This content reflects work done as part of the Indigenous Perspectives in School Librarianship (IPSL) grant funded by IMLS (RE-246303-OLS-20). Actual assignments may vary.

Module 3: Define and Brainstorm / Explore and Identify

In this module, you will read an article that presents an inquiry-based unit plan that features co-teaching in the elementary school. You’ll also read about advocacy, and you’ll start to think about how to incorporate diverse sources of knowledge into your library curriculum.

What do each of these things have in common? Your main job is to ensure student learning, but there’s no one right way to achieve that goal. No matter what approach you take, it will be necessary as a librarian to advocate for your learners and to demonstrate to your stakeholders and decision makers that learners are benefiting from library instruction.

You’ll do this through evidence-based practices such as the ones you are learning in this course, and by gathering and recording evidence of student growth. You’ll also do this through collaboration with other educators, with traditional knowledge bearers, with community stakeholders, as well as with learners themselves.

Module three is also the Define stage in Design Inquiry and the Explore stage in Guided Inquiry Design. You have already chosen a topic you wish to explore. Now you’ll write a research question.

For many, this is the hardest part of the inquiry process. How do you narrow down to something useful and relevant? How do you come up with an idea if you’re blocked? How do you help learners who may be uninterested in the curricular topic? How do you write a GOOD question? We will explore these ideas in this module and in future modules.

For now, observe yourself as you engage in the process. How does it feel to you? What range of experiences and emotions do you imagine your learners might encounter, and what could you do to guide them through the process so that they feel safe and supported to explore?

Module Objectives

  • Generate a research question, identify scholarly articles on a specific topic, and create an annotated bibliography.
  • Generate strategies for teaching the Define step of the inquiry process to learners in a culturally responsive manner.

Think

Inquiry Spotlight

This example lesson, Distinct Worldview, from Lessons of Our Land asks learners to explore the complexities that can arise between oral history and archeological world views. Consider how this lesson could be done collaboratively between the librarian and classroom teacher.

Create

Part I: Write a research question using the Question Formulation Technique

  1. Last week you selected a topic you would like to explore. Spend 3-5 minutes generating as many questions as you can about this topic.
  2. Do not stop to judge, discuss, or answer any of the questions. Do not stop to think about whether these are “good” questions; you will refine your list later. Just write down everything that comes to mind.
  3. Write down every question as it was stated.
  4. After you have generated your list, change any statements into questions.
  5. Then, change any closed-ended questions into open-ended questions, or remove them from the list.
  6. Choose one open-ended question you’d like to refine further into a research question.
  7. Adjust your question so that it is not too simple or complex, and not too narrow or too broad.
  8. You may change or refine your research question as you move through the inquiry process.

Part II: Create an annotated bibliography

  1. Put your research question at the top of your annotated bibliography.
  2. Locate at least three scholarly sources to help you answer your research question.
  3. Cite each source using APA format into a References page.
  4. Below each citation, write a brief paragraph that summarizes the source, explains how it helps answer your question, lists what new questions it provokes, and analyzes the strengths and weakness of the source.

Part III: Reflect on your learning

  1. Think about the learning tasks you completed in this assignment. Identify two learner competencies from the National School Library Standards that reflect the learning tasks you completed.
  2. Share each learning tasks and describe how, as a learner, you engaged in this standard.
  3. Think about how your learners might experience the inquiry process and this learning task. Would they be confused? Excited? Fearful? As a librarian, how would you teach these standards to your learners? What would you do to adapt or scaffold the experience to help learners master it at their grade level? Be sure to indicate which grade level you have in mind in your answer.

Example of an Annotated Bibliographic Citation

Research Question: How does the format of a book (digital versus print) affect reading engagement in young adults?

Rutherford, L., Singleton, A., Derr, L. A., & Merga, M. K. (2018). Do digital devices enhance teenagers’ recreational reading engagement? Issues for library policy from a recent study in two Australian states. Public Library Quarterly;37(3), 318–340. https://doi-org.proxybz.lib.montana.edu/10.1080/01616846.2018.1511214

This study reviewed teenager’s reading engagement on digital versus print devices in Australia. The results found that their preference for e-books was over estimated. However, teens did find some benefits to using e-books. With many students now limited to e-books due to the Covid-19 pandemic, how can school libraries capitalize on the resources they have and market these resources to their students?

Share

Post twice to the #define discussion board. You may respond to the initial thread and then to one classmate or respond twice to your classmates. Be sure to add something substantive to the discussion. Remember to include citations to the relevant literature to support your assertions. Address the following:

  • As a librarian, how can I ensure that curricula include the stories and experiences of diverse individuals (remember that diverse individuals includes more than just racial and ethic identity)?
  • How can I encourage my colleagues to do the same?

Grow

Visit the class Q&A discussion board. Post one or more questions you have about inquiry. Each question should be a new thread. Respond to at least one of the posted questions from your classmates with your insights, ideas, or suggestions.