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Sep 28, 2019
Edited: Oct 7, 2019Discussion for October - Leading Lines interview with Mike Caulfield
Discussion for October - Leading Lines interview with Mike Caulfield
1. Do you use the CRAAP test and what do you think of Mike's reasons for not using it?
I have taught a shortened version of the CRAAP test but have found more and more often that it really does not do what we need it to do. I agree with Mike that finding an email address of the author does not give that author authority. It does have to move on and I am interested in what is being said here.
I use a version of the CRAAP test for students but did agree with Mike too that there are other ways of looking at testing research material reliability - felt I wanted to learn more about this area
@sjbloomers Me too! This is one of the problems with the internet changing so fast that it is difficult to keep up. If we are finding this it is no wonder that students just give up and take Googles first suggestions on face value. I wonder how we can help ourselves to learn more? Where would you start?
2. The word ‘Heuristics’ was used a few times. Do you understand what this means? Had you heard this term before?
I had to look up what this meant and was delighted to hear that it means “allowing students to learn by discovering for themselves” I love this as this is what FOSIL is all about...
I looked it up too and had not come across it before
@sjbloomers @Elizabeth No, I hadn’t come across the term before. Am in favour of less is more though
3. Mike talks about evaluating sources in 4 steps. Do you think it is possible to teach younger students to do this?
I think if we understand the reseach process then teaching students to do this at their level is absolutely possible. I don’t think we should be leaving it until they need it. The more practice they get the easier it will be in the long run.
I agree, we can teach the students at the right level at the right age. We need to be starting this process much earlier.
@sjbloomers Absolutely! It is important that we don't just believe that children can do this stuff it does actually need to be taught. Conversations and collaboration with teachers is so important. Especially if we are going to put the building blocks in place to independent learning.
4. Do you agree that most students find the right answer in 30 seconds? What can we do to stop them at this point to then start reading for information?
I think the conversation is more about getting lost in the world of information overload is an important one. Getting them to stop and read what they have found is really important. Maybe we should give students timers and after 3 mins they have to use what they have found...
I do not always think students find the right answer in 30 seconds - might try this as part of a research lesson and find out myself - I do not always think they have the skills to look beyond page 1 of google
@sjbloomers I would love to hear what happens! I think it depends on the search terms used. I would agree it would take longer if they were typing a random question but maybe if they were using focused keywords they may get the answer quicker. I think maybe this is more about them finding the answer but not necessarily realising it. Probably due to not reading what they have found. In this case they would start going down that rabbit hole. It would be interesting to see if they stayed where they were if they could have found an answer quicker. Let me know how you get on...
5. “Taking Barings” How do we help our students get out of the woods? Mike talks about the initial work being done properly will save time in the long run. Students want information fast and without having to think about it. Is this something we could/should be teaching?
I feel that a slower approach is important. Taking time to read what you have found is essential but many students really do not want to do this. Teaching them that time spent reading is not wasted and will maybe help them come to an answer quicker is an important lesson to learn. Building it into the inquiry process is a good idea.
Slower is better - too much time is wasted when students haven’t laid the groundwork in research
@sjbloomers It’s like that exercise where students are told to read the whole paper first then answer the questions, and point 10 is ‘ignore qu 1-9 and just write your name’. Then you see most students jump in and frantically start writing. We can but try.
6. What are your thoughts on Wikipedia and have they changed over the last few years?
I have had a real about turn re- Wikipedia. I was very definitely against it in any way shape or form a few years ago but that has changed. I believe for secondary students it can be a good place to start. I still would not agree with referencing it but I would encourage students to look at the references attached to an article. I attended a great conference session on using Wikipedia with students. They were asked to find and edit an article not only did they begin to understand this tool but it also supported their own research which was out on the open web. The learning in this was obvious. I won't be so worried about students using Wikipedia in future.
My advice for Wikipedia has been you can start with it but do not finish with it. I learnt from the podcast that it is more reliable than I thought but I will stand by my current thought that I would not want to see it referenced in an essay
@Elizabeth Yes, I need to avoid being a snob about Wikipedia. But there is a time and place for it.
7. Did you find this podcast interesting? What was your main takeaway?
Yes, I did learn a lot by listening to this podcast. It is not something I do very often but it makes a change from reading. I think my biggest takeaway is that ideas on research are always changing and as school librarians, we need to keep up to date and not just use the same old ideas all the time. We need to look out for the new stuff too and add this to our teaching repertoire.
I did learn a lot agree I don’t listen to podcasts very often and found myself having to rewind it if my attention lapsed. also agree need to stay up to date
@sjbloomers Thanks Sara for joining in. I look forward to hearing how your research lesson goes.
I did think the comment about quoting a bad weather forecast hitting your town without checking facts was ironic. As this podcast was 7 months ago, obviously not everyone brushed up their skills in this area!
Ah, well spotted @dawnwoods2000! I had missed that...no one is perfect!
I was very interested in the techniques outlined in the podcast and have been looking at Mike's ebook, "Web literacy for student fact checkers" (https://webliteracy.pressbooks.com/front-matter/web-strategies-for-student-fact-checkers/) as a follow-up. It has lots of interesting examples and exercised to try out.
It sounds really interesting. I might just have to get it too :) Thanks for joining in @bathgatew
I very rarely listen to poscasts, and I did have to re-listen to this one before I felt I could join in on the discussion.Anything that makes us reflect on our own practice is surely a good thing, and I feel there were lots of interesting points to take away from this podcast. I liked the lesson that Mike described using post it notes with 3/4 quick examples and one more lenthy/deep one, and the discussion with students on the social context and how this could be damaging.
Glad you found it useful @micwag anything that makes us consider our practice has to be good I think. You made me listen again as I had forgotten the examples :)