INFORMATION LITERACY

     Prior to the Mapping Information Activity, I conducted an online search by simply logging onto my computer and putting what I wanted in the search bar. I will be honest and say that in doing this exercise, I actually had to go and check to see just what search engine I was using because I didn’t know (it was Google). I know I’m going to sound really naïve, but I was not aware that you were able to use different search engines. I assumed that you were locked into whatever came with your computer or internet provider. Only in doing this exercise did I find out that I could actually go through different ones.  I found the information on search techniques to be very useful. I already knew about putting quote marks around something that you want searched in its exact form, but I learned that you could use country codes and file extensions to narrow your search.  

     After doing the Mapping activity, I think that my habits in searching the internet will change. In the future, I will probably consult more than one search engine when I am looking for reputable sources. I was already aware that certain file extensions were more reliable than others, but this exercise has taught me to pay particular attention to them. I will be using country codes and file extensions in my searches because I think that it will save so much time by not having to sift through so many irrelevant sites.  This knowledge will affect my teaching, and it will definitely affect my students. I think that alerting students about the different meanings behind the file extensions is really important. My focus is on becoming a middle school English teacher, and that is where intensive research and writing really begins for most students. I can see myself going so far as giving my future students a list of file extensions that I will accept, as well as a list of those that I will not.

     I think that my search of the Pacific Northwestern tree octopus was an eye opener, (Zapato). By checking into it on other search engines, I was able to quickly establish that it was an internet hoax. Further investigation into the links attached to it revealed that the purpose of the site, and the hoax, was to market related merchandise. The information contained in the November Learning article was of a far more serious nature. The article advocates the use of www.easywhois.com to verify just who exactly publishes a website. Without realizing that the author of an article on Martin Luther King was actually a white supremacist group, students would be taking in a lot of misinformation and assuming that it was fact. This exercise was very useful to me, both as a student and a future teacher. It emphasized the importance of verifying your sources and using only those that are found to be reputable. This is something that should be taught to children at a very young age. It is important for them to understand that they cannot believe everything they read on the internet. I believe that it would be useful for elementary school teachers to present the Mapping Information Activity to their students as soon as they are old enough to begin conducting internet research. 

(n.d.). Retrieved from http://novemberlearning.com/educational-resources-for-educators/ 

           information-literacy-resources/5-find-the-publisher-of-a-web-site/

Zapato, L. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/