http://www.flickr.com/photos/14802104@N07/6345154126
Found on flickrcc.net
Friday, December 7, 2012
wireless library technology
http://www.flickr.com/photos/14802104@N07/6345154126
Found on flickrcc.net
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Teacher librarians as promoters of educational technology
Came across the article "the Role of School Librarians in Promoting the Use of Educational Technologies" prepared by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Media Specialists SIG (SIGMS) Executive Advocacy Committee. It provides a nice overview of the role of the TL with a focus on technology.
Friday, October 12, 2012
ETL501 final thoughts
With the final assignment back its time to reflect on the subject as a whole.
So far I have found this to be the most well organised and resourced of the subjects and I found the content exciting, challenging and inspiring. Creating a pathfinder was an excellent assessment and the potential for these for teaching and assessments is huge. The assessment also highlighted the importance of gaining a fuller understanding of the Australian National Curriculum and working within the general capabilities. But perhaps most importantly, the need to plan and structure the search process as well as pathfinder and the resources contained within them was made abundantly clear through this process. But having done this once I can see that future efforts will be much quicker and better planned.
One great outcome of having done this unit is that I have created 2 other websites for local clubs and groups and although the formatting sometimes drives me crazy, I have been encouraging others to use simple programs like weebly too.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Library information services
This week we reflect on library information services
I think of a reference interview as a first contact with a librarian about information needs. But is this changing? In my youth the school librarian was often a feared figure, the keeper of knowledge, arbiter of noise, a disapproving eye. I can remember trawling through the handwritten catalogue cards rather than asking this figure asking for help finding information. Thankfully those days have passed and a large portion of the librarians role is actually making sense of the information needs of the library users - both physically and digitally (Janes, 2008).
The digital reference service is an interesting idea, I was told recently (by a friend doing the TAFE library diploma) that in places like the UK this is becoming one of the main services provided by some libraries and that if you submit your info request after library hours it gets forwarded to the US so that it can be returned within a short period of time!
In terms of providing information services in school i think the 5 key areas for teacher librarians are as follows:
- selecting resources that support teaching and learning needs (after all that's our main purpose in a school)
- assistance in developing information skills (so students can use these resources effectively)
- ensuring maximum access to resources (this would also encompass the organisational and cataloguing aspects of resources for without these how can you maximise access?)
- focal point for learning (because we need libraries to be this to ensure their survival, this naturally would include ITC access and providing appropriate environment)
- information tools and services (including community networks and resources)
We were also asked to reflect on School Community Profiles. The notion of the school community profile is consistent with Bishop (2007) and others who discuss the need for resources to match the characteristics and needs of the users. In particular Bishop advocates such a community profile as a way of understanding needs and characteristics as well as developing an understanding of community resources and networks. This kind of information allows TLs to tailor the resources to meet the information needs of the school community they service
As for web learning, this is an increasing part of the TL role and when done well websites and wikis can provide a great tool for students to access information and resources and interact and collaborate. As for the argument of wikis vs web - i'm all web! I think Valenza's (2010) arguments being pro-wiki, are outdated. All her arguments for wikis are equally applicable to websites. Web host and design providers such as weebly and webs (as mentioned by Herring) mean that all those capabilities mentioned by Valenza can be done on a website without having the need to understand or write code - and I think websites have greater design flexibility than wikis.
I think of a reference interview as a first contact with a librarian about information needs. But is this changing? In my youth the school librarian was often a feared figure, the keeper of knowledge, arbiter of noise, a disapproving eye. I can remember trawling through the handwritten catalogue cards rather than asking this figure asking for help finding information. Thankfully those days have passed and a large portion of the librarians role is actually making sense of the information needs of the library users - both physically and digitally (Janes, 2008).
The digital reference service is an interesting idea, I was told recently (by a friend doing the TAFE library diploma) that in places like the UK this is becoming one of the main services provided by some libraries and that if you submit your info request after library hours it gets forwarded to the US so that it can be returned within a short period of time!
In terms of providing information services in school i think the 5 key areas for teacher librarians are as follows:
- selecting resources that support teaching and learning needs (after all that's our main purpose in a school)
- assistance in developing information skills (so students can use these resources effectively)
- ensuring maximum access to resources (this would also encompass the organisational and cataloguing aspects of resources for without these how can you maximise access?)
