Feature Articles
School Library Media Activities Monthly/Volume XIV, Number 4/December 1997
Organizing Research
by Marjorie L. Pappas
In the traditional, teacher-led learning environment, learners are guided through an instructional activity The student-centered, constructivist learning environment requires students to be responsible for their own knowledge construction. Learners are encouraged to solve problems, pursue research questions, or engage in authentic projects. To be successful in this learning environment, learners need tools, or organizers, to enable them to explore relationships, organize information, and think critically
There are many different types of organizers. Hyerle refers to organizers as visual tools which are "for constructing representations of knowledge" (1996, 11). Guillaume suggests "any visual representation of content that organizes information and aids comprehension can be deemed a graphic organizer" (1995, lst screen). Parks and Black believe "graphic organizers become a metacognitive tool to transfer the thinking processes to other lessons which feature the same relationships" (1992, 2). These writers all suggest that the design of organizers reflects the thinking process or task so learners develop the ability to select and use the appropriate organizer. Hyerle presents three types of visual tools: a) brainstorming webs, b) task-specific organizers, and c) thinking-process maps (p. 27). Parks and Black present a collection of organizers which are graphs (compare and/or contrast, interval, and transitive order) and diagrams (flowcharts, central idea, branching, class relationships, and matrix) (p. 7).
Organizers are not a new concept and various disciplines have been using them. For example, the math discipline uses Venn diagrams to examine numerical relationships. Flow charts are used to illustrate a decision-making process in math and computer science. The language arts teachers have been using webs to explore relationships of characters and plot in fiction stories.
Library media specialists and teachers have begun using organizers within the research process. Organizers provide learners with a visual structure that allows them to make connections between topics or concepts, relate to prior knowledge, plan a search strategy, select and evaluate information, interpret information, and evaluate the research outcome. If learners are to use organizers independently, they need to know different types of organizers and which might have applicability to various research processes. The Information Skills Organizer Chart (Figure 1) shows organizers arranged by type for each of the research processes: presearch, search, interpretation, communication, and evaluation, stages that appear on the Pathways to Knowledge" model (Pappas and Tepe 1995). This chart includes a representative sample of organizers but is not meant to be all inclusive. The organizer types that are included on the chart reflect the organizers and visuals of Hyerle, Parks and Black. A search of the Web identified a variety of sites with other examples of organizers. (Note: Web addresses included at the end of the article.) Teachers and library media specialists are encouraged to use the Information Skills Organizer Chart as a starting point for their own design of organizers. It is important to keep in mind that some consistency of organizer type helps learners become accustomed to using the organizers and knowing when to select the appropriate type in their research process.
Presearch Organizers
In Presearch, searchers are developing general knowledge about topics, examining relationships between topics, relating information about topics to prior knowledge, and developing a focused research topic or question. Often searchers find brainstorming topics related to a broad topic or concept is a useful strategy to begin their research. A web or mind map provides a visual that enables searchers to see relationships between topics or concepts. Another useful organizer at this Presearch stage is a KWL chart (Figure 2), which provides a structure for organizing information that connects to prior knowledge. Searchers begin by listing what they already know about a topic in the first column. The second column focuses searchers on what they want to know. Searchers are encouraged to develop this column in the form of questions. Searchers return to this chart during the Interpretation stage when they are analyzing their information and constructing new knowledge.
Search Organizers
In the Search stage, searchers plan a strategy, identify and select information providers and resources, and record information. The process of selecting appropriate resources requires a series of decisions that can be effectively organized through a flow chart (Figure 3). Planning a search strategy often requires searchers to select appropriate search words. Venn diagrams are useful organizers for this process (Figure 4). As searchers record information, they need to summarize significant ideas and reflect on these in relation to their topic or research question.
Interpretation Organizers
In the Interpretation stage, searchers must assess the usefulness of their information. Typically this requires them to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate their information to construct new knowledge. At this stage, searchers might return to their Presearch webs or the KWL chart to evaluate their new information and expand the chart or web to show development of personal meaning. A family tree or classifying diagram might enable searchers to analyze their information.
Communication Organizers
In Communication, searchers select a presentation format and share their new knowledge. The process of selecting a presentation format requires decision making and a flow chart enables this thinking process (Figure 5). Storyboards, graphs, timelines and presentation software provide other types of organizers for creating and sharing new knowledge.
Evaluation Organizers
The Evaluation stage requires searchers to assess their process and product. Evaluation is ongoing throughout the information seeking process and all of the organizers used by searchers enable both teacher and selfassessment via the paper trail. Evaluation charts, lists, and rubrics allow for assessment of both the product and process.
Independent Searchers
The new AASL/AECT Information Literacy standards include a section on learners who are independent information seekers. Organizers help this independence by providing learners with visual tools to graphically represent relationships between topics and concepts, making a connection to their prior knowledge, enabling the search process, interpreting information, communicating new knowledge, and evaluating their process and product.
References
- Guillaume, A. M. Graphic Organizers-Seeing Is Learning. http://iatl.fullertc)n.edu/grporganize.htm (August 8, 1997).
- Hyerle, D. Visual Tools. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1996.
- Parks, S., and H. Black. Organizing Thinking. Critical Thinking Press & Software, 1992. Graphic Organizer Web Sites
- KWLH Technique. http://www.ncrel.org/skrs/areas/issues/students/learning/lrlkwlh.htm
- Graphic Organizers. http://babe.math.uic.edu/oakpark/district97/integrate/civil/forms.html http://wwwsdcoe.k]2.ca.us/score/actbank 1-800-372-3321