Looking for a NEW guide to national digital projects?
While the audience is state and local libraries, this quick reference guide will be useful to anyone trying to understand the range of national digital inclusion projects, particularly those involving the library community and their partners. If you are interested in digital literacy, broadband adoption, or digital inclusion, this 22 pg. report is worth a look.
Tip: If you are thinking of writing a grant on any of these topics, it may serve you well to mention appropriate national projects you learn about in this report.
So, what do you think, has the Internet harmed students’ research skills?
A new survey of teachers by the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds that many educators believe the Internet has shortened students’ attention spans and weakened students’ research skills. I am not so sure about those two statements, but I was fascinated by some of the findings that mirror what our Bridging Information Literacy Across Libraries group discussed this year. A few stats from this blog post include:
“While 77 percent of Advanced Placement and National Writing Project instructors agree that the Internet and available search tools have had a “mostly positive” effect on student research, 87 percent say the same tools can easily distract students and contribute to shorter attention spans
Even more disconcerting, 64 percent of respondents say modern digital technologies “do more to distract students than to help them academically.
The news is not all bad. Of those teachers surveyed, 99 percent say that the Internet provides access to a wider range of sources and information; while 65 percent agree that the web has helped students become self-sufficient researchers
You will have to read the full blog post to get an answer to the six-million-dollar question: Has the Internet conditioned students to expect too much too fast?”
Last of all, as you read this post ask yourself why librarians are digging deep to understand what their role is going to be in the future! It seems crystal clear that we will be needed more than ever!
If you want to go straight to the source, the overview and full results of the Pew Internet survey about How Teens Do Research in the Digital World is located at http://tinyurl.com/ca2noy5
News from the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP)….
“Our digital literacy task force is planning two virtual conversations around libraries and digital literacy. Because we’re hoping to reach a wide audience, I wanted to share the blog post which describes the programs and a save the date email that we are sending out. If you have colleagues in your networks that might be interested we would very much appreciate your help in getting the word out”
The series will explore the role of libraries in supporting and deepening digital literacy skills development for students, the general public and colleagues in other professions.
November 14: Creating a Culture of Learning: How Librarians Keep up with Digital Media and Technology
December 11: Assessing Digital Literacy: Outcomes and Impact
This looks fairly interesting, and it sounds like a Google Hangout will even be utilized for some of the programming! Get all the necessary details including registration information athttp://tinyurl.com/8azwp6z
Partnering with libraries for visioning, advocating, and educating
Looking for a NEW guide to national digital projects?
