The American Association of School Librarians unveiled new Standards for the 21st- Century Learner at their national conference in October, 2007. “The new standards were developed by some of the best minds in the school library field,” according to AASL President Sara Kelly Johns. A task force, created in early 2006, met in person and virtually, posting drafts on the web page and soliciting comments from the members of AASL.

“AASL hopes that the standards will provide a foundation for a strong library media program in every school,” said Johns. “They will serve as a guide so that our students can research expertly, think critically, problem-solve well, read enthusiastically and use information ethically.”

Standards for the 21st-Century Learner define nine foundational common beliefs:

• Reading is a window to the world.
• Inquiry provides a framework for learning.
• Ethical behavior in the use of information must be taught.
• Technology skills are crucial for future employment needs.
• Equitable access is a key component for education.
• The definition of information literacy has become more complex as resources and technologies have changed.
• The continuing expansion of information demands that all individuals acquire the thinking skills that will enable them to learn on their own.
• Learning has a social context.
• School libraries are essential to the development of learning skills.

The Standards describe how learners use skills, resources, and tools to
1. inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge;
2. draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge;
3. share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of our democratic society;
4. pursue personal and aesthetic growth.

Each of these four major descriptors is amplified by characteristic skills, self-assessment strategies, dispositions and responsibilities.

New NETS Standards

“In 2006, ISTE® (the International Society for Technology in Education) began work on the next generation of NETS for Students, which focuses more on skills and expertise and less on tools. Specifically, they address
• creativity and innovation;
• communication and collaboration;
• research and information fluency;
• critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making;
• digital citizenship; and
• technology operations and concepts.”

NETS for Students: the Next Generation was unveiled at NECC (National Educational Computing Conference) in June, 2007. They describe “what students should know and be able to do to learn effectively and live productively in an increasingly digital world.”

How do the Big6 Skills Apply?

The Big6 Skills were described and copyrighted by Mike Eisenberg and Bob Berkowitz twenty years ago! They were designed as an information problem-solving model useful to students in a traditional school library furnished with card catalogs and books. How can they be relevant to a world in which computer access is ubiquitous and information is digitized?

“The new AASL ‘Standards for the 21st-Century Learner’ are both a reflection of the current landscape and a vision for the future,” said Gail K. Dickinson, task force co-chair. “Good standards have to be practical enough to teach today but flexible enough to be able to teach tomorrow.”

Similarly, the Big6 Skills model is flexible enough to apply to 21st century information needs and the newly adopted standards. The attached table demonstrates how the Big6 Skills can be aligned with both the AASL Standards and the new NETS. See Figure 1-1.

Let’s explore that statement in a little more detail, to see how we might apply the Big6 Skills model to the new standards in practice.

Task Definition

Defining the task for a school research project has traditionally been the responsibility of the teacher. However, if we subscribe to the philosophy articulated in the new AASL and NETS standards, we will give students the opportunity to define their own tasks:
1.2.1 Display initiative and engagement by posing questions and investigating the answers beyond the collection of superficial facts. (AASL)
4a. identify and define authentic problems and significant questions for investigation. (NETS)

Students need to learn how to ask and answer questions that are significant to them. Their need to find information won’t end when they finish formal schooling. As employees, citizens, and lifelong learners, they will continue to use available information to make decisions and solve problems. As noted in the AASL foundational common beliefs, “Inquiry provides a framework for learning,” and “The continuing expansion of information demands that all individuals acquire the thinking skills that will enable them to learn on their own.”

Too often, school research assignments can be satisfied with a “collection of superficial facts.” Our challenge is to move students and teachers beyond that limited territory: to require critical thinking that answers “authentic problems and significant questions.”

