Re: ADM: How to get students to use books instead of Internet

[AliceInfo <AliceInfo@AOL.COM>]

Kay Goss asked:
<< How do you persuade students that often, especially for historical topics,
that a book is the BEST resource?  Do you limit the pages they can
printout--Do your teachers limit the electronic resources they can use--Do
you require that they search for books first?>>

I use a variant of Betty Dawn Hamilton's form:  students must document what
other sources they've used, and what kinds of search strategies they plan,
BEFORE they're allowed on my library's only internet access station.  In fact,
I use the same form for ANY kind of computer access to information:
show me where (print) you looked first, and why you think the 'computer' will
have what you need.
(note: I've got 15 computers -- networked only to 4 printers -- in the
library, and NO cd-rom tower, so all cd-roms must be individually mounted.  I
change cd-roms based on the current class's needs.)
Case in point:  last week an 8th grade class was doing research on genocides.
One young man kept insisting he had to use 'the computer'. . .  but his topic
was the Spanish Inquisition.  He kept moving from (current events/magazine
databases cd-roms) computer to computer with no success.  At least 4 times
during the period I pointed out excellent -- and available -- print resources
to him.  No go.    When the teacher told him that he was getting an F for the
period (this teacher grades research 'activity' as a test -- what a novel
concept), he was furious, and said we were being unfair. . .  even though the
other kid in the class doing the same topic had found plenty of information
(and refused to share)!

Alice H. Yucht
Heritage Middle School
Livingston NJ
Aliceinfo@aol.com

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