Rural Voices Presentation

Information Literacy in Remote Indigenous Alaska:

Teachers’ Rural Voices

Jennifer Ward

Outreach Services Librarian,

Associate Professor of Library Science

William A. Egan Library

University of Alaska Southeast, Juneau, Alaska, United States

Thomas Duke

Associate Professor of Education

School of Education

University of Alaska Southeast, Juneau, Alaska, United States

Alaska, United States

Context – four communities in remote “bush” Alaska

Community – four teachers in masters in special education program

Culture – multiple/complex (Anglo-European, Mexican, Tlingit, Yupik, Athabascan, Inupiat Alaska Natives)

The Study

•What role does information literacy play in the lives of teachers who live and work in geographically isolated and sparsely populated rural communities?

• How do special education teachers and their students in remote communities of Alaska benefit from distance-delivered information literacy instruction?

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in Alaska

Study Methods

Phenomenological study ~ “semi-structured life world interviews”:

Telephone interviews, criterion sampling, analyzed field notes coding for common themes

Interviews: Learning the Craft of Qualitative Research Interviewing (2nd ed.) Steinar Kvale and Svend Brinkmann – University of Aarhus, Sage, 2009

Results

Four Themes Emerged:1. Rural issues and needs

2. Distance education & information literacy instruction

3. Development as a learner and researcher

4. Application of information literacy and research skills

Angoon, AlaskaPopulation 44286.4% AK Native (mainly Tlingit)55 miles (89 kilometers) SW of JuneauK-12 school / 91 students

Angoon, Alaska

Angoon, Alaska

Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire Street View ©2004, State of Alaska, DCRA

Goodnews Bay, Alaska

Population 23793.9% AK Native (Yup’ik Eskimo)110 air miles (177 kilometers) NW of DillinghamK-12 School / 54 students




Kotlik, AlaskaPopulation 59196.1% AK Native (Yup’ik Eskimo)165 air miles (266 kilometers) NW of BethelP-12 school / 177 students

Kotlik, Alaska

http://kot.loweryukon.org/Gallery/

Kotlik, Alaska

Kobuk, Alaska

Population 122Population of sled dogs >12293.6% AK Native Iñupiat Eskimo village on Kobuk River128 air miles (206 kilometers) NE of Kotzebue P-12 school / 35 students

Kobuk, Alaska

an Iñupiat village classroom in Alaska

Rural Voices

Rural Voices

“… As a teacher in a remote place, I need the Internet, e-mail, and interlibrary loan services”

“Turnover is a huge problem in rural communities. I think teachers would be less likely to get burnt-out and leave if they felt connected to something larger than themselves.”

Rural Voices

Rural Voices

[learning advanced research skills] “…opened up a world of educational discourse on disability that I wouldn't otherwise be able to access in a remote, rural community.”

Rural Voices

“continuing to educate myself keeps me connected to the inter-national literature… and … makes me excited to teach.”

“Before I learned to refine the searches, my searches were too broad. I would get frustrated and quit.”

Rural Voices

Rural Voices

“I feel empowered to educate myself.”

“I’m inspired now to teach my students to be their own filters of information rather than allow others to filter it for them.”

Rural Voices

Conclusions

• If the teachers in Alaska’s rural schools are not information literate – then who will be?

• Children in rural and remote Alaska need skilled information literate advocates in order to best serve their unique and special needs.

• Distance education is essential to reach adults in rural communities though there are technological difficulties to overcome

Conclusions

Conclusions

• Participants highly valued library services and gained a skill set they were not fully aware of before we taught them.

• Librarians must be aware of the issues specific to our bush community consumers and follow up with resources after they leave the university.

• Awareness of library services is not enough, in order for teachers to transfer these skills to their students they need instruction on how to use library resources.

How the Findings Impacted Our Practices

• Deeper awareness and understanding of the challenges and the commitment required of teachers in rural, remote, indigenous Alaskan communities

• We created follow-up professional development materials for teachers (explicit directions on how to access library resources and services post-graduation)

• Identified the need to further study and coordinate the delivery of library services and information literacy instruction to rural students

The End … Questions?