Information Literacy Course (EDT 110)

This week, students took their first readiness assurance test (see team-based learning, Larry Michaelsen) to reinforce the following concepts:  The information cycle, Invisible Web, Service-Learning, and the course syllabus!  Yes, we ask questions about the syllabus to be sure that they've read it!  They take the RAT individually, and then as a team.  They get the better of the two scores, which is almost always the team score.  The team discussion helps them understand/retain the concepts.

Next week, March 8, our students will turn in their completed research portfolios to Project READ.  So this week (week 9), the groups were working fast and furious to continue compiling their portfolios and write appropriate recommendations based on their research.  This is the part where the students apply critical thinking skills by synthesizing the research they found. Students also took a very brief 5-question review "quiz."  The quiz covered the big concepts we covered, like evaluating information and the invisible web.

My journey with SL began two+ years ago when a colleague and I decided to integrate Service Learning into our credit IL course.  We hoped our students could do research for a local nonprofit that needed it.  Most nonprofit agencies are sorely understaffed and overworked.  It seemed obvious to us that they would appreciate our students' work since it would leave them time to do other things.  It also seemed obvious to us the connections between information literacy curriculum and service learning curriculum.  Both aim to make students active, engaged citizens and critical thinkers.  (More on