Glossary

Academic Conversations

Students learn to participate in "academic conversations" where they state propositions, support arguments with evidence, and learn to use more formal language. Differentiated from the "scholarly conversation," where researchers challenge and communicate with each other over time and through peer-reviewed articles.

Accuracy

Being factual, replicable, provable, and measurable; factors such as corroborating sources, replicable testing, and thoroughness. Indicators of accuracy include:

Editorial oversight
Timing or currency
Triangulation among sources
Quality of writing
Versions (version control)

Active listening (in a digital environment)

Using digital communications such as chat features, co-editing documents, and threaded discussions to make contributions to the task by asking clarifying and probing questions, provide constructive feedback, and share ideas.

Advanced search strategies

Boolean Searching
Limiters for source type (blog, newspaper, journal)
Limiters for source features (graphics; length)
Limiters for document type (articles, literature review, peer-reviewed, and scholarly articles)
Limiters for methodology
Limiters for populations
Limiters for classification codes such as NAICS industry codes from the North American Industry Classification (formerly SIC codes), human or animal classifications
Subject headings

Authority

Look for objectivity, validity, and currency; view author credentials as in affiliation or recognition of work within a discipline. Consider:

Balanced information (fair, objective, beyond predilection)
Expertise (academic, indigenous, lived, professional, writer)
Individual or organization
Intent
Primary or secondary source
Legitimacy
Reliability
Scope of information
Use a variety of sources (database, encyclopedia, dictionary, nonfiction print, web, digital audio and video) and viewpoints

Bias

Amplifying certain information while minimizing or disregarding other information to influence an intended conclusion. Types of Bias:

Bandwagon (groupthink): Believing something is true because others believe it's true.
Confirmation bias: Wanting to believe something is true and reject all evidence to the contrary.
Discipline-specific or professional/technical focus: Academics allow their personal bias to interfere with their own research.
Editorial: An article that is written by the editorial board of a newspaper giving their opinion about a topic.
Appeal to emotion: Logical fallacy that emphasizes emotion over evidence.
Labeling: Attributing the same characteristics to all members of a common group or limiting the description of a person to just one characteristic. Labeling a group in a misleading way.
Language: Use of words that show stereotypes, generalizations, or labels. Unbiased language is neutral.
Op-ed: An opinionated response to an article by a reader that is not affiliated with the publisher of the original article.
Persuasive tactics: Using language that is intended to convince the audience to feel a certain way.
Propaganda: Providing selective information to influence opinion and further an agenda.
Self-curation: Protecting one's own personal perception.

Context (proper)

Understanding that:

Information could be foundational, thus useful, even when dated
Discoveries may require further testing
Redacted sources have false information
Relevance is based on a particular discipline or situation

Conventions

Conventions refer to the general structure of a source, e.g., placement of the table of contents, glossary, index, etc. Conventions may also refer to the structure of a journal article, e.g., IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion) or PICO (Population, Intervention, Control, Outcome).

Delivery Formats

Examples include but are not limited to:

Audio (music, interview, podcast, recording)
Graphic designs (posters, flyers, etc.)
Infographics
Presentation/oration
Slideshows
Tech-creation apps/technology tools
Video/animation
Websites
Writing (articles, essays, research papers)

Discipline (Academic)

Discipline-specific or lower division transfer refers to a focus on a branch of knowledge within higher education, related to college majors.
Professional/technical refers to one- or two-year certificates or degrees for specific jobs.
Field of study refers to coursework to improve job skills, employment prospects, and understanding of the liberal arts or sciences.

Discourse community

The vocabulary, diction, and jargon used by a specialized group. Examples include terminology specific to various kinds of study, such as:

Cultural
Literary
Historical
Mathematical
Scientific

EIDPA

Explore Introduce Develop Proficient Advanced (EIDPA) refers to a K-14 articulation indicating at which grade level learners will/are:

Explore concepts related to the indicator but not formally introduced
Introduced to the indicator
Develop skills related to the indicator
Proficient in skills level for the indicator
Advancing competency of the indicator

Evaluate: Quality, Significance, Usefulness, Validity

Evaluate (for quality):

Where the information comes from, and what type of source it is. How a source is produced, and where it is located can include:

Authority of author(s) (including affiliation, credentials, expertise)
Author(s) frame of reference (including academia, professional, and experience)
Container (book, magazine or journal, report, collated data set)
Organization that created it
Publisher, company name
Self-published, author's name
Website or web host

