Method 12--Reflection and Evaluation

The last step--reflecting on the experience.

Q: What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?

A: I had several Aha! moments during this class, including:
*The Computing in the Cloud segment introduced me to GoogleDocs, where I found a lot of useful tools.
*Learning to skin and embed a video was fun, and I got to make my Daddy happy by posting a video of his Men’s Chorus. That one thing made the whole class worthwhile for me.
*I didn’t know that there were programs like Meebo that allow subscribers to chat.
*I spent some time exploring PB Wiki so that I feel comfortable trying to set up a library wiki at school.
*I discovered the “Edit HTML” tag on Blogger. I’ve done blogs before and never used it.

Q: How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?

A: I have some new tools and ideas for improving my library and making information more accessible to my students.

Q: Were there any take-aways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?

A: I am now a Facebook addict. That was a surprise. I knew about it, but didn’t know how much fun it was. Don’t know if that’s a good thing or not, but there it is. I am always surprised at how many tools are available on the Internet.

Q: What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?

A: The format is great for me. I can read and reread as much as I need to and spend as much or as little time as I need to on a given topic. If all of this information were crammed into a one-or two-day workshop, it would be overwhelming. Many times I have been to workshops where, by the time they were over, I was completely overloaded with information. I like being able to read and then think, digest, and play with the new ideas before moving on.

One thing that I would like to see is a forum where participants could chat. I think that would be helpful and would allow participants to help each other by answering questions that come up.

Q: And last but not least… If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you again chose to participate?

A: Yes, I would definitely take another class like this. It is convenient and packed with good information. I appreciate the opportunity provided by TSLAC. I would love to have a refresher course/helpful hints on cataloging.

This has been an interesting and useful course. I am really glad that I signed up and went through all of the Methods. Some of the exercises covered topics that I knew a little about or had heard of, but having the opportunity to learn more about them and practice with them was very helpful. I spent more than the twelve hours that the introduction suggested, but that was because I spent a lot of time exploring and playing with the tools that were mentioned. It was a very worthwhile experience.

Method 11--The Wide World of Podcasting

The title of this step is very appropriate because the world of podcasting is a wide world. I knew about podcasting—I’ve even created one (see previous posting)—but I had no idea how many topics are covered or how easy podcasts are to access. I found lots that would be useful to me as a librarian, useful for my students, or just fun.

I looked at a lot of the podcast sites mentioned in the Dozen Ways lecture notes, but mostly at iTunes, since I already had it downloaded onto my computer. I had never even looked at the podcast store before. I found lots of things that look like they will be interesting and useful. There were several that I thought would be good for the students at my school. I especially liked the podcasts that are about vocabulary development. Since these students will be taking the PSAT, SAT, and/or ACT before too long, anything that will improve their vocabulary is a good thing.

Two of the podcasts that I looked at were called A Way with Words and Just Vocabulary. Both of them had good information, but the podcasts were long and would take so much time that not many students would be willing or able to devote that much time to them.

The podcast that I think would be most useful for my students is called Podictionary. It talks about word meanings and origins. The podcasts are short and entertaining, and there is a website with the script for each day’s episode. Podictionary is also available on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and YouTube. The only negative is that the podcasts are sponsored, so there is a commercial in each one, as well as on the website, but it is not really too disruptive.

Click on the icon below to see the Podictionary website.

Ideas from several places came together in my head last week and I decided to investigate the possibility of posting podcasts on my library website. My principal agreed that it is worth looking into. I want to collaborate with the speech/drama teacher and the business (computer) teacher to have students create podcasts of booktalks about books that they would like to recommend to other students. I think that word-of-mouth would be an excellent way to advertise the library’s collection.

Bonus Podcasts

This is a podcast that I created last year in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a class I was taking from Texas Woman's University. It is a booktalk on the book 90 Minutes in Heaven by Don Piper.

And this one features Diana Gabaldon talking about the writing process and her new book An Echo in the Bone, which I have bought, but can't start reading until I finish these Dozen Ways to Two-Step!

