Literacy and Online Inquiry Reflection

This course has opened my eyes to a world of possibility with technology. I have never really forced myself to think about literacy and how it relates to the online world. The most striking revelation in my mind was the fact that I need to make sure that my students need to be taught how to effectively use the Internet and online resources. I have always believed that it would just "come naturally" and I would not need to directly teach those skills. I know that seems hard to believe, but there are so many other things that I am required to teach my students, this is one thing that has never come up. I believe a lot of people do not have a grasp on 21st century skills, therefore it is not important in their eyes.

Now that I know and understand that there are more skills to help students become more literate using the Internet, I will be able to implement those skills into my teaching. One thing that I plan on doing more instruction on is teaching the students how to validate a website. In fourth grade, they are doing research projects and using many different resources. Being able to distinguish which resources have good, valid information is an important skill. I will also be able to teach the students how to use other important resources online to help further their knowledge. For example, having a narrowed down, specific search topic will be useful for students in finding specific resources.

My personal goal is to get into our computer lab once a week so that I have an opportunity to teach these skills. As of right now, I have a scheduled time, but rarely visit the lab unless there is a writing project that is due. Now that I know there are other skills (besides word processing), I have more of a reason to make it to the lab weekly. Half the battle is implementing the resources that are available. Once I have figured out a plan, and stick to it, teaching these skills will come easy.