Lesson 1: Database and Web Searches
A few main concepts covered:
Essential Question: How do you conduct database and web searches online, and what are some related concepts, tips and tricks?
Guiding Questions: How big are the internet/web? What is the research cycle? What types of assignments and resources are common for college-level? What are some ways to distinguish types of web pages?
Standards
Note: To address college readiness, several state and national standards have been selected, emphasizing related skills and concepts. However, while this lesson touches on several of these, not all of these will be assessed here.
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Association for College and Research Libraries (ACRL). Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework
Frame(s): Searching as Strategic Exploration Knowledge Practices: determine the initial scope of the task; utilize divergent (e.g., brainstorming) and convergent (e.g., selecting the best source) thinking when searching... Dispositions: understand that first attempts at searching do not always produce adequate results; realize that information sources vary greatly in content and format and have varying relevance and value, depending on the needs and nature of the search ... |
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American Association for School Librarians (AASL). National School Library Standards for Learners, School Librarians, and School Libraries (AASL Standards) https://standards.aasl.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/180206-AASL-framework-for-learners-2.pdf
Domain(s): Think, Create, Share, and Grow Shared Foundation(s): Inquire Think (1. Formulating questions about a personal interest or a curricular topic. 2. Recalling prior and background knowledge as context for new meaning.); Create (1. Using evidence to investigate questions. 2. Devising and implementing a plan to fill knowledge gaps.); Share (1. Interacting with content presented by others. 2. Providing constructive feedback. 3. Acting on feedback to improve); Grow (1. Continually seeking knowledge. 2. Engaging in sustained inquiry. 3. Enacting new understanding through real-world connections. 4. Using reflection to guide informed decisions). |
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International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). Standards for Students and Educators https://www.iste.org/standards/for-students
ISTE for Students: Knowledge Constructor Students: 3a. plan and employ effective research strategies to locate information and other resources for their intellectual or creative pursuits; 3c. evaluate the accuracy, perspective, credibility and relevance of information, media, data or other resources; 3d. Students build knowledge by actively exploring real-world issues and problems, developing ideas and theories and pursuing answers and solutions. |
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Texas School Library Standards Strand 1: Information Literacy. 1.1.2 Locate information • Evaluate information • Effectively use information such as state digital resources, open educational resources, and print resources Strand 2: Inquiry. 2.3.0 The school library program offers opportunities for learners to explore real world problems by interacting with relevant information in a variety of formats; 2.3.1 Inquiry projects are based on real world issues and problems; 2.3.3 Inquiry projects include the opportunity to: • Consider diverse points of view, • Use critical thinking skills, • Make informed judgments |
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Lesson Objectives/What am I learning? The information literate student…
Learning Outcomes/Why did I learn this? [Demonstration of Learning]
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Resources:
1) Please make sure you have access to TexShare to access the databases listed below.
El Paso Public Library (EPPL) website, get access: http://www.elpasolibrary.org/research/online-research
TexShare login: https://texshare.net/
2) El Paso Community College Library’s Helpful Internet Websites : [Selected by librarians]
Here: http://epcc.libguides.com/internet
Look in: Career and Employment tab.
3) Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science https://products.abc-clio.com/ODLIS/odlis_i.aspx#infoneed
Lesson Cycle
Part 1. Engagement: Warm-Up/Opening/The “hook”
Teaching Strategy/Instructional Procedure: Conversing
Learning Strategy/ Procedure: quick write
Instructions: Think about the last thing that you looked up online, which took a while to look up. What was it? Did you know where to look for information? Where did you look? How quickly did you find the information? How did you feel about it (were you confident, frustrated, anxious)? What kind of web places did you visit? Write a short paragraph/share out.
Part 2. Direct instruction: Presentation on the Research Cycle, publication process, source types, narrowing down/expanding a topic, and databases used for this course.
I do: I look for a resource in a database. Start introducing the concept of fact-checking sources.
We do: You look for a resource in a database. Practice how to get there.
Teaching Strategy/Instructional Procedure: Conversing
Learning Strategy/ Procedure: Concept Mapping
Directions: Think up a concept you would like to research. Let's practice by creating a hierarchical keyword list, charting one of these concepts: VEHICLES / DOG / FOOD.
