Joyce Kasman Valenza

Abstract: What really happens when student researchers meet a Google results page? How do students determine the authority behind each result? News, blogs, journals, Wikipedia, websites, e-books--with the vast array of online content available, how do students differentiate between them? Better still, do they differentiate between them or are these format agnostic students stymied by container collapse? The Researching Students’ Information Choices (RSIC) project is answering these questions. The Association of College and Research Libraries’ (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education aims to guide educators in their work to develop today’s students into critical thinking denizens of the digital world. The work of RSIC can directly inform the first frame, “Authority Is Constructed and Contextual.” This Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) funded study, examines and compares the judgments and perceptions of students (from late primary, secondary, community college/vocational school, undergraduate, to graduate school/postgraduate) as they select resources for science-related school inquiry projects. Our project team includes academic science librarians, pre-service LIS educators, school librarians, and research scientists. We enlisted K-12, community college, four-year college, and university librarians and faculty as members of our Advisory Panel. The analyses identify students’ perceptions and judgments related to the source and author/creator of three resources common to all participants included in Google search results, and the role the container plays in determining whether the resource is credible and citable for a school/academic project. Students used cues from the web search results screen in their judgements and educational stage influenced their behavior in some instances. These findings can be used by librarians to design scalable instructional models to support critical student inquiry skills. The research results also will contribute to and support evidence-based decision making for the implementation of information literacy instruction grounded in frameworks, guidelines, and standards.

Abstract: To examine how teacher-librarians perceive the work of researchers in children and media and the relationship between JOCAM’s core audience and school librarianship, Renee Hobbs and Joyce Valenza share their thoughts about the future of research and practice in the field of children and media in the form of a dialogue. After discussing librarians’ perceptions of the children and media research community, we explore the relationship between research, policy, and advocacy; the ever-expanding media resources for children and youth; and the gaps between research and practice. The dialogue is intended to inspire JOCAM readers to imagine the next decade with a deeper awareness of the possibilities and benefits that could accrue by connecting researchers to vital stakeholders within the school library community.

Abstract: This interactive panel brings together researchers, practitioners, and educators to explore ways of connecting theory, research, practice, and LIS education around the issue of information format. Despite a growing awareness of the importance of information format to information seeking, discovery, use, and creation, LIS has no sound, theoretically‐informed basis for describing or discussing elements of format, with researchers and practitioners alike relying on know‐it‐when‐they‐see‐it understandings of format types. The Researching Students' Information Choices project has attempted to address this issue by developing the concept of containers, one element of format, and locating it within a descriptive taxonomy of other format elements based on well‐established theories from the field of Rhetorical Genre Studies. This panel will discuss how this concept was developed and implemented in a multi‐institutional, IMLS‐grant‐funded research project and how panelists are currently deploying and planning to deploy this concept in their own practice. Closing the loop in this way creates sustainable concepts that build a stronger field overall.

Abstract: Introduction. A multi-institutional, grant-funded project employed mixed methods to study 175 fourth-grade through graduate school students’ point-of-selection behaviour. The method features the use of simulated search engine results pages to facilitate data collection. Method. Student participants used simulated Google results pages to select resources for a hypothetical school project. Quantitative data on participants’ selection behaviour and qualitative data from their think-aloud protocols were collected. A questionnaire and interviews were used to collect data on participants’ backgrounds and online research experiences. Analysis. This paper reflects on the data collection methods and highlights opportunities for data analysis. The ability to analyse data both qualitatively and quantitatively increases the rigor and depth of findings. Results. The simulation created a realistic yet controlled environment that ensures the comparability of data within and across a wide range of educational stages. Combining data on participants’ behaviour, thoughts and characteristics provides a more complete picture of factors influencing online resource selection. Conclusions. Using simulated results pages in combination with multiple data collection methods enables analyses that create deeper knowledge of participants' information behaviour. Such a complicated research design requires extensive time, expertise and coordination to execute.

Abstract: On behalf of Mr. Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, it is my great pleasure to welcome you all to this international scientific conference. Drylands are often considered fragile ecosystems, yet they have a remarkable resilience to stress. They are home to unique and well-adapted plant and animal species that we need to conserve. Some of the world’s greatest cultures and belief systems have originated in drylands. On the other hand, desertification and land degradation in drylands often result in poverty and cause environmental refugees to abandon their homes. These problems can only be addressed in a holistic manner, based on sound scientific research and findings. Solutions to the problems of dryland degradation need to be communicated as widely as possible through education at all levels. These are many reasons why UNESCO – within its mandate of science, education, culture and communication – took the intiative to organize this conference. And we are glad that so many partners have responded to our call. UNESCO considers this conference as its main contribution to the observance of the International Year of Deserts and Desertification in 2006. We have deliberately chosen the title ‘The Future of Drylands’ as we feel it is time to redefine our priorities for science, education and governance in the drylands based on 50 years of scientific research in arid and semi-arid zones. In fact UNESCO has one of the longest traditions, within the UN system, of addressing dryland problems from an interdisciplinary, scientific point of view. In 1955, the ‘International Arid Land Meetings’ were held in Socorro, New Mexico (USA). They were organized by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), sponsored by UNESCO and supported by the Rockefeller Foundation. One important output of the International Arid Land Meetings was a book entitled The Future of Drylands, edited by Gilbert F. White and published in

Abstract: E-learners face a large amount of fragmented learning content during e-learning. How to extract and organize this learning content is the key to achieving the established learning target, especially for non-experts. Reasonably arranging the order of the learning objects to generate a well-defined learning path can help the e-learner complete the learning target efficiently and systematically. Currently, knowledge-graph-based learning path recommendation algorithms are attracting the attention of researchers in this field. However, these methods only connect learning objects using single relationships, which cannot generate diverse learning paths to satisfy different learning needs in practice. To overcome this challenge, this paper proposes a learning path recommendation model based on a multidimensional knowledge graph framework. The main contributions of this paper are as follows. Firstly, we have designed a multidimensional knowledge graph framework that separately stores learning objects organized in several classes. Then, we have proposed six main semantic relationships between learning objects in the knowledge graph. Secondly, a learning path recommendation model is designed for satisfying different learning needs based on the multidimensional knowledge graph framework, which can generate and recommend customized learning paths according to the e-learner’s target learning object. The experiment results indicate that the proposed model can generate and recommend qualified personalized learning paths to improve the learning experiences of e-learners.

Abstract: This paper reviews research on digital literacy practices of young children (0–8 years) in out-of-school settings or in informal learning spaces/settings. The purpose of this review is to identify the literature and topics that have arisen from non-school-based or informal space research and to highlight main directions and dimensions. The major research question is: What is the role of informal learning spaces in shaping children’s digital literacy practices? This research attempts to bridge the gap that exists between children’s uses of digital technology at home and in other informal settings and contributes and highlights the need for studying learning more holistically.

Abstract: This study investigated high school students’ and school librarians’ conceptions about what it means to be safe online and to understand the actions, processes, and strategies they engage in order to be safe online. The study also identified the existing library programs organized by school librarians in relation to digital safety and how school librarians and school libraries can support and address students’ digital safety needs. This paper sought to answer the following research questions: 1) What do students think it means to be safe online? Sub-question: What do students do themselves to be safe online? 2) What do school librarians think it means to be safe online? Sub-question: What do school librarians do themselves to be safe online? 3) What do students think of librarians’ role helping them to be safe online? 4)What existing library programs are implemented by school librarians in relation to digital safety? By understanding possible gaps between students’ and school librarians’ conceptions and practices on digital safety, educators and school administrators will gain understanding on how digital safety could be more effectively developed and integrated as part of the school curriculum.