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by Ariana Stone: We are in the midst of a major shift at school libraries thanks to technology innovation. Here are a dozen of those tech tools responsible. 1. INSTANT MESSAGING 2. MOBILE DEVICES 3. WYSIWYG TUTORIAL-MAKERS FOR LIBRARIANS 4. MATERIAL CROWD-SOURCING FOR RURAL SCHOOLS 5. CUSTOM APPS 6. SCREENCASTS 7. CLOUD-BASED STORAGE 8. PORTABLE ENERGY METERS 9. ITUNESU 10. E-READERS AND E-BOOKS 11. AVAILABILITY ALERTS 12. BETTER RESOURCES FOR DISTANCE LEARNERS
“@jjvandyk: transformation of school libraries to a learning commons environment http://t.co/nQEwj9yT @MyBCLibrary” #UU_LIM "...school libraries are transforming to stay relevant in this global information economy and support the growing and changing needs of the learners. In addition to traditional roles of information literacy and providing the best resources to support curriculum, teacher-librarians support digital literacy and innovative learning practices – inquiry-based, project-based – for students and teachers. They actively connect learning to technology and resources, and facilitate knowledge creation for the school community. They are on a continuing quest to find new ways of supporting students in their learning. The role is multi-faceted, challenging, ever-evolving, and ultimately highly rewarding because the impact can be so significant."
January 24th, the American Library Association’s Digital Literacy Task Force, led by the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy in Washington, released “Digital Literacy, Libraries, and Public Policy,” a report highlighting support for digital literacy in the context of school, public, and academic libraries.
As schools across the nation move from printed books to digital books, school #libraries are adapting to keep pace http://t.co/A7rqftJE... "One of the biggest parts of the library is the learning studio, which is a place where students can go to create different digital resources such as audio and video recordings, multimedia pieces, or link up to share ideas and brainstorm. The learning studio offers facilitators and tech specialists to help students when necessary. “People often say that the library is going away,” McConnell said. “It’s really not—it’s a critical piece. It’s a place for community, collaboration, and it’s a place to find partners to help you in whatever literacy you’re trying to increase. That may be literacy in resources, media creation—those services are all there.” And the stereotypical librarian is evolving into someone who knows how to locate reputable online resources and can help students learn how to use those resources in their research. “I see librarians as media specialists,” McConnell said. “We still have literacy, whether it’s reading or research…the librarian is the perfect partner for the classroom. The role of the librarian has shifted” for the digital age, he said."
By By Tali Balas Kaplan, Andrea K. Dolloff, Sue Giffard, and Jennifer Still-Schiff: "Our post-Dewey system, which we’ve affectionately dubbed Metis (after the clever, crafty mother of the Greek god Athena), puts things together in a way that encourages kids to move easily from one idea to another. Zack’s natural and simple segue from paper craft to sewing would probably never have happened with Dewey: it would have entailed a jump from 735 to 646. That’s a big reason why a small but growing number of school and public libraries—from the Perry Branch Library in Gilbert, AZ; and Burke High School in Omaha, NE; to the newly opened Carmel Elementary School in Clarksville, TN; and Darien Library in Connecticut—have ditched Dewey, or at least have escorted the 136-year-old system partway out the door.
Has Metis made a difference? Absolutely. During the past year, in our middle-grade library (for kids in grades three to five), we’ve seen dramatic increases in circulation—including around 100 percent or more in our “Sports,” “Countries,” “Humor,” and “Mystery” sections, and a spike of 240 percent in “Machines” (which includes the military and transportation). And in those always under-used sections like “Languages” and what we now call “Community” (sections of the 300s in Dewey), we’ve seen a jump of more than 300 percent. The early grades library, for preK through second-grade kids, has seen similar gains in areas such as “Humor” (87 percent), “Scary” (148 percent), and “Adventure” (110 percent)."
Via nickcarman
by Maria Popova: "Curating eclectic interestingness from culture's collective brain" "Delightfully colorful and brimming with endearingly bad copywriting, these mid-century gems exude the same charming literary enthusiasm we’ve previously seen in the reading PSA posters of the WPA era"
"One of the ongoing joys of working in Higher Education is the opportunity to work with those entering the profession that you have been passionate about for many years. So I get really excited when I hear the stories from recent graduates, who start making a difference – almost straight away" "What Bec demonstrated with this work is that any school library and teacher librarian CAN have a great physical and virtual learning environment – on a budget – with professional enthusiasm and love for the work."
