DTL Reflection- Search Strategies

Research can be overwhelming for students

    When I think about search strategies my students are using, I am reflecting on that I am not doing much research I have done with my students.  My students in my classroom are not good at evaluating information they find online.  We have not done a lot of informational text research, since I focus more on giving them support on decoding and comprehending text and math in the classroom.  I think if I were a general education classroom teacher, my students would spend some extra time in the classroom exploring the web and doing research.  Also, in the elementary grades students don't do as much research online as they do in middle school and high school since they are developing more skills they need to be successful in high school and middle school.  My students are lacking exposure to researching information online.

 
    When students start doing research online, I will have them use a citation maker.  I think that a citation maker website will make it very easy for students cite their resources.  Citing sources can be very difficult, especially for elementary students, but it is important for students to understand the purpose of citing and practice citing at a young age.  This will help student be more prepared to write research papers when they are in middle and high school.  They will be adequately exposed to what citing is, why we cite our sources, and how to do it.  Students with learning disabilities usually need extra practice to understand how to do things correctly, having them start citing their sources in 3rd and 4th grade using a citation maker will give them the practice they need.

This is kind of what my brain looks like when I web search.
Taken from https://www.flickr.com/photos/toprankblog/2757847443/

    Education databases are very important for my students to use when they are researching.  Kids, and adults, are relying on Google too much when they are doing research.  I think people are starting to forget that there are education databases that give you more concrete, accurate and credible information.  Students also have trouble with focusing.  I think Google can easily become a distraction for students because there is so much information and one link, links to another link, and before you know it...you forgot what you were looking up.  I know this because I have done it(many times).  :)  Education databases are less cluttered and focus on the topic better.  Students will be less likely to get distracted by the other information that comes up from a web search.