This final assignment was interesting. It gave me the opportunity to go back and read my contributions to this course. I even went back and posted my discussion posts to the blog and added some after thoughts to them. Certain points that I thought about at the time have now changed, others have intensified. I fell in love with Flipboard and Pinterest. Diigo became less interesting with all the other ways of tracking. Twitter is now less intrusive.
From my posts, I noticed that I really wanted to learn how to use the Windows Movie Maker so that I could make the most of it in the school library since we have converted to PCs.
So, as a result, I decided to make a movie using that tool for my Vision. Unlike the first time, I watched more YouTube videos and learned some simple tricks to make my life easier while editing. I feel that I still need some work in refining it and trying to figure out how to manage the sound a bit better but overall I think the video turned out pretty good. It turns out that Windows Movie Maker isn't so bad!
For my vision, I wanted to include my students in the process. I interviewed them about how they felt about the library, the teacher-librarian and technology in the library. From them, I got some thoughtful responses and what they said complemented what my vision for teacher-librarianship in the 21st Century is like. I learned quite a bit from them and it seems that I am on the right track.
I revisited the question from Kist about the classroom becoming as big as the world. I don't know if I answered it any better but I do feel that it's a question that really made me think about where I want to be with the library as a teacher and a T-L. And after exploring all the different web tools out there, I feel that it is even more important to use those resources to ensure that I remain current and knowledgeable. The internet is overwhelming and without the help of a guide (T-L), it could be more stressful than helpful. This course showed me that there is a wealth of treasure out there, I just have to sift through them and try them out for myself. I'm glad that I got that opportunity to do it with this course because I probably would not have otherwise.
After reposting this on my blog makes me rethink about overload now...
In your groups, I would ask you to discuss the
following questions: There's so much to read/learn/think about in the Web 2.0
environment...how are you managing information overload? How are you getting
(and staying?) organized in your highly connected world? What strategies have
you discovered to help you manage information in effective ways?
I have to admit that online courses create information overload for
me.
The worst part is that I can't keep up with postings and discussions.
It consumes me completely - so much that I sometimes avoid logging into Vista.
Of course, this is also bad as I end up with even more posts to read. Any way
around this?
Organization though?
I use Google products to keep
things together
In terms of Google products, I use Google Drive when I need to take notes off my iPad so that I can access them anywhere with the swipe of a finger. The Google Reader has been keeping me up to date with postings in the class as well as postings from other blogs I have been following.
After exploring Flipboard and Pinterest, I've been looking through those more regularly and bookmarking ideas that I found interesting and reading articles of my taste.
I am using Diigo to see how that organizes my websites.
We'll see how that goes.
I've actually stopped using Diigo as I haven't found a good use for it as I didn't like having to log-in to another website to access my bookmarks that are already favourited on my browser. I will try Google Chrome's bookmarking instead as it seems more accessible. Twitter is also an overload for me although I do
like the stuff I come across when I do sit down to look.
I finally removed some people that I found tweeted too much for me to take in and created a list for them. This was a huge relief for me. Having a list makes it much easier to digest certain people in my PLN. This way, I can check out their posts more leisurely and that helps me keep organized with the other tweets. I like to file
everything into folders when I get the opportunity - which is the one thing I
actually dislike about Gmail (no folders)
I try to find 1 application out
of many to use and stick with it for as long as I can.
I also like my
dropbox because it I can make all sorts of folders <3
How do you read in a Web 2.0 world?
It’s interesting reading the article from New York Times, Of Two Minds About
Books, because I felt that way at one point, too. Reading from a book gives a
physical aspect to it that’s different from reading an ebook. I don’t feel the
texture and I don’t flip the pages the way I do with a print book. The
connection seems different.
However, my boyfriend bought me a Kindle two years ago and I fell in love. It
made reading easier. The screen is different than that of a regular tablet or
computer so it felt like reading a book. I could easily change from one book to
another and I don’t have to worry about carrying multiple books when I’m
travelling because it’s all in one device. The battery lasts a long time before
I have to recharge. But don’t get me wrong. I still enjoy reading print. I just
interchange between the two.
Now I even like reading from the iPad and iPhone. Life has never been easier.
I can access my iPhone anywhere and just read when I’m waiting. Love this
accessibility. Is reading online different from reading traditional print texts?
