A final word

I realize that the semester is over, but I wanted to have a final word about the class. Our last class was spent sharing our action learning projects for the semester. I was amazed at the variety of projects that were presented. Some people completed teacher training, some people created wikis or webquests or web pages. It was so interesting to see the variety of work and it was exciting to see projects that represented work that would be ongoing and helpful beyond the scope of this one course.
I truly enjoyed the experience of this class and the new technologies to which I have been introduced. I have used delicious.com for my personal use, for class, and shared with the teachers at my sons' elementary school. I have also found a use for community walk with my church responsibilities. I have made a prezi for Dr. Nita's class. Now I know about wikis, podcasts, folksonomies, tagging, social networking, social bookmarking, playaways . . . I feel so much more in tune with what's out there in terms of technology. I still have a long way to go, but I am excited to keep going. I am the type of person that has a compulsion to share things with people--especially information or tools that I feel will be useful. This course has helped bring this to my attention and solidify in my mind that this choice to pursue a career as a librarian is the right one for me at this time.

Final learning set meeting

My learning set met again tonight for our final meeting before our Action Learning Project is due next week. Because I held my training session today, I was extremely tired. Two hours of sleep does not a night make. Anyway, I was hoping to have a brief but productive learning set meeting. It wasn't as brief as we had originally planned. We planned for about an hour. We ended up going about two hours, but each of us got to have a final word and a bit of discussion about our projects and it was a good wrap up. Overall, several of us faced the problem of finding appropriate times and ways to train teachers. Teachers have so many demands on their time, that it is difficult to find adequate times to train and even more difficult to find willing participants. In my project, the key is to let teachers know ahead of time how the training will benefit them, and it doesn't hurt to lure them with promises of delectable morsels.

Delicious day comments

Well, my "delicious day" is nearly over and I think it has gone relatively well. Teachers came by during their planning time throughout the day; some stayed their entire 45 minutes. Several teachers were completely unfamiliar with delicious.com so we set up accounts for them and introduced them to the capabilities. We also linked everyone to the Salem Media Resources account on delicious and showed people how to "borrow" bookmarks from people on their network and place them in their own bookmarks. Overall, I would say everything was a success. I had a handout for teachers to take back to their classrooms, and for those who were already familiar and using delicious, I pointed out the need to tag items consistently with other Salem teachers so we could find each others' bookmarks efficiently. Of course, I worked into the very wee hours last night getting food ready as well as my training materials, but I believe it was worth it in the end. One of the participants commented that the food really WAS delicious. That was the point. I hope the entire effect is that teachers will remember to use delicious.com.

'Twas the Night before D-Day

Delicious day is tomorrow. Working in the wee hours on preparation--mostly of food. I'm adhering to the time tested philosophy of "If you feed them, they will come." So I am fixing food that I consider to be delicious in order to lure the teachers in. I found a "too late to fix it now" glitch in the system, but I don't think it will be too bad. I had wanted to demonstrate to the teachers how to install an add-on or bookmarklet which would add delicious icons to their toolbar, but I found out today that they won't actually be able to add those on to the computers at school because of restrictions placed on computer downloads. It may be possible for the IT at the school to add it to the teachers' "ghost image" of Internet Explorer, but that would only come after a small act of congress--not in time for tomorrow. Oh well. I think it is a good possibility we'll be able to add that later. Well, I am off to make a lot of sausage balls and dip a lot of strawberries in chocolate. Wish me well.

Let's not doom ourselves

Ok, so what in the world would be so emotional about reading a textbook? Well, I found myself thinking about the writer's relationship with his father, his own religious journey as well as his father's, my own children and my failings as a parent. There was a lot more in Whither the Postmodern Library than just an author passionate about reading and concerned about the doom of the library as we know it. I connected with a lot of his arguments and I am also looking toward the future of our society with trepidation. However, I am not ready to condemn the library as we know it to oblivion. I believe there can be a balance between the new and the old or I would not be in this program. It is vital to make the connection between the new and the old, or as the author suggests, we will be dooming ourselves.

I know we are not supposed to discuss our reading of Whither the Postmodern Library? yet. We are to save it for tonight's class discussion. I have been reading the book for only the last two days because I have put if off in favor of other things in my hectic schedule. So, not proudly, I admit this, but because I have read it so fervently and in a relatively short amount of time, I have been moved by the author's perspective moreso than I think I would have been if I had read in short pieces. At two or three points in the book and of course, at the end of the afterlogue, I was moved to tears. Granted, I am an inherently emotional and empathetic person, but I don't think I've ever cried while reading a textbook for a class before! That reaches a new level of empathy or perhaps even insanity! I am looking forward to tonight's discussion of the book. Hopefully I can get through the discussion without embarrassing myself.

