action research and informed learning
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Teacher Librarian and PhD student Anne Whisken conducted an action research project with 25 secondary teachers. They investigated the informed learning model (Bruce 2008) for teaching 21st century information use in a blended learning environment. How could teachers incorporate this into their practice? Is action research useful professional development?
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action research and informed learning
- 1. Informed learning in a secondary school Action Research Case Study Informed Learning practice and experience in a secondary school blended learning environment. Anne Whisken PhD Candidate Charles Sturt University
- 2. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND RESEARCH – Research Design and how the action research project was carried out INITIAL FINDINGS – Reflections on the first phase of reading and coding transcripts
- 3. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND What are teacher librarians doing? Is Information Literacy a valid concept? If it is, why isn’t it incorporated into curriculum design and discipline practice as an important learning? Informed Learning: How do teachers use information for learning in their discipline areas? Action Research Project: Is Informed Learning applicable in a secondary school blended learning environment? And is action research useful for professional development in a school?
- 4. Informed learning in a secondary school Teacher Information Teacher Professional Librarian
- 5. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND Is Information Literacy a valid concept? If it is, why isn’t it incorporated into curriculum design and discipline practice as an important learning?
- 6. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND How can information literacy be incorporated into curriculum design and practice – when so much else has to be covered?
- 7. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND Informed Learning: How do teachers use information for learning in their discipline areas? How about looking at it from their points of view?
- 8. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND Informed Learning: Visible Thinking about discipline information use A pedagogy for using information to learn
- 9. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND Informed Learning research proposal: Is it applicable in a secondary school? How would we conduct research to find out?
- 10. Informed learning in a secondary school BACKGROUND Informed Learning research proposal: What tools in a learning management system are useful for expert discipline information practice?
- 11. Informed learning in a secondary school RESEARCH Design, Proposal, Ethics Approval – 2008 - 2010 Data Collection: Action Research Project 2010 Data Analysis: 2011 Writing: 2012 Presentation: 2013 (?!)
- 12. Informed learning in a secondary school RESEARCH DESIGN Research question: How might Informed Learning concepts provide a bridge between information literacy theory and practice in a blended learning environment?
- 13. Informed learning in a secondary school The key research questions are: how might teachers examine their practice of information literacy using the conceptual model of Informed Learning? how might teacher practice provide students with discipline-based views and experiences of information literacy? what affordances do teachers see in a learning management system to support teacher practice and student experiences of information literacy?
- 14. Informed learning in a secondary school Informed Learning Learning Teacher Management Practice System Affordances Action Research Project by Multiple Case Studies ACTION RESEARCH CASE STUDY
- 15. Informed learning in a secondary school What is information literacy? ‘The ability to access, evaluate, organise and use information in order to learn, problem-solve, make decisions -in formal and informal learning contexts, at work, at home and in educational settings. It is a key characteristic of the lifelong learner,- strongly connected with critical and reflective thinking’ (Bruce, 2003)
- 16. Informed learning in a secondary school The journey from information skills to information literacy to informed learning Key 21st Century competencies and information literacy Collaboration between information professionals and discipline experts/ subject teachers Informed Learning
- 17. Informed learning in a secondary school ‘If you want the same result, keep doing the same thing’ Library practice marginalised from the business of classroom education practice: Information skills, research skills, referencing and bibliography skills, Internet skills seen as domain of library Teacher librarians striving for collaboration and engagement: Requests to include teacher librarians in planning Extrinsic ‘Study skills’ and ‘research skills’ classes Responding ‘just-in-time’ with pathfinders, notetaking and bibliography sheets, hurried research introductions Listing of library resources Teacher librarians as part of skilled teams to be called into ‘zones of intervention’ in the research process
- 18. Informed learning in a secondary school ‘If you want the same result, keep doing the same thing’ The same thing is telling teachers about the need to include information literacy from the point of view of library focus (ie, research assignment skills) and the same result is they keep seeing it as a library responsibility What is the different thing that can be done to get a different result? What if it is possible to talk to teachers from the point of their focus and have them see the possibility for including information literacy education in their practice?
- 19. Informed learning in a secondary school ‘The learning experience that prepares today’s students for tomorrow’s professional practice brings such practices into the curriculum and encourages reflection upon them.’ (Bruce, 2008, p.3)
- 20. Informed learning in a secondary school ‘What should we teach and how, so that our students will use information successfully, creatively and responsibly in their journey as lifelong learners?’( Bruce, 2008, vii – viii) Can Informed Learning principles be applied in a secondary school? How?
