A Fable for Teachers

New Literacies for a New Age podcast

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs2YPGTEWGU&feature=related

I am a sucker for stories. The podcast link above will take you to a short, 3-minute fable about the Heffalump teachers that despaired and resisted a new mode of learning that the young Heffalumps found more intriguing than memorization and recitation. Though told tongue-in-cheek, the story reminds those of us seeking to be successful educators that change is the only constant in the world of technology. Not a new idea, but a cleverly-told reminder rather to lay hold of the best parts of technology and make it work for us rather than throwing up our hands in despair.

(Located and accessed on YouTube 6/18/10)

Young Learners Need Librarians, Not Just Google

"Young Learners Need Librarians, Not Just Google"  

http://www.resourceshelf.com/2010/03/25/young-learners-need-librarians-not-just-google/
The following blog snippet resonated with me today. The title certainly caught my eye. "Young Learners Need Librarians, Not Just Google." Sounds like my mantra with my high school English students.The blog is from a fantastic daily blog newsletter called Resource Shelf.com specifically written for educators, journalists and information professionals. I found the site through the technorati.com blog search engine. Numerous up-to-the hour blogs caught my eye today on info related topics. (I told my husband that Starbucks is finally going free July 1st with its WiFi. Whoo-hoo!)
The March 25, 2010 blog discusses an article written by Dulcinea Media CEO Mark Moran in Forbes last year after a NY librarian was acknowledged by the NYTimes as being a " web curator and information literacy specialist." While this sounds like positive affirmation for information specialists, the article continues...
"Cut to the present, and librarian blogs tell a different story. Many absolutely clueless administrators still believe that a search engine is an adequate substitute for a trained research teacher. With the nation’s schools budget-strapped, librarians–and even libraries–are being cut from coast to coast.
To use the Internet as a library you need new research skills: the ability to pick out reliable sources from an overwhelming heap of misinformation, to find relevant material amid an infinite array of options…
[Snip] 
And as the founder of a company whose mission is to teach the effective use of the Internet, I have pored through dozens of studies, and recently oversaw one myself, that all came to the same conclusion: Students do not know how to find or evaluate the information they need on the Internet." ("Young Learners Need Librarians, Not Just Google," ResourceShelf.com, 3/25/10)
Librarians and teachers must arm ourselves with the tools necessary to equip our young learners how to find reliable information effectively. Oh, and we must be prepared to defend this role to those who see Google as the answer to budget woes.


(To read the original article, Access the Complete Forbes Column here.)

Libraries, Schools and Technology..Oh, my

(Image from Flickr photos Computers at the Wilmington College Library, originally uploaded by Andrew|W. )

Technology evolves faster than teen fashion trends. Those of us who attended school before the Networked Era of the 1990s can find the ever-changing wave of technology a bit overwhelming. Give me e-mail, internet, and cell phone, and I feel tech savvy enough. 

However, as educators, we are poised to be disseminators of information in an era where information can be disseminated from many, many sources and devices. We cannot afford to just drift on the wave, sticking our toes in occasionally and hoping we don't get slammed by too much. We need to embrace it, ride it, and teach others how to get up on their boards and ride it, too.

My desire is to embrace the technological wave (the kids have already) and harness its power in the school library setting. This site is for you and for me. Together we will:

• Explore current trends and mindsets toward technology in the school and library.
• Examine specific technology and media tools for teacher and student use in content areas.
• Share practical and immediately usable ideas on how to use technology in the school library and classroom to enhance units of study and attract those educators who are only dipping their toes in the wave.

As part of the Master's in Library Science graduate program, the Information and Retrieval class requires that I create postings on my topic utilizing various media formats that include blog links, podcasts, RSS feeds, tagging, database and internet articles, and other forms of multimedia. My desire to is serve other educators, students, and their families as a school librarian in elementary, middle or high school. My heart is wide-open to all ages. I will share what I learn as we go in hopes that all of us will benefit from the amazing technology at our fingertips.