The Lighthouse Diary #49: TRAILS 2023

At the beginning of the academic year, when we meet students for Foundation Days, they undergo an assessment of research and information literacy skills. The BA Library formally started this practice in the academic year 2018-2019. Six years on and we continue to ask questions. 

From these questions, we find and seek for answers that inform us of improving our library practice. 

It's about time to take TRAILS onto the next level - research!

 

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When I realized that what Chat GPT can do, I can do better.

 I asked for references and sources from AI Smith.

“As an AI language model, I do not have access to specific databases or sources since I am designed to provide general information based on my training data. However, some sources that I can suggest for conducting research on the topic of gender fluidity in the songs and music videos of BTS are:

- Academic databases such as JSTOR, ProQuest, and Google Scholar

- Research publications and journals in fields such as Gender Studies, Musicology, and Cultural Studies

- News and media outlets that cover K-pop and BTS, such as Billboard, Rolling Stone, and Koreaboo

- BTS fan communities and forums, such as Reddit's r/Bangtan and BTS-related Twitter hashtags and accounts.

These sources can provide valuable information and insights into the topic of gender fluidity in BTS's music and performances, as well as the broader cultural and social contexts surrounding it. However, it is important to critically evaluate and verify any information found through these sources to ensure their credibility and reliability.

Hmm… what Chat GPT can do, I can do better.

Sadly, not every student and teacher know this. Librarians need to intensify library user education programming, Research Skills Instruction, Reference Services, Reading Guidance and Bibliotherapy.

Whoever said we don't need libraries and librarians in the age of AI?

The Lighthouse Diary #45: Teaching and Learning Academic Writing

Classes were delivered online last week due to the mass transport strike. We reverted to synchronous and asynchronous sessions almost as quickly and with better ease. The pandemic has taught us agility and flexibility too.

I had an engaging session with our grade 11s during our research skills session. Giving you a glimpse of how it looked like on Jamboard. Now that we are back on campus, I am meeting students individually and in small group sessions to continue the discussion on academic writing.

From their responses, topics and skills on source selection, evaluation and documentation will be taken up as well as the unpacking of an academic essay that makes use of varied sources. This is evidence of mutli-voiced writing. Also, prerequisite skills to writing academically would be source knowledge and the ways on using them. How strong are the foundation skills in referencing and research taught in the middle grades? This learning experience will reveal the extent and expanse of research skills instruction from grade 4 to grade 10.

As guide, I sent our grade 11s questions for them to think through as they prepare for the crafting of a research question and statement of inquiry.

Guide questions:

1. How would one know that sources are credible and that, the selection of sources meet the needed information or that, it answers an inquiry? It is therefore important to review the skills and knowledge on sources and how sources are used across different subjects.

2. Read the academic essay (courtesy of our English Teacher and Learning Support Teacher). Take note that context is first established, followed by a thesis statement and an identification of sources cited and attributed in-text. Also, pay attention to the tone of the writer. Notice the writer's voice.

- When is it merging with the source authors' voices?

- When does it rise above them that it asserts its own opinion as informed by a well done research?

- What words, sentences and paragraph signal that it is the writer's voice and it is the writer merging with the source authors' voices?

There will be a part 2, and 3 and onwards. This is fun, for me. The challenge is how to make it fun for a 16-17 year old high school student?

Research Skills Instruction: Research and Sourcing in the Writing Process

Research_BALibrary by ZarahG

Academic Writing

 What I whipped up for our Grade 11 students embarking this season unto their first academic writing journey.

Teacher and Librarian Collaboration: How to Find Sources (Research Skills Instruction Grade 9)

I spent Valentine's Day teaching our grade 9 students the basics of Finding Sources. Thanks to our English teacher who recognizes the role of the school librarian in enriching and expanding student's understanding on the use of sources. As the topic falls under academic reading and writing, I asked for the texts that students were assigned to read. 

The English teacher sent me two articles selected from research journals. So, last weekend, I rolled up my sleeves and went to work. My goal was to lay the foundation of location and access. I planned a review of the different sources of information and the parts of a book - the printed format. Documenting the bibliographic data of a book source was the hands-on activity of choice.

