In 2015 and 2016, a group of researchers at Stanford University performed a study using over 7,000 middle school, high school, and college students, to understand whether or not students were “information literate”–that is, whether or not they understood how to interpret information they found on the web. In this activity, you will answer questions that were used in the study. Let’s see how you do! There are 5 questions (each preceded by images) and a 6th reflection question.

Note: If you cannot see the images, try a different web browser. (Those using Safari may have difficulty)

In the picture above, you’ll see a webpage, with three black arrows on the left. Answer these questions:

1. Is the “We Know You’ve Got a Story” banner an article or an advertisement? How do you know? Explain your logic.

2. Is the “Should California Stop Growing Almonds” block an article or an advertisement? How do you know? Explain your logic.

3. Is the “Real Reasons Women Don’t Go Into Tech” block an article or an advertisement? How do you know? Explain your logic.

4. Examine the picture above. Does this post provide strong evidence about the conditions near the Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant? Explain your reasoning.

5. Why might this tweet be a useful source for your research? Why might it not be useful? Explain your reasoning.

6. As you complete these tasks, what do you think they show about how easy it is to spot “good” and “bad” sources? Why might “good” sources be important, if we want to learn about what is happening in our society?

After you’ve posted your answers, read over your classmates’ answers and pick two posts to comment on. You might comment on how their answers confirm or contradict your answers, or you could comment on what you learned from this assignment and which of the tasks was easiest or hardest and why. Each peer response should be at least 100 words long.

Information Literacy Within and Beyond the Classroom (Assignment)

Throughout this semester we will look at how to find reliable, truthful sources, but also how to look at sources in a more rhetorically-savvy way. This assignment will give you an opportunity to reflect on what you already know how to do and give you a sense of what we want to work on moving forward.

Step 1:

Reflect on the Stanford Study on Information Literacy” assignment. How did you do? (View the correct answers and compare them to your answers.) You may not have perfect information literacy right now, that is okay.Hopefully this will improve greatly over the next several weeks.However, you should take this opportunity to assess your skills and learn from your mistakes.Take a look at the feedback that you got on the Stanford Study on Information Literacy, and then answer the following questions (minimum 150 words), written in paragraph form:

• Name at least one question you got wrong on the original assignment. If you got everything correct, name at least one thing you hadn’t considered or one thing that you learned from reading the answers. Be specific, make clear references to the answers and describe any questions you missed and/or weren’t sure about.
• How do you feel about your information literacy at this point? Are you surprised that you did as well as you did?Did you expect to do better?
• Do you feel that this experience will help you to increase your information literacy moving forward? Why or why not?
• What do you think this study says about how easy it is to spot “good” and “bad” sources? Why might “good” sources be important, if we want to learn about what is happening in our society?

Step 2:

Watch this video on Information Literacy (FIU’s Writing Program). (Links to an external site.) After watching, respond to the following questions. Your total response should be at least 250 words.

1. In the beginning of the video, there are 5 questions given for assessing whether you have information literacy as it pertains to researching effectively. What are the 5 questions? And which one do you think is most associated with the Stanford Study activity (Step 1 above)?
2. Based on the video, what does research have to do with creativity? Summarize–in your own words–what the connection is between information literacy and creativity, including why information literacy depends on understanding that connection.
3. Based on the video, how is research/information collaborative? Summarize–in your own words–what the connection is between information literacy and collaboration, including why information literacy depends on understanding that connection.
4. Pick one idea from the video that felt new or surprising to you, or that was presented in a way you hadn’t thought of before. Summarize the idea. Then explain what it changes about your thinking or about your understanding of research or of your understanding of information literacy.

Step 3: Reflect

Think about the two activities together and what they demonstrate about your information literacy. Which of the components in the video do you feel you need the most practice with? (Describe the component and why you don’t feel especially confident with this particular component.) Now that you have given some more thought to your own skills in this area, what advice would you offer to other students that might want to improve their information literacy? How do these activities affect how you think about what constitutes research in the 21st C/digital age?

When finished, you will upload your response as a Microsoft Word doc or docx file or PDF.

Rubric

Small Assignments/Activities for ENC1101 & ENC1102 (Updated) (1) (1)

Small Assignments/Activities for ENC1101 & ENC1102 (Updated) (1) (1)

Criteria	Ratings	Pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeAssignment submission is well-developed, thorough, and detailed.		6 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeAssignment submission responds to all parts of the assigned text(s) or prompt. If a word count is mentioned, the assignment meets minimum word requirements.		2 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeAssignment submission shows evidence of proofreading and editing.		2 pts
Total Points: 10