- 21. Informed learning in a secondary school What are the principles of informed learning? Informed learning takes into account learners’ experiences Informed learning promotes the simultaneous development of discipline and process learning Informed learning is about changes in experience
- 22. Informed learning in a secondary school Informed learning is using information to learn Information literacy is the experience of using information to learn Information skills are the capabilities that make information literacy possible in the same way that the ability to read and write makes literate practice possible Information technology refers to the systems or infrastructure that enable different forms of information use
- 23. Informed learning in a secondary school What is information literacy education? Just as there is a difference between science and science education, history and history education, there is a difference between information literacy and information literacy education. (Bruce, 2008) Information literacy education is ‘enabling students to work with different ways of using information to learn; the educational framework that makes it possible for students to experience information literacy in new ways’ (Bruce, 2008, p. 184)
- 24. Informed learning in a secondary school Informed learning • uses information to learn • draws on the different ways in which we use information • draws on understanding of our varied experiences of using information to learn • is informed by academic and professional information practices • is informed by an understanding of how such practices are experienced
- 25. Informed learning in a secondary school Informed learning is about how we interact with information while learning is about how we use information to learn is about the information and knowledge construction practices that are relevant to discipline-centred curriculum is about the creative, reflective, and ethical use of information for learning (Bruce, 2008. p.3)
- 26. Six Frames for Informed Learning. The discipline expert looks through different ‘frames’ to ask: • what should students 4. • how do we enable them 1. know about their Personal to find the personal Content subject and about the Relevance relevance of this world of information? information use? • what do we want them • how will they explore 5. the social impact of 2. to be able to do and at Competency what level of Social information use competence? Impact practices? • how do they gain an • what should they know overall view of use of about how experts in information, how do 3. they bring critical their subject area Learning to construct knowledge 6. Relational awareness and Learn and about how they reflection to different construct knowledge? ways of seeing and experiencing?
- 27. 3. Learn to learn: Knowledge Construction what should students know about how experts in their subject area construct knowledge and about how they can construct knowledge?
- 28. 4. Personal Relevance: engagement in the subject how do we enable students to find the personal relevance of this subject information use?
- 29. 5. Social Impact: context, ethics, audience how will students explore the social impact of information use practices?
- 30. 6. Critical Awareness: know how to use, view and reflect about information how do they gain an overall view of use of information, how do they bring critical awareness and reflection to different ways of seeing and experiencing?
- 31. Six Frames for Informed Learning. The discipline expert looks through different ‘frames’ to ask: • what should students 4. • how do we enable them 1. know about their Personal to find the personal Content subject and about the Relevance relevance of this world of information? information use? • what do we want them • how will they explore 5. the social impact of 2. to be able to do and at Competency what level of Social information use competence? Impact practices? • how do they gain an • what should they know overall view of use of about how experts in information, how do 3. they bring critical their subject area Learning to construct knowledge 6. Relational awareness and Learn and about how they reflection to different construct knowledge? ways of seeing and experiencing?
- 32. Seven Faces of Informed Learning. The discipline expert asks: what experiences (faces) will the students have as they use information to learn? Seven Faces of Informed Learning 6. EXTENSION 7. WISDOM EXPERIENCE 5. KNOWLEDGE CONSTRUCTION 3. PROCESS 4. CONTROL 2. SOURCES 1. INFORMATION AWARENESS
- 33. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Use Information Scanning Information Technology The First Face: The Information Awareness and Communications Experience
- 34. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Use Information Technology Information Sources The Second Face: The Sourcing Information Experience
- 35. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Use Information Technology Information Process The Third Face: The Information Process Experience
- 36. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Use Information Technology Information Control The Fourth Face: The Information Control Experience
- 37. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Technology Knowledge Base Information Use (critical analysis) The Fifth Face: The Knowledge Construction Experience
- 38. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Technology Knowledge Base Information Use (intuition) The Sixth Face: The Knowledge Extension Experience
- 39. Informed learning in a secondary school Information Technology Knowledge Base Information Use (values) The Seventh Face: The Wisdom Experience
- 40. SIX FRAMES SEVEN FACES Informed learning my students What do I want my students to What will know about using information experience when they use to learn in my discipline area? information to learn in my discipline area? 1. Content 4. Relevance 6. Extension 7. Wisdom 2. Competency 5. Social 5. Knowledge Construction Impact 3. Learn to 6. Critical 3. Process 4. Control learn Awareness 1. Information Awareness
- 41. Informed learning in a secondary school Informed Learning research : Affordances of a learning management system The concept of affordances was used to ask: what tools in a learning management system are useful for expert discipline information practice? Affordances are properties of the environment taken relative to an observer. (J. J. Gibson, 1966, 1977, 1979/1986). Norman (1988) developed this view to include the capacity of individuals to perceive the usefulness of the properties.
