From "The Spectrum of Apple Flavors" to "We are all Zebras: How Rare Disease is Shaping the Future of Healthcare," we find colorful visual displays of infGrotewold, K. (2020, August). Framework for analysis of visual information. In Assessing Visual Materials for Diversity & Inclusivity. https://www.oercommons.org/courseware/lesson/69336/. Licensed as CC BY-NC-SA   

The idea of Threshold Concepts has been widely discussed in higher education for more than a decade. As defined by Jan H.F. Meyer and Ray Land, a threshold concept “can be considered as akin to a portal, opening up a new and previously inaccessible way of thinking about something. It represents a transformed way of understanding, or interpreting, or viewing something without which the learner cannot progress”.  (Meyer, J., & Land, R. (2003). Put another way, threshold concepts are the core ideas and principles in any discipline that often become second nature to experts, but may be completely foreign to the novice. And yet, without an understanding of these core concepts, learners cannot progress in further learning in any given subject area. As with all academic disciplines, threshold concepts exist in the area of Information Literacy; grasping information literacy threshold concepts is essential for students to become effective researchers.In 2015, the American Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) replaced their Information Literacy Competency Standards, with a “Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education”. The Framework is organized into six Frames, each anchored by an information literacy threshold concept and supported by a set of knowledge practices and dispositions. These six information literacy threshold concepts include:Authority is Constructed and ContextualInformation Creation is a ProcessInformation Has ValueResearch as InquiryScholarship as ConversationSearching as Strategic ExplorationBased on the research studies and experiences of academic instruction librarians who see first-hand the challenges students experience when conducting college-level research, the new Framework was developed to support information literacy instruction in the digital age. The literature suggests that most students entering college are unprepared for the rigors of academic research. (Head, A. J. (2013). If students can gain an understanding of these six threshold concepts, they will likely be better researchers and generally more successful in their academic work.What are the implications of this huge paradigm shift in college-level research instruction for school librarians? Simply put, school librarians have a wonderful opportunity to prepare students for college level research by systematically teaching information literacy threshold concepts in grades K-12. A scaffolded information literacy instruction program focused on threshold concepts along with standards and skills could help pave the way for students to be effective college researchers. With an estimated 30% of US college and university students dropping out after their first year, preparing research savvy students for the demands of college assignments could have a significant impact on student success and ultimately on college graduation rates.  Instructional ObjectivesBy the completion of Module 1, students will be able to identify a threshold concept from their field or discipline and design a learning activity that could be used to teach this concept.By the completion of Module 2, students will be able to identify one or more stumbling blocks that students encounter when conducting academic research, and describe how a better grasp of one of the six ACRL Information Literacy threshold concepts could help overcome this research barrier.By the completion of Module 3, students will be able to create a lesson plan for a K-12 classroom which teaches or reinforces the threshold concept “Research as Inquiry”. 

This module is part of the Foundations of School Librarianship on using web resources to enhance learning and build collections. It describes a process by which the school librarian and teacher will collaborate on a high school-level project to explore how researchers are using social media to promote and distribute their research findings. This presents a great opportunity for science teachers and school librarians to tap into high school students' enthusiasm for social media in a constructive and educational way. It also provides opportunities for school librarians to collaborate with teachers on developing or enhancing students information evaluation skills. And finally, the days of speaking of collection development as a library activity that means adding physical volumes to the collection may be over. Rather, we speak of developing access to quality resources that enhance learning. Social media sites that provide free access to quality research data supports the concept of promoting Open Educational Resources (OERs).

With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards, The Next Generation Science Standards, and the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards, many middle and high schools require their content teachers to teach writing within their discipline area, often resulting in role confusion, anxiety, and resistance.“Teaching writing” – the job of the ELA faculty - is confused with “Teaching How to Write like a Historian, a Scientist, a Mathematician . . .”  - the job of the content faculty. Because content faculty are not usually trained in composition pedagogy, they may avoid writing instruction or worse – actually damage young writers by offering misguided instruction in mechanics and grammar.Content faculty may be familiar with the writing conventions of their particular discipline. With raised awareness of their expertise and by identifying the rhetorical characteristics of their subject area, content faculty can learn instructional skills to support writing across the curriculum.As a K-12 informational resource, the librarian holds a key position to raise awareness, reduce role confusion, provide instructional references, and improve writing school-wide. This module prepares pre-service librarians to understand and provide information to rectify the confusion of writing instruction across the secondary curriculum.

Through hands-on tasks using Google Apps for Education as the sample tool, students will learn what are cloud-based collaborative tools like Google Apps for Education, how they are used in the classroom and what they have to offer teachers and students. For performance tasks, a Google or Gmail account is suggested.