| By Gale Staff |
For Boise School District, equipping future-ready students is essential. When providing resources, district leaders understand students need access to credible content as well as practice building information literacy and critical-thinking skills.
Natasha Rush is a certified teacher librarian and building technology lead at Boise High School. Based on her years of teaching, Natasha says Gale resources are an obvious choice for her district. They’re accessible and easy to scaffold, and they offer diverse content to empower student choice.
These features are especially important to Boise High School students, whom Natasha describes as “politically charged.” These students are passionate about issues that affect them and want to be more active citizens, so Natasha directs them to Gale In Context to fuel their research with reliable content.
Student Passion Inspires Civic Engagement
Boise High School is located just a block from the State Capitol building. According to Natasha, many of her students are interested in following and discussing legislation that impacts their lives. “There are so many things that these kids are amped about,” Natasha explained, and students are always looking for ways to get involved.
Natasha keeps poster-making supplies in the library and serves as a sounding board for student questions, but most importantly, she wants to equip her students to find reputable information about issues.
Students often see stories on TikTok or Instagram, or they go to Google to find information quickly, but Natasha urges students to double-check their facts with vetted sources. This helps students learn not only to identify bias but also to be more cautious when stories give them an emotional reaction. Instead of feeling angry at a concerning headline, for example, students develop a habit of verifying information before they take an action, like sharing a story on social media.
Natasha connects her students to Gale In Context to find credible sources and strengthen their information literacy skills. She knows she can trust Gale resources because the content is curated by subject matter experts and grade appropriate. “Gale resources provide that level of security,” she said, noting that educators feel comfortable sharing these resources with students.
Building Future-Ready Students with Information Literacy Skills
As her students seek to get involved in politics, environmental causes, and more, Natasha is determined to make sure they’re finding reliable content to make informed decisions. By having her students practice media literacy now, she’s equipping them with valuable lifelong skills to become informed, active citizens.
Like most educators, Natasha stresses that building strong information literacy skills is key to student success in school and beyond. “Being able to sort information, ask questions about where it comes from, and determine its credibility is a critical-thinking skill that affects not only students’ academic performance but also their ability to function in society and be future-ready adults,” Natasha said. “The amount of information they have access to is only going to increase, and teaching them how to handle that information responsibly is of the utmost importance.”
Whether your students are passionate about politics or just starting to consider their roles as active citizens, connect them to current, credible resources to find trusted information.
With tools like Gale In Context, you can help students become more responsible digital citizens by equipping them with information literacy skills. Learn more about how you can help students practice media literacy with relevant, reliable content from Gale.
