Forum Getting Started: Re: LAMS and Google

By: Robyn Philip

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Interesting discussion about googling and the Q and A tool.

I think that if students are googling when you want them to produce their own ideas about a topic, then could it be that we need to firm up instructions as Karen says- or that students are looking for the 'right' answer - the one that will get them marks!

Also googling to harvest, cut and paste information - when you really want original ideas from students - is part of the plagiarism problem. Some students think it is easier - or better - to search for information rather than trust their own ideas. Maybe we have trained them this way with our assessment approaches (!).

Do we need to spend more time walking students through the processes of critical thinking? Or maybe they do know the processes and they just can’t be bothered contributing their own ideas – or feel some stress in doing so.

This googling instead of thinking more deeply, possibly taking the surface approach - or is it the strategic approach? - looking for the 'right' answer - makes me more certain that using LAMS to tease out what students really think and know is well worth the effort.

Of course there is a place for searching on the net - we do it all the time - but more of us could be using lams to foster original thoughts in our students. Einstein lams we will have…….: )

Posted by Robyn Philip