Information Problem-Solving Model Why Do We Need One? As we begin the process of updating our school media curriculum, we need to look at how or students and teachers are able to find, process, and use the information they need in our information-rich society. According to the AASL’s Standards for the 21st Century Learner in Action, “All learners must be able to access high-quality information from diverse perspectives, make sense of it to draw their own conclusions or create knowledge, and share their knowledge with others.” The AASL further points out, “The school library media center severs as a laboratory of active learning where students may develop their skills, hone their attitudes, practiice their responsibilities independenty , and regulate their own learning.” In order to make this happen, we need a district-wide, comprehensive information problem-solving model.

Benefits of a information probleIm-solving model Creates a more information literate student body Allows our students to compete as our world economy requires workers to be information literate Increases student performance Students are able to use appropriate research skills independent of adult help Students are able to create more sophisticated end products *Information literacy is a linchpin in education as we move forward in this new century. The AASL points out one way to look at what information literacy might look like, “Leaners must be able to look at their own work to determine its quality, discover gaps, in their own thinking, ask questions to lead to further investigation, find areas that need revision or rethinking, recognize their new understanding, and determine when they need to ask for help.” This must be the purpose of the information problem-solving model we choose. *In their book Information Literacy: Essentiial Skills for the Information Age, Michael. Eisenberg, et al,point out, “The change from an economy based on labor andcpital to one based on infornation requires information literate workers who will know how to interpret information (p 64)” * Eisenberg, et. al. go on to say, “The increased emphasis on accountability for schools and the related importance of high-stakes testing to demonstrate learning makes information literacy skills paramont (p 68)” *Too often, students give up or even fail to try using appropriate information problem-solving skills because they do not know or do not remember the skills they are likely to have already learned. An information problem-solving model will help elivate this need to constntly reteach the necessary skills, allowing students to focus on their work reatehr then being frustrated because they can’t remembe what they learned last year or even during their last project. *When students are able to more easily and confidently access and understand the information available to them, they are more likely to use that information to create a more sophisticated end product.

Necessary Traits Allows all students to be information literate Be easy for both students and teachers to use and understand Be simple, yet sophisticated enough for all students at all grade levels and leaning abilities Acknowledge that the process of finding and using information is not a linear process. Require meta-cognition — students must understand how and why they make decisions throughout the process. Create an expectationthat students will be able to use information to complete an appropriate end product Be flexible enough to be used across disciplines Create a common language throughout the district Become familiar for students as they move from grade level to grade level Be a life-long model for finding and using information *All students at every level must be able to access and use information in the ever-changing world of information in the 21st-Century *Whild the SLMC and the SLMS ar indespensible in trainihg both students and staff in the use of a information problem-solving model, ultimately the model must be easy enough for all toeel comfortable and powereful enough for studetns and staff to feel enabled.using the model without the presence of the SLMS. *Younger ans at-risk students and their teachers must feel that the problem-solving model is accessible afor independent use. Older and gifted students and their teachers must feel that the problem-solving model will allow students to complete more complex projects which require a more mature and sophisticated understanding of finding and using information. •Problem solving is a circular, not linear, process. Students will find that finding and using information is not a “one time thing,” but rather a process that requires them to rethink and change their assumptions as their knowledge base increases. *The model we chose must require students to be constantly thinking about what they are doing, why they are doing it, and how it will affect their knowledge and final project. *Students at all levels must be able to not only find information, but also use it in a meaningful way. Whether students move into higher education settings or straight into the workforce, they will be expected to use the information they find to create a product such as a research pape, and essay question on a standarized test, a report, or even a memo *In today’s world, finding and using information is not solely the responsibility of ELA teachers. While most students will still mostlike ly use a n information potblem-solving model in ELA and social studies classes, students must be able to find and use information across the disciplines. *By choosing a single problem-solving model, teachers, students, and SLMS will have a common language when finding and using information. In addition, this common language will be helpful for professional development and for curriculum writing and updating throughout the district *By using a single model, students will not have to learn a new model and new language as they move from one grade level to the next. This is will aid in understanding as the work and expectations become more complex over the years of a student’s education *Students must be able to use this model in higher education, the workplace, and for personal use throughout their lifetimes  