- 42. Informed learning in a secondary school Design of information architecture for affordance utility/usefulness and usability of objects: Design for usefulness by creating affordances (the possibilities for action in the design) that match the goals of the user (the relativity of the affordance vis-à-vis the user) Improve the usability by designing the information that specifies the affordances (perceptual information as shadows on buttons to afford clickability etc.).("Affordances," 2008)
- 43. Informed learning in a secondary school Learning Management System affordance utilities for Informed Learning Class Tools Evaluation Announcements Early Warning System Blackboard Scholar® Grade Center Blogs Performance Dashboard Class Calendar Tracking Reports Customization Collaboration Enrollment Options Contacts Guest and Parent Access Discussion Board Properties Glossary Style Journals Tool Availability Messages Packages and Utilities SafeAssign Check Collection Links Self and Peer Assessment Class Copy Send Email Copy Files to Collection Export/Archive Class Tasks Import Class Cartridge Tests, Surveys, and Pools Import Package / View Logs Recycle
- 44. Informed learning in a secondary school A Six Frames approach : For students to have a relational view about the practice of using information for learning in their discipline – its access and location, competent selection and constructive use, personally relevant and socially responsible application Which capacities of the learning management system will support that? How will teachers design their courses to use those capacities?
- 45. Informed learning in a secondary school A Seven Faces approach: For students to experience communicative, controlled, critical, intuitive and transformative use of information for learning Which affordances of the learning management system will support that? How will teachers design their courses to use those capacities?
- 46. Informed learning in a secondary school RESEARCH PROJECT DESIGN Significance of research fill a gap in the existing literature of Informed Learning action research in secondary schools fill a gap in the existing literature of views of the tools in learning management systems which support Informed Learning will inform practice which seeks to bridge the gap between the theory and practice of information literacy
- 47. Informed learning in a secondary school RESEARCH METHODOLOGY OUTLINE Theoretical framework Ontological: conception of the social world in which social realities are constructed by the participants Epistemological: assumption that knowledge is personal, subjective and unique and created as individuals interact with their environments (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2007, pp. 7-8) Qualitative approach: looks at the experience of participants and involves an interpretive, naturalistic approach to its subject matter (Cohen et al., 2007, pp. 7-48; Bryman, 2008, pp. 15-16). ).
- 48. Informed learning in a secondary school METHODOLOGY What methodology will be in its enactment a transformative experience for those involved? provides for participants to reflect on their practice and bring about change? enables several groups to work on investigation of a similar phenomenon, and the researcher to gather data about their individual cases as well as the project as a whole?
- 49. Informed learning in a secondary school METHODOLOGY A combination of case study and action research. Action research to provide for cycles of reflective practice which self manage and which have their own contemporaneous data collection and analysis processes Multiple case study to provide for a formalised data collection and analysis within and across a number of groups
- 50. Informed learning in a secondary school METHODOLOGY & DATA COLLECTION Three ‘case’ groups would undertake a project in which they investigated the concepts of Informed learning using action research. Four action cycles would be conducted by each group The researcher was both a participant and facilitator in each group, organising meetings providing readings setting up online communication using the learning management system (data collection) recording group meetings and start and end interviews with each participant (data collection) making reflective research notes (data collection) Action Research Case Study: Structure and Roles
- 51. Informed learning in a secondary school Data Analysis Process Data transcription Reading through and forming initial impressions of text data Coding of the transcript Development of a detailed qualitative description Generation of qualitative themes, Creation of visual image/s to represent the data Interpretation and checks of accuracy of findings and interpretation (Creswell, 2008, pp. 243-270)
- 52. Informed learning in a secondary school Data analysis – likely main themes How do Year 8 teachers, Year 10 teacher, IB teachers view Use of Informed Learning concepts for development of information literacy education in discipline practice at a secondary school? Specifically: Use of Six Frames for Informed Learning to provide relational views of information literacy? Use of Seven Faces of Informed Learning to provide variation in experiences of information literacy for students? Use of Action Research for professional development? Usefulness (affordances) of Learning Management System tools to support information literacy practice and education?