What strategies do readers need to develop in order to effectively read
different kinds of texts? Do you read electronic texts? What are your
experiences reading these different texts?
Reading now is different from traditional texts because there are more
options available at the same time. I can zoom into a piece of text that is too
small and be able to read it. I can change the size of the font and I can easily
jump from one section to the other. I think people really enjoy the ability to
access the dictionary option when they come across a word they don’t know and
just click on it and find out right then and there. The ability to add notes and
highlight parts of the text and use the find option makes a difference to
readers of different levels and needs. The links can take people to other pages
that can elaborate on a certain topic for those who would be interested. There
is even the option of read aloud for those who need it.
My sister just started her first year in Pharmacy and they decided to go
electronic. She downloads her notes onto her iPad every night and takes it to
school. She annotates her notes via the app, Notability, that the school
suggested and it’s pretty neat. She likes it because it’s all in one place and
she doesn’t have to bring a whole stash of paper to school. How can teacher-librarians model or promote this kind of 'new'
reading to colleagues and students? What leadership role can/should
teacher-librarians and lead teachers take in this area?
I think this is tough in the sense of promoting it to the whole school. The
technology is here but not everyone is able to access this. Our school, due to
our catchment area, is still trying to update our computers to match today’s
needs while other schools are purchasing iPads. Our 1 mobile cart is outdated
and half the laptops had to be fixed this year. It’s tough to promote new
technology and new reading when we can’t even get our computers to run smoothly
enough to give confidence to teachers to use technology in their classes. Not
all students have the same access at home either. The expectation is that all
students have a computer and internet these days but there is still a small
percentage that do not. It’s a really interesting area where I feel that we are
not quite there yet and I can’t push it until we are ready for this ‘new’
reading.
Richardson states that he reads on screen “95%” (2010) of the time. For
myself, I read about 80%. Our school is slowly switching over to paperless as
much as possible. Our staff weekly updates are via email, we have a virtual
staffroom that I try promoting since the beginning of the term. I post any links
or hand outs there for teachers to access. I think once the whole issue with
ebooks is settled, we will be pushing towards ebooks. Some of the teachers have
set up blogs/websites to keep their students up to date. I have helped a few get
started. The library has its own as well that I update regularly. It will be
awhile before the students are able to do that as well. Right now, our school
still uses paper because it is the most reliable! Any project collaborations we
have, I push for students to take notes via Google docs and I promote Web 2.0
tools for their end products. So far, the results are positive and the teachers
like the end products. We recently created a wikispaces for a Social Studies 10
class on the Confederation to teach them to collaborate to create a page that
they can refer back to for studying! Change starts little by little. Yay! Work Cited
Richardson, W. (2010). Reading screens, writing screens, touching screens.
Retrieved from:
http://weblogg-ed.com/2010/reading-screens-writing-screens-teaching-screens/
RICHTEL, M., & MILLER, C. (2010, September 1). Print or Pixels? Publishers
Strive to Advance Both - NYTimes.com.The New York Times - Breaking News, World
News & Multimedia. Retrieved November 3, 2012, from
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/02/technology/02couples.html?_r=3&th&emc=th
Of Pixels and Pages. (2010). Retrieved
from:http://nyti.ms/9qWjqS
Just tying up loose ends and putting this last post on my blog so that it will always be there unlike Vista...
Issues related to privacy and personal digital footprints are often being
debated in schools and libraries. How much information should we put out 'there'
about ourselves? How much information about us already exists about there? How
do we manage our digital footprint? What strategies do you use to teach your
students to manage their own digital footprints?
When I give a lesson on research, I try to touch on the subject of giving
credit to photos we take from the internet and where we should be taking these
photos. For this, I like to use Facebook as an example of how unsafe our
personal photos are. Many of the students do not realize that FB can use our
photos for whatever purpose they see fit. They don't even have to give us credit
for it. Imagine a photo they took that belongs to you for some sort of ad. How
would you feel about that? It's nice to point that out to them to bring
awareness to what they post on their FB.
This leads to the talk
about how nothing is impossible and that anything we put on the web stays on the
web regardless of whether we remove or secure those moments. I always encourage
students to not put their last names on the web and try to avoid any personal
information especially if it is not required. Always be aware of what they put
online because it can backfire.
