Burnelle sees herself as a teacher. She teaches her students how to find and evaluate information, and then synthesize their research with their own critical thinking. It's an increasingly difficult task with the advent of the Internet. "If you really are looking," she says, "the Internet is wonderful. But you need to formulate some ideas and conclusions yourself."

To help the students at Largo High School do that, she gives an orientation to 9th graders that culminates in a hands-on activity where students get to practice researching in the school library. She talks with upper-level students about the importance of evaluating the veracity of sources, and also maintains a list of Web sites that are good starting points for student research.

She plans to teach two special classes this year as well: one focused on advanced Internet searching techniques, the other on copyright and plagiarism, which she sees as a major problem among students. "I've seen students copy and paste and then call it their own, which is plagiarism," she says. "They take whatever they see there and assume it's better than what they do."

On the importance of printed material:
"Students don't really know how to start a [Web] search. You really have to find a foundation. You have to read about your subject - usually, believe it or not, one of the best ways to start is the encyclopedia."