- 53. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey PhD research and the role of supervisors Research design, proposal acceptance and ethics approval: 2008-2010 Action Research project 2010: structure and timeline
- 54. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey School Approval professional development culture professional learning teams action learning research School curriculum leaders
- 55. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Project participation by teachers Three ‘case’ groups investigating the same Informed Learning concepts Time commitment: two interviews (40 mins each), five meetings (1.5 hrs each) Informed Learning pre-reading (10-15 pages each) work done in the action cycles between each meeting Invitation ILARC invitation Project Timeline
- 56. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Interviews Structured questions ensured a built-in basis for data analysis, and points of comparison between start and end interviews Start Interview – initial findings Participants passionate about teaching, and wanted: personal and professional growth to provide better learning experiences with more opportunity for thinking and reflection to learn how to deal with digital learning environment and new information formats to find out about action research to spend time talking with colleagues
- 57. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Action Research Case Group Meetings Catering was important: red and white wine, fruit juice, fresh brewed coffee and tea, cheese and fruit platters, delicious cakes Quiet, comfortable space for meetings – one of the library ‘reading rooms’. Time was pressured, and it was difficult for everyone to reflect on the readings as well as report actions taken Conversation: Each case group read the same Informed Learning material and responded to the same chapter questions – but over time these became less structured to enable a free flow of conversation around common points
- 58. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Interviews End Interviews – initial findings: Participants overwhelming enjoyed the year’s project, and: Gained the personal and professional growth they sought Saw how they could incorporate different ways of using information in their discipline practice and curriculum design Tried tools for communication and collaboration in the learning management system Found particular value in action research Really enjoyed the collegiality of other teachers, as well as learning from other discipline practices
- 59. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Long term impact of ILARC In the School: In 2011, all staff members must be involved in an Action Learning Team (ALT’s) to investigate an aspect of the School’s goals Members of ILARC project played a key role in the fast establishment of groups across curriculum areas of English, LOTE, Humanities, Science, Maths, Library Action research is seen as a very successful professional development model, and will be continued in 2012, with likelihood of more focused topic areas
- 60. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Long term impact of ILARC information professional>teacher librarian<teacher In 2011, all library staff members are involved in Action Learning Team (ALT’s) Library ALT’s use action research to implement a new integrated library system, investigate eBooks, develop front-line reference response skills, expand the Wide Reading Program
- 61. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Long term impact of ILARC For the information professional>teacher librarian<teacher As an information professional in the school, my ‘way of being’ is to ask: what learning is taking place as this information is used and created, in this way, for this purpose?
- 62. ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey Long term impact of ILARC For the information professional>teacher librarian<teacher Informed Learning brings a framework of visible thinking to my operations within the library, with teachers and eLearning leaders, and for future developments of iCentre concepts and eBooks and eResources.
Hinweis der Redaktion
- In 2010, 25 teachers and I undertook an action research project to investigate the concepts of Informed Learning, and their usefulness in a secondary school. I’d like to begin by giving you the background to that project, then outline the research design and the way the project was carried out, and then comment on the initial findings from the project.
- Some key questions outline the problem to be investigated.Where does our profession sit at present regarding use of information in learning?What new ideas might inform our practice?How might we investigate them?
- What are we doing?As an information professional in a school, I organise, manage and enable access to information for teaching and learning. As a teacher, I use established pedagogies to design and deliver curriculum that will enable students to learn the knowledge content and skills of subject disciplines. I also teach them how to think and learn. As a teacher librarian, I combine these two, with a particular focus of bringing information literacy into the learning process as one of the interdisciplinary skills which has an increasing focus on use of ICT.
- Over the past few years, I’ve asked myself whether Information Literacy as I understand it still has validity?It seems it does, with key international, national and state organisations incorporating some version of information literacy in their standards and goals for 21st century learning. While there are some core understandings about its key skills and competencies, those who watch its iterations see a lot of rebadging, renaming, and redistribution - the unidentified scattering across a set of interdisciplinary skills being a recent one in Victoria and nationally. It is good when information literacy is recognised as a set of interdisciplinary skills to be incorporated within the developmental continuum of subject knowledge learning. But the really difficult thing is getting that to happen. As specialist teachers, we’ve spent SO much time trying to bring that about. We’ve had wonderful models to tell us what it should look, including Big Six, the Information Process, ILPO and standards from ALAA and ASLA and ALIA. We’ve had had Zones of Intervention, Guided Inquiry and Inquiry Learning to tell us how to go about doing it. We’ve conducted research about what it adds to the learning experience and outcomes of school students.
