FCST 1010 - (All Classes) (All Campuses) - Spring 2018: Module 7

Welcome to Module 7! During this module we'll be discussing several topics related to information literacy and critical reading. These two topics are intertwined and both relate to helping you be more successful in interpreting, analyzing, and remebering what you read. Since most reading in college results in writing an essay or research paper we'll also be taking a look at plagiarism. After completing this module you should be able to:

• Discriminate between examples of plagiarism and correct uses of sources in your own writing.
• Analyze and annotate texts.
• Decide if a source is appropriate to use in a college paper. 

Due This Week:

• Journal Entry #7 - Due before Thursday/Sunday at midnight
• Challenge #7 - Due before Sunday at midnight
• Going Further #7 - Due before Sunday at midnight
• Content Quiz #7 - Due by Wednesday (Instructor's Choice - Quiz or In-class Assignments)

Information Literacy

You know how we're not using a textbook this semester? One of the reasons that we believe that FCST 1010 is better without a textbook has to do with information literacy. In this actiivty we'll explore the basics of information litracy by investigating one of your other textbooks. Don't worry if you forgot to bring one - this is a group activity! To do this activity:

1. Get in groups of 3 or 4.
2. Select one textbook to examine as a group.
3. Choose a random chapter from the textbook and then answer the following quesitons to the best of your ability. Make sure to write down your answers on a peice of paper - I will be taking these up:

• • Who wrote your chapter? What are this person’s credentials?
  • Did the person who wrote your chapter get paid?
  • What does the author want you to believe?
  • What evidence does the author use to back up his or her claims?
  • How recent is this chapter? Does this matter?
  • Does this chapter have references or citations? If so, does anything stick out to you about the citations?

      4.  Report your answers to the class.

A big goal in FCST 1010 is reflection. As a college student it's not only important to learn and do well in your classes - you must also learn to reflect on your college experience and the new attitudes, knowledge, and skills that you are gaining. Taking time to step back and think about experience will not only give you a richer experience but will also help you learn and apply knowledge. Reflection is basically the opposite of cramming for a test - it actually helps you remember and use information for a longer amount of time (hopefully a lifetime!). A great way to foster reflection is by journaling. 

As an nline student you'll be posting your journals to the discussion board in D2L. Please be aware that all students in the online classes will be able to see your entries - these are not private. Click on the image below to visit the discussion board topic for this week. Remember that you initial thread is due on Wednesday before midnight. Please respond to two other students in order to receive full credit.

Journal Entry #7: How do you feel when asked to read large amounts of information?

• What emotion do you feel? frustration? overwhelmed?
• Do you have a strategy that you use to comprehend your reading?
• Do you soon forgot what you've read?
• What could you do to be a more critical reader?

Critical Reading

Earlier this week we explored information literacy by taking a look at one of your textbooks. Today we'll practice critical reading by do a similar excercise on a much deeper level. To do this activity:

1. Get into groups of 3 or 4. 
2. Review this short article on critical reading.
3. Read this short article on childhood obesity. As you read make sure to preview and annotate the article using Steps 1 and 2 from the critical reading article.
4. Answer the following questions as you skim the obesity article once again. Some of these questions will look familiar since information literacy is a part of critical reading: 

• • Analyzng the Article:
    • What does the writer want me to belive? 
    • Is the writer giving me facts, opinions, or a mix?
    • What is the strongest evidence that the writer uses in this article to back up his or her point? 
    • Is there anything that doesn't make sense in the article?
  • Looking for Patterns:
    • Does the author use any recurring images, phrases, or ideas in the article?
  • Contextualize
    • Find the date and place that the article was written - this will help you think about the context of the article. In other words, what was going on in this particular time period and in this particular place to make this issue important? Is it important now? 

        5. Report your findings to the class.

Challenge 7: How Can You Improve Your Research Skills? 

How good are you at researching and evaluating information? If you’re like many college students you’re pretty good at finding information, but not so great at determining whether its useful, truthful, or high quality. Research skills - also know as information literacy - are crucial in college, but can also affect many other aspects of your life like buying a house, making medical decisions, or choosing a career.

To complete  this challenge:

1. Visit the 21st  Century Researcher Skillshop  page, go through the activities there, and then answer the questions at the bottom of that page. Don’t forget that librarians can help you understand how to find and evaluate information! *NOTE: This challenge has videos that don’t appear on the page in some browsers. You can try another browser or copy and paste  the direct link provided with each video into your browsers address bar .
2. Remember to turn in the Activity Questions listed at the bottom of the 21st Century Researcher Skillshop
3. Submit the questions to D2L.

Conducting research is not only going to be part of your academic life but it will be very prevalent in your professional life too. The degree of the research will definitely vary between the two but the methods will always be the same.
 

1. Identify the problem
2. Gather background information
3. Search databases for books and periodicals
4. Evaluate the research
5. Cite your sources

In this assignment we are going to skip steps 1 and 2. Really most of step 3 has been done for you. Our focus is steps 4 and 5.

Using the topics and search criteria listed below you will create an annotated bibliography of one (1) source this week. I am guessing most, if not all, of you do not know what I am talking about so here is an example from the Purdue OWL website.

Annotated bibliography has 4 basic parts:

• Citation
• Summary paragraph--what did the article say
• Evaluation paragraph--does it appear that the article has credibility
• Reflection paragraph--would you use it in a research paper and why?

For this assignment you will choose an article using the Galileo Database at the GHC Library. Here are your topics:

• Graphic novels
• Urban farming
• Soy milk
• A3 problem solving

When you search you should put the term in quotations ("urban farming"), look for full text, scholarly articles from 2012 to 2017. The number of hits you get should be small...that is done on purpose. If by some chance you find nothing that suits your fancy, then email me immediately!

The assignment needs to be a minimum of 300 words, not including the citation.