In today's world, computers and technology play a HUGE role in the way we live and work. This new and ever-changing technological society requires us to take a closer look at the way we educate our children and make adjustments to our teaching so our children are prepared with the skills they need for a successful future.
One important skill I've previously blogged about, and is often overlooked, is typing. Another is how to read online vs. reading a printed text and to recognize the difference (see my previous blog). This blog is focused on another vital skill: HOW to search using the Internet and how this is different from doing research. Many times in school, students are taught how to look for information in books or printed text. However, the first place many students turn to to find information is the computer, or the Internet. The term "Google" has become a "verb" for finding information. If we are pondering a question at home, my daughter often says "Let me google it!" But teaching our students the difference between searching for information (just looking) and researching a topic (finding the how, why and supporting arguments) is an important distinction in helping students understand the many technological tools at their disposal and how to use them. Additionally, teaching students how to find quality sources and the difference between what information is reliable and what is not, is extremely important. Given the vast amount of information available to students, learning "not to believe everything you read" is vital. Also, understanding how to find information to support what you read is key. Marc Prensky, internationally acclaimed speaker and writer, wrote a wonderful piece on this very topic entitled "Search vs. Research" (2005). In it he states "It is our job to show them [students] how they can use all these new tools well, and wisely." He discusses sites like Wikipedia and urges teachers to embrace these tools rather than fear them but to teach students HOW to use them appropriately. I absolutely agree with his ideas in this article and believe this is an area that we need to make adjustments in the way we teach students how to do research, how to search and the difference between them.
Using Google or other search engines becomes an important factor in teaching these distinctions and there are many great resources available to teachers to illustrate these points. One example is an infographic created by HackCollege.com "Get More out of Goggle" which provides simple tips and tricks for easily finding exactly what you are looking for. It is a resource that can easily be projected onto a SmartBoard during a lesson or linked to a teacher's website. Teaching students that there are other valuable search engines available besides Google is another important lesson to help students understand the tools available to them. My graduate class "Using the Internet in Education" assigned us the task of investigating and evaluating many different search engines and it really opened my eyes to what is available and the strengths of each depending on what kind of search or research is being conducted. You can view the table I created below. The rankings given are based on MY opinion. Check each one out and see what you think!
One important skill I've previously blogged about, and is often overlooked, is typing. Another is how to read online vs. reading a printed text and to recognize the difference (see my previous blog). This blog is focused on another vital skill: HOW to search using the Internet and how this is different from doing research. Many times in school, students are taught how to look for information in books or printed text. However, the first place many students turn to to find information is the computer, or the Internet. The term "Google" has become a "verb" for finding information. If we are pondering a question at home, my daughter often says "Let me google it!" But teaching our students the difference between searching for information (just looking) and researching a topic (finding the how, why and supporting arguments) is an important distinction in helping students understand the many technological tools at their disposal and how to use them. Additionally, teaching students how to find quality sources and the difference between what information is reliable and what is not, is extremely important. Given the vast amount of information available to students, learning "not to believe everything you read" is vital. Also, understanding how to find information to support what you read is key. Marc Prensky, internationally acclaimed speaker and writer, wrote a wonderful piece on this very topic entitled "Search vs. Research" (2005). In it he states "It is our job to show them [students] how they can use all these new tools well, and wisely." He discusses sites like Wikipedia and urges teachers to embrace these tools rather than fear them but to teach students HOW to use them appropriately. I absolutely agree with his ideas in this article and believe this is an area that we need to make adjustments in the way we teach students how to do research, how to search and the difference between them.
Using Google or other search engines becomes an important factor in teaching these distinctions and there are many great resources available to teachers to illustrate these points. One example is an infographic created by HackCollege.com "Get More out of Goggle" which provides simple tips and tricks for easily finding exactly what you are looking for. It is a resource that can easily be projected onto a SmartBoard during a lesson or linked to a teacher's website. Teaching students that there are other valuable search engines available besides Google is another important lesson to help students understand the tools available to them. My graduate class "Using the Internet in Education" assigned us the task of investigating and evaluating many different search engines and it really opened my eyes to what is available and the strengths of each depending on what kind of search or research is being conducted. You can view the table I created below. The rankings given are based on MY opinion. Check each one out and see what you think!
search_engine_table.xlsx |