What INFORMATION technology skills should be in a tech curriculum?

Our district is writing a k-12 technology curriculum. I have been included on the curriculum writing team. Yea!

Alas! I did not have enough time to gather all the resources and get my head around the task before our 2 day summer meeting.

It seems like a very overwhelming task, but…you just have to start eating that elephant one bite at a time. So….Each technology coordinator for each building made a list of skills that students should have by the end of each grade level through 8th grade. For high school, the coordinator made a list of what tech skills should be mastered by the end of 12th grade.

As the high school librarian, I made a list of the INFORMATION technology skills that students should have by the end of 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th.

I am sure that I have forgotten a lot that should be on the list. I would be most appreciative if you would have a look and let me know what glaring things I left out.

Ninth Grade

Students will:

  1. Recognize that the high school library website is a portal to quality information in all formats.
  2. Recognize that public library websites are useful sources for lifelong information needs.
  3. Search the High School Library Online Catalog (OPAC) to locate books using multiple keywords.
  4. Search local library system OPAC to borrow books as needed,
  5. Use Boolean operators to create more effective OPAC searches.
  6. Use multiple search engines.
  7. Use web evaluation skills to choose appropriate Internet sources.
  8. Use basic search features of online research databases (Gale PowerSearch, EBSCO, etc.) to locate full-text, printable information in periodicals & reference books not available via search engines.
  9. Use subject specific databases when appropriate (English Databases).
  10. Use basic Boolean search operators (and, or, not, truncation) when using search engines and research databases.
  11. Understand basic copyright issues.
  12. Understand basic plagiarism issues; the consequences of deliberate plagiarism; and avoid inadvertant plagiarism by using anti-plagiarism software.
  13. Practice ethical information management by citing sources accurately and contact content creators for permission to use media such as pictures and videos.
  14. Use works cited software (EasyBib) to create accurate works cited lists.
  15. Use technologies to organize research information (word processed or PowerPoint notes; using folders to organize project files, online book marking sites*, rss feeds*, blogs*, wikis*, etc.).
  16. Use technologies to present research information (video, podcasts, PowerPoint, webpages etc.).
  17. Recognize that libraries provide access to technology, and librarians are a lifelong source of assistance for using information technology resources.

Tenth Grade

Students will:

  1. Demonstrate all skills learned in 9th grade.
  2. Use high school library web page regularly to access information in all formats.
  3. Use advanced OPAC features such as “bookbags” and sort features to create lists of library resources.
  4. Use advanced search features when searching for information with search engines.
  5. Use advanced web evaluation skills to choose appropriate Internet sources.
  6. Use advanced search features of online research databases (Gale PowerSearch, EBSCO, etc.) to locate full-text, printable information in periodicals & reference books not available via search engines.
  7. Use subject specific databases when appropriate (for example: Health databases).
  8. Use complex Boolean search skills when using search engines and databases.
  9. Demonstrate adherence to copyright laws.
  10. Avoid plagiarism in research assignments; use anti-plagiarism software regularly when possible; & consistently practice ethical information management by creating works cited lists using EasyBib or other citation makers.
  11. Use the library regularly to access technology and seek assistance of the librarian as needed when using information technology resources.

Eleventh Grade

Students will:

  1. Demonstrate all skills learned in 9th and 10th grade.
  2. Recognize that college library websites are an essential portal to college level research. (AP/Gemini courses).
  3. Use online WebQuests designed by teachers.
  4. Use advanced web evaluation skills to choose Internet sources with more advanced, complex information.
  5. Recognize and use highly respected sources of Internet information (such as PBS, National Geographic etc).
  6. Use advanced search features of online research databases (Gale PowerSearch, EBSCO, etc.) to locate full-text, printable information in peer-reviewed, academic level periodicals & reference books not available via search engines.
  7. Use subject specific databases when appropriate (Social Studies databases).
  8. Use the library regularly to access technology and seek assistance of the librarian consistently when encountering difficulty locating the information for research reports or personal interest.