I was amazed and inspired, and yes, a little bit insecure to approach the teaching of sources in this level of difficulty and sophisticated thinking. I am still in awe working alongside skilled and competent teachers.

The coolest thing about this teaching collab was the return of the students to the library!

The English teacher engaged students in the conversion of questions and statements of inquiry into language that can be used in searching sources in print and online formats. As the school’s teacher librarian, I facilitated a session where students apply skills and strategies in finding, locating and accessing information from curated collections of sources and followed through. Further assisting students in their journey of inquiry.

Waiting for the day when content or subject area teachers strike up collaborations with us, literacy skills teachers.

Planning for a Research Skills Instruction: How to Find Sources

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Research Task #1: Using Encyclopedias

 

Research Skills Instruction: Prewriting and the Use of Reference Sources aka Learning About Anything Creatively and Strategically

 

Research_BALibrary by ZarahG

The Lighthouse Diary Entry #44: Research Month at the Academy (2 of 2)

Taking note of three wonderful things that happened last September regarding research skills instruction.

1. My student whom I supervise in writing the Extended Essay took the long way round in her research journey. We kicked off the term unsure of a topic to explore and her research question needed to be revised. In this case, I made her review her notes and the research plan she drew up last months ago. It was like leading a horse to water. With patience, she came back with an annotated bibliography that reflects her understanding of the topic of investigation and the required analysis specific to the subject. 

A conversation with her on the depth and breadth of the topic and the demand of the research led me to recommend that she draw map of her understanding of her topic and the relationship of ideas and concepts surrounding it. More confident now, she showed me the mind map. From there, I asked her which ideas, concepts and subconcepts speak to her in a very personal way. Then she made a choice.

After two weeks, she was able to refine her research question, write a thesis statement and draft a working outline. In our last consultation, I validated her accomplished work and reminded her of the Research Design Cycle, the documentation of her process and the 

Research is always personal. The processes and the systems that assist students in independent research must be in place as well as a mentoring culture that puts into consideration the learners' context, interest and learning styles.

2. Students need guides, frameworks and structures to follow in research. It is a process that requires disciplined thinking. My dear Griffin. An academic paper does not write itself. 

3. The research session I had with our grade 11s gave us a good glimpse of their working knowledge on research. Here are selected insights and reflections from the batch. These are compiled into a booklet which will be distributed to the MYP students.

BALIB_Research101_sept22_v2 by ZarahG

 

We are closing out the first term heading on to a week long term break. These are markers in our research journey this academic year. The second term is the shortest but, it is also the toughest. Hang on Griffins!

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 Skills Instruction: Is Wikipedia Trash or Treasure?

 Are you still wary of Wikipedia as a credible reference or source? Well, it is online and very much accessible so, we might as well understand it a little bit more. 

Here is how I read, teach and instruct my student in using Wikipedia as a reference and source for a research topic.

1. Introduce the idea of knowlege sharing in in-person learning and online learning. Experts, scholars and academicians, as well as the regular person have knowledge to share and communicate. Forums, Online Groups, Tweeter Moots and Spaces are examples. Long before these online communities came about, there was Wikipedia, a space in the digital world where anyone can share his/her knowledge about a topic. It is open and open source. It is an example of a digital learning commons.

A hyperlink to an article in The New York Times

2. Wikipedia is a hyperdocument. The links function as leads or, in itself references to more sources of information. It offers opportunities to check the topic or content as valuable or limited depending on the reader or user's purpose. Do take note that the links can lead the reader or the researcher astray. It can be a distraction. So, before using Wikipedia or any online and electronic reosurce that has hyperlinks, the goal and objectives of a research task is one's anchor or beacon of light.

This article from The New York Times is preserved in a digital archive.

3. It is advisable to read laterally on Wikipedia. This means, the reading of websites and online sources from Wikipedia is important to assess the credibility and richness of its contents. Lateral Reading is another topic and skill worthy of learning. More on lateral reading in future posts. 

