Re: teaching remedial library skills

[Betty Dawn Hamilton <bhamilt@TENET.EDU>]

On Sun, 15 Jan 1995, Christine Saukel wrote:

> I am a media specialist in a small(450) rural high school, with no aides or
> student help.  My principal has asked me to develop a plan to remediate the
> library skills of those students identified as deficient.  He suggested that
> Anyway, I am asking all of you if anyone else has had this same request and
> how you handled it. What's the best way to identify these students?  Is

Chris,

I have taught library skills for years and have tried all kinds of
research situations to see which works best.  The very best method is to
have students research THROUGH their classes about something they are
studying. When the group (INCLUDING the teacher) comes to the library to
research, I have the teacher point out those who need the most help, and
I work with those.  The others do well on their own with little
assistance.

Those who move a bit more slowly are told by their teacher
that they must come on their own time to finish or to keep up with the
others.  That means they *do* come at noon and any other time they may
have to spare, but they are working on a teacher's assignment -- not some
exercise that I develop for them.  (Of course, the teacher and I plan the
units the students are using as a group -- but the ones needing
remediation use the same ones.)

My experience shows that if students are finding information they *need* to
fulfill an assignment, they absorb the research skills more readily than
just having to find random answers to disconnected questions.

Good luck!

Betty
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