Planning a Delicious Day

Today, I think I finally received personal acceptance that the direction I am heading with my Action Learning Project is a good fit for the school. I had been struggling with how to introduce the delicious account to teachers and today I have my final answer. I am planning a "delicious day" where I will spend the school day on Tuesday, April 13. I am going to be available all day to help teachers as they drop in to the computer lab during their planning time. I will help them set up their delicious accounts and be able to show them some sample web pages on the account and show them some of the features of "delicious.com" as well. I will lure them in with the promise of something else delicious--tasty snacks. I've already got the Principal and Instructional Coach on board and they are planning to help bring in snacks. My challenges now are to prepare the advertising to lure teachers in, to prepare a handout with complete instructions to be used as a reference tool for teachers, and to prepare my information to be presented on "delicious day." I definitely have my work cut out for me.

WWLD--What Would the Librarian Do?

Today, I went to Salem Elementary to attend a training session for 3rd grade teachers on the use of the Smartboard in the classroom. It was taught by the Instructional Technologist at the school and she gave me permission to sit in on the training like a "fly on the wall." I was unable to attend the first session of training on March 15 because of babysitting issues, so I missed the introductory lesson in a 3 part training series. The teachers have previously had some training on the smartboards and have been using them in their classrooms, but they are at the phase of experimentation and limited use. What I hoped to gain today was insight into the wants and needs of the teachers with regards to their Smartboard use and network for my project with Delicious.

The training session was very informal, with the IT demonstrating a few techniques of creating screens to be used in lessons incorporating the Smartboard. The trainer also reviewed some pre-fab designs for lessons and gave the participants a chance to try out these techniques. For the next meeting, teachers were asked to bring ideas on projects to work on so that the session can be a work session and the IT will be available to help. That is going to be next Thursday, April 1. I asked about whether or not teachers could download Smart Notebook software for use on their home computers; I was hoping to be able to use Smart Notebook at home for a little while, but I would have to be a school employee. My husband is an employee at another school in the same district, but that school doesn't have any Smartboards, so he doesn't have access either. I would need to come to the school to use the computers. I'm not sure if I can schedule any more school time. The teacher in me wants to do a little more to teach actual smartboard use, but I am continually reminding myself that the project is about "what would the librarian do?" In this case, the librarian is more of a resource person or teammate in the teaching process, so I think our original plan is going in the right direction.

Learning Set meeting and groupwork pitfalls

Last week, we had a Learning Set meeting during class. It was helpful to meet face to face. I was able to discuss my project in detail and get some much needed feedback. The bottom line I gleaned from discussing with my group was that I need to do a little more research into the needs of the teachers, perhaps through a survey or by talking with more teachers to get a feel for what they need in relation to the smartboards. The meeting also served to provide networking opportunities. Both Tammy and Ann offered some help to me by sharing. Tammy shared a wiki that her school system used for a technology conference. Ann promised to send a list of websites she uses for her smartboard. Both of these have proven to be helpful, in different degrees.

Working with groups has been an interesting experience. Different people react to groupwork in different ways. Some people like to share what's going on and get feedback; some like to just give feedback; some people just tolerate the groups long enough to complete the requirements of the assignment. In our other class, we've had written projects that we have had to complete in groups and there are certainly pitfalls of working with other people. Sometimes it is difficult to find a time when everyone is able to meet. Sometimes a person in the group doesn't pull their weight and the others have to pick up the slack. No one enjoys pulling up the slack for someone who isn't doing their fair share of the work. These are not new issues; it can happen any time students work with other students. It is important for us to realize this, also, as teachers. It has helped me to know who I want to work with and whose group I will avoid in the future.

To wiki or not to wiki . . . That is the question.

