provocation, get the students interested, then once they’re hooked, give them their research task and let them go. The truth is I thought Kath Murdoch did invent inquiry learning. You can read about my initial reactions to inquiry based learning here.

I soon found out I was wrong. Inquiry learning is not that simple, and unfortunately I have let students down. In my professional life as a Spanish and English teacher, prior to being a teacher librarian (TL) I often came across google, copy-paste assignments. Something was missing, yet I couldn’t figure it out, as some students were able to deliver excellent assignments, whilst others became terribly overwhelmed with the abundance of information and varying ideas and opinions.

[Enter stage left] Information Literacy.

Now things started clicking into place. The abundance of information and varying opinions requires a new skillset. One I had previously not come across, developed to help students become information literate learners. As Behrens (1994, p. 312) states, IL gives students the best skills in order to thrive in the information age (Behrens, 1994, p. 312).

This IL is the set of skills and processes; the higher order analysis, critical thinking and problem solving skills that teache a student to become an independent, critical thinker (Lupton 2004, cited in Lupton et al., 2004, p. 1). One that can take skills and processes from one scenario or subject and apply it to a new scenario.

These are skills I failed to teach my students. My unawareness of IL and the feelings and thoughts that an oversupply of contradicting information led to google, copy-paste assignments. I created what Maniotes and Kuhlthau (2014) refer to as a “traditional research assignment”. I simply didn’t know better.

I have also discovered the multitude of inquiry learning models, from Project Based Learning (PBL) from the Buck institute, to Guided Inquiry (GI) by Kuhlthau et al. (2012). PBL guides students through ‘real life learning scenarios’ much like what you would come across in the workplace. Whereas GI when paired with the ISP (Kuhlthau, 2007) provides students with a very structured approach to Information Literacy (IL) and the skills associated with it. In hindsight, my students would have greatly benefited from this approach.

I like two of the IL models I’ve explored this semester; the New South Wales Education (NSW ED) Information Search Process (ISP) (NSW ED, 2007) and GI (Kuhlthau et al., 2012). In a post to the discussion forum 5.3b: Guided Inquiry, I wrote about the two main benefits to GI. Firstly in helping teachers identify the feelings, thoughts and actions of the students throughout the inquiry, thus allowing more opportunity for intervention and redirection. Secondly the expectation within the model for continuous reflection.

When looking through the lens of an IL model, inquiry learning becomes far more structured than a simple, ‘get them interested and let them have at it’. I know there are other IL models, however GI by Kuhlthau et al. is currently the best fit for my purposes. To conclude, I reflect on my previous practice and can see room for vast improvement. As a TL I can model and guide best IL and inquiry practice for beginning teachers.

References

Behrens, S. J. (1994). A conceptual analysis and historical overview of information literacy. College & Research Libraries, 55(4), 309-322.

Kuhlthau, C.C, Maniotes, L.K., & Caspari, A.K. (2012). Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Libraries Unlimited. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/csuau/detail.action?docID=1887925

Lupton, M., Glanville, C., McDonald, P., Selzer, D. (2004). Information literacy toolkit. Griffith University.

Maniotes, L. K., & Kuhlthau, C. C. (2014). Making the shift. Knowledge Quest, 43(2), 8-17. https://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/docview/1620878836?accountid=10344

NSW Department of Education and Training. (2007). Information skills in the school. https://nthsyddem-p.schools.nsw.gov.au/learning-at-our-school/library/information-process.html

Here are some notes on my thoughts around information societies.

An information society is a group of people (community) that earns money through the creation, distribution and consumption of information. This is made readily available through ICTs.

The teacher librarian (TL) should have an understanding of information societies and how they function as the TL is a curator and distributor of information. With information so readily available, the TL needs to teach discernment and critical evaluation of information. Anybody can claim to be an ‘expert’ on the internet, look no further then Belle Gibson and how she ‘cured’ her brain cancer through alternative medicine therapies.