- If Information Literacy is a valid set of interdisciplinary strategies and competencies to be learned, why then isn’t it incorporated into curriculum design and discipline practice? Why is it so often left as extrinsic, a process everyone hopes will be taught and learned, but not in MY busy curriculum where there is so much else to cover?Excitement and frustration - Like everyone here, I have the excitement and passion for what good information professionals can do in a school, a university and in public libraries. But I also have the ongoing frustration of information literacy being seen as a good thing by teachers, but as something that is largely external to curriculum design and classroom practice. There is so much to cover, why should this be added on?
- Informed Learning - And that’s where Informed Learning comes into play. It is a concept developed at QUT by Christine Bruce and her associates to enable information use to become part of discipline learning. It took me from my previous view of information literacy as a specialisation that I the teacher librarian bring into the planning process with teachers. Instead it places me in the zone of the discipline expert where I ask, How is information used in your subject area? What good discipline information practices do you want your students to have?What experiences will you design so they can learn them? What will that learning experience be like for them? How will they demonstrate that learning?
- Visible Thinking about Discipline Information Use - It acknowledges the discipline expertise of the teacher, and provides a structure to make visible the information practices within their discipline. I would describe it as a Visible Thinking structure to bring to teachers, with the big question being: What learning is taking place as students are using this information? What are they learning by using information from this source, in this format, for this purpose, at this level, in this language, for this audience? Informed Learning: a pedagogy for using information to learn - What are they leaning about the subject and about the use of information in this subject, and about the use of information generally? It is a pedagogy for using information to learn, with the epistemology being how use of information for learning is taught, and the ontology being how students experience that learning. It is proposed that via variation of experience, the repeated and varied application of using information to learn across many disciplines, that students will develop expert and ethical information use capacities.
- Action Research Project: Is Informed Learning applicable in a secondary school blended learning environment?I developed a research proposal to conduct a project in which groups of teachers would investigate whether informed learning would be suited for use in a secondary school. I wanted to see it through the particularity of their subject and year level understandings and teaching and learning goals. How would we do that? I chose action research as a data collection method, asking at the same time whether action research was a useful model for professional development.
- And because schools are increasingly moving to use of learning management systems as the platform for blended learning where the learning takes place both in the classroom and online, I wanted to find out whether teachers saw the usefulness of tools in the system for development of expert information practice within disciplines. And this is what the project looks like.
- RESEARCHDesign, Proposal, Ethics Approval – 2008 - 2010Data Collection: Action Research Project 2010Data Analysis: 2011Writing: 2012Presentation: 2013 (?!)
- This research has as its purpose investigation of a way to change how teachers view information literacy and information literacy education.FROM :an understanding that students learn information literacy as a set of research or information skills taught by the libraryTO : an understanding that students learn information use expertise via teacher practice of the way information is viewed in the discipline and via the variation of experiences they have of information use across the disciplines.Such a bridge is provided by the concepts of Informed Learning.This research investigates whether Informed Learning is seen as viable for use by teachers in a secondary school.
- The sub-questions to be explored to answer that question focus on teacher practice on the views and experiences of information use provided for students by that practiceand the views they have of the usefulness of utilities in the learning management system to support informed learning practice in a blended learning environment.
- These questions were investigated in an action research project by three groups of teachers, operating as multiple case studies to conduct reflective action research cycles.
- There is strong agreement amongst educators involved in the area about what an information literate person is.
- There is a well documented path of continued attempts to include information literacy education in the learning experiences of students from the late seventies. Information literacy has been highlighted as a key 21st century skill. Yet who is to teach it? There have been longstanding attempts by teacher librarians and tertiary librarians to collaborate with teachers and faculty to ensure students are receiving information skills education, preferably within the context of subjects.
- To be fair, these attempts have tried many and different ways of engagement.