I've toyed with the idea of changing the direction of my project mid-stream toward creating a wiki for the teachers at Salem. I have done a little exploring and set up a sample wiki on wikispaces. It is truly pretty easy to set up. However, given that even using a delicious account is new for me, the librarian, and many of the teachers at Salem, I have decided to stay the course and continue working on my project in the same direction. The teachers are already having to adjust to the new technology of the smartboard. In our readings, we learned that it takes a while for groups, as a whole, to adjust to new technology and embrace it. So I don't think it would be most productive to introduce wiki contribution yet into this mix. I feel confident that this project would eventually be served well by a wiki, but for now, it is too soon. If I can sell teachers on delicious, it will be a great introduction to social cyber-sharing and should naturally lead toward the kind of participation needed for a successful wiki.

wiki not wookie

After reading the chapter on Wikis, I have to say that I am intrigued and want to take a look at some real wikis out there to get a feel for how they work. I have only used wikipedia a few times, and even then, I had no idea that content was input by consumers. Very cool! Wikis sound like some kind of cute character on a children’s cartoon show or fuzzy and lovable creatures in a Star Wars movie. They are actually a very interesting tool with a variety of uses. I really like the characteristic of flexibility of the wiki. The text outlines 3 ways wikis are useful: for promoting internal communication, providing virtual space for group collaboration, and create dynamic content for the user population. The aspect of wikis that I am most interested in is to create dynamic content. For my action learning project, we are trying to create a resource for teachers at an elementary school that will help them share ideas, websites, and how-to’s on using their new smartboards in their classrooms.

I get to be a fly on the wall for training

This week, I am excited to be able to participate in a Smartboard training session that the IT person from the school is giving to 3rd grade teachers. I found out about it quite by accident, when the teachers were soliciting parent volunteers to help monitor kids so they could attend training. I spoke with the IT, and she agreed to allow me to participate in the training session. I want to see, firsthand, where they are in their smartboard experience so that I can better understand the focus of my own research. Also, I could use some help myself, understanding the versatility and getting the know-how on the smartboard. If I just had one of these at home to practice on, it would be easier. There was one training session yesterday, but I couldn't attend because of babysitting issues, but I am planning on attending the 2nd training on Thursday. I am hoping to be able to present some of my project ideas for the third training session on April 1 but I need to check with the IT to see if that would be workable.

lots going on

I haven't blogged in so long. Sometimes I feel like my life is just spiraling and I'm doing my best just to hang on. My kids have taken turns being sick and I've been sick; I have new responsibilities at church and I have been trying to keep up with the work from school. I've been blogging in my head; does that count? Anyway, there's a lot to catch up on.

I am excited about where my project is heading. I am working with an elementary school librarian on a project that she is also excited about. I am helping her to use technology she hasn't used that much and she is also helping me to learn. I feel we are doing something that will be practical and helpful for the teachers and will be something that will grow and continue after I am out of the action. I just wish there were more hours in the day to do all I would like to do on this.

Here it is in a nutshell: A few weeks ago, Ms. Hampton sent out an email to the staff and let them know she and I would be working on gathering resources for teachers to use in their lessons, specifically for use with the new Smartboards. At the suggestion of the Instructional Technology Specialist at the school, we have set up a delicious account which the librarian maintains. We are adding websites that have activities related to topics teachers have requested help with. Anyone in the school can access the account and we are adding sites to it as we go along. I have gone to the school to get some experience on the smartboard and to research activities that require software available at the school. We have found some really neat sites that directly relate to the curriculum needs of teachers at their request. One challenge is getting the teachers to be more specific about what topics we should research. For instance, one set of teachers said they needed help finding resources for a unit on sound. If the teachers could take a few moments to give me some more information, like maybe a list of vocabulary words they need to cover within the topic of "sound" that would help me focus my research so I can find activities to fit what they are planning to teach.

I had thought about putting links to these activities on the school website, but per the librarian, the website is currently under construction and out of our hands. I think the tech people are trying to revamp the websites of schools in the county so they will be alike in format. For now, we can't focus on the website. Also, I heard there is smartboard training later this month for the teachers and I am currently trying to see if I can be present for some of the training and maybe present information at the last training on April 1.

I decided to skip ahead and read the chapter in our book on Folksonomies because I have found, both in my courses and in the action learning project I am doing, I want to share the information I have found with others. It is almost an urge, like I can't resist. The easiest way to share the neat information I've come across would be to share the website with others and let them explore on their own. I have downloaded what I need to set up a delicious account, which is a tool for social bookmarking, but I haven't actually set up my account and gotten started. I feel pretty behind with a lot of these technological advances because I have been out of the real-world loop. But I am eager to jump in. The tech person at the elementary school where I am doing my action learning project suggested setting up bookmarks on Delicious for the teachers to access. I have a lot of work to do. The concept of sharing learning experiences and sharing tags to information is very intriguing to me. The teacher in me cheers "Hooray!" for these new advancements which bring information closer through shared resources.

