I strongly believe that being information literate is of upmost importance not only for the future of our students but also for OUR present. It is a skill that everybody who wants to succeed must master in order to be a successful lifelong learner. More than ever there is an increasing amount of information available to us. One could argue that this fact makes our lives easier, when in fact it is now on our hands to be more cautious and conscious to what information we are looking for, looking at, and its true value and reliability. There are so many basic level resources that may fulfill basic needs, but when an issue of importance or life changing matter arises, we cannot base ourselves on any information that is merely presented to us by the top ten hits in Google or Wikipedia.
The “new” social networks and tools available to us are another example of a sea of information. Some may be insightful while most may derail you from your original search or purpose. This is why having a clear idea of what you want is vital. What do you need? Where could this information come from that is of academic value? Who (out there) is typing about these issues on blogs or social media that you respect and follow?
Education institutions should focus their attention on training their faculty on information technology. As most of faculty and staff are technology immigrants they may be having a harder time adjusting to this BLAST of new information, yet WE are the ones teaching tomorrows generations.
As long as information literacy skills are introduced from an early age, be it kindergarten or elementary school years, it will come as second nature to students in the future. We must model and set the basis for our students to make their decisions on what sources will be applicable to their specific person (be it a project or in their onw life).
No comments:
Post a Comment