It is very easy to feel overwhelmed with the amount of information available at our fingertips! At first, I found learning about and using digital media very frustrating; however, I fully support learning about new digital technology and keeping ahead of the game. I don't know how many times I have heard that libraries will be a thing of the past. I feel that this is not true at all and that schools will need the services of a teacher-librarian more than ever just to make sense of all the information that is out there. Before I got a position as a teacher-librarian, I did not know very much about technology at all. I learned everything as I went along making my first year in the library a huge learning curve. Thanks to the library courses I am learning how to Blog and soon how to Skype, both important skills in the world of technology.
When I first started in the library in September 2009, there wasn't a full class set of computers in the library and there was only 17 laptops in a mobile lab cart. Some of the computers that were in the library computer lab didn't work. Nothing is more frustrating to students than a computer that doesn't work properly. I put in a request to get a class set of computers in the library and ordered 32 Netbooks for the mobile cart, so that students in a class had sufficient access to information. I am also a member on the Tech committee which allows me to have a say and a vote for ordering tech requests. We also ordered Tablets for the Science and Math teachers and we ordered LCD projectors for each teacher in the school. For the English department, I also ordered Follett Playaways using a Raise a Reader grant for visually impaired, struggling, or reluctant readers. I ordered MP3 players so students and teachers can download books that we don't have in Playaway format. I also bought a Sony e-reader because I read that California and Ontario download textbooks and I wanted to see if it was feasible for our library. It is important to have enough equipment and the tech support for keeping the equipment running smoothly.
In order to provide support for teachers and students, collaboration is a key element. I collaborated with a Planning 10 teacher designing a lesson to get students using the catalogue to look up books about a specific topic one day; then the next day, I demonstrated how to access the databases that our school subscribes to; and finally on the third day, I gave a lesson to students how to evaluate Internet sites and what sites are better for research according to suffixes, such as gov. edu. I followed this process with most of the teachers who brought their classes in after that if they had time for a three day research project. I also attended work shops offered through our District Resource Centre so that I could teach the use of databases more efficiently. As someone else pointed out in their Blog, it is surprising that a number of teachers are not familiar with how to access the catalogue or the databases. For this reason, I set up workshops to show teachers, administrators, and parents from the PAC committee how to access the databases and best help young people with their research. I have also added useful links to our library web page for teachers and students about Copy Right and How to do a Bibliography. Probably the most frustrating is when a teacher allows students to use Wikipedia without an explanation about how to critically analyze information, or allows students to cut and paste without referencing their sources.
Students cannot access Facebook or Hotmail at our school. We are just hooking up a Colubris in the library and the Common Room (where students each their lunch); however, we haven't set guidelines up to when and how students will have access. (Please post suggestions to my Blog!). I look after barcoding equipment, entering tech tickets for equipment that is not working, and going to teacher's classes when they have a problem with equipment. I sign out equipment to keep track of it using the Sirsi Dynix Work Flows system. When teachers ask for a TV and a VCR/DVD, I suggest that they try the LCD projector; I tell them that I will come to their class and show them how to set it up. Since I am in the early stages of being a teacher-librarian, I still have a lot to learn, but I believe in being pro-active and supporting change.
Added Notes: I now know the difference between e-readers and e-texts. E-readers would be an excellent way to store the classics, so that they are not taking up room on the shelf; however, a student asked for Wuthering heights today--after she read Pride and Prejudice; nothing like curling up with a book and a blanket. E-texts offer many enhanced features to add to the texts, such as links that will provide more information. I asked my Math teachers if they were interested in getting the e-texts because of the three new streams Math 11 coming into effect next Fall; however, they want to order the textbooks.
After reading Joyce's comments about digital access, I feel sorry for the students who go to that library; I am happy to say that I allow students to drop-in and use the computers if they are not all being used by a class.
I love the idea about students checking out the Internet through Google and that it is about time that teachers design lessons that incorporate the students' digital world into the classroom.
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