I really enjoyed the video about
digital dossier. In this age, it is inevitable to have a footprint, we just need
to make sure how we make it. Make it a positive one.
***This year, we created a Tumblr account to capture students at our school reading. Before we started to post those photos online, I had to make sure that it was safe to put student photos online. After discussion, student photos can be put on the web but their names must remain anonymous. I even thought about uploading our Matheson On The Move video announcements on YouTube but that could be another can of worms.
My previous professor said that in this digital age, we must make a name for ourselves and put our "brand" out there. Instead of being anonymous, make a name for yourself in this digital age. There are some many different ideas on how to approach the World Wide Web that it's still a wide debate on what to do...
Blogs or Weblogs...The invention that changed how we interact on the cloud!
Here is some interesting facts about blogging:
Image courtesy of blogging.org
jeffbullas' blog gives tips on how to create one that "begs to be read" and that's where I originally saw the photo above about blogging facts.
Blogging has made writing an essential tool. There is always talk about writing going extinct but that's not true at all. Blogging has been a huge hit over the years and has always required extensive writing and reading from both the blogger and their audience. Every since blogging got easier to use to create posts, even more people blog and it has evolved a great deal.
Now blogs do not necessarily have to be for "journal type" content. It can be a website, it can be for business as much as it is for personal use. There is nothing a blog can't do nowadays and that's what makes it so versatile and powerful in this age.
Furthermore, blogging is coming to the students. The new generation can no longer be contained in a piece of paper that only their teachers read. They want an audience that can comment and help them improve and shine in ways that were unknown before. There is so much potential with blogging that I wish that every student has their own device to blog daily as part of class so that their peers can immediately provide the feedback that the teacher cannot possibly do on their own.
This one I use to post photos of students reading in my school. A project that was launched by my photo teacher and me as a collaborative project. It is a very simple type blog that has mainly photos and videos. It does contain words but less so.
This is my go to blog space. It is the most simple to use for me. I find that the widgets are really easy to add and all the information is accessible. I can do things without getting frustrated and it is linked to my Google account.
It's actually really funny how we have come to a full circle. The Google Reader bundle that Aaron created for our class is actually an RSS feed! I've subscribed to one and didn't even know it. In fact, I thought that an RSS feeder was more like these:
I always thought that RSS feeds are these blocks that you embed into your blog to capture conversations about your blog/topic. In fact, I was quite stumped at how to put one onto my library website so that I could have my twitter feed there so people can read what I tweet. I once asked my athletic director because he has one on his blog and I was super jealous. He never told me how. He just said it was easy. Argh!!! And then it got busy and I got sidetracked and forgot.
I'm quite glad for this opportunity to attempt this once again. However, I realized that an RSS feed isn't exactly that. Sort of but not really.The RSS in Plain English YouTube explained to me what it was and I now understand! It's just a method of gathering websites or blogs that I like into one place so that I get updates whenever they update so that I don't waste my time re-visiting blogs wondering if they updated or not. Google Reader is great for this since it also has an app for my phone that alerts me when there's an update
So, as a next step, I learned how to add an RSS feeder subscription option onto this blog so that people can add me to their RSS feed. I embedded an RSS feed from the Daring Librarian's blog so that her updates will be shown on my blog. I even tried to add a twitter feed to this blog because I wanted to see if I could do it. I ended up with a bird that says follow me and it opens up a link to my twitter page.
I went back to the drawing board and decided to to YouTube it and try again but the video I watched was out of date. So I decided to type in twitter widget into the search bar in Twitter and found it!
For those of you who want to have a Twitter Feed like mine, this is how you do it once you log into Twitter:
Go to SETTINGS
Click on WIDGETS on the side
Click on CREATE and choose the type of feed you would like to see
You can choose the type of Twitter Feed you want to display and fill in the necessary information. Once complete, you copy the embed code and go to your blog and paste it in the HTML widget option!
Twitter is definitely something that I need to find time for. I just feel overwhelmed whenever I log into my account because I'm bombarded by tweets. I'm sure they're useful but I just cannot go through that amount every time I log in. It's gotten to the point where I loathe logging in. Isn't that sad? I made the effort to join last year and created a school library account so that I could start tweeting about things that happen in the library to get students interested. Unfortunately, maintenance became an issue when I started to hate logging in...That vicious cycle.
