Liked this piece at inside higher ed describing an attempt to move students beyond google as their primary form of research.

I wonder, though, how this story plays out where there isn’t an exceptional library. I find that many of my students — both at a high school and a university level — are just as frustrated with internet search engines but have nowhere else to turn.

One of the cool things about working with pre-service teachers across multiple disciplines is that I have an open window into what we expect of our high-school students. Even as we’re bombarded with the message that our secondary schools are failing to prepare students for the future, complaints about low expectations are unfair and unfounded. The massive amount of material teachers are supposed to cover, whether from the amorphous state standards or the large textbook packages they’re given, all but guarantees a feeling of helplessness.

And without a strong disciplinary background, there’s little likelihood that students will have the time or the energy to ensure that it all can be linked together.