And Now for Something Completely Different....

Totally off the subject and just for fun!

Created June 2009 at Walt Disney World's Spaceship Earth

Method 10--This Wiki World

Wiki pages are another tool that I have known a little about, but not really used very much. I had a principal one time who used Wiki to get teacher input into creating a mission statement for the school. At that time, I knew so little about Wiki (and I was so new on the campus) that I didn’t participate. Now I can see what a useful tool that would be. Instead of everyone editing and emailing their revisions, everything is in one place and accessible to anyone. Changes and edits can be tracked easily.

I enjoyed looking at all the examples of how libraries are using Wikis. One that I thought could be really useful is Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki. It seems like a good place to share ideas that really work in libraries.

One Wiki page that made me laugh was the 2009 Annual ALA Wiki. The reason? It has a page entitled “Events with Food.” That just struck me as funny—not that I wouldn’t be tempted to take advantage of it.

Anyway, looking at all of the Wikis and reading about all of the ways they can be used has inspired me to try again to really develop and use a library Wiki. I have started on it and plan to use it to let teachers sign up to bring classes into the library, reserve equipment, request books, and share with each other what resources they are using for particular assignments. I think it could be a real time-saver and a good way to collaborate.

PS—I’m not at all sick of the “In Plain English” tutorials. I agree that they are very good. Lots of good information in an easy-to-follow format. Besides, I love how the guy uses his hands to show “old way bad” and “new way good.”

Method 9--Chat and Instant Messaging

Image source: http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Politics-of-Social-Organizations

Chat (instant messaging) is not really a new thing for me. I do not use it a lot, but I am familiar with it. My first experiences with online chats were in the summer of 2007. I was taking an online class and one of the ways that the professor presented information was through live chat sessions. During the days before the chat, he would announce the date and time of the chat and students would sign in to participate. He would answer questions and give us opportunities to practice the new cataloging skill that we had just learned. I enjoyed the chats and learned a lot from them. The frustrating thing was that it was sometimes hard to keep up with which answer went with which question since sometimes several people would respond at the same time. Still, it was a good way to interact.

Recently I have chatted mostly on Facebook. I like it because it is a real-time conversation and a way to stay connected to people. I chat with people who live here in town and with people who live far away, and feel equally connected to all of them. I still like phone calls because I can hear my friends’ voices, but chatting is a good alternative—and it’s free and easy to do. The only difficulty is that it’s pretty much a chance conversation. My friends and I have to be on Facebook at the same time to chat with each other.

I really don’t see a problem with using chat/IM on a library website. I think that anything that helps library patrons get the information they need is a good thing. Even though I don't use chat in my library right now, I can see where it would be useful because it would allow students to ask questions even if they were on another computer in school—or at home. Here at school, students would not be able to chat from a cell phone since they are not supposed to have phones at school. As part of this unit, I looked at the Meebo site. I like the idea of students and staff being able to ask questions directly from the library website. As the lecture notes stated, having IMers add the library to a buddy list is a good way to develop and maintain a connection between the library and its patrons.

It seems that there are a lot of ways that a library could benefit from chatting with patrons. I hope that I can work out a way to try it sometime soon.

Method 8--Social Networking

The first time I heard of MySpace, I had no idea what that was. There was a link on a musician’s website that said, “Check out my MySpace page.” I wondered why she would need another website if she already had one. It was a long time before I found out.. Then I also learned about FaceBook. I knew people who were on both sites, but never signed up myself. Finally, as I began the readings for this course, I decided to take the plunge. I now have a Facebook page, even though I don’t understand all of the features that are available. I’m learning little by little.

Having seen what social networking sites have to offer, I can see that they might be useful for libraries. They offer a way to reach out to students who might not ever come into the library otherwise. They could be good marketing tools for advertising library services and new materials. Sending out a status update would be a good way to let users know what new materials are available. I really like the "Ask a Librarian" app mentioned on David Lee King's screencast. I also like his point that connecting with patrons is important, whether it's on FaceBook or in person. Facebook would be a good forum for patrons to post reviews or booktalks about things they wanted to recommend to others.