Don't get me wrong, I think it is a great tool. The ability to connect with people around the world and build a PLN is superb. I just need to know how to filter it so that I can use it without feeling guilty that I don't read every message and click on every attachment whether it be a photo, video or article...
Luckily, after last week's session, I learned about the combination of Lists AND TweetDeck...
These make accessing Twitter so much easier when I have columns to separate everything so that I can see things all at once. The best part is that I can add lists as a column so I don't have to follow certain people and still see their activity at my own leisure. This way, I can enjoy Twitter in a less stressful manner...
The other reason I hesitated about Twitter is because I don't feel that I contribute to the community very well. I want to be able to share meaningful messages that can be appreciated. Now, I think it's ok to just retweet messages that I may find important as a starting point and when I do come across interesting things, I can tweet to share my own thoughts.
I want to finish off a video that Twitter made about sharing photos on Twitter using hashtags! I didn't even think about that. Lots of new changes happening and it definitely foreshadows what our world is going to be like soon enough:
When I give a lesson on research, I try to touch on the subject of giving credit to photos we take from the internet and where we should be taking these photos. For this, I like to use Facebook as an example of how unsafe our personal photos are. Many of the students do not realize that FB can use our photos for whatever purpose they see fit. They don't even have to give us credit for it. Imagine a photo they took that belongs to you for some sort of ad. How would you feel about that? It's nice to point that out to them to bring awareness to what they post on their FB.
This leads to the talk about how nothing is impossible and that anything we put on the web stays on the web regardless of whether we remove or secure those moments. I always encourage students to not put their last names on the web and try to avoid any personal information especially if it is not required. Always be aware of what they put online because it can backfire.
I really enjoyed the video about digital dossier. In this age, it is inevitable to have a footprint, we just need to make sure how we make it. Make it a positive one.
My social media is Edmodo. I wanted to share it through a video with me and Edmodo together. Unfortunately, technology is not with me today and I discovered that I do not like Windows Movie Maker, Voicethread and my laptop currently...They have all successfully made me very upset for different reasons. And it's days like these that I can understand why teachers would rather write something out than change! So mad!!! I just uploaded a simple video of me reviewing without any editing as I was unable to do so with my current effectiveness. Hope it's still helpful:
There are also other great social media out there like Facebook, which most of us know about. I also joined the BC Teacher Librarians Ning. It's a great source of information and connection. I found some good slides about the Learning Commons and some great ideas for promoting the library. Another great source worth sharing!
The first time I came across the term "web 2.0 tools" was when I first started my diploma for Teacher-Librarianship. It's funny because now I'm at the end of the trip and I'm revisiting these memories. The specific tool that was introduced to me at the time, 3 years ago, was Glogster. It was Angela Monk who told me about it and showed me some samples of student work while I was interviewing her for a course. I remember how fascinated I was by this interactive posterboard and created my own class project when I was teaching Science shortly afterwards. Below is a quick video I made of the main tools I've come across and use today:
Finally, I mentioned Storyjumper in my audio track and so I'm sharing this link because the students in my school in Gr.8 and 9 really enjoyed this tool and I think it works! It's also very secure for the younger kids so that we wouldn't have to worry about publishing.
I had to use Screenr to show you how the book works because I don't know how to embed it!!! Sorry. Quality is lacking but you get the gist of it
To be honest, I don't personally like Wikis. These very simple web pages are just not that appealing to me. They are essentially a page on the cloud where I can organize files and writing to mimic a website in its simplest format. The best part of them is that I can use them to collaborate with multiple users on a similar topic.
However, since this opportunity to research them is here, I will look into them. I found this Slideshare presentation that explains the advantages to having a Wiki and I would like to share it. It seems to point out some very important factors that I think do work well for us educators of the 21st Century. Perhaps I will be able to overlook its simplistic view.
Did you know that wiki-wiki means "quick" in Hawaiian. I didn't know that. It seems appropriate considering how quick and easy it is to make one!
As I already have a Wikispaces account, I thought that I would try PBworks. It is easy to sign up an account but it took me a while to get a hang of the layout. I suppose that it could be because I'm so used to Wikispaces that it threw me off for a good 10-15 minutes.