Twelfth Grade

Students will:

  1. Demonstrate all skills learned in 9th , 10th and 11th grade.
  2. Recognize that college library websites are an essential portal to college level research. (All 12th graders).
  3. Demonstrate advanced web evaluation skills in order to locate Internet sources with more advanced, complex information. Be able to defend the quality of sources chosen.
  4. Recognize and consistently use highly respected sources of Internet information. (For example, Johns Hopkins Medical Center; The Pew Institute etc.).
  5. Use advanced search features of online research databases (Gale PowerSearch, EBSCO, etc.) to locate full-text, printable information in peer-reviewed, academic level periodicals. Be able to articulate the difference between the popular press and scholarly journals.
  6. Use advanced search features of online research databases (Gale PowerSearch, EBSCO, etc.) to locate information in online reference books of a more advanced level. Include more of these types of resources into high level research projects.
  7. Use subject specific databases when appropriate (Economics & Government databases).
  8. Demonstrate understanding of complex copyright issues.
  9. Demonstrate understanding of complex plagiarism issues and how to avoid problems in college and the work world.
  10. Use the library regularly to access technology and consult the librarian consistently when starting research or encountering difficulty locating needed information for research reports or personal interest.

6 thoughts on “What INFORMATION technology skills should be in a tech curriculum?

  1. Ok – I think some of these work and some of them don’t – 9th grade 1-4 are web 1.0. they don’t necessarily have to get books for information. I can appreciate “recognize”, but I think that if they don’t come in with those skills listed in 1-4, they are farther behind than I think they are.
    Using the Library page to access information is not going to be a “lifelong” skill for them either. I am not sure that is the best thing for them to be practicing.
    When they need to research something, for work or for personal reasons 10 years from now, I hope they aren’t coming back to the library page.

    I like the Boolean search terms, I like multiple search engines, I think they should use content specific research databases earlier (9th or 10th?).

  2. Thanks Chris. I am glad that you like the boolean search terms etc. Kids definitely need more sophisticate search strategies. The content specific databases are introduced in 9th grade for the English databases. I also should add Science – since i do intro some science databases. and I should add SS too – since we do have one for world religions and the renaissance.

    I also should mention – what I have here is strictly the LIBRARY part of the tech curriculum. Just the part that the library is responsible for. There is WAY more to the whole tech curriculum – which is in VERY early stages. This is only my part of it.

    As for the rest. I think I rather strenuously disagree with you.

    I don’t think that web 2.0 means that everything web 1.0 should be thrown out the window. Just like websites do not replace books. Books have MUCH more in-depth information that most web sites. So – web sites and books are still useful. Kids should be using both. I would also suggest that books and websites are better and more dependable than most blogs.

    also – Our kids do NOT come in with 1-4 in place. Believe me. Most teachers assume they know it. The kids think they know it. They don’t. They have probably used the middle school library page – but they have probably not even seen the high school library page when they come in. So they need to be introduced to the high school library website as ONE portal of info. It will not be presented as the only way to get to information – just a good place to start. When they come in, they know only google. They would benefit from using a library site which directs them to databases. Google does not do that. In the rest of the grades, I assume that they will use the high school library site when appropriate, and then in 11th grade, I will introduce the concept of using a college website to the AP and college English courses. Again – they lead to databases that are required by professors. Also – many library web sites are becoming very web 2.0 — incorporating blogs and rss feeds etc. that is my next learning curve.