- In experience helping teachers put their courses into the learning management system, I noticed the passion each subject teacher held for her or his disciplineAt about that time, I read Informed Learning, and I saw for the first time how information literacy might be seen as something which could be seen as an education in itself and taken on by teachers as part of their practice. My view moved from seeing it as a set of information skills to being a larger educational concept. I had become captive myself of a limited view of information literacy, of seeing it as information skills to be added to curriculum.
- How could I talk to subject teachers about information literacy so that we all owned the responsibility for information literacy education?
- If teachers are to take on information literacy education as part of their practice, what aspect of it would they be including in their curriculum design? How would they teach it?Informed Learning was developed in a tertiary environment – is it applicable to a secondary situation? How would we discover that?
- Informed Learning takes place in the context of the learners’ experiences, as part of discipline mastery, and provides variation in experience for holistic understanding.
- Christine Bruce uses the term informed learning to emphasize an orientation towards using information to learn instead of information literacy (2008, p. 184) in an attempt to move away from the confusion which surrounds that latter term, often being used interchangeably with the narrower information skills or the even more narrow information and communications technologies skills.
- Bruce and her colleagues at QUT have developed concepts of information literacy education which provide for its inclusion into discipline education as part of the epistemology and ontology of expert practice in the discipline.
- The idea of using information to learn is based on the different ways we relate to information, variation in the way we experience its use, how discipline experts use information, and how we construct knowledge in discipline areas.
- Christine Bruce says: ‘Learners need to use information practices appropriate to their discipline or field of study and to be equipped with the appropriate lenses to help them use information powerfully. They also need to be learning discipline content as they work with information. Students should be learning about something (discipline content) as they engage in learning to use information; coming to see both the content and the information use in more powerful ways.’ (Bruce, 2008, 12-13).
- Let’s look through the six frames of informed learning. It takes us to stand in the place of the curriculum designer.Many traditional courses tend to focus on the first and second frames of content and competency. And all subject areas have that as a base requirement – but it is also possible for the teachers who are the subject experts to design curriculum which will enable students to relate to information in their subjects at high levels of awareness and expertise.
- In the third frame, for example, we focus on learning to learn: we help students learn how to construct knowledge by looking at how experts in the subject use information and build up a knowledge base.
- In the fourth frame, we focus on engaging students in the task at hand by enabling them to see the personal relevance of the information they are using.
- We look through the fifth frame to give students a view of the social context and impact of information creation and use – who created this information, why, how will you use it ethically and with awareness of its impact on those viewing it?
- When we look through the sixth frame, we bring together the other views so that students have a critical overview of the information they use in this subject.
- The six frames are lenses through which our experience of learning and teaching for informed learning might be viewed. The lenses that each of us chooses will reflect our own interests and values and those of our disciplines. A balanced curriculum across a whole program would ideally include all aspects of all the frames.’ (Bruce, 2008, p. 24).
- ‘Seven Faces ’of informed learning are based on the fact that we can make new knowledge part of our own operations by repeated experiences of its application. In the case of information literacy, if we provide students with repeated experiences of using information in particular ways across the disciplines, it will become part of their operation to take into later life. The researchers developed a way of describing these ways of experiencing different aspects of information use as ‘Faces’. This looks at how we design curriculum to provide learning experiences for students in which they encounter certain combinations, or faces, of information use elements. If teachers can design curriculum to provide repeated experiences of these different Faces of information use in their subjects, the students will learn them part of their operation to take to higher education and careers and later life.All these elements are present in most uses of information, but we use different combinations to achieve different experiences or purposes. Each face has a particular focus element, another which is on the margin of our focus, and another which is still present, but on the periphery. We can represent them as concentric circles. As we move through these different faces, I will give an example of how they might be built into discipline learning.
- In the first face, students learn to work collaboratively online with others to develop an awareness of aspects of the subject. They support and keep in touch with each other as they do this so they share and build knowledge.
- In the second face, students develop awareness of different types of information sources as they learn about a particular topic.
- In the third face of information experience, students explore different information processes and approaches, developing awareness about what is most useful to them in their subject, and why.
- In the fourth face, they build on using different sources of information to being able to control the information they are gathering about a topic using a variety of information control methods.
- In the fifth face, students learn how to develop a base of knowledge in a new area, so they are empowered to learn about areas of interest previously unfamiliar to them. They learn how discipline experts use critical thinking to identify existing and emerging areas of interest they would like to learn more about. Students know how to select a topic and identify resources in that area, discuss what they have learned from each resource, discuss the different perspectives or biases that are implicit or explicit in each resource, identify the perspectives, assumptions, or biases that appeal most to them and discuss the reasons for this appeal.
