Friday, January 8, 2010

Give Up and Google!

For the past semester, we've been working with sixth graders on the Big6 Research process. We've stressed the use of appropriate resources for the type of information you need. We've shown them online databases for specific content areas. We've directed them to thick reference books with more than enough details for all the note-taking that needs to take place.

So what do the kids do today? They listen politely to my student intern as she reviews resources with them. She sets them lose in the library media center. And where do they go?

Google!

I'm going to have to just give up and give in to Google. It's not that I'm a Google hater. I use Google all the time. But guess what, folks? I get good results because I do good searches. Also I'm willing to scroll down past the first couple of hits or, God forbid, I'm actually clicking on the NEXT PAGE!

So I probably just need to rethink how I teach the research process, maybe do a whole class on Google searching. What is it that I want the kids to get ultimately? I want them to be able to evaluate the resource that they are using (whether that's a site they found while Googling or a book they pulled from the nonfiction shelves) and find the appropriate information from that resource.

Rethinking Google...

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