- focal point for learning (because we need libraries to be this to ensure their survival, this naturally would include ITC access and providing appropriate environment)
- information tools and services (including community networks and resources)
We were also asked to reflect on School Community Profiles. The notion of the school community profile is consistent with Bishop (2007) and others who discuss the need for resources to match the characteristics and needs of the users. In particular Bishop advocates such a community profile as a way of understanding needs and characteristics as well as developing an understanding of community resources and networks. This kind of information allows TLs to tailor the resources to meet the information needs of the school community they service
As for web learning, this is an increasing part of the TL role and when done well websites and wikis can provide a great tool for students to access information and resources and interact and collaborate. As for the argument of wikis vs web - i'm all web! I think Valenza's (2010) arguments being pro-wiki, are outdated. All her arguments for wikis are equally applicable to websites. Web host and design providers such as weebly and webs (as mentioned by Herring) mean that all those capabilities mentioned by Valenza can be done on a website without having the need to understand or write code - and I think websites have greater design flexibility than wikis.
Bishop, K. (2007). Community analysis and needs assessment. In The collection program in schools : concepts, practices and information sources (4th ed.) (pp. 19-24). Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited.
Janes, J. (2008). An Informal History (and Possible Future) of Digital Reference.
Valenza, J. (2010) Ten reasons why your next pathfinder should be a wiki.
Friday, September 7, 2012
Students and web use
This week I am reminded of the need to teach information skills across curriculum and certainly not in isolation or just in the library, particularly as it appears that these skills are not necessarily as transferable as we might like (Herring 2010). It also reinforced that students rely on the capabilities of search engines more than they should (Chung and Neuman, 2007 and Kuiper et. al. 2008). Herring's question formulation paper also made me think that perhaps I haven't paid enough attention to the different tools and processes we can employ in defining our information needs.
The Kuiper et.al (2008) research also raised some interesting points about reading skills when seeking information on websites. For example, that less appropriate reading skills were employed when students were unsure if a site was relevant. I contemplating this, I wonder how much of an impact the perception of "speed' and "ease" of search engines and the pursuit "the right answer" affects this. Its interesting that our online patience appears to be shorter while our expectations, particularly in a search engine's ability to find what we want may be higher.
I am conscious of my own patterns of behaviour when searching for information of the distraction of following threads in pursuit of 'unique' information and the ahhh factor of those serendipitous finds. I am reminded of the value of planning searches and understanding your information needs.... I just need to remember this when it comes time for my next assignment.
The Kuiper et.al (2008) research also raised some interesting points about reading skills when seeking information on websites. For example, that less appropriate reading skills were employed when students were unsure if a site was relevant. I contemplating this, I wonder how much of an impact the perception of "speed' and "ease" of search engines and the pursuit "the right answer" affects this. Its interesting that our online patience appears to be shorter while our expectations, particularly in a search engine's ability to find what we want may be higher.
I am conscious of my own patterns of behaviour when searching for information of the distraction of following threads in pursuit of 'unique' information and the ahhh factor of those serendipitous finds. I am reminded of the value of planning searches and understanding your information needs.... I just need to remember this when it comes time for my next assignment.
Chung, J. and Neuman, D. (2007) High school students' information seeking and use for class projects. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(10), 1503-1517.
Herring, J. (2010) School students, question formulation and issues of transfer: a constructivist grounded analysis. Libri, 60(3) 218-229.
Kuiper, E., Volman, M. and Terwel, J. (2008) Students' use of Web literacy skills and strategies: searching, reading and evaluating Web information. Information Research, 13(3).
Friday, August 31, 2012
web 2.0 or 3.0?
This week we are exploring web 2.0. I found this topic really interesting and was diverted along the way into thoughts about web 3.0. I think the uses and potential of web 2.0 tools such as wikis and blogs are reasonably well understood but like most of these things maintenance and updating is the key to relevance and also one of the trickier aspects.
The other is the pace at which technology and interface trends change. In fact, as Weebly, shows us, it is now no longer necessary to have any knowledge of web code to create a website. I think the bigger issue is the idea that connectivity, regardless of interface, will become more a part of teaching - particularly if we want to engage today's students. Perhaps as Herring (2011) suggests about websites needing to be evaluated on their educational merits - the use of any technological tool should be because it is the best vehicle for learning not simply for the sake of using technology.
O'Connell (2008) refers to informal learning spaces and the opportunities for personalised learning that web 2.0 can provide suggesting that it's part of the TLs role to structure this material to promote information literacy. This make me think of the value social bookmarking could potentially have - which links back to web 3.0 and the idea of making meaning and connections of data
web 3.0 - the semantic web. The idea of filtering the filters, aggregating, integrating and adding value to content - making sense of the data. But whose sense and how to describe? This is a great video! I have been more and more drawn to Judy O'Connell's work - i wish my blog held a fraction of her insight and knowledge!
The other is the pace at which technology and interface trends change. In fact, as Weebly, shows us, it is now no longer necessary to have any knowledge of web code to create a website. I think the bigger issue is the idea that connectivity, regardless of interface, will become more a part of teaching - particularly if we want to engage today's students. Perhaps as Herring (2011) suggests about websites needing to be evaluated on their educational merits - the use of any technological tool should be because it is the best vehicle for learning not simply for the sake of using technology.
