Prescription+Workshop


 * __Contents below:__**
 * Regina committee --Tentative presentation OUTLINE for the 2 hour presentations**
 * BRAINSTORM IDEAS AND LINKS TO CHECK FOR HANDOUT:**
 * 1. Brainstorm ideas**
 * 2. More brainstorm ideas for presentation and resources**
 * 2. Some notes and resources for Developing the presentations**
 * 3** **Link to eSchoolNews articles --Minimizing Classroom Disruptions in High Tech Classrooms**
 * 4. New Year Welcome and Ideas**


 * A. Session Blurb**
 * B. Contact Information for presenters**
 * C. Session Dates and Places**

**I. Introduction** (10 minutes)
Title slide on PowerPoint as participants enter the room 1) Introduce ourselves 2) Housekeeping 3) Explanation of where to find our materials, online resource for handout - bookmark with web address 4) Survey the group to determine where they are at. Pre-assessment Stickies: Ask participants to generate questions about what they would like to learn.

II. Need for Change (15 minutes)
Why change the status quo? Is this what teaching feels like today? [|EDS ad]

1) Societal structure is different. The global village is no longer a vision, but is here now. - Cisco's Human Network [|video]

2) Information of all types is readily available to students who have Internet access. We need to teach them to be ethical, critical digital citizens, who participate in consuming and creating digital content. - Information revolution by [|Michael Wesch]

3) Today's students are different. - Michael Wesch's [|Vision of today's students] - Brain-based research is ever-evolving. Thanks to better diagnostic and research instruments, we know increasingly more about how people learn than we have ever before: LearningPlus [|Brain-based research] - Frontline's [|Growing Up Online]

The way teaching used to be is no longer effective. Regurgitation of facts leads to plagiarism in today's "Google" world. We must build in HOTS (higher order thinking skills) into our assignments. Examples - biography - Why should your person be considered as important? Country report. Adding the "so what?" question to every assignment, make connections to their own lives

III. What is inquiry learning and why should we use it? (5 minutes)
Inquiry is...--Questioning--Critical Thinking--Problem Solving--Multidisciplinary (not just Scientific Inquiry) True inquiry learning empowers the student to formulate his own questions, develop original findings, and present the newly acquired knowledge to others. - [|What is Inquiry-Learning?] - as explained by Concepts to Classroom - [|Galileo Eductional Network]- explanation - [|Inquiry Learning] - process and examples at Best Practices: Strategies and Techniques - [|Project-Based Learning] - process and examples at Best Practices: Strategies and Techniques - Project Based Learning - [|Buck Institute for Education] - [|Resource-Based Learning] - process and examples at Best Practices: Strategies and Techniques
 * provides opportunities for students to evaluate information and create new knowledge which is personally relevant
 * shift from the traditional research skills model to a model of information problem solving (Finlay,P)

- Alberta Education's [|Focus on Inquiry model] - includes a scope and sequence to developing inquiry learning skills (Chapter 4, pp. 32-35 //Focus on Inquiry//) - Carol Kulthau's [|Information Search Process] - YouthLearn's [|Traditional vs Inquiry research] - Toronto's [|Student Research Guide] - Eisenberg & Berkowitz's [|The Big6] - Jamie McKenzie's [|Research Cycle] - [|Information Studies: Inquiry and Research] - comparison of models - [|Cardiff University's Handbook for Information Literacy Teaching] (HILT) - It covers key topics such as Lesson Planning, Delivery, Evaluation and Assessment and also includes examples of our teaching materials. The Handbook was written by a group of subject librarians to support colleagues in the delivery of information literacy teaching within Information Services.
 * Models for Inquiry Learning:**

IV. How do you select a research topic? How to move from the topic to the big question? How do you develop the big questions? (30 minutes)
Questions are at the heart of inquiry learning. Too often we base student research on a lower order thinking skill such as retrieval and retelling. How do we transform lower order questioning into higher order questioning?

**Defining what is a big question: ** - Jamie McKenzie's [|Questioning toolkit] According to McKenzie, an essential question is one that "probes a matter of considerable importance… requires movement beyond understanding and studying… cannot be answered by a simple 'yes' or 'no' answer… probably endures, shifts and evolves with time and changing conditions… may be unanswerable in the ultimate sense… may frustrate the researcher… and evade the quest for clarity and understanding" (McKenzie, p. 86, 2005). They engage the imagination and often the pursuit of the answers lead to more questions (Clifford & Friesen, 2007).