Yippee!

I received word today from the librarian at the elementary school where I will be doing my action learning project. She had sent out an email to let the staff know that she and I will be willing to gather resources for use with the smart board and we wanted to know if there were teachers in search of material on particular subjects. Within 5 minutes, teachers began responding, and I know of Pre-k, kindergarten, fourth grade, and fifth grade teachers who want to participate and receive help finding activities. I am SOOOOOOOO excited to help and get started. The librarian also spoke with the school technology person, who suggested we set up a delicious account and put bookmarks there for web resources so everyone who wanted to get access to what we find can benefit. At this point, I would like to help as many people as possible, but I don't want to just look up websites on particular topics and that's all. I want to make sure to find resources and ideas that will help the teachers branch out to different techniques of utilizing the smart board. One of my problems I need to attack head-on is to learn more about the smart board, myself. I think I will let my learning set know what's happening and see if they have any helpful tips. Some of them may have used smart boards before and may even have one in their classroom. I am energized by the prospect of helping the teachers find valuable and practical information and techniques. The librarian also seems excited about the prospect of helping out. This is going to be fun!

Another school, another project

Originally, I planned on doing both my class projects at the school where I used to work. It was familiar; I knew the players. But the more I looked into it, the more I realized that there was a huge need for help in the area of updating the collection in the media center (great for Dr. Nita's class) but not so much in the area of technology.

Meanwhile, I found, quite by accident, a need for help in the area of technology at the elementary school where my children attend. So, after much deliberation and after getting feedback from my learning set group via emails, I have decided to jump in with both feet at two schools. Where I will find the time, I am not sure, but that is why it is called a leap of faith. I know this is what I should do, so now I feel like I am so behind in working on my project for Dr. Rob. While everyone else has been formulating their project in their heads and getting started, I have been spinning my wheels. Today, the wheels stop spinning, getting me nowhere and now I am finally moving forward.

Last week, I spoke with the principal at the elementary school to get the go ahead to proceed. So I emailed the media coordinator and arranged to meet. The meeting was today and I came away from the brief meeting energized and ready to dig in. This school held a fund raising campaign this year to purchase smart boards for every classroom. They raised the money, and smart boards have been installed in most classrooms. Now the challenge is to provide more training and support for the classroom teachers so that the smart boards will be used to their potential as interactive tools.

The Media Coordinator had said that the school music teacher had approached her for help with using the new Smart Board to teach about the orchestra. So the media coordinator helped compile resources for the lesson and then helped to deliver the lesson by modeling and then letting the music teacher gradually assume the class. I was glad to see that this media coordinator's skills were being utilized by coordinating and delivering resource material and that her skills as a teacher were also being used.

She is planning to contact the teachers at the school to see if there are teachers who may have similar requests for help using the smart board to teach particular topics. The plan is to see what kind of need and interest are out there, then plan a unit of material to help the teachers get an idea of as many different ways the smart board may be used within a particular topic of study.

I am not sure exactly where this may lead in terms of format, but I can see some exciting possibilities. I want my project to be practical and I would like to help teachers find and see the different possibilities that are available with the technology. I know precious little about Smart Boards, so my work is cut out for me. The teachers already know more than I do about the technology, so I have some catching up to do and I have some research and planning to do. But first, I need to wait to hear about who needs help with what areas so I will have a starting point. I can hardly wait.

Perspectives

Today, I went back into Teleplace to make sure I had no loose ends on our case study project. I knew I had responded to 3 of the 4 groups' questions, saving our own group till last. Then I realized I hadn't read everyone's case study brief. I had read group 1 and my own group (4) but I hadn't read groups 3 or 2; I think this was partly due to the fact that not all the briefs were posted when the questions were. Anyway, I read through all the groups' briefs again and of course, a lot of our ideas and expressions were the same so there was a good bit of repetition from brief to brief. yada, yada, yada . . . then as I read group 2's brief, I realized that each group had similarities but generally the same perspective.
However, group 2's brief stood out to me because they took a decidedly more accusatory position; they were critical of the principal's actions a little more than the other groups. I don't say this to disagree with them at all; I find it interesting that each group took a slightly different angle of the problem and dealt with the problem with varying degrees of solutions. My own group only discussed what we felt were viable solutions, like we couldn't even entertain the absurd such as firing the staff members. We brainstormed solutions then somehow, we used all of them in one form or the other in our action plan. Overkill. We had the immediate meeting with the parties, then mediation, then follow-up with mentors. I don't know that all of it would be necessary. Anyway, all of this is hindsight. Groupwork was difficult to accomplish when we weren't meeting face to face. And it is all about compromise. The more people involved, the more compromises are made to produce a result.