O'Connell (2008) refers to informal learning spaces and the opportunities for personalised learning that web 2.0 can provide suggesting that it's part of the TLs role to structure this material to promote information literacy. This make me think of the value social bookmarking could potentially have - which links back to web 3.0 and the idea of making meaning and connections of data
web 3.0 - the semantic web. The idea of filtering the filters, aggregating, integrating and adding value to content - making sense of the data. But whose sense and how to describe? This is a great video! I have been more and more drawn to Judy O'Connell's work - i wish my blog held a fraction of her insight and knowledge!
The Next Big Thing is Web 3.0. Catch It If You Can from Judy O'Connell
O’Connell, J. (2008). School library 2.0 : new skills, new knowledge, new futures. In P. Godwin & J. Parker (Eds.), Information literacy meets Library 2.0 (pp. 51-62). London : Facet Publishing.
Kennedy, J. (2006). Collection Management: A concise introduction. (2nd ed). Wagga Wagga NSW: Centre for Information Studies.
. Tuesday, August 28, 2012
connected learning? Is it possible
I thought this was an interesting premise - or goal for the future of education. Its exciting ...but technology changes so fast and today's connection trends may be different tomorrow - think my space to facebook, or tumblr to instagram, some suggest that twitter may not be relevant in 3 years. But whatever the interface connectivity is here and if we want to remain relevant then we need to integrate and tap into student's interests and preferred ways of connecting and communicating.
access this and more at Connected Learning Infographic | Connected Learning
access this and more at Connected Learning Infographic | Connected Learning
Thursday, August 23, 2012
websites and wikis
For our next assessment we need to create a learning pathway in the form of a website or wiki. This week I have been playing around with free software. I have loved weebly! Its so easy to use and looks so slick that I want to make websites for other stuff too!!
Am actually excited about this upcoming assessment.... mad isn't it?
Am actually excited about this upcoming assessment.... mad isn't it?
Friday, August 17, 2012
ETL501 assignment 1
This week it's full on assignment time - the main thrust is to look at criteria to evaluate websites. Part of the assessment was critically evaluating 2 criteria. In some ways the terminology, number of website evaluation guides and the concept of what constituted a set of criteria was harder conceptually than the actual evaluation we were required to do.
Partly this was due to the fact the assessment was open to interpretation about if we were analysing criteria for students to use or criteria for teacher-librarians. It was further complicated by authors such as Schrock who has the 5Ws - which are mainly directed at students, then also has a series of survey checklists (which look a lot like criteria) that are developed for both students and teachers and then also has her ABCs of website evaluation which looks like 26 criteria!!
Our lecturer suggested that partly the confusion on forums is a result of MASS (mature Age Student Syndrome) I think I have to agree - sometimes i'm quite clear about what I'm doing then read a post and am totally confused and unsure.... anyway...
In the end I evaluated Herring (2011) and ALSC (1997). Herring's strength is ultimately in that it is designed for teacher-librarians and puts education first, however, I think that his technical criteria are underdeveloped. Conversely the ALSC is strong on technical but weak on content and education. My position is that there is no definitive set of criteria. To make any evaluation worthwhile both the learners and educational context need to be considered and that means adjusting some of the criteria when looking at achieving a particular knowledge construct or product.
Partly this was due to the fact the assessment was open to interpretation about if we were analysing criteria for students to use or criteria for teacher-librarians. It was further complicated by authors such as Schrock who has the 5Ws - which are mainly directed at students, then also has a series of survey checklists (which look a lot like criteria) that are developed for both students and teachers and then also has her ABCs of website evaluation which looks like 26 criteria!!
Our lecturer suggested that partly the confusion on forums is a result of MASS (mature Age Student Syndrome) I think I have to agree - sometimes i'm quite clear about what I'm doing then read a post and am totally confused and unsure.... anyway...
In the end I evaluated Herring (2011) and ALSC (1997). Herring's strength is ultimately in that it is designed for teacher-librarians and puts education first, however, I think that his technical criteria are underdeveloped. Conversely the ALSC is strong on technical but weak on content and education. My position is that there is no definitive set of criteria. To make any evaluation worthwhile both the learners and educational context need to be considered and that means adjusting some of the criteria when looking at achieving a particular knowledge construct or product.