What I realized is that PBworks has a very standard layout that looks exactly the same for everyone for the free features. It has a right side margin for the menu which includes:
1. Navigator: list of all the pages
2. Sidebar: flexible space for descriptions, websites, resources, etc
3. Recent Activity: keeps a history of changes
I can add/delete pages and these pages can be blank or set templates made by PBworks. Users can be added to my page or I can create accounts for my students if they don't have email accounts to make life easier.
Having said all that, I don't like it. It's so boring. I thought Wikispaces was boring, this seems worse. Maybe I'm tired and I'm not feeling it right now but it looks pretty boring to me. See below:
I don't think I can work with this format. At least with Wikispaces I could move my side menu to the other side...I had more colour choices. I can make my title bar nicer. Am I asking for too much? Anyway, I gave up after half an hour of fiddling. Just not for me.
Recently, I decided to use Diigo as my social bookmarking tool at school. I needed a way to bookmark webistes I found at school that I could access from home. I guess I could've easily chosen Delicious but I liked the folder concept that Diigo provided. Delicious seems more visually appealing in how it displays the websites but I didn't know how I could organize the content - until Aaron showed us during our Hangout last Tuesday...Now that I understand tagging is how Delicious is organized, I'm tempted to try it out as well. Perhaps later.
Social bookmarks are amazing especially the bookmarklet that comes with them. The little tool on my favorite bar allows me to bookmark any site I like by just clicking it and adding it to whichever list I create!! Love it! I haven't done much with it but it's very interesting. I created a list of our class blogs earlier before Aaron created the Greader, which is a better option since it notifies us whenever someone posts (good or bad...?)
I used it to create lists of sites that students can go to for their projects that can be reused over the years until those sites are taken down or outdated...
I used it to find sites that would be helpful for me in teaching concepts.
Here is a video of what other things Diigo CAN do:
It looks like I have stumbled upon something new! lol...
Anyway, StumbleUpon is a website that finds websites, pictures, videos, etc according to your preferences. It surprises you with things you may never have found otherwise... Below is a quick video of how it works:
I tried it out. It has led me to a lot of interesting websites and pictures pertaining to books! They are news articles, websites, etc...I like the entropy feature of it and it does bring some refreshing ideas into my head.
The layout seems simple enough and every site that I liked is in my profile so that I can always go back and look at it. I couldn't find a way to embed my likes but I took a screenshot of how it looks like:
It's a nice, small preview/capture of the sites I went to and tags it under the preference I put it in so it's easy to browse through for whatever I'm looking for.
It wasn't until Ben commented on my playlist that it dawned on me that this is also a form of social bookmarking! I have a tendency to go on YouTube and find videos of study skills, screencasts for whatever I'm learning about, etc. I made the study skills playlist because I wanted to have one ready so that I can use it for my students when the need was there.
Now, I know that this playlist is a potential for many, many other playlists that I will make for my own learning purposes! I'm curating via video. YAY! I've looked through so many Library Commons YouTube videos without ever putting together a set that I can refer back to in the future. It would save time if I have a playlist made for it. It's very easy to make and I can also go back to it.
I didn't get a chance to share my YouTube experience! Before summer, I decided to go to the Surrey Central Public Library to take a look at the newest addition to the public system and it is GORGEOUS!
So I filmed it with my iPhone with a little bit of narrative (Or a lot) to show my students that they could go to the public library during the summer while school library was out!
From this, I created a YouTube account or rather it was always there since I have Gmail and posted my video:
More importantly, I use YouTube to create playlists that may be useful for study skills:
Speaking of podcasts, I just recently made one for my other course, resource based teaching! I created it as a pretend radio program for my library. It's actually a lot of fun to make but it takes so much time to edit and add music.
I found my music at this creative commons website: Jamendo
I also used Audioboo to convert the file so that I can post it here:
There are so many podcasts on iTunes for educational purposes to listen to from science to language! I actually found the 60-Seconds Science podcast interesting and fun. There is the possibility to add this to the class.
I'm starting a tech tip of the week on our video announcements on Fridays and I thought screencast would be AWESOME to show some of the techie stuff I would like to share with all the staff and students in the school.
Today was my debut! I didn't use screencast for this week's tip but it was a nervous, fumbling start. The crew sent to film me were also beginners so it was not phenomenal, just informative. I printed out a picture of the Dropbox and showed it on camera while I talked about why I think it's cool and everyone should have it...
