A. Literacy Connections and Applications · Literacy for Life: Transferable Skills, Digital Media Literacy and Diverse Voices

Research and Information Literacy II: Curated Information, Building Knowledge and Using Sources Ethically

A2 A2.3 A2.1About 70 minutes

Learning goals

I can explain how search engines, feeds, editors and AI tools curate information, and search beyond what is curated for me.
I can use precise search strategies and tell primary sources from secondary sources.
I can build knowledge by synthesizing several sources with different perspectives.
I can create texts that respect legal and ethical considerations: quoting, paraphrasing, citing and using AI tools honestly.

Words to know

curated information
Information selected and arranged for you by someone or something: a search algorithm, a social feed, an editor, a playlist or an AI tool.

primary source
A first-hand source from the time or the person involved: an interview, a diary, a photograph, original data, a speech.

secondary source
A source that describes, analyzes or interprets primary sources: a textbook, a documentary, a review.

synthesize
Combine information and ideas from several sources to build a new understanding of your own.

paraphrase
Restate a source's idea fully in your own words and sentence structure, and cite it.

patchwriting
Copying a source's sentences but swapping a few words. It is still plagiarism.

plagiarism
Presenting someone else's words, ideas or work (including AI-generated text) as your own without credit.

Remember from Grade 8

In Grade 8 you learned that feeds and search results are curated, met filter bubbles, and practised citing sources and synthesizing information. Grade 9 adds better search strategies, primary and secondary sources, deeper synthesis of differing perspectives, and the legal and ethical side of creating texts, including AI tools.

Let's start with two searches

Two classmates both search should school start later. One gets articles about teen sleep science. The other gets videos of people complaining about bus schedules. Same question, different results. Their search history, location and what they clicked before all shaped what they saw.

Neither saw everything. To build knowledge, you need to notice the curation and search on purpose.

Who curated this?

Search engines rank results with algorithms. Top results may be ads (marked Sponsored) or pages optimized to rank well, not necessarily the best.
Social feeds and video platforms recommend content based on what keeps you watching.
Human curators choose too: news editors, teachers, librarians, playlist makers.
AI tools (chatbots and AI search summaries) produce summaries that can be useful starting points but can also be wrong, leave out perspectives, or invent sources that don't exist.

Curation isn't bad; you couldn't read the whole internet. But the curated view can be narrow. Good researchers step outside it.

Search on purpose

Most major search engines support these tricks:

"Quotation marks" find an exact phrase: "later school start times".
A minus sign removes a word: jaguar -car (the animal, not the car).
site: limits results to one kind of site: teen sleep site:canada.ca searches the Government of Canada's main website (many other federal sites end in gc.ca).
Use different words for the same idea: start time, bell time, school schedule.
Search for perspectives on purpose: add students, parents, bus, research, or the name of a community affected.
Use your library's databases (many public libraries offer free access with a library card): they hold edited magazines, newspapers and encyclopedias.

Primary and secondary sources

A primary source is first-hand: an interview, a survey's original data, a photograph, a speech, a diary. A secondary source analyzes or summarizes primary sources: a news article about a study, a textbook, a documentary. Strong research uses both, and traces secondary claims back to the primary source when it can.

Research is a path, not a single search. Synthesis (step 5) is where you build knowledge that is truly yours.

Building knowledge: synthesis

Summarizing says what one source says. Synthesizing connects several sources to answer your question: where they agree, where they disagree, why, and what that means.

A synthesis grid helps: put sources across the top and sub-questions down the side, then fill in notes in your own words.

Sub-question	Source A: sleep research summary (secondary)	Source B: bus company statement (primary)	Source C: our class survey (primary)
Do teens need a later start?	During puberty, many teens' natural sleep times shift later; Canadian guidelines recommend 8 to 10 hours a night for ages 14 to 17	Not addressed	Most of the 28 students said they feel tired in first period
What are the obstacles?	Not addressed	Buses are shared with elementary schools; later times would change routes	Some students have after-school jobs and sports
Whose perspective?	Scientists	Transportation planners	Students in one class

A synthesis grid for the question Should our high school start later? Sources B and C are invented for this lesson.

Worked example

Let's synthesize three sources into one paragraph

Using the grid above, write a short synthesis paragraph answering Should our high school start later?

Find the agreement: A (sleep research) and C (our survey) both point to teens being short of sleep in the morning.
Find the tension: B (bus company) shows a practical obstacle: shared buses.
Weigh the sources: A is research-based and general; C is first-hand but small (one class of 28) and not a random sample; B is first-hand about logistics, and the company has its own interest in simple schedules.
Write in your own words and cite each idea: Sleep research suggests that many teenagers' bodies naturally fall asleep later during puberty, and Canadian guidelines call for 8 to 10 hours of sleep a night for 14- to 17-year-olds (Source A). Our class survey supports this: most of the 28 students reported feeling tired in first period (Source C), though one class is a small sample. However, a later start is not simple, because buses are shared with elementary schools (Source B). A later start seems worth exploring, but only with a transportation plan that works for younger students too.
Check: every borrowed idea is credited; the final sentence is the writer's own conclusion.

