In his article, McKenzie proposes strategies to "prevent the highway robbery of the Electronic Age". In his seven "antidotes," I found "Antidote 5" represented the most useful one for my population of special needs students, for whom narrowing information for "storage" is a monumental and often overwhelming task.
I particularly liked his sample format for electronic note taking, which included citations, subject and key words (as pulled from graphic organizers used during the research process), and the abstract, or a paraphrased summary of findings.
Though I have used a similar format, I have never built in the subject and key words, which would be a struggle for many of my students. With guided practice, I believe that it would truly bring them to a higher level of research, when used in conjunction with the summary/paraphrasing practice of the abstract. I notice that McKenzie's book was copyrighted in 1998; his plagiarism fears have become reality and beyond.
In McKenzie's bio, I notice that he has extensive experience with the gifted population, and though I have no doubt that he could reach many at all levels, I find myself thinking of the modifications that would be needed to enable my students to access the curriculum, using "Antidotes 1-7". How many of my concrete thinkers would be able to move from the "black ink" of the other's ideas to the "green ink" of questioning and original thought?