Then I thought about next week. Next week, I'll show off Quizlet and I'll use the screencast I created using the program Aaron uses, Screenr. I found it to be very easy to use and it has so many options for me afterwards like
embed
URL
share
download
publish to YouTube
This is the one I created:
However, I failed to mention that a couple of students approached me afterwards and suggested I use them as my filming crew so that my "library corner" show wouldn't be so boring...This would mean that I probably won't use this screen cast on the video announcement next week BUT I will post it onto my library blog so that anyone can go there and watch it for more details :)
For us TL's, my show also includes a book of the week. This week's book is LEGEND by Marie Lu:
Since my lack of success with Picasa to create something with pictures that I can embed onto my blog, I took a small break...Today, I felt I could try again with Flickr.
I signed up an account using my Gmail and I uploaded some pictures from my Europe trip last year. I created a "set" for my Florence highlights and it bundles it up into a group. I can watch a slideshow of these pictures AND embed them onto my blog as a slideshow to share:
I'm feeling rather smug at the moment because I was able to do this! The ability to create sets of slideshows that can be embedded or shared via a link/email makes it a lot more useful than Picasa in that sense. I can even link my blog to the website so I can do it right there when I upload a picture!
The free account allows 2 videos and 300MB worth of photos per month. So, it does have its limitations in that sense. I would have to go Pro if I want to have no restrictions to this service to upload photos onto the website and it doesn't seem to cost that much.
I can also determine whether I want to share the photos with the public or privately with people I know. I can also join groups and create groups. There is an option to print the pictures or create calendars and such as well! Quite varied in services. It's an entire community.
However, it's kind of scary to see that Flickr is able to determine when and where I took the photos and with what device...If you're ok with that then it's all right.
So I tried to use Picasa as the icon is on my school computer desktop. It would be useful if I know how to use it and then I can promote it to the students who come in to use the program. Unfortunately, after I created an account (which is apparently linked to Google), I could not figure out how to embed photos on my blog as a slideshow...
Although the good thing is that Picasa is online and can be downloaded for free. It has photoshop editing capabilities so interesting photos can be created!
I want to check out Flickr next to see what's different.
This assignment has triggered me to look back into the past and see how technology became a part of my life starting from the first IBM computer my dad bought for me for an incredible amount of money.
This all started back in high school. We bought the computer so that I could complete assignments without having to always go to friend’s house to use their typewriter. Eventually, we had dial-up Internet and started being connected to the world. My sister was still in elementary school and did not need to use it so I had the computer all to myself! During my senior years, I had an ICQ account, which I used to communicate with my friends in school . I also had a web page on Asian Avenue. As embarrassing as it is to admit, Asian Avenue was my first glimpse of html coding. I had to learn the bare minimum in order to make my page a little more personal but I never got passed that since it was too challenging. Blogging did not happen until after starting to teach. I created my first blog fairly recently but I never had the time to keep it running regularly. Blogging is a commitment I am still afraid of.
The email world did start while in high school although it was not the most popular medium. Like I mentioned, ICQ was the way to go! Despite the slow start in emailing, I’m just happy I decided to create usernames that had my name instead of some phrase I would be regretting right about now like my sister’s email, which is lily_loves_blue. She definitely thought it was cool at the time. Actually, I did create lethegreat@gmail.com in my first year of teaching to communicate with my students so I am also guilty of bad usernames. As a toast to this chapter of usernames, here is a clip from Natalie Tran that’s rather funny.
The Journey
While I was completing my undergrad, my computer was important for typing up lab reports and creating spreadsheets. Technology was there to make life easier. I found articles I needed online since the online journals were available at the time. I used technology in my biochemistry labs when we did PCR and gel electrophoresis.
However, the first impact on my life actually happened while I was completing my B.Ed. One of my classes required me to make an iMovie and I had never done anything of the sort at the time. This was my first video creation using iMovie! I had so many aspirations for it afterwards. I even created an iMovie for a staff member leaving my part time work place! I really thought that I’d be able to incorporate movie making with my classes and then I realized that it was not possible to do when students did not have access to this technology readily. So, I had to rethink what was possible and what other uses could I do with technology.
Now, with the exposure and learning I have with technology, I use it to find engaging ways for students to learn. I used Prezi to create a presentation on how to research in the library.