Types of sources include:

Aggregated sources, such as from a library database
Blogs and subsequent comments
Crowdsourced datasets or results
Curated collections, such as from a library catalog
Datasets
Government publications
Interviews
Journalistic (long-form news articles, investigative journalism)
Open-access journals (electronically published)
Peer-reviewed sources
Primary sources
Scholarly articles
Social media

Evaluate (for significance)

Consequence of probable or possible effect
Influence of author
Qualities of importance
Value of information
Weight of the influence

Evaluate (for usefulness, scope)

Determine if enough sources of various types (print, digital) are identified for a research project.
Qualities could include:

Availability
Context of the source
Position within the publication cycle
Perspective
Project timeframe
Provides valid answers to a problem or question
Relevance to purpose of research project
Suited to the level of inquiry
Timeliness (current or historical) of the sources

Evaluate (for validity)

That which is factual and verifiable. It is based on accuracy of information, applicability to task, currency or timeliness, quality of the claims, soundness of evidence. Questions to help determine validity:

Who is the author?
What is the purpose of the source?
When was the information published?
Where can I verify that the information is accurate?
Is this the best source to use?
Is there bias or an agenda?

Evaluation technique:

SIFT (Four Moves) — Stop; Investigate the Source; Find better coverage; Trace claims.

Explore

In K-12, "In K-12, "explore" implies "exposure to" for the first time, overview, try out, as compared to "introduce" which implies direct instruction.

Field of study

(see Discipline)

Frameworks

Inquiry Frameworks example:

OSLIS Framework
- Define
- Plan
- Find
- Create
- Present
- Reflect
ACRL Framework (Knowledge Practices)
- Formulate questions for research based on information gaps or on reexamination of existing, possibly conflicting, information;
- Determine an appropriate scope of investigation;
- Deal with complex research by breaking complex questions into simple ones, limiting the scope of investigations;
- Use various research methods, based on need, circumstance, and type of inquiry;
- Monitor gathered information and assess for gaps or weaknesses;
- Organize information in meaningful ways;
- Synthesize ideas gathered from multiple sources;
- Draw reasonable conclusions based on the analysis and interpretation of information.

Importance

A source that is better, more useful, and with some specific significance (including foundational; primary, secondary, or tertiary; historical, cultural, or political impact, or within a field of study). Aspects of importance for sources include:

Authority (reputation of the author, organization, or publisher)
Author's professional affiliation
Depth of coverage
Place of the source in the information cycle and within scholarly conversations
Relevance to the task at hand
Use of sources by others including peer review

IMRAD (see also Conventions)

The acronym stands for the standard sections of scientific journal articles:

Introduction
Methods
Results
And (or Abstract)
Discussion (and Conclusion)

Intellectual Freedom

"Intellectual Freedom is the right of every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction. It provides for free access to all expressions of ideas through which any and all sides of a question, cause or movement may be explored. Intellectual freedom encompasses the freedom to hold, receive and disseminate ideas" (Intellectual Freedom and Censorship Q & A, The American Library Association). Intellectual Freedom is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution.
To demonstrate an understanding of Intellectual Freedom, a student would:

Acknowledge that judgements can be based on limited or misleading information
Advocate for and hold oneself to the same rigorous standards of evidence and proof that one hold others.
Allow others to access materials that conflict with one's own beliefs, feelings, or values
Encourage others to form rational viewpoints, draw supportable conclusions, and think coherently and logically
Learn to be socially critical even when it challenges the status quo
Participate in social interchange within information ecosystems
Prevent the censoring of materials for others
Publicly support a healthy exchange of ideas without hostility
Recognize that information may intentionally distort or slant the truth
Recognize that diverse ideas and worldviews that challenge a researcher are valuable
Recognize the need to struggle with confusion and unsettled questions over an extended period to achieve deeper an understanding or insight
Recognize the role of libraries, their protection of access and privacy, and a wide range of information including those which are valued for their controversial nature
Uphold the rights of others

Metaliteracy

As defined by the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, "meta literacy expands the scope of traditional information skills (determine, access, locate, understand, produce, and use information) to include the collaborative production and sharing of information in participatory digital environments (collaborate, produce, and share). This approach requires an ongoing adaptation to emerging technologies and an understanding of the critical thinking and reflection required to engage in these spaces as producers, collaborators, and distributors."

