Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom (EDUC – 6712) - Reflection

When this course commenced I was unsure of what to expect. However, as the course evolved, I began to see the importance and relevance of web literacy. There are several areas of my teaching that have or are changing as a result of this course.


As I went through this course, I began to gain an increased appreciation for web literacy. The school, in which I teach, has just begun a focused literacy program based on reading and writing. Although these skills are important, web literacy builds on these basics for literacy. I reflected on the fact that literacy and web literacy were extremely important to students as they live their lives in a technology centred environment. I appreciated Eagleton and Dobler’s (2008) QUEST model for teaching web literacy. Inquiry based learning is authentic and can give a teacher insight to the true learning a child has accomplished during a unit of study. The QUEST model and the exercises for each part of the model resonated with me and what I want to do in classroom. The way the model is presented seems to be a good fit with how I see 21st century skills being taught in school.

The experiences and knowledge I have gained in course may have a profound impact on my career. I have shared my experiences in this course with my principal and our divisional literacy teacher. They are impressed with the content of the course and the value web literacy has to students. There is a possibility that web literacy skills may be included in the program that is being established at our school. I may be asked to develop a program that in-services teachers about web literacy and how they can implement them into their regular classroom activities. As far as my classroom practices, I have already started to incorporate methods on to execute effective searches on the internet and evaluation of the usefulness of websites. My plans are to continue implementing more of the QUEST model and apply more inquiry assignments into my school year.

My goal is to keep looking for literacy development opportunities either in my division or in my province. I would like to keep working at developing a web literacy program for teachers in my school division. I am also looking for more detailed courses in using presentation tools that are technology based. The school division in which I teach has a professional development time called SAG (Special Area Groups). Teachers may attend the SAG of their choice to increase their knowledge in a variety of subject areas. Technology courses are being offered on Flash, animation, movies, and other tools that can be used in the classroom. I plan to be more active in taking these types of courses.
Students who are literate in print technology have a great start in 21st century skills. As the world moves in a more technology driven way, our students need to add to their current literacy knowledge skill set. Students need to know how to navigate and read the web, just as they need to know how to read a textbook. The students who cannot read currently are being left even further behind as 21st century skills are becoming an even more important feature of the business landscape. Teachers need to incorporate new literacy skills into their curricula so students can and will be prepared for the challenges that lie ahead. As David Warlick (2009) points out, if students can learn and use 21st century skills, they can graduate not with just a transcript, but a resume.

References

Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the Web: Strategies for Internet inquiry. New York: The Guilford Press.

Laureate Education, Inc. (2009). It’s not about the technology: Supporting information literacy and online inquiry in the classroom [DVD]. Baltimore, MD: Author.