מי כתב את זה? חשיבה על מקורות המידע המקוון

In the digital era, the vast volumes of information available to readers
necessitate the development of digital literacy skills for learning from
multiple information sources. These information sources often provide
conflicting expert accounts which challenge learners’ knowledge
construction processes. The aim of the current study was to provide a close
observation of spontaneous sourcing processes while reading conflicting
online information sources, to examine the relation between sourcing while
reading and subsequent argument construction, and to assess the role of
differences in epistemic thinking in sourcing. 61 university students thought
aloud while reading four blog-posts that provide conflicting expert accounts
regarding a socio-scientific controversy. The findings revealed a wide range
of sourcing practices. High sourcing participants made more sourcing
activities, paid more attention to source characteristics, and made sourcesource comparisons. Higher levels of sourcing while reading were found to
be related to argument complexity. Epistemic thinking and gender were
related to sourcing practices. Further research is required in order to identify
the factors that contribute to better sourcing online and how sourcing can be
fostered in educational settings.