Information Transformation: Teaching Strategies for Authentic Research, Projects, and Activities

Dave Hutchinson is assistant superintendent of the School District of
Mystery Lake in Thompson, Manitoba.

Educators are often encouraged to apply interdisciplinary and meaningful
or “authentic” instructional strategies that encourage students to
explore and synthesize complex ideas and issues. Tricia Armstrong’s
offering certainly provides ample support in this area, and includes an
emphasis on Internet- and CD-ROM-based student research. Primarily
intended for teachers in Grades 5 to 9, this text is an excellent
support for teachers who like to integrate significant student-led
research activity into their lessons.

Recalling established strategies like SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read,
Recite, Review), Armstrong’s methodology is predicated on the four
cornerstones of “Think it Over,” “Plug it In,” “Do it
Differently,” and “Take it Further.” “Think it Over” requires
students to establish a research topic through journal writing. “Plug
it In” refers to Web-and CD-ROM-based primary and secondary research
activity. “Do it Differently” speaks to the variety of ways in which
students can present their research. “Take it Further” encourages
students to expand their research project and investigates related
areas.

Included in this user-friendly guide are reproducible blackline masters
that apply to both the research process and student self-assessment.
Student-teachers and teachers new to the field may find Information
Transformation most beneficial, although the book may have limited
applicability in schools where students lack regular and sufficient
access to computers.