If I were to decide to have a Facebook page for my library, I would definitely want to create a profile separate from my personal one, since the purpose of the two profiles would be completely different. My school district has repeatedly cautioned teachers about allowing students to have access to personal pages, so the best thing to do would be to keep school and personal pages completely separate.

One thing I have learned about FaceBook is that it can be addictive. I’ve found people that I had lost contact with and sent messages to them. It’s fun to catch up. I used to play computer games, but now I read Facebook updates and chat with whichever friends are available.

I have been enjoying my Facebook page, but I do think it is important to be careful what kinds of information are posted. Our school attorney has said that one should never post anything that one would not want to answer for in a court of law. I would add that one should not post anything that one would not want potential employers, prospective relationships, or family members to see. I know of a recent situation where a Tweet that the sender thought was private was forwarded to others and caused some pretty significant problems. Different medium, but the same message—don’t automatically assume that anything is private.

Like most things, social networking has benefits and drawbacks. The trick is to take advantage of the benefits and do everything possible to minimize the drawbacks.

Method 7--Tagging, folksonomies & social bookmarking in Del.icio.us

I think that the idea of libraries using tagging and social bookmarking is interesting. I can definitely see a use for it in a school library. I remember one time hearing some librarians discussing whether or not students and teachers should be allowed to tag the records of books in the library. Some thought it was a great idea since it would allow students to share ideas on sources for a class project or writing assignment. Some were outraged at the idea of a “non-librarian” being able to add a subject to a record. I thought about that when I read in Melissa L. Rethlefsen’s article that some librarians feel that “adding keywords to resources lacks authority control.”

Del.icio.us could be a very useful tool in a school library. As I mentioned above, students could help each other find resources. Teachers could create a reading list of websites that would be useful for other teachers. Everyone who works at a school is so busy these days--trying to teach and handle all of the extra work that is required--that having a list of reliable sources would probably be a welcome time-saver. Instead of each teacher re-inventing the wheel and searching the same websites that others have searched and rejected, they could build on the work of their colleagues.

I had set up a Del.icio.us account previously for a class that I took last year. I have not done a lot with it since then, but watching the videos and reading the articles for this Method have helped me realize that it can be a useful tool for me, both personally and professionally. It’s also fun to read the tags that are assigned to a bookmarked page and to explore more pages with that same tag. It’s like getting a glimpse into how someone else thinks.


Source Cited:
Rethlefsen, Melissa L. "Tags Help Make Libraries Del.icio.us." School Library Journal 15 Sep 2007 Web.29 Sep 2009.

Extra Credit--Flickr vs. Picasa

I spent some time exploring Flickr and Picasa. They have similar features and uses. I like being able to tag pictures and then search by tags. It seems like Flickr is better-known, so it would probably have more images, but I didn't count them. I did notice that thousands of images are uploaded every minute.


There are some things that I like about Picasa--it has a fun game where the viewer looks at a picture and tries to guess where in the world the picture was taken. The program tells you how many thousands of miles off you are. I was really bad at it, but it was fun anyway. I like the collaborative albums, where more than one person can contribute photos. I like the layout of the Picasa pages. It seems like they are easier on the eye.


One thing that surprised me was that when I was logged into my Google account, Picasa pulled up all the pictures that I have ever uploaded to a blog. I had no idea.


I think that if a library wanted to use a photo-sharing program, either Flickr or Picasa would work equally well. It's just a matter of personal preference.

Bonus Video

I'm like a kid with a new toy.

This is a video of the Men's Chorus at my parents' church. I think it's very good, and I'm very proud of my Daddy. Enjoy! (By the way, I'm proud of the rest of my family, too. They just don't happen to be in this video.)

Method 6--YouTube

I chose this video because I have just taught search strategies to several classes at my school. This would have been a helpful video to show them. At least I'll have it for next time.