- Roland Case explains WHY teaching critical thinking skills are important in his PDF [|Moving critical thinking to the main stage] - an article that summarizes [|why we need to teach critical thinking skills] - an adapted version of his [|worksheet] about assignment starters and bumping up the questions to higher levels on LearningPlus site - Roland Case website [|TC2 - Critical Thinking Consortium] - this site has several articles on teaching critical thinking skills - Roland Case short [|VIDEO] discussing critical thinking as a strategy **Ban Those Bird Units** - designing assignments with Loertscher's, Koechlin's and Zwaan's [|Ban Those Bird Units models] Loertscher, Koechlin and Zwaan, in their book Ban those Bird Units, (2005), have identified the importance of asking the question "So What?" in our information projects. Not only does this place the research in a context and bring personal meaning for students, it also helps to push the research to a level beyond topical research. By asking "So what?", students must report the facts and then comment on their significance. - designing assignments with Bloom's
 * Roland Case Links:**

How to teach students to develop multiple levels of questions -
ReQuest Procedure: [|Just Read Now] - a brief explanation of this strategy as one of many in promoting reading comprehension [|Teaching Students to Be Literate: A Reflective Approach] - This links to an excerpt on Google Books from the book of the same title by A. Manzo.

De Bono's Six Thinking Hats: [|Six Thinking Hats] - This site describes De Bono's Six Thinking Hats technique that provides a way for students to think about a topic, situation, or picture from different perspectives.

Bloom's Taxonomy: [|Reading to Kids] - Question stems organized according to Bloom's Taxonomy. [|Applying Bloom's Taxonomy] - a chart of verbs, question stems and acitivities prepared by Dalton and Smith

Question stems
//How, why, should, what if// and //which// questions are the kinds of questions that require you to find facts and interpret them with your own thinking.

1. //How// questions search for a process or action. They ask you to understand problems, weigh options, and propose solutions. eg. How can we make our school playground safer for kids? How can I decide what kind of car to buy? How did people decide where to immigrate?

//Why// questions call for an explanation. They can require you to understand the causes of a problem and the effect. eg. “Why does my cousin have his disease?” Why can't penguins fly? Why should we eat from all of the different food groups?

//Which// questions ask you to compare and contrast two or more things and make a decision. eg. “Which sport should I play this fall?” Which house should we buy? Which city is the best to live in?

//Should// questions ask you to make a moral or practical decision based on evidence. Should we clone humans? Should we encourage immigration to Canada?

//What if// questions ask you to use your knowledge to pose a hypothesis and consider the options. What if people started taking the bus to work instead of driving their cars? What if the driving age went up to 18 from 16?

2. //Who, what, when,// and //where// kinds of questions will will help you discover factual information. You might need to ask some of these kinds of questions as you start out to help you understand bigger questions.

Who else in my family has been adopted? What did my parents have to do to adopt me? When was I adopted? Where did my adoption take place?

- thick and thin (open and closed) questions with younger students

- [|Mind mapping in 8 easy steps] - list of mindmapping software on [|wikipedia] - brainstorming to find focus - access prior knowledge - KWL
 * Mind Mapping:**

V.What are the tools available to support answering the big questions? (15 minutes) Terry
- Valenza "We need to de-criminalize use of Google in libraries. Sometimes we act like the research Gestapo in our scrutiny of search behavior. Google works. Google rocks. And yes, we can all use it better (blog posting, January 12, 2008, __**[|http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334/post/1000019900.html?nid=3714)]**__ - Searching the Web __**without Google**__ - intro. mystery search engines (iPac, __**[|Technorati]**__, World Bk., Infotrac) - questions: When would you use each? Why use it instead of Google? Dean Shareski asks, "Who is on your research team?" Introduce news aggregators such as Bloglines or Google Reader. - Social bookmarking
 * -** Joyce Valenza quoting Professor Brabazon's Brighton University inaugural address, " Students live in an age of information, but what they lack is correct information...Google offers easy answers to difficult questions. But students do not know how to tell if they come from serious, refereed work or are merely composed of shallow ideas, superficial surfing and fleeting commitments. Google is filling, but it does not necessarily offer nutritional content" (blog posting January 17, 2008, __**[|http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334/post/130020213.html?nid=3714)]**__
 * - [|del.icio.us]**

VI. Presenting student findings (15 minutes)
Traditionally students write in one format for one person...a report for the teacher. Using the RAFTs method, we encourage students to create an authentic experience by varying their role, audience, format, topic, and strong verb. There are many free Web 2.0 tools available to vary student products. - finding authentic audiences is much easier with Web 2.0 tools available. - [|Saskatoon Public's RAFT activity site] - Allan Levine's Fifty digital storytelling tools - Dean Shareski's Google Earth wiki

VII. How to assess and evaluate the process and product (15 minutes)
Quality assessment and evaluation of student work provides the teacher with knowledge to improve and target her practice, the student with a tool to improve her learning, and the parent/guardian with a snapshot of how her child is doing. - [|RBE's rubric site] - [|Inquiry rubric] at Galileo Educational Network < > "We should be measuring what kids can do with knowledge, not how many right answers they can give to questions." Seymour Papert

