Michael DeSchryver. Web‐Mediated Knowledge Synthesis for Educators .Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. 2015, DOI: 10.1002/jaal.373
In his 2015 journal article Dr. DeSchryver presents skill recommendations and guidance for more effective high-level use of the”ubiquitous information”available on the internet recognizing that developing the ability to do high level thinking and processing of information may well become among the most important literary skill for teachers to teach and students to learn in the 21st Century.
This journal article recounts the steps that lead to the development of the Theory of Web-Mediated Knowledge Synthesis. The researchers first step was a literature review that, looked at synthesis, “operationalized in educational psychology (e.g., Bloom & Krathwohl, 1956 ); reading comprehension (e.g., Duke & Pearson, 2002 ; Dole et al., 1991 ); hypertext and Web- based reading (e.g., Leu et al., 2011 ); Cognitive Flexibility Theory (e.g., Spiro & Jehng, 1990 ); and creativity
(e.g., Csikszentmihalyi, 1997 ; Sternberg, 1988) provided the basis for a dichotomous definition of synthesis. The second step engaged ,” a multiple case study of advanced learners using the Web for ill- structured reading- to-
learn and reading- to- do tasks.” The two steps together provide the foundation for, ” The theory [which] provides a road map for continued research in this rapidly evolving area, but also informs the design of better ways of learning by providing “the right level of analysis in order to bridge the gap between description and design” (Mishra & Koehler, 2006 , p. 29)”
This journal article has direct value and application to my work and studies because effective research on educational technology subjects and topics such as “gamification” and “learning management systems” and “healthcare corporate compliance will probably need to use divergent keyword search techniques in order to, “contribute to producing generative synthesis of ideas. See Theory of Web- Mediated Knowledge Synthesis (DeSchryver, 2012,2015). It is the synthesis of ideas and information that will be the main way to, as Dr. DeShryver postulates, “[Add] value by generating knowledge based on the information provided on the Web.”
Applied Educational Technology 