I created a Twitter account to connect the library to the students more readily. My current collaborative project is to post candid pictures of students reading at the school on the library’s new Tumblr account. With all the workshops I have attended, I agree that the audience of a classroom is no longer good enough for the students. They need more spectators to witness their growth in order for them to grow. This is where technology would be an asset.
The Personal Use
I definitely know that I use my phone a lot less now to talk to people. My sister actually makes fun of me because my group of friends, the Belators, have always used email to coordinate our belated birthday bashes. One time, we were going to have dinner but no one confirmed. Instead of calling each other, I emailed everyone and waited for a response that didn’t come till the following day saying they couldn’t make it. It was ridiculous. Nowadays, I mostly text people if I need something immediately.
My sister goes on YouTube a lot. She likes to find interesting channels to watch - whether it be comedy or beauty tips. My brother uses it to play online games like Runescape mostly when he is not doing homework. We all like to use the computer to watch anime and shows together.
Home use is more personal where I watch videos and chit chat though it may have work related content sometimes. At work, it’s mainly trying to learn as much as fast as possible so that I can relay it to the staff and students. My job requires the use of computers. I think the majority of my day is spent staring at the screen, whether at home or at work. Considering my position as a teacher and a librarian, I feel that I spend a lot of my time searching for ways to improve or enhance teaching.
Living and Working in an Online World
For the longest time, I refused to shop online because I was afraid that someone would steal my credit card information and rack up an enormous bill for me. Recently, I have started to do a bit of it as it can be cheaper and more efficient. I love buying shoes online but I fail to get one that fits perfectly. Clothes never seem to fit right either but textbooks and iPhone/iPad accessories are great deals! Finally, I love travelling and I prefer using the internet to find my travel deals first. While in Europe last year, we booked our hotels and plane tickets via the internet. We used Trip Advisor and Hostelworld to make sure our hotels were decent.
Online banking has done wonders for me. All my bills are paid via the internet. I try to get e-bills for everything so that we can reduce paper waste. It makes my life so much easier. Everything is accessible through my computer.
I still remember receiving my first e-card from my first boyfriend. It was quite adorable and this was back in 2001. I recall making the request that it be resent to me every month so I would not lose it. The card had a song and cute animation. It was interactive.
A few months ago, I sent out my first group invitation to dinner via a text message using this app and it was pretty neat. My friends invite me to birthday bashes using Facebook now and it just makes things a lot easier when I can see who is going and who is not!
My first phone was a Nokia, which I got when I entered university. To me, at the time, it was the best thing ever with its basic functions.
Now I have an iPhone. When I didn’t have it, it didn’t seem like such a big deal but now that I do, I can’t go back. When I can access the cloud any time and search about anything, there is no turning back. It is impossible to lose this tool that grants me unlimited knowledge! It’s part of my daily life.
Reading & Literacy in an Online World
Pop culture does impact my literacy! While playing all those video games growing up, I learned a lot of interesting vocabulary that I would not have otherwise. Final Fantasy (FF) introduced me to Shiva, Odin and many other mythical creatures. I went on to research about these legends as they were interesting. The Final Fantasy series have improved immensely over the years. I played FF VII and I thought the graphics at the time were incredible. Now, the graphics are even more amazing. Technology has gone a long way to make even things like video games more realistic.
My family loved to watch Chinese TV drama shows and I would spend hours watching them with them. From these shows, my spoken Cantonese and understanding of the language is quite proficient. My love for French compelled me to always look for new songs and then go to YouTube to watch the videos and find some connections I could use in my classes.
I have always loved reading books. It was the reason I became a library volunteer when I was younger and why I want to be a teacher librarian now.
Everything about reading a book feels right. Two years ago, I received a Kindle for Christmas and I thought that I wouldn’t like it but it turns out that I do! I still prefer an actual book over the ebook but it is so convenient and it isn’t all that bad.
With an ebook, I can read my YA books without feeling too guilty about it. I actually prefer etextbooks over print text books because I can access them anytime I want. It makes it easy to do readings anywhere.
