High school students research skills research

To better understand how high school students apply their information literacy skills when conducting research and how these students carry out research projects, researchers asked a group of 289 high school seniors to complete an information literacy survey related to the research process. In addition, approximately ten percent of these students were randomly selected and asked to participate in an interview to provide more in-depth information about their perspectives on finding and using information. Results indicate the study participants were able to use library resources to locate and use information, that they used a variety of resources, and that they considered themselves successful library users. However, participants voiced a need for help in deciding which resources are best to use and how to identify important information from those resources. These high school seniors also wanted to learn more about how to use books for research. Although these students indicated they may need assistance when doing research, they rarely asked the school librarians for help. These findings are discussed in the context of the role of school librarians.

Kovalik, Cindy; Yutzey, Susan; and Piazza, Laura. “Information Literacy and High School Seniors: Perceptions of the Research Process.” School Library Research, 16.
http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/vol16/SLR_Information_Literacy_High_School_Seniors_V16.pdf