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Those born after 1993, dubbed the ‘Google Generation,’ are challenging the norms of information access. A new study asks the question ‘Do members of the Google Generation possess strong research evaluation skills given their whole-life experience with the Internet?’ Apparently not, based on this new study* reported in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
The extensive report is packed with many interesting findings, including:
- The speed of searches indicates power browsing and poor information evaluation skills.
- Even with high computer literacy, effective search strategies are not employed (weak “mental mapping” abilities and poor information query structuring).
- Progressive libraries are ‘virtualizing’ and are delivering high quality content 24/7 through massively accepted social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.
Since the Google Generation “prefers interactive systems and is turning away from being passive consumers of information,” it’s critical that they are given the tools and training to successfully navigate the web and to be discerning recipients of information. Additionally, this learning must be started at the pre-college level or it’s too late; habits are already ingrained at that point.
*Study was commissioned by the Joint Information Systems Committee, a British higher-education research institute, and the British Library.
24/7 - that’s the technology access that ClassLink provides
With ClassLink LaunchPad, your district’s centralized servers can deliver 24/7 access to the technology tools to help students and teachers access files on any computer, anywhere. Concerned how to best direct your students and teachers to high quality web resources, sometimes paid for by the school? Join the over 300,000 students and teachers using ClassLink LaunchPad to deliver a reliable portal of work folders, district software, direct links to high quality online resources and web subscriptions.
Schools using ClassLink LaunchPad improve the information literacy of their students (and teachers!) by making it easy to access high quality online resources and web subscriptions. Click here to see a video
Want to see the full report cited above or learn more about ClassLink LaunchPad? Click here.
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