Via Trudy Raymakers
"I’ve been talking a lot about curating for and with students lately. As the curation movement gets stickier, more and more librarians and educators are joining. So I tasked my very able practicum student Chrissy Sirianni to help me pick some Scoop.its to share, offering a taste of the kind of current awareness the tool provides for school library professionals." Topics covered: 1. Books and reading 2. Librarianship 3. Technology in Education 4. Curation
Via Dennis T OConnor, Lourense Das
A worldwide problem, it seems... By Susan Elkin: "Books are to education and learning what air and water are to life. Every child needs access to the printed word and lots of encouragement to explore it in order to develop properly. You might, therefore, be surprised to learn that many schools do not have a library or a librarian – which seems a contradiction in terms. How can you have an organisation whose raison d’ ê tre is learning if it has no library? It’s like a restaurant without a kitchen or a zoo without any animals. There is no law requiring schools to have libraries either. I worked in a Kent secondary school in the 1990s which had a reasonable – if not wonderful – library extensively used by pupils until the head, clearly not a real educationist, decided that it was, quite literally a waste of space. She decreed that the books be shelved (marginalised?) in the back of English classrooms because she wanted to use the former library room for something else. Result? Reduced emphasis on wider reading and much less access to fewer books for students. The Society of Authors, which represents over 9,000 writers, is campaigning with other organisations for school libraries to be a legal requirement."
Anne Harding: "Two interesting training events last week, both with a school library theme, plus some valuable links and resources for school librarians. It was fascinating to lead discussions for the London School Library Association branch on the theme of the school library in a changing world. With so many changes that impact on school libraries happening in education and in publishing, as well as the ever evolving digital scene, there was lots to consider. Topics delegates chose to debate included the implications of the Ofsted report Moving English Forward for school librarians, funding issues, raising the profile of the library, information literacy for the Google generation, and how school libraries should deal with e-resources. We talked too about the opportunities social networking offers. The photo is of the lovely library at Lea Valley High School, where the training took place." "For anyone keen to keep up to date with the latest in the school library world, Heart of the School (http://heartoftheschool.edublogs.org/) is a fantastic resource. The School Library Network (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sln/) is also invaluable. The School Library Association (http://www.sla.org.uk/) is excellent. All the books in their Guidelines and Case Studies series (http://www.sla.org.uk/guidelines.php) are helpful and accessible. The latest guide, Twitterspace and Facecloud: Web.2.0 and Beyond for School Librarians (http://www.sla.org.uk/publication.php?isbn=9781903446669), is great. For school librarians considering their role in relation to e-resources, this workshop on e-book lending (http://www.peters-books.co.uk/pdf/ebooks.pdf%20) in schools looks very useful."
Lauren T. Taniguchi: "From staff reports TRENTON — The New Jersey Association of School Librarians (NJASL) released findings on Wednesday of a three-year study conducted by the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries (CISSL) at Rutgers University..." Some of the findings: "School librarians make key contributions to student success, including:
• Improvements in student test scores;
• Development of thinking-based competencies in using information, and development of positive and ethical values in relation to the use of information and technology and
• Increased interest in reading, increased participation in reading, the development of wider reading interests and becoming readers who are more discriminating.
In phase two, which was completed in November 2011, CISSL examined a sample of effective school libraries to identify the key criteria that enables these libraries to thrive and contribute to the learning agendas of the schools.
Findings show that in those schools:
• The school library is a learning center linked to classroom instruction;
• The school library supports the school’s mission to produce literate and informed learners who can thrive in a digital, knowledge-based world;
• The school library is a 21st-century classroom that provides an understanding of the information..." Read more: http://www.nj.com/cumberland/index.ssf/2012/02/three-year_study_asserts_benef.html
School Libraries Count!2011 supplementary report on digital citizenship http://t.co/qGuzTTWr... AASL's National Longitudinal Survey of School Library Programs Supplemental Report on Digital Citizenship Key Highlights: Traditional School Library Curriculum Carried Over Into Digital Citizenship Digital Citizenship Curriculum Digital Citizen Content Access as Barrier to Teaching Digital Citizenship
AASL Top 25 Websites for Teaching and Learning (What a treasure trove! "The "Top 25" Websites foster the qualities of innovation, creativity, active participation, and collaboration. They are free, Web-based sites that are user friendly and encourage a community of learners to explore and discover."
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Transmedia in Schools and Libraries: Thoughts and Strategies from Tyler Weaver http://t.co/HPLvFhmF via @zite In the first part of my conversation with Tyler Weaver we discussed the many benefits of teaching with, and making, comics as well as the role of the school librarian when it comes to transmedia… here we get a bit more specific in terms of the issues involved.
RT @ClaireAmosNZ: Teaching and E-learning: Libraries as beacons of 21st century pedagogy - http://t.co/8OkFfsbk Caire Amos response: "... to the Parliamentary Select Committee's 'Inquiry into the 21st Century Learning Environments and Digital Literacy' with a submission that touched on a number of areas. One area that has really stuck with me is the point raised about how important the school library is, and will remain to be, within our 21st century learning environments. See the excerpts below:
From the written submission:
The traditional school library building would be a good place to start in the re-visioning process - a secondary school library presents the perfect environment for a shared learning environment that could be redeveloped to provide resources (books and Digital) ICT, media and production tools and spaces.
and from the oral submission:
We need to see libraries as a strategic place to start this shift for all schools by ensuring that schools get the advice, guidance and funding they need to transform traditional libraries into multi-media multi-purpose learning commons and information centres. This would be a pragmatic way of ensuring all NZ students were able to access digital resources within a “21st Century Learning Environment” and therefore able to develop their digital competencies with an educational context."
http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2012/11/k-12/the-league-of-extraordinary-librarians-sljs-latest-tech-survey-shows-that-media-specialists-are-leading-the-way/ By Lauren Barack: "Meet the latest tech superheroes: school librarians. According to School Library Journal’s 2012 School Technology Survey (http://www.slj.com/#), media specialists are leading the charge to bring new media, mobile devices, social apps, and web-based technologies into our nation’s classrooms.