Finally, all this technology has made life easier for me. It has changed the way I do things and how I teach. Like my iPhone, there is no way I am going backwards! I'm going to end this with my vision of the future care of Corning:
On page 8, Kist describes 5 characteristics that are essential for a classroom to be a 'new literacies classroom'. I would suggest that these characteristics can also be applied to libraries. Think about Kist's characteristics and post 5-8 characteristics of a 21st century school library, based on your current understandings. In your group, compare and contrast the lists that each person has presented.
For each of the characteristics Kirst presented, I found a comparable aspect in the library! Based on what I do in my library, this is how I see the 21st century school library:
In a 21st century school library, the teacher-librarian work with teachers to create projects and activities that incorporate web 2.0 tools so that students have different options to express themselves. This is similar to the “multiple forms of representation” that Kirst describes in the first characteristic.
The library offers many different ways to access information thus allowing students the flexibility from choosing books to reading articles online. Today, there are online databases, video streaming, and many credible website to choose in addition to print materials. There are also options to find experts and interview them via Skype, E-mail and other social media. It is through the library that the students are exposed to this wealth of resources and learn how to use it responsibly.
The T-L uses different mediums to model, teach and learn with the students. This shows the students a concrete example of a particular tool and also attempts to teach the students its uses. Then when the students try the tool or symbol system, they are also teaching the teacher. It is a dynamic environment where the learner and the teacher are interchangeable. I begin by teaching but end with learning myself!
The projects and activities that take place in the library have both a collaborative and individual aspects. Teamwork is encouraged and there is also time for individual work.
The library is a place where students can take their work and take it to the next level of their own comfort level and creativity.
In Chapter 5, Kist talks about the role of games and gaming in schools. In your group, please discuss the following questions (as posed by Kist on page 112): Can participating in games be a legitimate activity in schools [and libraries]? Can you think of a time when you learned something either about yourself or about the world by playing a game?
I certainly believe that games are a legitimate activity in schools and libraries! Even in class, we create games for learning purposes. I always played games with my students in French and Sciences and I know that it makes it engaging and fun. I believe it has a place in the library as well especially during out of class time. Students do need some down time to relax as the rest of us. There is the perception that they aren’t learning from games like World of Warcraft but that is probably because we never played it. Online games now are very social and entertaining. There are goals to them and reading and writing are actually involved! I recall learning lots of new vocabulary from playing RPG (Role Playing Games) when I was younger and some of it prompted me to learn more about certain topics like mythological creatures and legends like Odin and Shiva. Obviously, in excess, it is not good but that goes for everything... In the Forward to the book, Kylene Beers suggests that William Kist consistently "asks us to consider what happens when our classrooms become as big as the world?...[Or alternatively], what happens when our classrooms do not become as big as the world?" Consider your reading and understanding of this book and think about how you would answer these questions. Share your responses with the group.
I think that if our classrooms do not become as big as the world, we are not doing our job to prepare them for the future. Regardless of where we like it or not, technology has brought the world into our hands. It would be a shame if we did not show our students the proper ways to interact with this world using the medium that they use and access everyday.
This week, I had Grade 8 orientations in the library and I noticed that a lot of the students did not know how to use the computers very well. They had difficulty logging in and they couldn’t type properly. I was shocked. Some of them did not know what a URL or a browser were! A lot of jobs today require computer skills. It is almost expected. If these students do not know how to use a computer effectively, they have a long way to go to succeed. Am I worrying too much? Perhaps they all have iPads so they no longer need a computer. But then, it is still much easier to type with an actual keyboard...I am worried for these Grade 8’s.
Also, as promised, a photo of me! This was taken at the Smorgasburg flea market in New York City this August. I was having a fish taco at the time. I'm quite keen on these fish tacos...Want them ALL the time. Anyway, enjoy!
The process of setting up this blog was fairly easy as I have had the opportunity to use Blogger regularly. The TL at my school set up the school library website using Blogger so when I took over her maternity leave, I was responsible for updating the blog. In the beginning, it was a little daunting having to figure out what all those tools were and how to use them. However, I noticed this summer that I have become much more comfortable with this process. I also tried Wordpress this summer and I just felt that Blogger was easier to use and it had features I liked. I could change the layout, the colours, the font and add pages, widgets and all sorts of gadgets easily. Parts of the blog that I don't like can be removed such as time stamping and comments for my library blog.
I would recommend Blogger just because it is quite intuitive and it keeps all the different blogs I have organized. It even has a stats page to let me see how often I get hits!