prayer and computer help

I am convinced that sometimes, I need a little more technical help than is normally available through computer tutorials. That's when prayer comes in. Today, after working for literally hours, I am hoping that my computer woes are in the past. I've been having trouble with our network connection at home. It is unreliable, here one minute, gone the next. So I have done online searches, used tutorials, even asked for help from tech support from my router manufacturer. When they told me they would help me on a one-time basis for $29.95 and for a mere $10 more I could have access to them for 6 whole months, well, that just made me angry. Our router only cost $59 fourteen months ago so why would I pay $30 for one ounce of help? I just wanted help changing the channel on the router. Well, finally, I figured it out (after some heartfelt prayer) and we will see if that improves my network connection.

Groupwork

I like the members of my group, and generally, I am fine with groupwork and discussion---getting ideas from one another. However, when it comes to actually producing a product, especially a written one, it is so difficult to do this with so many contributors. I am glad our group decided to do all the brainstorming and planning together and let one person come up with the rough draft for our case brief. We can still all put in our two cents once it is written, but it will be more clearly flowing and unified if one person generates the text.

Tonight I was frustrated with our groupwork because my network connection wasn't consistent at home and I actually got kicked out for several minutes. That was irritating. Also, we were not successful in getting a document up that we could all see in Teleplace and edit there, so our session was not as productive as I had hoped. We should have been able to pull up our Word document of the planning of the case brief, discuss and edit right there in Teleplace, with however many of us wanted to contribute comments (just one at a time, I understand). Instead, we had one member typing and the rest of us talking. Only the typist could see the document that was being edited. It was disappointing--gotta figure out how that works right before the next document is due. I am one of these people that has a hard time adjusting if things don't work out according to my expectations. I knew we were so close to getting it set up but we didn't really want to take the time to get it fixed just right before jumping in to get the work done. I would rather take the time and "do it right" than settle for less. Sometimes this is a strength and sometimes it is a weakness.

Project Ideas

When I interviewed my librarian, it became clear from the beginning that her greatest need for her library is the need for funding in order to manage and update the collection. I am torn, because I am not sure how this need relates specifically to the focus of this class--technology--but it most definitely relates to my other course on collections. There is another school with which I am familiar, the elementary school my students attend, where an obvious need exists that relates more specifically to technology. So do I try to split my time between two schools or do I stick with the first school and make it work?

Action Learning Process

I am very excited about the Action Learning Process. Finally, it seems that coursework will absolutely be relevant to life. I am anxious to jump in and help wherever I can in the library. In fact, I am having a bit of a problem deciding how best to utilize what precious time I have to devote to a project. The librarian with whom I am working is in dire need of help and I want to help so badly. I am limited in the amount of time I spend because for much of it, I need to arrange babysitting so I can be productive and not distracted. Three of my children attend school, but my full time job includes caring for my 3 year old and 8 month old during the day while my husband works. He teaches school, drives a bus in the morning, and is currently coaching wrestling. He leaves in the morning at 6:00 am and some days, we do not see him until 7:00 pm. If I need to do something that doesn't involve a toddler and a baby, I need to beg someone else, usually my mother, for help. My time away from them must be spent as efficiently as possible and it is not something the rest of the world truly appreciates.

I love the idea of learning in an atmosphere of action and service. How can I learn and contribute at the same time? That is the focus and the great reward of Action Learning. I am working with my librarian to help her to write a grant proposal for much needed library materials. I have always wanted to learn more about grant writing because I feel that it could utilize my strengths with the potential of achieving worthwhile results in the process. I am excited by the prospect of learning by doing and serving to help a friend while I am gaining valuable knowledge and experience. It is truly a win-win situation.

