The Lighthouse Diary Entry #43: Research Month at the Academy (1 of 2)

September begins with a research session for our grade 12 and grade 10 students. 

The Personal Project, a requirement for the 10s as they complete the final year in the MYP, kickstarted during the Founday Day for which the library was  given a half day orientation with the MYP students. We value academic research as well as the development of skills building. The library plays an important role in this journey.

Taking off from the result of the research assessment they had during Foundation Day, I chose the skill of sourcing and locating information sources as topics for discussion and an exercise in identifying a source for a specific task.

The Pioneer, our research hub, was very useful for this session.

Before diving into the different sources of information and ways of locating inofrmation within sources, I had a read aloud/role play activity. Reading a converstaion between Elvis and Ms. Marmalade, we had a good review on the nature of research. There were intesresting questions that came up, one is the appropriate use of sources and choosing which is the better one for a specific inquiry. It all depends on the kind of information problem to be solved, really. Then, I realized that critical thinking on information process is a base knowledge that students need.

Checking the worksheets that students submitted to me right after the session, I found out that their knowledge of primary and secondary sources is in palce. How to use them is another matter.

Yes. The work is cut our for us.

MIL for Grade 10: The Appendix as Referencing System

The Personal Project Coordinator and I sat down this week to discuss and plan a session on creating the appendix. This is for our grade 10s who are in the process of accomplishing their written report on their Personal Project. For this task, the 10s are expected to provide evidences of their process, data and information gathered from their research, and the insights and knowledge they have taken from the entire PP experience. Since the written report is only 1,500 words long, an appendix is needed  for big information and lengthy notes on the sources' bibliographic data that support and supplement it.

For this session, I am approaching the teaching of the appendix as a part of a book. This part-whole approach drives the concept that information and knowledge are created and communicated in a responsible and honest manner. The different parts of a book are evidences of this communication process and responsible creation of information. Specifically, the appendix is a part of a book that communicates created information and knowledge, sources used for its creation and the process the writer went through to produce them.

Below is my library  lesson plan for this session.

PP Session for Grade 10
The Appendix as Referencing System

Goal: Students understand that the book has different parts and these are not isolated entities;
Objectives: 
- Understand the appendix's form and function;
- Create an appendix for the written report of the PP;
- Gain confidence in making a referencing system such as the appendix.

Learning Experience

OBSERVE: Write the bibliographic data of the book. Use MLA or APA format.

 ANALYZE: Answer the following questions

a.       What is the overall theme or subject of the book?

b.      What topics and information are discussed in the book?

c.       Who would benefit from the topics and information of the book?

d.      Describe the book’s Appendix

e.       Explain the purpose and the relevance of the book’s Appendix to the reader

           WONDER: How did the writer create or make the Appendix?

Show samples of Appendixes: Tales from the 7,000 Isles (De Las Casas and Gagatiga, 2011) and PP Coordinator's Thesis
Assignment: Review and reflect on the draft of the written report.
PP Session 2: Creating the Appendix

Related links on the blog about PARTS OF A BOOK

Poem: Parts of a Book
MIL Lesson for Grade 2: Parts of a Book
Parts of a Book: the Appendix

MIL Lesson: OPVL (1 of 2)

OPVL is a techniques used for the evaluation of sources in the humanities. It is an acronym that stands for Origin, Purpose, Value and Limitations. The IB has published guides on its use and many teachers and librarians have created handouts and worksheets.

Last year, our Personal Project Coordinator requested for a session on the use of resources and its evaluation. Since our grade 10s already know the use of OPVL, I thought of using Visible Thinking to assist them in reflecting through their selected sources. Below is the presentation slides I used in my session with them.

Teacher and School Librarian Collaboration: Search Strategies for Grade 9 (1 of 2)

Print sources, primary and secondary

Early in April, our grade 9 English teacher requested for a library session on search strategies and information sources. The timing couldn't have been any better since this batch of grade 9 students are preparing for the Personal Project that will start early in the first term of academic year 2017-2018.

