Presentation discusses the impact of digital learning environments on IB students as Inquirers and the ATL of Research.

1. Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?
Queen Rania Teacher Academy, Teacher Skills Forum, December 2014
Kathleen McKim, Head of Libraries, The International Academy - Amman

2. The Oxford English Dictionary Says…
Google, v.2
Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈɡuːɡl/ , U.S. /ˈɡuɡ(ə)l/
Forms: also with lower-case initial.
Etymology: < Google, a proprietary name for an Internet search engine launched in
1998. The name of the search engine was perhaps conceived as an alteration of
googol n., with allusion to the large amount of information contained on the
Internet.
1. intr. To use the Google search engine to find information on the Internet.
1998 L. Page New Features in eGroups (Electronic mailing list) 8 July, Have fun
and keep googling!
2004 U.S. News & World Rep. 14 June 49/2 The couple found themselves
Googling for a new place to live.
2007 Church Times 14 Dec. 25/3, I did find, when Googling around, that the
second reference to the story was from an Islamic website.
2. trans. To enter (a search term) into the Google search engine to find information
on the Internet; to search for information about (a person or thing) in this way.
2001 N.Y. Times 11 Mar. iii. 12/3, I met this woman last night at a party and I
came right home and googled her.
2010 Daily Tel. 18 Oct. 29/5 Googling ‘breast pain’ came up with eight million.
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

3. Overview
• Why Does It Matter?
• Student as Inquirer
• Approaches to Learning (ATL)
• What is Google Good For?
• What Options Do I Have?
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

4. Why Does It Matter?
4

5. IB Learner Profile
5
INQUIRERS
We nurture our curiosity,
developing skills for inquiry
and research. We know how to
learn independently and with
others. We learn with
enthusiasm and sustain our
love of learning throughout
life.
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

6. Approaches to Learning (ATL Skills)
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Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?
Research
Information
Literacy
Media
Literacy

7. If all you have is a hammer,
everything looks like a nail.
Which technology tool can best
support the thinking processes
and instructional strategies of
that phase of inquiry?
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

8. Think/Pair/Share
What are some opportunities and
some challenges of navigating in a
Digital Research Culture?
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

9. Opportunities in a Digital Research Culture
• Information available on practically anything that students
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want to know
• Multiple formats and languages
• Levels from novice to expert
• Natural language searching
• Diverse formats
• Diverse types, from opinion to research
• One-stop information access
• High engagement and participation
• Collaboration and shared thinking
Adapted from Stripling, 2010
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

10. Challenges in a Digital Research Culture
• Too much information pressures students toward passive
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acceptance of whatever they find to avoid an unending search
• Information accepted if found quickly and easily; little in-depth
probing
• Lack of sequence and hierarchy in information (order has nothing to
do with time, place, or even synchrony with researcher’s main
idea)
• Specific information with little or no contextualization
• Pressure for speed
• Environment favors access over reflection
• Ability of individuals to post and publish leading to assumption of
authority.
Adapted from Stripling, 2010
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

11. What Can I Google?
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12. Questions for Google
Adapted from Arment, 2011
I know this page exists, but I can’t remember the URL!
• United Nations Data
• Library of Congress American Memory Collection
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Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?
I have a very specific, factual question.
• How do you make a hard-boiled egg?
• How deep is the Dead Sea at its lowest point?

13. Questions for Google
Adapted from Arment, 2011
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Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?
I need to know how to…
• Apply liquid eyeliner
• Change a tyre
I need product research, customer reviews, recommendations.
• Crowne Plaza v. Marriott
• Mercedes, BMW or Audi?

14. Good or Bad? You Judge.
Car Reviews: Websites

15. Good or Bad? You Judge.
Latest Sports News: Websites or Apps

16. Good or Bad? You Judge.
Population of Jordan: Library Homepage,
Destiny Webpath Express, ProQuest SIRS
Government Reporter, ProQuest SIRS WebSelect

17. Good or Bad? You Judge.
Non-Profits:Websites

18. Good or Bad? You Judge.
Abuse of women in KSA: Questia School, SIRS
Issues Researcher

19. Digital Learning Environments
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20. Where Can We Search?
• School Library Provided Digital Learning Environments
• Databases
• Primary Sources/Archives (Library of Congress, Europeana)
• E-books (Project Gutenberg)
• Media-specific Search Engines
• Bing, Yahoo
• Medical-specific searching (MEDLINE)
• Legal Searches (FindLaw)
• Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
• Google Art Project, Folger Shakespeare Digital Image
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Collection
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

21. Your School Library
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Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

22. Search Engine Extravaganza
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23. 23 Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

24. 24 Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

25. 25 Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

26. Ready, Set, Begin!
• Choose a partner in your grade level or academic subject
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Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?
area.
• Choose one or two of the search engines that look
interesting to you.
• Chose a topic to research (one from one of your
assignments or a topic you are very familiar with).
• Research your topic in your chosen search engines.
• Fill in the chart, and be prepared to share your results
with the class.

27. Findings
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Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

28. AASL Standards Addressed
1.1 Skills
1.1.4 Find, evaluate, and select appropriate sources to answer
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questions.
1.1.5 Evaluate information found in selected sources on the basis of
accuracy, validity, appropriateness for needs, importance, and social
and cultural context.
1.2 Dispositions in Action
1.2.2 Demonstrate confidence and self-direction by making
independent choices in the selection of resources and information.
1.2.7 Display persistence by continuing to pursue information to gain a
broad perspective.
1.3 Responsibilities
1.3.2 Seek divergent perspectives during information gathering and
assessment.
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

29. Bibliography
American Association of School Librarians. (2009). Standards for the 21st-century Learner. Chicago: ALA.
Anderson, M.A. (2009). The power of primary sources. Multimedia & Internet @ Schools (n.v.): 35-38.
Arment, M. (January 5, 2011). Google’s decreasingly useful, spam-filled web search. Marco.org. Retrieved
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January 27, 2011, from http://www.marco.org/2617546197.
Berger, P. (2010). Student inquiry and Web 2.0. School Library Monthly 26(5): 14-17.
Burkhardt, J. and MacDonald, M. (2010). Teaching Information Literacy: 50 Standards-Based Exercises for
College Students, 2nd ed. Chicago: ALA.
Cohen, N. (31 Jan 2011). Define gender gap? Look up Wikipedia’s contributor List. New York Times.com.
Retrieved December 4, 2012, from http://www.nytimes.com.
Evangelista, B. (31 Oct 2012). Teachers call online search mixed bag. SFGate.com. Retrieved December 4,
2012, from http://www.sfgate.com/technology/article/Teachers-call-online-search-mixed-bag-
3998816.php.
"Google, v.2". OED Online. September 2012. Oxford University Press.
http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/261961?rskey=0WuoDK&result=2 (accessed December 04, 2012).
International Baccalaureate (May 2014). Middle years programme: From principles into practice. Cardiff, UK:
Peterson House.
Stripling, B. (2010). Teaching students to think in the digital environment: Digital literacy and digital inquiry.
School Library Monthly 26(8). Retrieved December 4, 2012, from
http://www.schoollibrarymonthly.com/articles/Stripling2010-v26n8p16.html
Wright, A. (2009, February 23). Exploring a ‘Deep Web’ That Google Can’t Grasp. Ocala Star-Banner (FL)
n.pag. Retrieved December 4, 2012, from NewsBank on-line database (Access World News)
Google Is Not a Verb! Is It?

30. Google Is a Verb.
K.McKim@iaa.edu.jo
Queen Rania Teacher Academy, Teacher Skills Forum, December 2014
Kathleen McKim, Head of Libraries, The International Academy - Amman
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