Tech Stations

In class (1/19), we had the opportunity to explore various computer stations linked to websites of interest. My favorites were Jing (www.jingproject.com) and 3B (www.3B.net). I can see how using Jing will help especially in training situations. Some people really just have to see it done before they can do it themselves, even if step by step and word for word directions are given. Some people are just wired that way. I saw the possibilities of working with it with students and with teachers; through this website, I could take a snapshot or video of a computer screen (for instance, with cursor in motion) to demonstrate how an action is done. Very useful.

I also enjoyed the 3B world because it appeared to be applicable across a wide range of uses. I could envision putting the library itself in such a virtual world, where people could browse various rooms devoted to such topics as genealogy (more applicable to public library), medical information, library services, local events, etc. Websites could be chosen that apply to that particular topic and it could serve as a guide for users to navigate certain research areas. I see it applicable for teachers in that a teacher could choose a particular topic and several websites on that topic then allow students to browse the chosen sites for specific information like a scavenger hunt or to search for a group project. Students would not have to have the same topic to research, rather a subtopic of a larger whole. For instance, if I were teaching about the American Civil War, I might have chosen various websites I felt appropriate and given students particular topics to research within that umbrella topic of the war. They might research weaponry, battlefields, military personnel, political leaders, orators, etc. As a teacher, I could limit and choose appropriate research materials for their use rather than let them loose to google wherever they may. Very cool. Freedom of information within a somewhat controlled environment. That is awesome. Dr. Sanders also mentioned a more controlled, private environment that is similar in form to 3B --go go frog. Need to get more information about this site.

Interview Summary and Conclusions

Interview with Librarian, Linda Reep
Table Rock Middle School, Morganton, NC
January 14, 2010

Ms. Linda Reep works at Table Rock Middle School in Morganton, NC. This is the school where I began my teaching career in 1992, when the school opened, with a population of close to 1000 students, grades 6, 7, and 8.. At the time, it was considered quite technologically advanced, with 4 student computers in every classroom, 2 computer labs, and 15 computers in the media center. The computers have been updated, with the newest computers going to the labs and the media center and older computers being handed down to the classrooms. The school population has changed since the addition of a new middle school in the county, so TRMS serves about 625 students in grades 6-8.

Since the beginning of the school, there has been a Technology Specialist, whose job it is to train teachers and maintain the computer hardware and software. Originally, her position was split between two schools, but now, each middle school has its own Technology Specialist. At TRMS, it has always been Toni Anderson. Ms. Reep and Toni have shared a lot of workspace over the years, with the technology office housed in the media center. Ms. Reep has had the luxury of having a technology specialist handle the maintenance concerns and much of the training of teachers. Ms. Reep's main focus is to maintain the resources available in the media center. She has always made it a priority to make the students feel welcome in the media center and provide the books and resources that they want and need.

The Media Center at TRMS is clean and neat, with 15 computers available for work and 3 computers at a station for finding materials. Books are checked out using a bar-code system, with each student assigned a number. The student tells the librarian his/her number and books are checked out accordingly. The largest grouping of books that are used on a daily basis is fiction, primarily books in the Accelerated Reader program, which is highly favored by teachers at the school. Using the AR program, qualifying books may be checked out, read, and then tested and students' reading progress is followed by the AR program. Teachers can use the program to monitor a child's reading level and the level at which the students are comprehending the books. Ms. Reep likes the program, but feels it has created readers who will only choose books on the AR list, so it limits the potential of the reader's choices.

According to Ms. Reep, the greatest need of this library is for funding and support staff. Years ago, she had an assistant to help with the duties of maintaining the library, but that position was cut. Also, her budget, which has always been reduced at principal's discretion, was cut by 50 % last year. To be fair, other programs have also received cuts, but Ms. Reep feels like there is little support from administration in terms of funding for the library. She hasn't had money for purchasing magazines in 3 years, and spends her budget on replacing lost books and buying the books that the students are clamoring for--such as the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. She says she can't keep these on the shelf. While I was there, two students came in requesting the same book, which Ms. Reep had reported was there this morning but already checked out. She says she tries to maintain as many as 5 or 10 of the really popular books that the kids want to read. Her budget for the year was around two thousand dollars, allowing her to purchase a little more than one hundred books. She is worried about the age of her collection, showing me a printout analyzing the age of her collection. It showed that more than 80% of the resources in the library are aged. She estimated that the non-fiction section average age was 1985.