    Also – many kids BARELY know how to search for books in our library – let along in other libraries. They have no idea that they can borrow books, dvd’s, periodicals etc. from other libraries. Using a library catalog AND a library web site definitely IS a life-long learning skill. Google can not get you everything. Both google scholar and amazon will lead people to scholarly periodicals – but guess what? The only way they can get the full text according to Amazon is to pay them. I CRINGE whenever I see that. I would bet 99% of people do not realize that they can get virtually any of those articles for free. How? Not by using google or amazon. They are FREE to anyone with a FREE library card. Why don’t people know that? Because they have never been taught that a library website is the portal to this kind of information. They are stuck in the old 1.0 idea of libraries. Libraries are only books. Not true. Libraries are portals to information. A good researcher uses Google et al AND libraries. As a matter of fact – if people click on the search engine section of most library websites – they might be shocked to find out that Google and Yahoo are NOT the only search engines in the world.

    So – I plan to teach students about library websites as portals to information. they are. Those who ignore them lose out on a lot. I also plan to teach them a hierarchy that is not really spelled out in this brief curriculum outline. When you are in high school & you need books and periodical articles etc., you start with your high school library site. If you are in college, you “graduate” to your college site. And no matter who or where you are – you can go to your public library site. The life-long learning here is that libraries provide help with searching for information in ALL formats. Using library websites is part of the library information skills technology and since it involves using technology – it belongs in the library part of the tech curriculum.

    And “When they need to research something, for work or for personal reasons 10 years from now” I hope they ARE coming back to a library page. Not the high school library page – but hopefully to a college page or a public library page. I am hoping that when teenagers become adults, at least some of them will remember the good old library. When they are searching for information on cancer and a 10 paragraph web page from Google is not enough detail, i hope they will remember to go to the public library website to search the databases – especially the health databases, and if a 10 page article about coping with cancer is not enough, I hope they might actually take a trip into the public library to check out a 300 page book on the subject, join a support group, or attend a FREE lecture from an expert on the topic.

    So – that’s my story and I’m stickin’ too it 🙂

  3. I completely agree, that the library is a good starting point for them and a skill they need especially for HS and College.

    Here is a couple of examples of what I am trying to say: I read the book The Worst Hard Time. It is about the Dust Bowl. In there, one of the things discussed is a video produced by a component of the New Deal (I forget which agency) called “The plow that broke the plains” A 25 min. propaganda piece. I didn’t go through the Monroe County Library Site. I found it through a Google-search in Google Video.
    I was in the used book store and I found a $5 book on Joseph Warren. He was a Patriot during the revolution. He died at the battle of Bunker Hill. Now, knowing that I just packed up all of my books to move them and that soon that $5 will equal 1 gallon of gas, adding one more book to the pile was not a thing I was interested in. I ran a google search, found the wikipedia article, virtualogy.com site with its 15-ish research links, and the Massachusetts Historical Society website. I had basically satisfied my need for info on Warren. If I was going to write a book on him, I am going to have to go find more primary sources on it. But for general information, I was all set.
    To use your cancer example, the first return with a search for “cancer” on google is the American Cancer society. Listen to any one of the 30 cancer podcasts in a “cancer” search on iTunes, including ones from the Lance Armstrong foundation, Sloan-Kettering & NPR. I also don’t know that someone would need or have the time to read a 300 page book on cancer. The person doesn’t need to go and physically sit to hear the cancer expert. Maybe they aren’t in my town. The internet opens that all up to me to find.

    I know that google is not the be-all and end-all. There are many specialized search engines and databases that focus on specific issues.

    My problem is that to me, the library page / website seems like the middle man. The databases are a very valuable tool, but I almost think that I could access the information in the databases another way. The databases are one tool in the arsenal and we need to shift the focus or give equal time to other tools.

  4. I am re-reading some of these in the 9th grade section. Are we preparing them for the hoops we want them to jump through or for life on the outside?
    After you get out of college or after you leave HS if college isn’t your thing, do people need to use EasyBib for example? I realize you need to attribute your information, but if you are working for Kodak, do you go back to EasyBib as a tool to do that?
    Also, there should be something about BESS. 9th grade #1 got me thinking about this. It is a “portal to quality information in all formats” (except the ones blocked by the filter.) Because there is quality information out there, but they can’t always see it at school.

    Ok, I am done for the night. 🙂

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