4. Take note of the footnotes and bibliography. It will lead you to the basic and original references used by the authors and contributors of the topic or subject. From here, you can build your own reference and source list.

Even the definitions of important words are "clickable".

There are many ways to read online articles, sources and documents. Wikipedia is only one of many. There are, however, threads common to these online texts - images and graphics, included, that has to be evaluated and understood before taking a deep dive into the content that it offers.

PPT: Research Colloquium Series 1: Inquiry. Selection & Documentation of Sources. Engagement with Data & Information

 

Back to School! Back to CANVA!

 

Summer Library Program: Pedagogical Support for Research

The past couple of days was spent on research skills instruction and one-on-one consultations with our high school juniors. In a few days, we will end the Academic Year 2020-2021 but before things close, I sent out to our juniors (who are incoming seniors) a letter informing them of the library's summer program.

Dear Juniors,

As you journey further on in the EE and SP,  we, in the BA Library, will continue to support you. As your reading and research companions, we are opening library services during the summer. 

We can assist you on the following:

1. Borrowing of print books and resources through book drop and pickup delivery. Send Flynn an email for your book requests. His email address is library@beaconacademy.ph.

2. 30-40 min Zoom meeting with Ms. Zarah. We can talk and learn about the skills involved in research using your EE/SP topics as context and content. The skills to cover are:

-  selecting and evaluating sources and references - how to funnel topics, sub-topics vis-a-vis a variety of sources of information

-  discussions on citations and referencing following the MLA, APA standards

-  connecting the relevance of an annotated bibliography and gathered data when writing your first draft of the EE/SP

- others: using writing models and formatting, time management and self care

Schedule: Once a week, every Wednesday 9-11.30 AM beginning on June 16, 2021 - July 7, 2021

June 16 - Selecting and Evaluating Sources
June 23 - Citations and Referencing
June 30 - The Annotated Bibliography and Writing the First Draft
July 7 - Writing Models, time management and self care

This is the Zoom Link *****

Attached is a PPT presentation of the library's database and online subscriptions and a Quick Users Guide to the BA Library. 


Have a safe and enjoyable summer, Aristea!
 
Ms. Zarah :-)

The Lighthouse Diary Entry #28: The Research Skill Tree

This week at the Academy, we learned about the Skill Tree. A Skill Tree is a series of skills that programmers use to create games. Needless to say, we are learning how to incorporate gamification in teaching and instruction. Here is what I made for the library's instructional program for research skills.

There are two sets of Skill Trees. The first one is for the student who wants to learn about research and acquire skills in general. The second tree is made for the Grade 11 who is about to begin the Extended Essay. I used Joseph Campbell's Heroic Journey as basis for the two Skill Trees.

Skill Tree 1 begins with knowing the results of research skills assessment that students take at the beginning of the academic year. Through The Pioneer, I help them identify their goal and objectives using the assessment results. From there, students are offered to choose any of the three Cornerstones of Research Skills. Each cornerstone contains activities on research skills building. Since I am adapting principles in gamification, I plan to include tokens and badges, earning talismans and knowing different characters that will help them achieve a heart. Blue for Strength. Green for Courage. Gray for Hope.

Skill Tree 2 begins with a conversation at The Pioneer, where students will read about research. They will schedule a meeting with me. We will talk about topics that the student are interested in exploring. Using the KWL chart or the Inquiry Chart, students begin their research. In this phase of the research, students find out what gaps exist in their topics or subjects of inquiry recording and documenting their findings along the way. Teachers and the Teacher Librarian come in to lend clarity or direction to their inquiry through scheduled meetings. At the end, the Inquiry Chart has been accomplished and the student can make a decision or discover of the subject/topic of research is worth pursuing.

In essence, the Skill Tree helps me in improving the library's instructional program particularly on research skills. My next task is to put together the materials and content. Then, I will revise The Pioneer since it is the platform for the Skill Trees. 