The Personal Project is an interest based project that students in 10th grade are expected to finish to cap off their learning in the Middle Years Program. The project may take the form of a website about ADHD or cancer awareness, a livelihood program of Macrame products, a self designed fitness program, a compilation of songs composed and sung, a prototype of a drip system for a hydroponic garden, a self-help book on surviving high school life, a notebook made from recycled paper to be sold as fund raiser for a favorite charity. The list is endless and the only limitation is the student's creativity and imagination. Parameters are set, of course, and this is where the IB guides come in.

That is another story. Back to the library lesson.

Since the context has been laid down, I intended to extend the lesson beyond the Personal Project by introducing the basics, at the same time, open windows of possibilities.

What students get from the library session must be something they can use in other tasks and can be translated into skills that will further help them fashion sophisticated ways and processes of thinking. For example, learning about Boolean search strategies can lead to critical and creative thinking especially in the use of words. From simple key words, students can scale up to use synonyms for their search terms, and eventually develop a built-in, internal thesaurus. As a librarian, I may be giving them a session on searching online databases and search engines, but with constant use -- and consistency -- students, in time, can grow a vocabulary that they can use according to a subject matter; a vocabulary they can use to search for answers and derive meaning from a variety of media and technology.

Search Tips ala-Google

A basic knowledge of the most popular search engine in town, Google, can lead to an exploration of other search engines that present data in numbers, graphics and semantic web. Search engines crawl for websites, images, videos, PDFs, slides and databases based on key words used. Knowing different search engines and what information it can give back is another strategy that can grow into skills in selection and location on the appropriate use of technology.

What would make this possible is the regular team teaching effort and initiative between teacher and the school librarian. If this is impossible, at least, an intervention of the school librarian to remind teachers on the use of strategies in searching for information online or in print environments need to happen. The intervention can be done through announcements, meetings, in-service training, information campaigns in physical and virtual spaces of the library that are accessible to the members of the learning community. That is why, a matrix or a manual of research skills is essential. More on this in another post.

So where did I begin?

I asked for a copy of the English teacher's unit plan. And boy, did I learn lots along the way as well!~

Librarian as Research Supervisor: On the Personal Project

At the start of the school year in August, I took on the challenging task of a research supervisor.

I coordinate the writing of the Extended Essay of our grade 12s and supervise a grade 10 student on his Personal Project.

My supervisee showing his ebook to a guest at the WIP fair.

Yesterday, my grade 10 supervisee participated in the Work In Progress (WIP) Fair of the Personal Project. Like his batch mates, he was well prepared for it. He had his booth set-up a few days before the fair. His posters and iPad were ready. I watched and listened to him speak to guests and school mates as he explained the goals of his project, the status of his project, the difficulties he experienced and how he was able to overcome them. He looked happy, proud and fulfilled. I expect to see him next week, after the Papal Visit, for a conversation on his experience at the fair.

This is what I enjoy doing the most with my supervisee. The conversations. Listening to him allows me to understand what his thought process is, how he works his way through the research process and how he discovers new insights. I am lucky to have a conscientious supervisee. He adheres to the schedule and diligently works on task assigned to him on a regular basis. My role has really been a guide and cheer leader for him as he journey on the path of the Personal Project.

I think what helped him accomplish a good presentation at the fair, apart from his diligence and discipline, are the following:

a. He picked a topic and project he is genuinely interested in.
b. He has developed a certain level of skill in crafting questions.
c. He listens.
d. He follows through.
e. He reads.

I check his online journal once a month and I am amazed at how honest his insights and reflections are. He still needs to work on his information literacy skills as well as his thinking skills (reasoning, logic, supporting a claim). This is the point of the whole exercise. This is the reason why, high school students need a research supervisor.

And yet, this experience with my grade 10 student has allowed me to grow and learn too. For one, I am taking a great interest on the iBook authoring app. Being a research supervisor makes me revisit old and new ways of servicing young people in the context of library and information science. I am also compelled to write more. This April, I will present a paper in another international conference. Reading and writing skills need to be modeled. If I want my students to respect me as a research supervisor and EE Coordinator, they must see me "walk my talk" I sit back and further reflect on the these things. Yes, competence and cognition are essential to complete a research paper or project. But there is a lot of character building going on in the process.