The effects of web-based inquiry learning mode with the support of collaborative digital reading annotation system on information literacy instruction

Past studies have indicated that primary schools' students have difficulty in filtering out incorrect or unreliable information from the Internet when facing a large amount of information due to the lack of basic digital literacy and sensitivity. Therefore, the establishment of a mechanism for information judgment and evaluation to promote primary schools' students digital reading skills and information literacy has become a more and more important research issue in recent years. This study thus developed a web-based inquiry learning mode with collaborative digital reading annotation system support (WILM-CDRASS) aiming to provide innovative teaching mode of effectively enhancing information evaluation abilities of primary schools' students. A quasi-experimental design was conducted in this study to examine the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of using WILM-CDRASS to enhance information evaluation abilities of primary schools' students compared to a web-based inquiry learning mode with general discussion board support (WILM-GDBS). A total of 50 Grade 5 students from two classes of an elementary school in New Taipei City of Taiwan participated in a collaborative inquiry-based learning course, “Internet information judgment and evaluation,” in this study. A total of 25 students from a class was assigned as the experimental group using WILM-CDRASS to enhance their information evaluation abilities, and a total of 25 students from the remaining class was assigned as the control group using WILM-GDBS. The learning outcomes of WILM-CDRASS and WILM-GDBS in the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance were also compared between students with different prior knowledge levels and cognitive styles from both groups. The analytical results revealed that the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of learners in the experimental group using WILM-CDRASS for an information literacy course are significantly superior to those of learners in the control group using WILM-GDBS. The research findings also showed that the use of WILM-CDRASS was more beneficial to the students with low prior knowledge and field-independent cognitive style than those of using WILM-GDBS. As for technology acceptance, students with low prior knowledge perceived the use of WILM-CDRASS more helpful than WILM-GDBS for their learning. Based on the research results, several suggestions for the implementation of WILM-CDRASS to support information literacy courses were proposed. Besides, it is suggested to investigate students' effective learning behaviors and the relationship between the learning behaviors and learning performance in inquiry-based information literacy courses with WILM-CDRASS support in future study.