Now Featured in the Media Center: WEB 2.0

The possibilities for using Web 2.0 for educational activities are only limited by our imaginations. The one of the threads of the readings was not to let policies and fear limit the educational uses because our students need guidance in using the web as an integral education tool as well as using it safely for their social interactions. After completing the readings for this module a see a stronger need for my involvement as a technology leader than I had before. The articles identified a technological leader as one who uses technological effectively, where as I’ve tended to get hung up in technical end of physically using technology - the how to of using and troubleshooting problems with the equipment. The mindset I am switching to is similar to the role I play as an information specialists where I advise staff and students which resources to use to find the information they need. With technology of the Web 2.0 variety I need to start thinking of what tool can students and staff use in the creation of their final product. I was surprised to read in Underwood‘s article “21st century learning blocked: what is a librarian to do?” what administrators/gurus think that Web 2.0 tools are a waste of time, and that many of these tools really do compromise network security. The administrators in my district want us to use some Web 2.0 tools like podcasts, but they are fuzzy about Facebook and other social media sites. I know that I need to be a key player in the use of technology to help change the paradigm that Web 2.0 is a waste of time to that of one of a useful education tool that we need the need to teach our students how to safely and ethically. The Schmidt article that was recommend by Christine was excellent. I did not realize that it was possible to set different levels of security for different accounts, which is something that they IT department might be able to do in my district. After this course is over I plan to learn more about the filtering system used at school so that I know more about how it works and what it can and cannot do. After reading both of these articles I feel better prepared to tackle the issue of blocked websites.

Being proactive in today’s climate of budget cuts is essential. Some of my classmates are active on some pretty impressive committees, for example school improvement chair. The common thread of involvement on technology committees and their demise was very interesting to read about on the discussion posts. I thought that maybe it was just the top down management style of the new district administrators, all of whom by the way have been on the job four years or less depending on the job. I particularly admired the way Shelly handled the situation of walking in on two bigwigs who were planning to add more computers to the library. After reading her post I realized that the technology director I work with tends to be more receptive to emails than face-to-face meetings. I’ll have to try communicating with him more via email this coming school year. I was not surprised to common thread that appeared during the discussion of policies on the discussion board that my classmates are concerned about internet filters, blocked websites, social networks and AUPs. It was interesting to see that the entire class’s responses to the policy scenarios that were posed on Voice Thread focused on ways to turn the scenario around so that students would be able to benefit from the use of a new technology or a change in a policy. As my grandmother was fond of saying there is more than one way to skin a cat its all in how you do it.

Putting out the Welcome Mat

In order to improve student learning, building influence with our peers and bosses we need to have an environment in the media center that welcomes all who walk through the door. This includes students, teachers, parents and the community in general. For years I have strived to have an atmosphere in the library that was welcoming so that students would visit on their own accord and teachers would feel comfortable bringing their classes to use the resources (information, and equipment) located n the media center. Until I went through this module I hadn’t thought much about interacting with the community and had only been actively reaching out to parents on a limited basis three years ago. The VanDusen’s article and the Anderson article highlighted the need to be visible among to these two groups. This makes total sense since they are partners in educating today’s students but are necessarily in the know of what a library media specialist does or the fact that school libraries have morphed into media centers where student are accessing information in a wide variety of formats and that school assignments are no longer limited to written or oral reports. School libraries look much different now than they did when parents and much of the community attend school.

The exchange of our thoughts of what we would like to change in our media centers was very interesting due to me due to the amount of sharing of additional ideas that occurred during this discussion. The tip of the week as a way to promote not only the media center, but also one’s self as a teacher trainer. This idea of Debbie’s is a great idea that I could easily do. I really appreciated hearing that other people use pathfinders. A couple of the teachers I work with think that I spoon feed students by developing pathfinders, while I have always viewed a pathfinder as a tool to help students and staff locate the information they need. Holding activities outside of the school day such as movie nights and poetry slams are activities that could give the program a lot of bang for the buck and are definitely ideas I will explore to promote the library.

Change - Change - Change

Some of the articles that were required for reading I have read before and other were new to me. The publications from the ISTE are ones that I should read on a regular basis since those publications are being read by a wide variety of educators who are interested in technology. I need to expand my scope of professional reading outside the world of library media specialists. It would also make me more knowledgeable when I talk to other within district and outside of the district. I need to pick a few blogs to follow. I tried following a few people on Twitter, but I found that overwhelming. I think that I will change my account so that I am following the professional organization strands. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by how much information is out there and how little time I have to absorb all of this information. From what I’ve read on the postings from class I’m not the only one who feels overwhelmed with information and changes in technology. The I-pads look cool. I especially enjoyed the YouTube video of the toddler exploring one. I can think of a lot of uses for on, but the price would be hard to justify since I have a laptop. Although maybe I could justify it since I haven’t invested in an e-reader.

Use of new technologies as a means to reach the digital natives in their own environment so that that their educational experiences are in their world and prepare them for their future lives in the 21st century was a recurring theme in many of the articles. The YouTube video Shift happens hits home the fact that we need to prepare students for a future that is totally different from the present we live in since information is increasing at such a rapid pace.

Advocacy and avoiding the draconic librarian was another theme. I worked with a dragon librarian once. It was very frustrating experience for me and the memories from that experience popped into my mind while reading some of the change articles on the reading list. I just don’t understand how someone who doesn’t enjoy working with teens would want to spend 30 years working as a teacher. It was eye opening to read about proactive steps and what steps to take once budget cuts to your area are recommended. Unfortunately during the economic times we are facing the cuts to media specialists in my district are to save classroom positions to keep class sizes at a reasonable size. I think that it is prudent to keep doing the best job that you can so that when the economy turns around teachers will remember what a good media specialist can do and what the technicians, our in my district the guys who fix the computers and the network, can’t do to help me teach my students.

One thing I need to work on after reading the articles from this module is setting goals for my program and meeting more often with the building administrators. I know that they are busy, but there are a some things that I can do to help them that

Starting an online course

Virtual education is something I have discussed with some of my students, but not something that I had experienced personally until very recently. This summer I am taking a virtual class through UW-Stout, and it is a totally new educational experience for me. Getting to know my classmates in a virtual environment and having class discussions virtually is a new experience for me. In some ways it is like a normal class because we all have different experiences and areas of expertise. Using Google Maps to visual see where everyone in the class is located physically was great. However, I do have to say that I miss the face-to-face interaction of group discussions. I also have empathy for some of the students who took classes virtually at the school I work at because it is a very different learning environment than they are used to, and you have to have self-motiviation and self-discipline to do well. I can see why a few of our students who are more social, and or not very organized individualizes had trouble with the virtual classes.

While reading the posts of my classmates it was a relief to hear that others are struggling to keep up with the fast change technology and issues that arise from using technology in a school setting. Lourdes comment about bring new and exciting ideas back to her program is something I wish I had said in those original posts about our goals. It is something that I always try to do whenever I take a class or attend a conference or meeting.

Webspiraton was fairly easy for me to use, although I have to admit the graphical organizer format in that form does not work well for me personally. However, I really liked the outline format of the program. I could see myself using Webspiration to develop outlines. It is definitely a Web 2.0 app that I will share with the teachers I work with when school starts this fall.