- In the sixth face, students learn to build on their own knowledge and perspectives to gain new insights. They focus on their intuitive capacity to create something new, whether it is a new solution to an existing problem, identification of new problems or hypotheses, or an interpretation of a work. They are able to think about and share with others what knowledge they drew upon and how their intuitive or creative capacities influenced their work.
- And in the seventh face, students develop an awareness of their capacity to benefit others. They focus on their values and how those values influence their use of information, the information they choose to use or not use, what they choose to communicate to others or not, and why. They are able to find and document alternative solutions based on the situations of relevant stakeholders.
- The six frames providea guide to what views of information literacy teachers can build into their curriculum alongside the discipline knowledge that will be taught. It gives the students different ways of relating to information.The seven faces provides an outline for teachers of ways to give students a variety of experiences as they use information to learn.
- This study includes examination of the views held by teachers about the tools for information use in a learning management system, because this learning architecture is a key element in blended learning environments of this early part of the 21st century. The concept of affordances is one used to examine people’s views and use of technology. James J. Gibson The Ecological Approach to Visual PerceptionandDonald Norman’s The Psychology of Everyday Things
- In information architecture design, these views are used to ensure that tools are created relative to those who would use them, and that their usability is enhanced by providing clues to their use.
- Apart from its basic functions of providing for course content folders and items, and a content management system for storage of files used the course, Blackboard Learning Management system provides a solid architecture for Web 2.0 communication and collaboration. All the information needs identified in Informed Learning can be supported by this architecture.
- Teachers were asked to assess the usefulness of tools in the leaning management system to support informed learning practice. To look at it from the Six Frames view would mean providing for different ways of relating to information.
- To take a Seven Faces approach would be to look at the tools for their usefulness in providing a variety of experiences of using information for learning.
- This research is significant because it will fill gaps in the existing literatureof Informed Learning action research in secondary schools, and in the existing literature of views of the tools in learning management systems which support Informed Learning.It will inform practice which seeks to bridge the gap between the theory and practice of information literacy (Bruce, 2009) by providing an example of how one school used action research to develop common understandings amongst teachers, teacher librarians and students of Informed Learning practice and experience.
- The theory framing the methodology used is:an ontological conception of the social world in which social realities are constructed by the participants, and an epistemological assumption that knowledge is personal, subjective and unique and created as individuals interact with their environments (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2007, pp. 7-8). It takes a qualitative approach: It looks at the experience of participants and involves an interpretive, naturalistic approach to its subject matter (Cohen et al., 2007, pp. 7-48). In an interpretive approach, the intention is to grasp the subjective meaning of social action. Here the goal is to seek understanding of how teachers might engage with this new concept to change their practices (Bryman, 2008, pp. 15-16).
- I wanted a methodology which provided for several groups to work on a similar investigation, in a project that gave opportunities for transformation, reflection and change, and which enabled data collection from the individuals, the groups and about the whole phenomenon being investigated.
- A combination of case study and action research was chosen for this research
- Data collection involved recording two interviews with each participant, recording five meetings for each of the three case groups, online communication, and reflective research memos made by the researcher.
- I am now in the data analysis phase. I have had the recordings transcribed, and am now going through the process of reading them, adding codes, and grouping those codes into categories so I can search for themes to provide answers to the research questions.
- While themes can be anticipated, the research recognises that themes emerge during the conduct of action research, and also that many new categories will emerge during analysis. And I am finding that this is what is happening as I do my reading and marking up with codes.
- One of the very important parts of doing any big research project is having an external critical friend or supervisor. I felt that if I was going to invest so much of my time, and that of my colleagues, I wanted it to have the validity that a PhD would give, and the support of a supervisor. I have two amazing supervisors at Charles Sturt University: Dr Barney Dalgarno and Lyn Hay. As I’m a distance student, we mostly meet by Skype, with a couple of in-person meetings a year, either in Wagga or Melbourne. It is difficult to describe the absolute luxury and self-appreciation of meeting with them regularly. For an hour, they give their complete undivided and highly skilled attention to me, my work, my progress, my thoughts and reflections. Their advice and guidance is always positive, careful, and respectful of me and each other. When deadlines approach (and my way of working makes it always a last minute rush) they will support me every minute of the way from wherever they are in the world, carefully editing, suggesting, talking me through the process. Just this past week, they put me on a data analysis ‘bootcamp’ as I was falling behind schedule on my data analysis reading work. That meant that they gave up two hours every day over four days to talk to me in the morning about my goals for the day and any work done over night, and then in the afternoon about what I had achieved in that time. As a result, I’ve done enough reading and marking up to established a good basic set of codes to work with, which I will soon use with the data analysis software called NVIVO. All this is new learning for me – and I love it.We have looked at the design of the research: its methodology and the roles of each of the participants and groups. With Barney’s and Lyn’s help, my proposal for the PhD research was accepted, and ethics approval given.