Schrock, K. (2002-12). Critical Evaluation of a Website: websites for Use by Educators. Retrieved http://kathyschrock.net/eval/pdfs/evalteacher.pdf
Herring, J. (2011). Improving Students’ Web use and Information Literacy: A Guide for Teachers and Teacher Librarians. London: Facet Publishing
Association for Library Services to Children (ALSC) - American Library Association (1997). Great websites for kids Selection Criteria. Retrieved http://www.ala.org/alsc/greatwebsites/greatwebsitesforkids/greatwebsites
Friday, August 10, 2012
searching
This week we explore search engines.
After reading about various search engines and the algorithms they use, I came away realising I am a lazy searcher. I have since been more conscious about what search engine i'm using and are employing better search techniques - using advanced searches, domains and " " more often than I used to and adding the - where appropriate!
Using a site such as Beaucoup can be advantageous in choosing the right search engine for the job .... but even though the 3 click rule has been dispelled, a one stop search shop like google does have appeal to the lazy searcher.
To test how well some search engines performed, a search on term "volcanoes school" was done. It was an enlightening. I tested different search engines gathered from the beaucope site but many of the results very very unpromising despite some being supposed to be educational search engines.
I enjoyed watching the videos on the knowledge 2.0 Livebinder site and spent a lot of time exploring different aspects of this site and the websites and information attached. I highly recommend it to everyone!
My favourite 'new' (to me) search engine is Wolfram Alpha - i like facts and calculations (though would have liked to know more about where they pull individual information from.
I guess the main point is that there are many different search engines and as an information professional you need to be aware of what's out there and hone your information and searching skills all the time......
no more lazy searching people
After reading about various search engines and the algorithms they use, I came away realising I am a lazy searcher. I have since been more conscious about what search engine i'm using and are employing better search techniques - using advanced searches, domains and " " more often than I used to and adding the - where appropriate!
Using a site such as Beaucoup can be advantageous in choosing the right search engine for the job .... but even though the 3 click rule has been dispelled, a one stop search shop like google does have appeal to the lazy searcher.
To test how well some search engines performed, a search on term "volcanoes school" was done. It was an enlightening. I tested different search engines gathered from the beaucope site but many of the results very very unpromising despite some being supposed to be educational search engines.
I enjoyed watching the videos on the knowledge 2.0 Livebinder site and spent a lot of time exploring different aspects of this site and the websites and information attached. I highly recommend it to everyone!
My favourite 'new' (to me) search engine is Wolfram Alpha - i like facts and calculations (though would have liked to know more about where they pull individual information from.
I guess the main point is that there are many different search engines and as an information professional you need to be aware of what's out there and hone your information and searching skills all the time......
no more lazy searching people
Friday, August 3, 2012
web evaluation
This week sees us exploring website evaluation.
It occurs to me that there is plenty of cross-over with aspects of collection management and the selection criteria used for acquiring resources. In fact many of the website evaluation tools are a simple extensions of those employed in selecting traditional resources (see Kennedy, 2006, pp. 50 - 53).
As was discussed in ETL 503 and raised by authors such as Hughes-Hassal and Mancall (2010) and Bishop (2007) when conducting any sort of evaluation of resources the purpose of the resources and the intended users and their characteristics must be the primary focus. In this way I agree with Herring's (2011, p. 39) assertion that educational criteria must be afforded the highest consideration.
In looking at the criteria available for use it is also worthwhile considering for whom the criteria is developed? Is it for a teacher or T-L to use in evaluating resources for students or is it designed for use by students. This distinction should colour the language and depth of evaluation required by the criteria.
It occurs to me that there is plenty of cross-over with aspects of collection management and the selection criteria used for acquiring resources. In fact many of the website evaluation tools are a simple extensions of those employed in selecting traditional resources (see Kennedy, 2006, pp. 50 - 53).
As was discussed in ETL 503 and raised by authors such as Hughes-Hassal and Mancall (2010) and Bishop (2007) when conducting any sort of evaluation of resources the purpose of the resources and the intended users and their characteristics must be the primary focus. In this way I agree with Herring's (2011, p. 39) assertion that educational criteria must be afforded the highest consideration.
In looking at the criteria available for use it is also worthwhile considering for whom the criteria is developed? Is it for a teacher or T-L to use in evaluating resources for students or is it designed for use by students. This distinction should colour the language and depth of evaluation required by the criteria.
Bishop, K. (2007). Community analysis and needs assessment. In The collection program in schools : concepts, practices and information sources (4th ed.) (pp. 19-24). Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited.
Herring, J. (2011) Improving Students' web use and information literacy: A guide for teachers and teacher librarians. London: facet Publishing
Hughes-Hassell, S., and Mancall, J., (2005) collection Management for Youth: Responding to the needs of Learners. Chicago, IL: American Library Association.
Kennedy, J. (2006). Collection Management: A concise introduction. (2nd ed). Wagga Wagga NSW: Centre for Information Studies.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)