So far, the results have been pretty impressive: 87 percent of school librarians report that they’re in charge of their library’s technology, with 60 percent adding that they’ve also introduced it into the classroom. Furthermore, 44 percent now serve on their school’s tech team, and in these budget-troubled times, when many library positions are on the line, that role may mean increased job security. In fact, 55 percent of the elementary, middle, and high school librarians that responded to our survey say that their tech skills have increased their value in administrators’ eyes."
Via Joyce Valenza, Dennis T OConnor
By Peter M
"According to leading educational thinker, Sir Ken Robinson, in order to meet the challenges of living and working in the 21st century, we need to deliberately and systematically create spaces and processes in our schools that foster creativity and innovation. We shouldn’t be anaesthetising our children, he argues, we should be waking them up." [...] "Since 2009, a growing wave of library ‘makerspaces’ have emerged in public libraries, museums and community facilities in the United States to foster collaboration and creativity. Focussing particularly on engaging and inspiring teens and pre-teens, it is only very recently however that the ‘makerspace’ model has been considered as a good fit for school libraries.
A ‘makerspace’ is a collaborative learning environment where young people can come together to explore their own interests, learn to use tools and materials, and develop creative projects. They are dynamic workshop spaces for creative multimedia learning and doing. Not so much defined by the space or the specific activities but by a mindset of collaboration and creativity." [...] "It is essential that school leaders apply the same spirit of innovation and future focus to the re-imagination of their school library environments as they do to other aspects of both their built and virtual school environment. Library as creative collaborative makerspace is an exciting, transformative idea that warrants exploration." Read more: http://www.schools.natlib.govt.nz/blogs/libraries-and-learning/12-09/reconceptualising-school-library-collaborative-makerspace
Jennifer Habley: "American Libraries Magazine, the magazine of the American Library Association, delivers news and information about the library community." Three new research articles covering the topics of subscription databases, serving students with special needs or the dynamics that inhibit and/or enable school libraries to contribute to educational agendas are now available online as part of the American Association of School Librarian’s research journal, School Library Research.
"We love librarians. They’re the gatekeepers of knowledge and always looking to explore new ways to enhance the learning experience. I learned about the latest trends in libraries at this year’s CALICONin San Diego and love the move toward open source, cross-library sharing, and going digital. But what if you weren’t able to attend CALICON or simply want to get a regular update on all the fun stuff happening with libraries? Lucky for you, our friends at Online College shared the following post with us. It details 100 great blogs librarians around the world should add to their RSS reader." Looking for great Twitter chats for librarians? Click here: http://edudemic.com/2012/06/twitter-chats-library/ Looking for information on how libraries are using Pinterest? Click here: http://edudemic.com/2012/03/20-ways-libraries-are-using-pinterest-right-now/
Via Pippa Davies @PippaDavies
"Rutgers University Center for International scholarship in school libraries has released the second part of their research into the impact of school libraries on learning. Critical reading for school leaders."
Via L2_S2S, Anu Ojaranta, Karen Bonanno, Dr. Laura Sheneman
"Social networking is a participatory medium that is changing the very nature of our professional connections, our community practices and the nature of learning..."
Great presentation to get you thinking...
Via Rosa Martins, Lourense Das, Anu Ojaranta, Dennis T OConnor
Stacey Taylor: "We need to encourage quality teachers into the Teacher Librarian fold and to ensure that there are jobs for them to go to. We need to sell our wares to our own communities so that we become planning, teaching and change ... 'So how might we do this? Go to as many faculty meetings as possible, offer your services whenever possible to whoever will work with you.
Develop some expertise that is unique and useful to your community.
Write and publish wherever possible
Talk to teachers and then talk some more
Make connections in person and online
Build relationships
Share successes and opportunities for learning
Project energy and enthusiasm
Take on projects that others may not think of
Partner with people that will help you further your aims."
Melissa P. Johnston (2011) School Librarians as Technology Integration Leaders: Enablers and Barriers To Leadership Enactment, Florida State University, A dissertation submitted to the School of Library & Information ... "The highly technological environment of 21st century schools has significantly redefined the role of school librarians by presenting the opportunity to assume leadership through technology integration. School librarians are continually directed to evolve as leaders in order to address the needs of today’s learners and ensure that they are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the 21st century. The purpose of this study is to identify the enablers and barriers that accomplished practicing school librarians, or those who are National Board Certified, experience in relation to crafting a leadership role in technology integration." Full text here: http://etd.lib.fsu.edu/theses/available/etd-05312011-083825/unrestricted/Johnston_M_Dissertation_2011.pdf
AASL Conference 2011: Unlocking the Art of Search Engines School Library Journal Close to 80 librarians packed into the workshop with their laptops in hand to hear Debbie Abilock, co-founder of Palo Alto, CA-based bibliography software company Noodle...
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