What is information literacy?
The American Library Association defines information literacy as a set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information.
Books
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Critical Thinking in the Elementary Classroom
by
ISBN: 9781416632450Publication Date: 2023Critical thinking--evaluating and analyzing data to make informed judgments--is essential in both the classroom and everyday life. Teaching critical thinking skills in the elementary grades is often an afterthought--if it's a thought at all. Veteran primary teacher and instructional leader Erin Shadowens proposes that students of all ages benefit when teachers expand the definition of what is possible by engaging young learners with real challenges and supportive, accessible learning environments. -
School Children and the Challenge of Managing AI Technologies
by
ISBN: 9781032678092Publication Date: 2024-06-01This edited volume recognises the need to cultivate a critical and acute understanding of AI technologies amongst primary and elementary school children, enabling them to meet the challenge of a human- and ethically oriented management of AI technologies.
Why do we evaluate resources
We live in an information-saturated world where digital tools give people unprecedented power to share and explore resources. Some of it is fun and some of it may be misleading or incorrect. How do you tell the difference? Asking questions about all the new information encountered is how to become a better global citizen as well as how to determine what is good information versus what is unreliable.
When evaluating a source's reliability, first discover the purpose of the source. Keep in mind a single source may have more than one purpose! It's purpose may be to:
- persuade
- the purpose of any source it to make an argument so once you figure that out, you will be ahead of the curve
- inform or educate
- informative sources try to present facts or data objectively and balanced
- sell something or raise money
- many websites depend on advertisers or fundraising to stay afloat; the types and frequency of ads you see or appeals for donations may inform you as to the purpose of this site
- connect with others
- social media posts are created to share updates with friends and followers as opposed to sharing reliable information
- entertain
- many pieces are created to entertain such as satire or hoax and are not considered reliable information
- satirical pieces comment on a situation using humor, exaggeration, or ridicule to highlight its absurdity
- think of sites like The Onion and McSweeney's, or shows like The Office, The Daily Show, and Veep
- hoaxes are false stories created to intentionally deceive others, whether humorously or maliciously
- satirical pieces comment on a situation using humor, exaggeration, or ridicule to highlight its absurdity
- many pieces are created to entertain such as satire or hoax and are not considered reliable information
- think of viral stories like balloon boy and crop circles
Critical Thinking
Critical thinking allows each person to learn how to judge for themselves and how best to analyze situations. They learn the skills to connect topics and situations to build their own knowledge and sense of place. Edutopia has a really good chapter, "A critical thinking framework for elementary students: Guiding young students to engage in critical thinking fosters their ability to create and engage with knowledge," by Erin Shadowens from January 23, 2024.