Research and Information Literacy eModules

During the Foundation Days in the Academy, I was tasked to provide and give a session to introduce the library to new students and to touch base with returning students. In the past, an assessment is always in the roster of activities. Either I make use of a question and answer survey type of tool or facilitate a skills session on Information Literacy, it is my goal to know and understand the skills level of students. 

This year, I adopted TRAILS as assessment tool. Here is a glimpse of the introduction to the report I am writing for submission to the Academic Team. 

Research plays an important role in the completion of the DP Core namely, the Extended Essay (EE), the Theory of Knowledge (TOK) Essay and the Creativity Action and Service (CAS). It is in Year 1 of the DP where Internal Assessments (IA) in the subject areas are introduced to students and culminates in Year 2 into a full well written piece of investigation or paper of inquiry. This means, a great amount of creative and critical thinking is expected of the DP student. The Beacon Academy (BA) Library, being an academic department that supports research and the development of creative and critical thinking skills of Griffins, conducted an assessment to gauge DP students’ research skills.  

Using TRAILS, Tools for Real Time Assessment of Information Literacy Skills by the Kent State University(KSU), the BA Library adapted and adopted TRAILS into its context to identify and determine strong areas and areas for improvement of DP students’ research and information literacy skills. TRAILS have six areas or skills for assessment which are: (1) narrowing and broadening topics of research,  (2) selecting and locating appropriate sources of information, (3) evaluating sources, (4) identifying and following research steps, methods and processes, and (5) documentation, referencing and citing of sources.   

The results of this assessment can provide the Teacher Librarian valuable information in crafting Reference and Research services that meet the needs of the DP students and create Information Literacy modules as well as a research skills instruction program that builds and enhances skills for development. It may validate observations and insights on the teaching and learning processes of research in the Academy which may lead to revisions and changes in the way this is delivered in formal and non-formal means of instruction. It is recommended that teachers and the Teacher Librarian work together in the implementation of the programs as guided by criteria and standards set by the IB and the Department of Education.

What follows next are specific results of the assessment. In actual practice, two students have reserved library consultations with me this week to walk them through the results of their TRAILS. I am excited to work with them because students always bring new insights and learning experiences. I learn from them and they make my practice of school librarianship authentic.

Parts of A Book: the Appendix

What is an Appendix?

The appendix is a part of the book that provides the reader additional and supplementary information about topics discussed in its contents. Most often, it is the non-fiction books that have an appendix.Graphs, tables, charts, maps, survey questions, diagrams and photos are information found in the appendix.This information helps the reader make connections and develop a deeper understanding of the topics in the book.

In a research paper or academic report, the appendix also functions as a referencing system. The reader of the paper can turn to the appendix to validate claims and discussions presented by the writer. Data and information found in the appendix reflects the careful research and investigation that the writer went through. It is evidence of the writer’s commitment, courtesy and integrity towards scholarly writing.

The format of the appendix and the entries of data and information may vary depending on the citation style that the writer, publisher or academic institution is using. Nonetheless, below is an example of a diagram in the appendix and as mentioned in the text . Most appendices follow this convention.

From the body of the text:

3.1 Models of Blended Learning

There are many models of Blended Learning. Practitioners of this learning approach have experimented on varied technology and face to face interaction using different teaching techniques and strategies over the years. The full diagram on the models of Blended Learning is in Appendix C. This chapter will focus on three models of Blended Learning namely, Project Base, Virtual Learning Platforms and Peer to Peer Instruction.

From the Appendix:

Appendix C: Models of Blended Learning

When to include an appendix in your book or research paper?

• When the information identified inspire exploration and further reading; 
• When the information backs up the claim or thesis statement;
• When the information supplements the reader’s understanding of concepts and topics;
• When the information’s bibliographic data does not fit the format of a footnote.

Recommended sources for citing, making and writing an Appendix

The Appendix and How to Cite it

Research Guide: The Why and How of an Appendix

When is an appendix necessary?

Definition of Appendix in a Book or Written Report

How to write and appendix

Prepared by:

Zarah Gagatiga,

Teacher Librarian 

The Beacon Academy

PPT: From Questions to Answers