A synthesis connects sources (agreement + tension), weighs them (strengths, limits, perspective), credits each one, and ends with your own reasoned conclusion.

Using sources legally and ethically

Quote when the exact words matter. Use quotation marks and cite. Keep quotations short (fair dealing supports short quotations for research, education, criticism and review).
Paraphrase by putting the idea fully into your own words and sentence structure, then cite. Patchwriting (keeping the original sentence and swapping a few words) is still plagiarism.
Cite with a consistent style. Many Ontario schools use MLA style for English: an in-text citation like (Lee) points to an entry in your Works Cited list.
Images, music and video need credit and the right permission or licence (see the Digital Citizenship lesson).
AI tools: follow your teacher's rules for each task. If AI use is allowed, say how you used it, check every fact, and never present AI-generated writing as your own. AI tools can make up quotations and sources, so never cite a source you haven't found and read yourself.

The parts of an MLA works-cited entry: **Author. "Title of source." Container, Date, Location.** (This article and website are invented for the example.)

Close it, then write it

To avoid patchwriting: read the passage, close the tab or cover it, write the idea from memory in your own words, then check back for accuracy and add the citation.

Just for fun

Funny-but-true: humans were curating information long before algorithms. The Dewey Decimal System, still used to arrange books in many school and public libraries, was first published in 1876. That's the same year Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone, so library shelves are a "recommendation system" as old as the phone!

Hands-on activity

Build a mini synthesis grid

You need: a library card or internet access, a grown-up, paper (or a document) and a pencil.

Choose a question that matters to your community, such as Should our town build an outdoor skating rink? or Should cellphones be allowed at lunch?
Use at least two search tricks (quotation marks, minus sign, site:, synonyms) and write down which ones helped.
Find three sources with different perspectives, including at least one primary source. You can create a primary source yourself by interviewing a family member or neighbour (ask permission and write their answers down accurately).
Fill in a synthesis grid (sources across, 2 or 3 sub-questions down).
Write a 5-to-7-sentence synthesis paragraph that shows agreement, tension, a judgment about the sources, and your conclusion. Cite each source.
Write a Works Cited list (for the interview: Last name, First name. Personal interview. Date.).

What to look for: different perspectives, ideas in the writer's own words, every idea credited, and a conclusion that follows from the evidence.

Your turn

Give two examples of how information is curated for you.

What does putting a phrase in quotation marks do in a search?

Is a recording of a speech a primary or secondary source? A textbook chapter about the speech?

What is the difference between summarizing and synthesizing?

What is patchwriting, and why is it a problem?

Name three rules for using AI tools honestly in research.

What are the five main parts of an MLA works-cited entry for an online article (in order)?

More practice: warm-up

What does the word Sponsored next to a search result mean?

Is an interview you conduct yourself primary or secondary?

What search trick removes a word from results?

True or false: if you change a few words in a sentence, you don't need to cite it.

What is the list of sources at the end of an MLA paper called?

More practice: on your own

Original: "Freezing rain can coat power lines with ice, adding weight that may cause them to snap." Write a proper paraphrase.

Which is patchwriting? (a) "Freezing rain can cover power lines with ice, adding weight that might cause them to break." (b) "Ice storms can bring down power lines because the ice is heavy."

Your AI chatbot gives you a quotation from a famous scientist with a book title. What should you do before using it?

Write a search using two tricks to find Government of Canada information about ice storms.

Why should your research include sources from different perspectives?

Challenge

Explain how a filter bubble could make a student's research one-sided, and give three specific actions to counter it.

Evaluate this research process: "I asked an AI chatbot my essay question, copied its answer into my notes, and used the three sources it listed in my Works Cited."

Write a synthesis sentence that connects these two invented sources: Source 1 (a city report): the new bike lane has reduced car speeds on Elm Street. Source 2 (an interview with a shop owner on Elm Street): fewer customers can park in front of my store now.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which is a primary source?

What does synthesizing sources mean?

Which search finds the exact phrase later start time?

Which is plagiarism?

Why should you be careful with AI chatbot summaries in research?

In MLA, what is the container?

For parents and teachers

What this lesson teaches: the rest of A2.3: researching with attention to curated information, building knowledge, and creating texts that respect legal and ethical considerations. It also connects to A2.1 (responsibilities around others' work).

How to help: Show your teen your library card's online databases. Be an interview subject for their primary source. Talk openly about AI tools: ask what their teacher allows for each assignment, and encourage honesty about how they use them.

Common difficulties: patchwriting (very common at this age; the "close it, then write it" tip helps); citing sources they haven't read; treating the first search page as the whole story.