This session strengthens participant’s skills in using the Internet to find credible information. Since 2004, Power Searching workshops have been presented to over 2,000 Illinois teachers, librarians, technology coordinators and administrators. Participants report that they learn many new search and evaluation techniques and, as a result, are better able to find high-quality information they need for instruction and better equipped to pass these skills along to students.

Digital information fluency is a necessary 21st Century skill for all teachers and learners. Knowing how to retrieve relevant and credible information when it is needed are necessary skills, which, if not taught, "leave students at risk, inadequately prepared for the workplace and adult life.” (American Library Association, 2006)

This workshop approaches the need by training the trainers, giving them strategies and tactics they can use to enhance their productivity and pass along to those they teach.

As a result of this session, participants will…

1. Become more efficient Internet searchers:
• Knowing when and how to use search engines, subject directories and browsing optimally;
• Building powerful queries with effective keyword and operator strategies;
• Finding the best databases to search for the information they need, including searching the Deep Web;
• Analyzing search results for important clues about relevance and credibility;
• Overcoming common information “dead ends,” such as “page not found” and finding relevant information buried in millions of returns (and raising it to the top).

2. Become more effective digital evaluators:
• Strategies for finding and analyzing important credibility criteria: Authorship, Publication, Date, Accuracy, Links To and From, Bias, Evidence, External Support and Expert Reviews;

3. Utilize tools for teaching these skills to students:
• Instructional tools for advanced searching, evaluating digital information and citing it accurately;
• Interactive tutorial games that provide instruction and feedback in search and evaluation techniques
• Self-paced MicroModules on strategies and techniques.

Outline

Introductions, 21st Century Skills and Information Fluency, identifying the need (15 minutes)

Searching Efficiently: (1.5 hours)
• Five minute search: find today’s workshop materials online*
• Analyzing what went right and wrong in the first search (discussion)
• Digital Information Fluency process (presentation)
• Turning questions into effective queries: The Buffalo Search*
• Keyword selection: Keyword Challenge Tutorial*
• Keyword power: Professional vocabulary, synonyms, hyponyms and hypernyms*
• Search Engine Strategies, understanding literal matching (demonstration)
• Keywords, operators and special operators (demonstration)
• Choosing the best database for searching (demonstration)
• Deep Web searching: Broadway Search, Page not Found Search*
• Recognizing relevance: Find command and scanning: Gold Rush Challenges*
• Finding better keywords: Great Wall Challenge*
• Learning cycle: Live Internet Search Challenges and MicroModules*

Evaluating Effectively: (45 minutes)
• Credibility criteria: What do you use? (discussion)
• Digital Information Fluency process and the Revision decision (presentation)
• Analyzing author, publisher, and links To: Truncation, browsing, searching with special operators (demonstration)
• Encountering red Flags: domain, ~ (unendorsed pages)
• Three Live Evaluation Challenges*

MySearch and Questions (30 minutes)
Fifteen minute search on an individually selected topic*

* the asterisk represents an online activity for learners

Supporting Research

Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21). 2008. Report: Retool instruction, or U.S. will fail.

Wagner, T. 2008. The Global Achievement Gap.

Kao, J. 2007. Innovation Nation.

Press release. (2006, March 24) School library media programs critical to high school reform. American Library Association. Retrieved April 11, 2006, from http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=News&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=121131

Presenter Background

Carl Heine, Ph.D. is a Senior eLearning Architect, Innovation Strategy Consultant and Director of the 21st Century Information Fluency Project at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, Aurora Illinois. He oversees research and the development of interactive learning games and multimedia used in the Information Fluency Project. Past presentations on Digital Information Fluency include NECC 2007, NECC 2008, the Alabama Educational Technology Conference, the Missouri Association of School Librarians, the Wisconsin Educational Media and Technology Association, the Illinois Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the Illinois State Library Media Association and the Illinois Educational Technology Conference, at which versions of this workshop have been presented to over 2,000 librarians and teachers.

Dennis O'Connor has been an elementary and middle school teacher, as well as professional development trainer for over 30 years. As a district Language Arts Coordinator he organized teacher training in the writing process and Traits Writing Model.

He earned an MS. in Online Teaching and Learning from California State University, East Bay (formerly CSU Hayward) where he has taught graduate students how to teach online. Mr. O'Connor recently earned an M.Ed in Instructional Design and Technology Integration at Western Governors University. He earned his undergraduate degree in English at the University of California, Berkeley.

In 1995, groundbreaking work in technology infused interdisciplinary teaching led to a Milken Educator Award . After working online with the ISTE, National Educational Technology Standards Project in 1998, Mr. O'Connor became a project writer developing units of practice for ISTE-NETS, Connecting Curriculum and Technology. Mr. O'Connor remains active as a subject matter expert, standards review consultant and project writer for ISTE.

Mr. O'Connor taught 7/8 communications for 15 years at Kingsbury Middle School, in Lake Tahoe Nevada where his students scored top in the state for three years on the (traits based) State Analytical Writing test. The core-based technology infused project based curriculum at Kingsbury was recognized when the school was named the Nevada National Technology Spotlight School for 2000.

Until recently, Dennis worked as a Senior eLearning Architect for the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy's 21st Century Information Fluency Project. He is also the program coordinator for E-learning and Online Teaching at the University of Wisconsin-Stout.