Okay. I'm also trying to get my head round my assignment. My thoughts are leaning towards what Alex described as a more practical topic. I'm thinking about trying to evaluate how we develop students' library-based research skills, specifically through the project component of the presessional course at CELE. On this course, the students have to find sources through the university online catalogue (UNLOC), the elibrary gateway, or trawling through physical libraries here on campus, to write a 3,000 word project on a topic related to their future major.
It's ironic that I'm sitting here in the Hallward library frustrated at my inability to find relevant articles to read about study skills, critical thinking and student autonomy, using the technology that this coming week I shall be asking my students to do. "Those who can, do; those who can't, teach!" Not sure who said that, but I'm feeling it to be true for me at the moment!
Having taught the project component on the 5-week course in the summer, I've been thinking about what we ask the students to do and how successful or otherwise they are at using the technology to access sources. To get me started I have started asking teachers who have taught this component a few questions about what we do, whether we provide enough support to develop the necessary skills that lead to autonomy, and if not, what we could do to improve this. I think I'm gradually narrowing down to consider a)accessing materials through the portal; b)deciding if the materials are useful/relevant/appropriate; c)storing for retrieval. Then I think I need to evaluate the problems/constraints for both the students and CELE and perhaps come up with some recommendations.
Just writing this down now seems to be helping me to focus - as long as I'm focusing in the right direction! I'd be interested in any comments you may have to make.
Klaus, I've just read through your post and feel that I could be your guinea pig when it comes to the technological obstacles impeding teacher autonomy!!
Back to the search for sources.
6 comments:
Hi Anne,
if you really don't mind, I might indeed ask you (and perhaps a few other people) a few questions about obstacles related to technology and use the findings. Don't know for sure yet.
All I can offer in return is my take on the AE2 project component if that is any help. And of course literaure I come across that might match your topic.
Does that sound all right?
Hi Anne,
I found this article quite useful.
Argument quality and cultural difference.
Available at:
http://www.springerlink.com/index/P37U787G38424P31.pdf
Hi Klaus,
I don't mind at all. That will be fine.
I think I might have found something that could be of use to you. Here are the details:
Language Learning & Technology
http://llt.msu.edu/vol6num3/speceditors/
May 2002, Volume 6, Number 3
pp. 1-4
Hi Alex,
Thanks. I'll check it out.
Thanks Anne! that sure looks promising.
Hi Anne,
I'm trying to catch up on the blog having been away from it for a week.
I've only just (in my rather dinosaur fashion)caught onto the comments facility of the blog and have decided to use it as a way of responding to blogs posted a little while back and to try and catch up with individual strands of the online conversation when the main flow seems to have moved on a bit. I don't know if this will work! I'm also hoping it will also enable me to develop a bit more one-to-one contact with people on the course because I'm feeling quite out of touch (my own fault- think maybe I haven't done the groundwork earlier in the course in this area).
I think your idea for an eval uation of CELE's approach to the development of students' library-based research skills sounds like a v. practical project and really useful too.
Your comments regarding the irony of struggling with the very thing we expect our students to do technology-wise chimed resoundingly with me as one of the aspects of my work here at HAUC that I feel least comfortable about and most ill-equipped to help students with.
I'm interested to know how much the library does in the way of helping students in this area and whether you work in tandem with them or not?
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