Reading report #5

3/22/09


This article, I can really relate to. All throughout high school and my first semester at UNCW I had no clue about the differences between a Internet source and a scholarly journal. In high school I would use sources and not even bother to check there authenticity. I had never been taught how to search through information on the internet, I was just told to do the paper or worksheet by my teachers. So when I read this article I completely agreed with it. It is truly a challenge trying to decipher sometimes, if a web site can be trusted or if the information is even relevant.
This article informed me of the ICT Literacy Assessment, which is a 75 minute test offered at 2 difficulty levels in the subjects of organizing, evaluating, and communicating with electronic data. This test proved that 48% of Cal State students who took the test failed. This showed that the students were not able to do research on a college level. This test seems like a great idea to me. In fact I think that high schools need to teach this material to their students and then upon entering college, this test should be administered to all incoming freshmen in the United States. And all students who do not pass must take a class on evaluating research sources in their first semester at college. I know that I would have greatly benefited from a program like that.