Resources - Engaging Readers and writers with Inquiry by Jeffrey Wilhelm Doug Johnson - Blue Skunk Blog - So just what should librarians teach? Joyce Valenza's Voicethread "Why I love databases" - http://voicethread.com/share/4799/ Finlay, P. (?). From “finding out” to “thinking about”: Changing research assignments into critical challenges pdf from TC2 The Critical Thinking Consortium - Online Articles http://tc2.ca/about/about-critical-thinking

__Presentation Tool: **PowerPoint** EQUIPMENT: **LCD projector Internet connection flip charts overhead projector** Miscellaneous items: **- buy treats that could possibly become theme throughout ie. jelly beans or ice cream -small prizes from the $ Store or a book**__

BRAINSTORM IDEAS AND LINKS TO CHECK FOR HANDOUT: 1. Brainstorming ideas:

Critical thinking and questioning - why, how, what if? Questioning - how to tweak questions to make them higher order - exercise for groups to revamp. handout of Essential questions - HOTS Doug Johnson - comparison between ISTE NETS next gen AND AASL 21st century learner (Skills) [|inspiration document]
 * Scaffolding assignments - bird report to higher order assignments

Inquiry - Guidelines for inquiry p. 16 Engaging Readers and writers - guided inquiry to free inquiry

What are the tools that kids can access to find information? - databases, Web 2.0 tools, tools other than google

Valenza - "Students can learn to do original research—polling, interviewing, meeting experts. Blogging makes the research process transparent and interactive and interventionary...Student work can be truly authentic. It can address real problems. It can be shared. The notion of AUDIENCE changes the way children write. It can make them want to write" (blog posting, Oct. 25, 2007, [|http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334/post/1200016320.html?nid=3714)]**

2 Some notes and resources for Developing the presentations: __Showcase Presentation Meeting Notes - Oct. 18, Dec 11th (Brainstorming Notes and resources )

Who is our audience?
 * - middle years and high school teachers, TL's**

Resources for T-L Role - Loertscher's article about the five flavours of the TL - Vi is going to email this to us //Article in December 2006 Teacher-Librarian (What Flavor is your school library? T-L as Learning Leader)// Let Violet know if you need me to photocopy it for you. The article is available on [|InfoTrac].**__
 * To bring in the role of the TL

**- is this teaching today? [|EDS ad]**
- Michael Wesch's [|Vision of today's students] - need to promote collaborative environment amongst students - wikis, social bookmarking, blogging, - need creative and critical thinking skills - reflection/metacognition**
 * - Cisco's Human Network [|video]

**The changing face of information and what it means to teacher-librarians and teachers**
- Alan November's [|Information Literacy tools] - Searching the Web without Google - intro. mystery search engines (iPac, [|Technorati], World Bk., Infotrac) - questions: When would you use each? Why use it instead of Google? Who is on your research team? Introduce Blog lines. - Social bookmarking - [|del.icio.us]**
 * - Information r/evolution by [|Michael Wesch]

Tweaking our practices-building knowledge:
===**- McKenzie's [|Questioning Toolkit] - bring in the questioning cubes from the Calgary presenter - Loertscher's Bird Units - sample assignments and how to tweak - Focus on Inquiry, Toronto's [|Student Research Guide], the [|Big6], I-Search, Kuhlthau's ISP (teacher audience might need very short version) - Doug Johnson's message about bumping assignments up a notch (SSLA keynote) also mentioned in another workshop from SSLA where TL's presented traditional assignments and then ones reworked.**=== Possible Items to include:
 * - learning styles and multiple intelligences

- Understanding by Design - McTighe - starting with what we want students to know. Incorporating self-assessment, building criteria with students so that students assess themselves and each other. Anne Davies comment at Apple seminar where assessment increased dramatically with students, parents and others a part of the assessment process.

- How to create rubrics - Authentic assignments - original product - encourage creator's "voice" to emerge - Authentic audiences - Authentic assessment - Kidspiration/Inspiration brainstorming example from SSLA conference two year's ago - Mind Mapping - [|Mind mapping in 8 easy steps] http://www.thinksmart.com/mission/workout/mindmapping_intro.html - list of mindmapping software on [|wikipedia] - Allan Levine's Fifty digital storytelling tools

--TL can gather info., help with instructional design, technology integration, differentiated instruction including advanced learners.**

3.  Link to eSchoolNews articles __--Minimizing Classroom Disruptions in High Tech Classrooms

[|http://www.eschoolnews.com /resources/minimizing-classroom -disruptions/]
 * Check out the articles at:

"...Computers and the Internet have become welcome instructional tools in most schools, ushering a wealth of additional resources into today's classrooms. Unfortunately, they also bring with them the potential for unwanted distractions" such as online content that ranges from off-target, to inappropriate, material. We've assembled this collection of stories and columns from the eSchool News archives to help you leverage technology's potential for education, while minimizing classroom disruptions. We hope you'll find these resources helpful as you seek an appropriate balance in your own institutions...." NEWSLETTER TABLE OF CONTENTS : • [|Opinion: 'No-cell-phone' rules for students are out of touch] • [|Social-networking sites confound schools] • [|Despite filters, more kids exposed to online porn] • [|Education is the key to better security] • [|Study: Overzealous filters hinder research] • [|Don't write unacceptable acceptable-use policies]**__

4. New Year Welcome and addition Ideas __**Soon the days will fly by and Showcase presentation days will arrive. Therefore, I am trying to motive myself (and you) to help get focused on generating ideas for our up coming presentations.

I thought [|Joyce Valenza]'s "//Top School Library Things to Think About in 2008"// list might help us thing about different ways or ideas for our presentation. Check it out at the following website: [|http://www.schoollibraryjournal .com/blog/1340000334/post /80019408.html]

As I was scanning some of my messages I came across the following session being offered by Educational Institution on Thursday Jan 17 at 3:00 pm ET (4:00 our time). //"Information Literacy Collaborations That Work —Developing Successful Alliances for Teaching Critical Thinking and Promoting Lifelong Learning "// //Building on the theme of their recent book// Information Literacy Collaborations That Work //for Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., Tom Mackey and Trudi Jacobson discuss effective collaborative models for teaching information literacy in a variety of disciplines and in a range of educational settings. They will explore the participation of librarians, faculty, and administrators in this process and examine such timely issues as information literacy assessment and teaching with technology. Tom and Trudi will also discuss their own collaborative teaching which promotes student-centered teamwork in the classroom and the use of such Web 2.0 technologies as blogs and wikis.// Check out the details about this audio conference at [|http://www.thepartnership.ca /partnership/bins/calendar _page.asp]

Maybe each of our groups might consider getting together and taking this audio workshop. SLA members can get it for $54.00 ( I am an SLA member and I think some others are too). We could consider possibly using some of the honorarium we will be receiving to pay for the cost of this session.**__

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A. Session Blurb__Prescription for Authentic, Engaging Student Assignments**Tired of repetitious, copy-paste or plagiarized student products? Your Teacher Librarian can partner with you to utilize effective learning and teaching strategies, including technology and Web 2.0 tools, and to “tweak” your assignments to engage today’s learners to think critically and creatively.**__

B. Contact Information for presenters

__**SASKATOON presenters’ contact info: GarnettR@spsd.sk.ca ; ruthgarnett@shaw.ca; jf.barton@sasktel.net;** bartonf@spsd.sk.ca**; lucilledube@shaw.ca; dubel@spsd.sk.ca; helmanj@spsd.sk.ca; jensenCar@spsd.sk.ca;

REGINA Presenters’ contact info: terrance.pon@rbe.sk.ca; joan.miller@rbe.sk.ca; rhonda.wills@rbe.sk.ca; violet.smotracook@rbe.sk.ca; smotracookviolet@gmail.com>

home ph: 306-525-8384, School ph: 791-8553 **__

C. Session Dates and Places: __Saskatoon__ 170-Secondary __**February 22 9:30PM – 11:30AM Radisson Hotel 40 Classroom**__ 169-Middle Years __**February 22 1:30PM – 3:30PM Radisson Hotel 40 Classroom**__
 * Presenters: __On behalf of SSLA, Lucille Dube (Walter Murray Collegiate, Saskatoon), Jacqueline Helman Centennial Collegiate, Saskatoon), Carol Jensen (Evan Hardy Collegiate, Saskatoon), Terry Pon (Campbell Collegiate, Regina), Violet Smotra-Cook (Judge Bryant Regina).__**
 * Presenters: __On behalf of SSLA, Ruth Garnett (Buena Vista, Saskatoon), Florence Barton (Greystone Heights, Saskatoon), Terry Pon (Campbell Collegiate, Regina), Violet Smotra-Cook (Judge Bryant Regina).__**

__Regina__ 169-Middle Years __**February 26 1:30PM – 3:30PM Conexus Arts Centre 30 Classroom**__ 170 -Secondary__** February 28 1:30PM – 3:30PM Ramada Hotel 36 Rounds __Presenters:__ On behalf of SSLA, Terry Pon (Campbell Collegiate, Regina), Violet Smotra-Cook (Judge Bryant Regina), Joan Miller (Braun, Regina), Rhonda Wills (McLurg, Regina).