LINKING LIBRARIANS, INQUIRY LEARNING, AND INFORMATION LITERACY?

In many schools, librarians play a key role in teaching information literacy and inquiry learning. From a survey of Colorado librarians, Keith Curry Lance and Leslie Maniotes learned that librarians who regularly facilitated student-led inquiry activities were also more likely to teach regularly a number of information literacy skills. Librarians who engage in inquiry learning said that support from school leaders and the autonomy to try new things were motivating factors in their inquiry efforts, but they wanted to be more intentional in their use of inquiry and to get more teachers on board. Lance and Maniotes turn to Norman, Oklahoma, for an example of how using a specific inquiry model, in this case Guided Inquiry Design, and providing training and support, can multiply the benefits of the inquiry approach.