When asked what other resources are available to students and teachers, she said that she has a small collection of VHS tapes, very few DVDs for teachers to use, a few books on tape, and the rest is books. Computers and the Internet have replaced most of the research that was traditionally done in the library. She said that teachers often will not even bring their classes to the library for research because they prefer to take them to the computer lab for research on the internet. In some ways, it is beneficial because it has opened up many possibilities for the students to find information that otherwise might not be available in the library. However, Ms. Reep is concerned that the students are not being taught enough about using proper sources and that a lot of sources on the internet are not as credible as others. The internet can be a great tool for research, but its users need to be aware of the information source and its reliability.

Ms. Reep was very candid about the condition of her library. She described it as "a mess," citing that she does not have the time necessary to do a proper job of cataloguing, repairing, helping students and teachers, and checking books in and out. There are classes scheduled to come in to the library every period of the day. Instead of helping students to find materials they need or help them with their research, much of her time is now spent checking materials in and out. She feels underutilized in the area of her expertise. Ms. Reep is often available after school to help students check out materials and complete research for their classes, even after the classroom teacher is gone. Many of the school's students do not have access to computers or the internet at home.

When asked about opportunities she has, as a librarian, for attending conferences or updating her own knowledge of technologies available, she referred again to the problem of lack of funding. Normally, she says, she attends one conference a year, but there has not been any funding lately to help with registration, so she hasn't been able to attend. Teachers at the school are well trained to use the technology available at the school because there is a Technology Specialist available as well as an Instructional Coach who serve as resource-people to help teachers with their technology needs.

One of the greatest gifts that the internet has given has been a program that she showed me called "NC Wise Owl," www.ncwiseowl.org an online library available to the citizens of North Carolina, funded by the state government. Patrons can gain free access to a number of resources from print to video, to magazines that have been purchased by the state and shared in the form of this user-friendly database. Items can be easily searched. This program has eliminated the need to purchase these materials at individual libraries. Ms. Reep gave an example of a book that she normally would have tried to purchase--through Grolier, The New Book of Popular Science--that is now available through this website. Not only does she no longer have to purchase it, but the most current copy of the book is available at no cost to her budget. PBS videos are also available through the NCWise Owl website and are very easy to access. Sites such as this are dependable, current, and are good sources for students. Ms. Reep has worked hard to promote this website at her school and she feels that students and teachers are "finally catching on" to it. There is also a section on the site where students and teachers can get help citing sources for their research. It is like a "wizard" that helps the user to put source information in the MLA format.

Technology has also improved the way in which materials are ordered. Ms. Reep orders most of her materials online through programs such as Titlewave, by Follett or Permabound. It has made ordering books so much easier. She can look up reviews of books very quickly and easily before she decides to order the book. She can also download the contents of her library and receive an analysis of the collection. Technology has been very helpful, but it has also presented some new challenges.

Ms. Reep and I have agreed to work together on a grant proposal she is preparing to submit. It is for a grant of $10,000, which she would use to update the print resources in her library. We have planned to work on it on Monday, January 25, which is a teacher workday in Burke County. She is very happy to have me to help, since I have long wanted to learn more about grant writing, and I feel I may be a good resource to her for this task.

Interestingly as well, Burke County School Board recently approved funding $2 million to be earmarked toward improving technology in the schools. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.

Interview questions

Starting Block--Question Framework

1. Describe the current technology resources available through the library and classrooms at TRMS.
2. How does the technology available now compare to when you first began working here?
3. What are the greatest needs of this school in terms of technology?
4. What are the greatest needs of the library?
5. What opportunities or resources are available to you as a librarian to experience new technologies?
6. Describe the library you would like to create here.
7. What are the biggest hurdles you face in terms of creating the library you’d want?
8. What would it take to achieve your goals for the library?
9. What methods of research are utilized most at this school?
10. Are there aspects of technology that are helping create better readers? researchers?
11. How has technology improved this library?
12. What are the biggest problems you have in the library? as related specifically to technology?
13. If your “dreams came true,” what equipment would you like to have in the library?
14. How effective is your cataloguing system?
15. What is your involvement in the maintenance and management of technology?
16. Do you have responsibilities in training staff and students in using technology?
17. How many students are served as a whole? on a daily basis?
18. How well are the teachers trained to deal with existing technology?
19. Comment on the support you receive by the administration.
20. What software is most helpful?
21. What technology/websites, etc. are used most?