Part 3. Guided Practice
Directions: You do- Browse in either the career or the issues database, and then look for a resource in the database, and share something about it: Is there an event that it is based on? If so, how long after the event was it written? What type of source is it? How do you feel about searching in the databases? (e.g., confident, somewhat confident, somewhat unsure, unsure)
Learning Strategy/ Procedure: Concept Mapping/ KWL chart (What I: Know, Want to Know, Learned).
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What I know about my topic |
What I don’t know about my topic |
What I want to know about my topic |
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Part 4. (Individual / Independent Practice):
a. Using Keywords.
Developing and using keywords is an effective way to search databases and the web, especially if you keep track of what words, phrases, and vocabulary work and don’t work for you.
Learning Strategy/ Procedure: Organizational Charts
Directions: Use one or more of these organizational tools to organize your search terms.
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Topic |
Synonyms/ Related Words |
Phrases/Vernacular language/“natural language” |
Academic words/phrases |
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Fear of public speaking |
Fear/phobia |
Afraid to talk in public |
psychometrics; Glossophobia; cognitive ability; speech anxiety |
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Topic |
Broad Terms/concepts |
Related Terms/concepts |
Narrower Terms/concepts |
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Fear of public speaking |
Fear of public speaking |
Shy in public/ performance anxiety |
Social anxiety/ selective mutism |
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Keyword Bank
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Concept Tree
Web 2.0 tool: https://bubbl.us/mindmap
(You can save as .jpg without signing up by pressing EXPORT)
EXAMPLE:
b. Creating a research question
Directions: Use the chart below as a guide to convert your keywords into a research question.
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Broad Topic |
Restricted Topic |
Narrowed topic |
Research Question |
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Example: Pollution |
Example: Acid rain |
Example: Acid rain in the United States |
Example: What can the United States do to prevent acid rain? |
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c. Database Search
Directions: Use the keywords from the above activity and fill out the task hierarchy checklist below. Select a database, Google, or Google Scholar to conduct simultaneous keyword searches.
Task Hierarchy Checklist
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Task Type |
Database: |
Google and/or Google Scholar? |
Competencies Required |
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Find articles/items related to your topic that was published in the last five years. |
How did you narrow your search? How many items did you find? |
How did you narrow your search? How many items did you find? |
Range & date filter function of resource is known. |
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Search for an article/item on your issue which is defined using two academic or subject-specific keywords. |
How many items did you find? Were you successful, or did you have to rethink your keywords? |
How many items did you find? Were you successful, or did you have to rethink your keywords? |
Understanding of keyword/phrase and Boolean operators functions. |
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Search for items which use natural language, or broader keywords. |
How many items did you find? Were you successful, or did you have to rethink your keywords? |
How many items did you find? Were you successful, or did you have to rethink your keywords? |
Development of complex search strategies. |
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Use quotation marks and search for this phrase:
“Implicit Association Test. The test measures racial prejudices that we cannot consciously control.” |
Can you use quotation search in a database? |
Did you find a corresponding article in Google? Who is the author? Who published it?
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Understanding the limits of phrase searches & full text vs controlled vocabulary searches. |
Part 5. Evaluation: Closing/Demonstration of Learning
Learning Strategy/ Procedure: Share out
Directions: Tell us about your research process. How did it go? Were you able to create keywords? Which worked for you? Which didn’t work for you? Were you able to create research questions?
Homework: Three common assignments we see at the Valle Verde Library are 1) career research papers, 2) “controversial issues” papers (or a position paper) and 3) Informative papers. Your homework is to choose from one of these options: a) Research a career, b) research a “controversial” topic, c) research a topic of interest. Start thinking about what you would like to do research on. What kind of information do you need, and what does it look like? Where can you find this information? Narrow down your research topic by the next session.
- by Adrian M. Spring, 2020
Credits:
"Lesson Plan Worksheet" borrowed (and adapted) from Colorado State University, at https://writing.colostate.edu/guides/teaching/esl/plansheet.cfm, and DIDS.org, Instructional Resources, at https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/46749
