The Big Six
I was attracted to the Big6 because it is a process model.
It has defined steps that teachers and students can work through to obtain good
results. It's fundamental values is that is equip students with a set of skills
that helps them work with technology more successfully and efficiently. These
skills and understandings teaches students how to "find, process, and use
information effectively" (Eisenberg, 2001). This is important as the
internet has so much information that students need to know what to access and
how to access it.
The Steps
Step 1:
The first step is to define the problem and then
identify the information needed for the solution.
I believe this step is so vital as many students struggle
with understanding what they are trying to solve and what they need to solve
it. If they have a clear focus from the start of where they need to be it is
assured they will be heading in the right direction.
Step 2:
The second step allows students to identify all the
possible sources they could use to find information solutions and then
encourages them to choose the best possible source. This is also a helpful tool
as students can spend a lot of time seeking bits of information from all around
the web. To save time they simply choose the best sources and can use the
additional time to focus deeper on the information they find from those
sources.
Step 3:
Students use this step to locate and access the
sources and information. As the students know what sources and information they
need already; this will be a quick and easy process.
Step 4:
In this step students are expected to engage in the
information and extract the most valuable to their task. Engaging in the task
means to soak it in through as many senses as possible. This means to read it,
to hear it, to touch it and to view it. The further they immerse themselves in
the information the easier it is to create detailed mental images of
information - this improves their comprehension and retention of the
information (Marzano & Pickering, 2006).
It is important for students to complete the second part of this step
(extracting the most relevant information) as it will help them focus in on the
required task. Too many times students can have information overload. They need
to have skills to extract and identify relevant and valuable information.
Step 5:
This step is called synthesis. It focuses on
students organising the information from their sources and then presenting it.
The steps that have led the students up to this point should have prepared them
for completing this step efficiently and successfully.
Step 6:
Evaluate. One of the most important steps. The
students evaluate their product... and the overall effectiveness of it. They
also judge the efficiency of the process they followed. This step helps
students make informed decisions for their future practices. It gives them
skills to know how to reflect on and improve their actions.
Overall Big6 has so many vital steps. It equips students
with life skills. It does not just stop at how they complete technological
learning tasks. It is really a good framework for many activities and tasks.
References
- Eisenberg, M. (2001, November 19). Big6™ Skills Overview.
Retrieved July 22, 2012, from The Big6™: http://big6.com/pages/about/big6-skills-overview.php
- Marzano, R. J., & Pickering, D. J. (2006). Dimensions of
Learning Teacher's Manual. Victoria: Hawker Brownlow Education.
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