SCHOOL LIBRARIES WORLDWIDE

Volume 16, Number 1, January 2010

[Members / subscribers only access]

Inquiry-based Learning for 21st Century Teaching

Editorial
Carol A. Gordon, Guest Editor

Guided Inquiry: School Libraries in the 21st Century
Carol Collier Kuhlthau
Global interconnectedness enabled by information technology calls for new skills, knowledge and ways of learning to prepare students for living and working in the 21st century. Guided Inquiry equips students with abilities and competencies to address the challenges of an uncertain, changing world. School librarians are vital partners in creating schools that enable students to learn through vast resources and multiple communication channels. School libraries are dynamic learning centers in information age schools with school librarians as primary agents for designing schools for 21st century learners.

Guiding the Inquiry Using the Modified Scientific Literature Review
Randell K. Schmidt, Virginia Kowalski and Lorraine Nevins
An ethnographic study explored how 41 grade 11 students enrolled in biology, chemistry, physics and psychology classes completed a modified scientific literature review (SLR). Researchers questioned whether the use of primary readings from peer-review science journals promoted increased student learning, the ability to handle scientific information, the stimulation of critical thinking skills, development of a deeper understanding of a scientific topic, and the preparation for collegiate research. Data were collected in four phases: Preliminary interviews; debriefing interviews after completion of the SLRs; content analysis of student work; and face-to-face interviews two years after the SLR unit with self-selected participants from the original sample. Findings indicate that students were able to successfully manage the scientific literature. All participating students made an “intellectual jump” in knowledge creation. Construction of new scientific knowledge was reflected in the ability to compare and contrast the scientific studies, as well as indicate exceptions, omissions, trends, and possible implications for future research. Thirty percent of students mentioned the SLR as one of the most helpful college preparation experiences.

Building the Disposition of Reflection through the Inquiry-focused School Library Program
Jami L. Jones and Kaye B. Dotson
The goal of educators to cultivate reflective thinkers is enhanced through the inquiry-focused school library program proposed by Kuhlthau. The authors present reflection, an essential component of inquiry, as a disposition that can be “caught, taught and acquired” through a process of modeling in a school library environment which is designed to support the development of this essential critical thinking skill. A framework for strengthening the disposition of reflection is presented, based on Dewey's and Schön's work on reflection and Bransford, Brown and Cocking's work on learning. The stages of reflection and inquiry are compared to dispositions-in-action, indicating their potential for enhancing student learning and understanding. Guidelines and practical suggestions are recommended for teaching reflection in a learner-, knowledge-, and assessment-centered school library program.

Supporting Inquiry by Identifying Gaps in Student Confidence: Development of a Measure of Perceived Competence
Marilyn P. Arnone, Ruth V. Small and Rebecca Reynolds
Critical to inquiry-based learning is information literacy. Educators can enhance students’ experiences during the inquiry process if they are aware of the skill areas in which students either have or lack confidence. This article describes the development and psychometric properties of the Perceived Competence in Information Skills (PCIS) measure. Educators can use the measure to support student inquiry by identifying and addressing gaps in student confidence. The measure is freely available through Syracuse University’s Center for Digital Literacy.

Research Instruments for Measuring the Impact of School Libraries on Student Achievement and Motivation
Ruth V. Small and Jaime Snyder
A two-year study of public school library programs was conducted in one of the largest and most diverse states in the nation---New York. This three-phase study extends previous statewide library impact studies by using multiple research methods with multiple stakeholders to investigate the school library’s impact on: (1) student achievement, (2) motivation for learning, and (3) technology use, as well as a range of other variables (e.g., principal-librarian relationship, librarian-teacher collaboration, library services and resources for students with disabilities). This article describes the design, development, testing and validation of online survey instruments used in the first two phases of this research. The article concludes with a number of recommendations for ways in which these instruments might be used by school library professionals to assess the impact of their programs and services on students in their schools and districts.

The Culture of Inquiry in School Libraries [Public access article]
Carol A. Gordon
A culture of inquiry is emerging from research-based information literacy instruction that takes place in school libraries. An ethnographic approach views the culture of inquiry through two lenses: (1) cultural anthropology and an emerging theory of evidence-based information literacy instruction, and (2) Tylor’s anthropological definition of culture serves as a framework to examine the knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, law, and customs of instruction. An emerging theory of information literacy instruction unique to school libraries identifies constructivist learning theory as the knowledge source and evidence-based practice as the underlying belief. The art of teaching in this culture is described in ten corollaries to the theory. Morals and law emerge from 21st century initiatives that re-define the purpose of an education that is relevant to a dynamic information environment. Ethnographic research traditions mold customs that characterize a self-reflective school library community of practice motivated by self-improvement as well as the improvement of society. Such a culture drives decisions about best practice, as well as directions for future research.

Indexed in Bibliothek Forschung und Praxis, Children Literature Abstracts, Contents Pages in Education, Educational Resources Information Clearing house (ERIC), Library Literature, and Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA).

Last updated 7 April 2010 (KSB)