Schools demanding news literacy lessons to teach students how to find fact amid fiction – The Washington Post via kwout

A Facebook friend recently shared the Washington Post article (linked above) about the importance of teaching kids news literacy, along with the comment, “umm, yes?”

I laughed when I read this more polite version of “duh, of course this is something kids need right now”, and enjoyed our shared appreciation for the importance of teaching students to evaluate news sources for authority, bias, and credibility.   In the article, writer Lynh Bui cites the Common Core’s emphasis on informational texts as a contributing factor to growing attention to news and media literacy, noting that, “demand to teach that sort of healthy skepticism and critical thinking is on the rise.”

I had saved this article to write about here, and I was reminded of it when I got to the ending paragraphs of a different news item, an op-ed piece by Thomas Friedman in the April 27 New York Times, Judgment Not Included. The Boston Marathon topic is what initially drew me to the column, and though much of that conversation is probably suited for forums other than this blog, Friedman’s conclusion about “the role of the Internet in shaping the minds of the alleged bombers” is especially pertinent to teachers, librarians, and parents.

Friedman comments on the alleged bombers’ use of the Internet in building their plans as,

“yet another reminder that the Internet is a digital river that carries incredible sources of wisdom and hate along the same current. It’s all there together. And our kids and citizens usually interact with this flow nakedly, with no supervision.”

But Friedman doesn’t stop at media literacy as the ultimate tool in navigating this digital river.  He explains that “internal filters” must be cultivated: traditional sensibilities, compassion, and caring, and that teachers and caring adults have a critical role to play in supporting this development:

“And that’s why the faster, more accessible and ultramodern the Internet becomes, the more all the old-fashioned stuff matters: good judgment, respect for others who are different and basic values of right and wrong. Those you can’t download. They have to be uploaded, the old-fashioned way, by parents around the dinner table, by caring but demanding teachers at school and by responsible spiritual leaders in a church, synagogue, temple or mosque.”

Umm, yes?

–Rebecca Morris

I thought that in the next few days, I’d share a few topics from the March 2013 issue of School Library Monthly, and I confess that I chose an easy first article: mine.  (Thank you for indulging me on this Saturday morning!)

Digital storytelling is a topic that I love to read about, write about, think about, and try out.  In “Great Spaces for Digital Storytelling,” I share some ideas for planning and teaching digital storytelling projects in ways that maximize students’ natural inclinations to share, learn from one another, and flourish in a supportive, encouraging (and not intimidating) environments.

Here are a few strategies for librarians and classroom teachers to try with digital storytelling, or other technology applications:

- Support “formative,” or work-in-progress digital storytelling by honoring informal sharing, and teaching students to attend to their classmates’ work in constructive ways

- Encourage peer teaching by highlighting students with specific knowledge of tools and features

- To inspire creativity and problem solving, allow kids to play and explore new applications before focusing in on an assigned task

- Attend to students’ emotional and developmental needs in technology processes; check in not only by asking about help with next steps, but by affirming that it’s ok to need help because we’re confused, frustrated, or upset

Read more about creating collaborative, supportive spaces in the article, and check back here for more library and advocacy ideas from the March issue!

Reference:

Morris, Rebecca. “Great Spaces for Digital Storytelling.” School Library Monthly 29, no. 6 (March 2013): 37-38.

Update: Access the full-text article here.

Image: children’s computer, by oclibr51 on Flickr. Used with a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License.

–Rebecca Morris

The Lowell Sun Online (Lowell, MA) featured an article this week about the transformation of the Wilmington High School Library (Wilmington, MA, with School Librarian Paula Byrne) into a new space for reading, learning, and teaching.  Although the phrase, “Learning Commons” isn’t mentioned in the story, this updated school library sounds like a place that hasn’t just gone digital; it’s gone collaborative, social, and device-friendly.  Writer Katie Lannan describes the new school library:

“Computers, tablets and cellphones are at the center of this collaboration.  At new tables, students can gather to pore over research materials, but rather than looking at the pages of a book, they’ll be staring at a screen.”

I don’t love the thought of “students staring at a screen” – that doesn’t really sound like the active learning that school librarians are working to support – but I’ll let that go for the moment.  Instead, I’ll focus on how great it is that Wilmington and other local school libraries are recognized for their use of tools for successful 21st-century learning, like online databases, charging stations, and seating that encourages sharing and talking.

Have your neighborhood or home school libraries been mentioned in local news stories?  Share in the comments!

Hat tip to school librarian Laura Harrington for sharing this story.

Reference: Lannan, Katie. “School Libraries Shelve Book-Boosting Plans as More Student Research Goes Online.” Lowell Sun Online. March 13, 2013. http://www.lowellsun.com/todaysheadlines/ci_22779301/school-libraries-shelve-book-boosting-plans-more-student#ixzz2NWYYrFOt

–Rebecca Morris