We are living in an information society. Take my current working arrangement in Saudi Arabia. On Monday the 9th of March 2020, the Ministry of Education closed physical schools, and moved all learning online due to the COVID-19 outbreak. My job as a TL is to impart knowledge and information, and I am still required to do this, even though there is a physical distance between my students and myself. The flow of information is both synchronous and asynchronous, I send lesson outlines and activities to parents, who coach their children through the learning objectives. Throughout the week there is a window of time, where I am available synchronously for direct contact to ‘coach’ my students in their learning. My students and I can communicate in real-time or via email. While I am, I don’t need to even be in the same country anymore. Sander (2020) discussed in her article it is increasingly likely that you may be asked (or told) to work from home. Whilst the COVID-19 virus is not welcome, it is directly influencing society, revolutionising work, our workspaces and working hours. We are more connected than ever before, yet we often feel less connected to the people we are closest to physically (neighbours, the person beside you on the bus/train). What are the costs of our perpetual connectedness?

P.s. Is there a word for “never ending, but constantly evolving”? – I’d like to use it instead of perpetual as perpetual means never ending or changing, and that is not the nature of our connectedness..

References:

Percy, K. (2017, September 28). Belle Gibson, fake wellness blogger, fined $410,000 over false cancer claims. ABC news. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-28/disgraced-wellness-blogger-belle-gibson-fined/8995500/

Sander, L (2020, March 11). Coronavirus could spark a revolution in working from home. Are we ready? The Conversation. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-could-spark-a-revolution-in-working-from-home-are-we-ready-133070/

I’m not a huge fan of blogging. I had a blog once. Didn’t enjoy it. So I stopped. But that’s beside the point. This is more of a journal. A series of thoughts, hopefully in a coherent manner. Welcome inside my head.

I have worked as a teacher since graduating in 2013 from Griffith University with a Graduate Diploma in Education – Spanish & English. My first year was tough, so tough I almost didn’t return from my Vietnamese summer holiday. I worked in a low SES school in a rapidly growing area north of Brisbane. The school employed mainly first or second year teachers. The distinct lack of leadership and good educational practices led many first year teachers to give up. I was lucky, my desk was surrounded by experienced teachers, who knew positivity and camaraderie would help us get through even the toughest of times.
My career moved on several years later to a private school south of Brisbane. I enjoyed teaching there, however when I didn’t give a student a ‘deserved mark’, the mother started spreading rumours in the carpark. There was no support from my principal, the opposite in fact. Several intense meetings about what I was doing/not doing and what parents were reporting about my classes. The eventual outcome was my resignation. Teaching wasn’t for me. Maybe I’d sign up for the military..

My wife – also a teacher – and I discussed our future often after this. We’d always talked about making ‘the leap’ and teaching internationally. Thankfully she persuaded me to give it ‘one last shot’. We took up roles in a school in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, myself as a language teacher, my wife as a wellbeing co-ordinator. When we arrived, I was offered the opportunity to step sideways into the library. I saw the value immediately and jumped at the opportunity.

As a child I saw the librarian as a central figure in ones educational journey – even as a student I saw this. I spent a great deal of time in libraries, both the school and public libraries around my home, reading with a voracious appetite. I learnt that libraries are a repository of knowledge and stories and that librarians are facilitators of everything within and beyond. They didn’t necessarily know everything, but knew where to direct you to find the information you were looking for.
As a teacher I saw the library/ian as the source of teaching technology support, the ‘go to’ for help when students were researching, and a support teacher to help energise my teaching.
As a librarian – albeit an inexperienced one – I see the librarian as a facilitator of learning opportunities and knowledge. Yes I scan books, and I often find myself sighing as I straighten books and rotate them so they are spine out. But I do not ‘shush’ students, or expect silence in my library. I expect respect both for students and for myself, and for my colleagues and students to collaborate and give every lesson their best.

In closing, I expected this to be far more difficult than it was. I found it a somewhat calming experience. I wish you all good luck in your studies, and would gladly welcome any comments you may have.