FLIP ittm What is it? FLIP ittm is a process that uses a mnemonic to help students remember the steps necessary in researching and creating an end product. Developed in 1988 by Alice H. Yucht, a school library media specialist, and her 7th grade class Identifies the four steps in the research process Includes ‘Intelligent Thinking,” what Yucht identifies as “If I know… Then I should…” * We have chosen the FLIP it model because it is fleabile, academically sound, and has a required metacognition aspecet. *Created by Alice Yucht, a middle school SLMS and her 7th grade class to help students retain library skills from year to year. *Because students helped create the model, it is easy for students to understand and use. *Yucht states on her website that the term goes beyond the mnemonic and “reminds the kids that they will need to flip back and forth (evaluating, rethinking, revising) as they work through their information problem *If…Then.. Is requird at every step, resulting in metacognition, or thinking about thinking, throughout the process

FLIP ittm What does it look like? FOCUS SKILLS: Zooming in on the subject. LINKS / LOCATIONS/LOGISTICS SKILLS: Exploring Resources -- finding useful data. INPUT / IMPLEMENTATION SKILLS: Choosing, Recording, Using the information gathered. PAYOFF / PRESENTATION SKILLS: Creating & Demonstrating Knowledge -- putting it all together — all part of I ntelligent T hinking skills ! In her literature, Yucht spells out the four skills and what they look like. While thses are often difficult skills for students to learn, by breaking them up into concrete skills, Yucht helps students own the process as they work through it. One of the most important aspects of this model is that students have the “payoff” for each assignment. Learning and using research skills does little good if there is nothing to point to at the end and say, “I did this!” In the world of academics and the work place, any skill is useless if it cannot or does not result in an end product. Even as students work toward an end product, it is equally important that they keep in mind the “if…then” or “why” of each step along the way.  

FLIP ittm Example of graphic organazier On her website www.aliceinfo.org Yucht provides teachers with helpful information such as graphic organizers, sample lessons, support across the disciplines, and examples for different grade levels, she also has a book, FLIP IT!: An Information Skills Strategy for Student Researchers (Professional Growth Series) which goes into more detail and offers more in-depth teacher support for this model. As you can see from this example, this model requires students to have and use information literacy and metacognition skills for evey project. By using a graphic organizer, studnts can remember how to use the FLIP it model for everything from a first grade book report to an AP English essay.

Implemenation Plan Spring 2010 — District-wide professional development for School Library Media Specialists Spring 2010 — Building level professional development for teachers Fall 2010 — Implemet in all district elementary schools and select middle and high schools Winter and Spring 2011 — District-wide evaluation of model Fall 2011 — Implement district-wide •By using professional development time this spring, SLMS and classroom teachers will be familiar with the chosen model •SLMS can train teachers at the building level, thus ensuring that individual building and teacher concerns are met. •By using professional development this spring, the model will be ready for implementation at the beginning of the 2011-12 school year •Because we want students to grow up using this model, it makes sense to begin implementation in the district elementary schools. The selected model will also be used in selected middle and high school buildings or classes to judge effectiveness •By evaluating the model in the late winter and early spring of 2011, there will be time to address concerns and tweak the model to suit the unique needs of the district. •After this process of implementation and review, the model should be ready to “go live” throughout the district at the beginning of the 2011-12 school year.  

Works Cited American Association of School Librarians. Standards for the 21st-Centuury Learner in Action. Chicago: AASl, 2009. 13-16. Print. Eisenberg, Michael B., Carrie A. Lowe, and Kathleen L. Spitzer. Information Literacy: Essential Skills for the Information Age. 2nd ed. Westport: Libraries, 2004. 93. Print. Yucht, Alice H. "FLIP It." Alice in InfoLand. Alice H. Yucht, n.d. Web. 2 May 2010.