Online body language

How the level of engagement is communicated in an online forum. Examples include:

Affirmation of content (forwarding, reposting, sharing)
Amplification of expression through typography, emoticons, or "likes"
Immediacy or delay of response
Inclusion or exclusion of others
Symbolic content (emoticons or likes)

Online participation

Basic guidelines for participating in online forums for research projects include:

Building an awareness that communication, inquiry, and research are part of an academic conversation
Creating a connection between rights and responsibilities
Demonstrating thoughtful participation
Identifying the purpose of the group
Identifying the parameters of participation
Observing expected etiquette for communications
Setting goals

PICO (see also Conventions)

Used in evidence-based models for research questions, the acronym stands for:

Problem, Patient, or Population
Intervention or Indicator
Comparison
Outcome
Optional: Time element or Type of Study

Professional/Technical

(see Discipline)

Prompting, Guidance, Support sequence

Model of most-to-least leading by a teacher with a "gradual release in responsibility," that is, increasing students' responsibility for their understanding, with students working towards mastery of concept or skill:
Prompting

Start the learning
Teacher-led introduction
Many scaffolds of different types

Guidance

Beyond introduction
Guide students to self-lead
Some scaffolds

Support

Students working on their own
Support when needed
Few scaffolds

The prompting sequence is used in lower grades to show the developmental progression towards mastery, but only up to a particular level for a particular learning goal. Then, an increase in complexity and difficulty in learning would start the sequence over again.

Reader or reading identity

The attitudes and practices that develop one's identity as a reader, over time and through practice, including reading:

Habits
Perspectives
Strengths
Weaknesses

Reading literacy agenda

Increase the range of selection of reading materials, and self-challenge to stretch reading abilities.

Reading processes

Particular examples of reading processes include:

Preview text that is long or appears to be challenging
Select strategies to successfully manage the reading of the source
Use context to alleviate confusion by rereading
Visualize what the author is describing to correctly identify evidence for an informed opinion or to draw supportable conclusions

Resiliency (in reading)

Habits of mind which foster resilience in reading include:

Avoiding intellectual pretense; respectfully and fairly address ideas, beliefs, or viewpoints (self and others)
Analyzing and evaluating beliefs based on reason and evidence
Being conscious of our egocentric tendency to identify truth with our immediate perceptions of long-standing thoughts or beliefs
Building a relationship between personal background knowledge and experiences and the content included in the text selections
Constructing (personal) lists of habits or strategies that help conquer difficult tasks
Critically assessing ideas considered dangerous and absurd, and the distortion or falsity in some ideas strongly held in a social group, recognizing that such ideas are sometimes rationally justified (in whole or in part)
Establishing a reading routine (time, duration, place)
Participating in social and intellectual communities
"Recasting" a story (what they heard or read) and distinguishing important from unimportant information
Sharing thoughts and ideas
Thinking for oneself, to gain command over thought processes
Using rational control over one's assumptions

Resource

In K-12, resources can refer to places to access sources, such as databases and the internet. It can also refer to materials use to support learning.
In college, "Resource" refers to what makes the database possible (paying a subscription price); "tool" refers to what contains sources, such as a database; "source" refers to the articles or items contained within a database (directory, website, search engine). Also, tools within a database for college students would be the search and format limiters.

Scholarly conversation

Existing research and scholarship, available through published sources, including:

Conference Proceedings
Literature reviews and bibliographies
Peer-reviewed journal articles
Research studies

Sources

Including but not limited to:

Aggregated sources, such as from a library database
Blogs and comments
Crowdsourced datasets or results
Curated collections, such as from a library catalog
Datasets
Government publications
Interviews
Journalism (Investigative, long-form, magazine, and news articles)
Open journals (electronically published)
Primary sources
Scholarly/peer-reviewed articles
Social media
Webpages and websites

Source tools

Features within information sources such as:

Accessibility features
Citations
Footnotes
Index
Internal linking
Search box
Table of content

Threshold concept

As defined by the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education: "Threshold concepts are core or foundational concepts that, once grasped by the learner, create new perspectives and ways of understanding a discipline or challenging knowledge domain. Such concepts produce a transformation within the learner; without them, the learner does not acquire expertise in that field of knowledge. Threshold concepts can be thought of as portals through which the learner must pass in order to develop new perspectives and wider understanding."