Library 2.0 and Beyond, chapter 1

Library 2.0 and Beyond, edited by Nancy Courtney

Response to Reading

I wanted to be one of those people who didn’t care about convention and order and just read a chapter later in the book first--like the chapter on wikis. But I must admit that the reality of my life is that I have been immersed in a world of laundry and changing diapers for the last eight years, and I am clearly out of the technology loop. So, I gave up hope of spontaneity and settled in to read chapter one.

For days, I read a paragraph or page here and there, whenever I could steal a minute, but today, I had a whole hour of uninterrupted time to read (enter angels rejoicing). I wanted to keep the textbook pristine, so I could resell it when the class is over and recoup some of my investment. But soon, I abandoned that goal and couldn’t resist highlighting and marking notes in the margins. This book will be a keeper. I am behind the times and I am ready to catch up. At the end of chapter one, I had the uncontrollable urge to reflect on what I have read. So I had to start with notebook and pen and get to the computer later. Whoever asked me to blog my thoughts has no idea what they are getting into. I apologize ahead of time for the endlessness of my rambling.

I enjoyed a lot of the new vocabulary of this chapter. Many of the tech terms that are familiar to people are pretty foreign to me, so there were a lot of "aha's" as I read the chapter. The concept of Web 2.0 is a "user-friendly" way of thinking about how times have changed with ultra modern changes in technology. I hadn't been familiar with the concepts of syndication or mashups, but anxiously await learning more about these unselfish and generous sharing methods of using technology. I can agree with the idea that how we use the internet has evolved so that more users are creating and not just viewing or using what the internet offers. Cool! I love the quote by Shell Holtz that the "Internet's real significance was its promise to democratize communication."

I loved the idea of
"the Millennials, those born between 1982 and 2002 as being "born with the chip." These young people have grown up with computers and don't think of them as technology." (p. 5)
I was intrigued by the list of descriptors to categorize this new generation: format agnostics, nomadic, multitaskers, collaborative.
Another author (Lee Rainie) refers to this generation as "digital natives"--love this term!
Six realities of life for the digital native:
1. Media and gadgets are common throughout everyday life
2. Digital natives enjoy media and carry on communications anywhere they wish
3. Internet is at the center; Internet and web are ubiquitous
4. Multitasking is a way of life
5. An ordinary citizen has a greater opportunity to be a publisher, moviemaker, artist, song creator, and storyteller.
6. Everything will change more in the coming years.
I put all these here because I totally see all of this happening! I wanted to comment on the author's assertion, "To the digital natives, or Millennials, Web 2.0 is not a change. It is the expected way of being." Wow! I think of it like this: my children have never known a world without certain things that I know have not always existed. They have never known a world without a microwave, for instance. In their minds, this is how we all warm up food. They have never known a world without computers or the Internet, so it is how we all communicate and find out what we need to know. They have no knowledge of encyclopedias in the form of books. They only know what they have seen and touched and been exposed to. I agree with the author in that we need to respect the needs of the library consumer by keeping up with the various avenues that technology travels.

I knew that Wikipedia was an encyclopedia on the web, but I have rarely seen or used anything from it. I did not know what a wiki was, so I was grateful to find out its history. I find it so intriguing that wikis are written by multiple authors. What a concept! The author pointed out that wikipedia has pros and cons. It may not be considered authoritative as a reference source, but there is an enormous amount of content with remarkably few errors, given the nature of the sources.
There were other terms brought out by the author that I have not had much personal experience with at all, so I look forward to learning more about these: folksonomies, social bookmarking, mashups. I know a little about MySpace and Facebook, but have so far avoided creating an account of my own. They seem too much like drugs to me--you know, "why don't you join and create an account? . . . Everybody's doing it . . ." My husband has an account on Facebook, and I can see the addictive potential.

This chapter also discusses the concept of Library 2.0, that the library of the future must move along or evolve with technology. I really like the assertion by T. Scott Plutchak that the changes in libraries are not radical but "evolutionary," The author summarizes, "When librarians embrace the changes in technology and society to find new and more effective ways to serve their patrons, they are not acting in brand-new 2.0 ways, they are simply being good librarians." (page 11) Way to go!

Change is coming in terms of how our libraries look and how they work. Libraries as we know them have the potential of dying, especially if the "physical third places" described by the author do really get replaced more and more by the "virtual third places." I think about how we are interacting through technology and the Internet and this course. Meeting in a virtual world to share and discuss ideas is foreign to me but I see its value. I agree with the author that all these changes in the uses of technology create challenges but are full of potential for librarians.