Information Seeking Strategies

With vast quantities of information instantly available via the World Wide Web, it’s imperative that teachers and teacher librarians engage students in critical thinking about the information they find. The new AASL and NETS standards both address this issue:
1.1.5 Evaluate information found in selected sources on the basis of accuracy, validity, appropriateness for needs, importance, and social and cultural context. (AASL)
3c. evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks. (NETS)

The storm of controversy about Wikipedia as a reliable source is just the tip of the iceberg. Anyone can create web pages, and there’s no law against posting incorrect or biased information. You might recommend that your students use a subject directory to insure that the web site has been evaluated and the information is reliable. Teach students how to evaluate web pages: ask them to identify authorship, sponsorship, and purpose, to verify the information from another source, and to consider the currency of the information as well as its appropriateness to their needs.

Location and Access

Consider a variety of sources, not just web pages! Information in books or encyclopedias has been verified through the publishing process, and may even be easier and faster to access. Use subscription databases to locate magazine and newspaper articles. Interviews with community members can provide a unique point of view on local issues. The standards direct students to
1.3.2 Seek divergent perspectives during information gathering and assessment. (AASL)
3b. locate … information from a variety of sources and media. (NETS)

Teachers and teacher librarians may choose to pre-select appropriate web sites and make them available on a local “virtual library” or “Hot List.” The teacher librarian is eager to collaborate by locating relevant materials in the school library.

Use of Information

If we (or the students) have defined a task that requires them to go “beyond the collection of superficial facts,” we need to help them learn how to
1.1.7 Make sense of information gathered from diverse sources by identifying misconceptions, main and supporting ideas, conflicting information, and point of view or bias. (AASL)
In other words, we need to teach them critical thinking as well as note-taking skills.

Both sets of standards emphasize the ethical and responsible use of information.
1.3.3 Follow ethical and legal guidelines in gathering and using information. (AASL)
5a. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology. (NETS)

We could put a prominent place for students to cite their sources on our electronic note-taking templates. Citation Machine makes it easy to collect bibliographic information in the designated format.

Synthesis

Students compile information to draw conclusions and synthesize them in a product that communicates what they have learned. The new standards address this skill:
3.1.4 Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess. (AASL)
2b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats. (NETS)

As adult teachers and learners, how often are we required to collect, analyze, evaluate and synthesize information to make a decision or solve a problem, and share our conclusions with others? Employers expect our graduates to have these skills, as reflected in the AASL foundational common belief, “Technology skills are crucial for future employment needs.” The NETS standards emphasize “communication and collaboration” as well as “critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making.”

Evaluation

The AASL Standards echo the language of the Big6 Skills:
3.4.1 Assess the processes by which learning was achieved in order to revise strategies and learn more effectively in the future.
3.4.2 Assess the quality and effectiveness of the learning product.

We can use the Big6 Skills to help students develop the ICT literacy skills they need to be effective employees and citizens as well as lifelong learners. If they continually evaluate their own efficiency and effectiveness, they can apply the Big6 Skills to new information problems throughout their lives.

The matrix, “Applying Big6™ Skills, AASL Standards and ISTE NETS to Internet Research,” has been updated to incorporate the new standards. It features activities to explore each of the Big6 stages with Internet resources. See http://janetsinfo.com/big6info.htm

Sources Cited
“AASL Standards for the 21st-Century Learner.” © 2007. American Association of School Librarians. http://www.ala.org/aasl/standards

“AASL 13th National Conference plots course for the future of school libraries.” American Library Association. 29 Oct. 2007.
http://www.ala.org/ala/pressreleases2007/october2007/aaslwr07.htm (Accessed 10 Nov, 2007)

ALA press release, 10/23/07.
National Educational Technology Standards for Students, Second Edition, © 2007, ISTE® (International Society for Technology in Education), http://www.iste.org/inhouse/nets/cnets/students/pdf/NETS_for_Students_2007.pdf

“Standards for the 21st Century Learner to launch during AASL National Conference.” American Library Association. 23 Oct. 2007.
http://www.ala.org/ala/pressreleases2007/october2007/standards07.htm (Accessed 10 Nov, 2007)