- I would like to take you through some of the smaller detail of last year when we actually carried out the action research project, called ILARC: Informed Learning Action Research - Carey. Firstly: getting school approval. At Carey Baptist Grammar School there is a wonderful professional development culture which arises from inspired curriculum leaders. Each person is expected to do 30 hours of approved external or in-house professional development. For this, each gets a salary bonus at the end of the year. There is very little mandated professional development, rather people set their professional learning goals for the year, and select the courses or seminars accordingly. A very active program of in-house professional development is offered by staff members on Monday afternoons. Usually one-off, they follow the curriculum goals of the school. There was already a number of professional learning teams who were working on projects over a period of time, and school leaders were investigating the value of action learning for teachers. So my proposal fitted well into the existing culture, and was approved.
- Within this positive professional development culture it isn’t difficult to gain participation for projects. In this one, I wanted three groups of about eight people: Year 8, Year 10 and Years 11 and 12 International Bachalaureate. They had to commit to working on the project for the whole year, requiring time to have two interviews of about 40 minutes each, one at the start and the other at the end. Participate in five meetings, each requiring pre-reading of about 10 to 15 pages of chapters 1 – 5 of Informed Learning by Christine Bruce Invitations were sent to each teacher in the selected year levels, along with publicity at staff meetings and bulletins.25 teachers took up the invitation, and over the year, only two withdrew.
- InterviewsStructured questions ensured a built-in basis for data analysis, and points of comparison between start and end interviewsStart Interview – initial findings Participants passionate about teaching, and wanted:personal and professional growthto provide better learning experiences with more opportunity for thinking and reflectionto learn how to deal with digital learning environment and new information formatsto find out about action researchto spend time talking with colleagues.
- MeetingsTime was pressured, and it was difficult for everyone to reflect on the readings as well as report actions takenConversation: Each case group read the same Informed Learning material and responded to the same chapter questions – but over time these became less structured to enable a free flow of conversation around common pointsCatering was important: red and white wine, fruit juice, fresh brewed coffee and tea, cheese and fruit platters, delicious cakesQuiet, comfortable space for meetings – one of the library ‘reading rooms’.
- End Interviews – initial findings:Participants overwhelming enjoyed the year’s project, and:Gained the personal and professional growth they soughtSaw how they could incorporate different ways of using information in their discipline practice and curriculum designTried tools for communication and collaboration in the learning management systemFound particular value in action researchReally enjoyed the collegiality of other teachers, as well as learning from other discipline practices
- Long term impact of ILARCIn the school:In 2011, all staff members must be involved in an Action Learning Team (ALT’s)ALT’s investigate an aspect of the school’s goals Members of ILARC project played a key role in the fast establishment of groups across curriculum areas of English, LOTE, Humanities, Science, Maths, LibraryAction research is seen as a very successful professional development model, and will be continued in 2012, with likelihood of more focused topic areas
- Long term impact of ILARCFor the teacher librarianIn 2011, all library staff members are involved in Action Learning Team (ALT’s)Library ALT’s use action research to implement a new integrated library system, investigate eBooks, develop front-line reference response skills, expand the Wide Reading ProgramAs an information professional in the school, my ‘way of being’ is to ask: what learning is taking place as this information is used and created, in this way, for this purpose? It brings a framework of visible thinking to my operations within the library, with teachers and eLearning leaders, and for future developments of iCentre concepts and eBooks and eResources.
- Long term impact of ILARCFor the teacher librarianAs an information professional in the school, my ‘way of being’ is to ask: what learning is taking place as this information is used and created, in this way, for this purpose?
- Long term impact of ILARCFor the teacher librarianInformed Learning brings a framework of visible thinking to my operations within the library, with teachers and eLearning leaders, and for future developments of iCentre concepts and eBooks and eResources.