I have used and enjoyed YouTube for a long time, so I know that there are lots of useful and/or entertaining videos available. Last summer I found lots of fun Shel Silverstein clips--even one of him singing with Johnny Cash! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npVZEOzotCE) Many of the videos would be good tools to use in a school setting. The problem I have is that, like some of the other tools in this course, YouTube is blocked at my school. I could embed a video in my school website that would be accessible to students working from home. Maybe this one that I've embedded here would be a good one. It would give students a quick refresher on how to search the databases while they were doing homework.

We do have access to a site called TeacherTube that has educator-approved videos, and some of them are very good as well. I have not searched for any on databases, but maybe I should.

One new thing that I learned in this unit is how to actually embed a YouTube video in my blog instead of just copying and pasting a link--and how to skin it. That's fun.

Method 5, part 2--Online Photo Sharing

Online photo sharing is a tool that I have mixed feelings about. On one hand, it is an easy, convenient, inexpensive way to share photos with family and friends. On the other hand, there is at least the possibility of an issue with privacy and possibly even safety, if the user is not careful about what photos are shared and what information is posted. There is also the possibility that young children will be exposed to inappropriate materials. These are basically the same concerns that are caused by almost any use of Internet tools and programs.

At this time, I do not really see a use for Flickr in my school library. There are several reasons for this:

*Flickr and similar sites are blocked in my district
*There is a chance that students would access inappropriate material
*Legal concerns would prevent posting photos of students
*There is not time in the school day when students could use the site.

When I bought my digital camera, it included EasyShare™ software that allows me to download and edit photos, and then share them with friends and family. I (at least feel like I) have more control over who can see them since I have to send an invitation for anyone to view my albums. I will probably just continue to use that rather than one of the sites we read about here. Flickr and other photo-sharing sites could be useful for finding images, even if I am not uploading any images myself.

Method 5, part 1--Flickr Photo

This is one of the photographs I posted on Flickr. It's of the table in my office. Almost every librarian I know has a cluttered office, including me. I have things stacked everywhere, but I can usually find what I need--as long as nobody "helps" me by straightening things up!

The photograph was taken with a Kodak V530 Zoom Digital Camera and edited with Flickr's Picnik program. I used the Vignette effect because I liked how it softened the edges and made my mess look a little less messy.

I titled the picture "Office" and these are the tags I put on it: TSLAC2.0, clutter, catalogs, printer, papers, and library.

Method 4--RSS and Newsreaders

RSS is a really fun, useful tool. It’s nice to be able to read the new postings or articles from my favorite blogs and websites all in one place. The video RSS in Plain English does a good job of explaining how to set up a reader and add feeds. The video says that the reader will save time. I’m not sure about that since I will probably add more and more favorite sites and end up reading a lot more than I do now. But it is definitely convenient.

RSS could be useful in a school library because it would allow students and staff to have quick access to sites that they are using for school work.

I added quite a few feeds to my Google Reader. Here are some of my favorites.

Websites:

OrangeBloods.com—news about athletics at The University of Texas
Baylor Proud—news about Baylor University

Blogs:

School Library Monthly—lots of good information for (surprise!) school librarians
Poetry for Children—tips on finding and sharing poetry. This is written by one of the professors I had at TWU, so it is a real favorite.

Just for fun, I also subscribed to this blog--just to see what would happen.


By the way, I love the I Has a Hot Dog site mentioned in the lecture notes. I guess that’s because I have a wire-haired dachshund.

Method 3—Computing in the Cloud

This assignment was really interesting. I had not spent much time exploring the cloud-based productivity tools before and there are lots of fun, useful things there. It is exciting to think about using them in a school library. Having tools and data storage “in the cloud” could help lower the cost of providing computers to schools since less software and storage space would be required, and being able to access work from school or home (or anyplace where there is a computer with Internet access) would be an asset.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I do think that we should be careful about using tools just because they are available and new. Just because we can do something doesn’t mean we should. The downside that I can see was mentioned by some of the people who responded to Doug Johnson’s blog post “Could you live in the cloud?” That would be the issue of privacy and the potential for incompetence or abuse by the third parties who are responsible for protecting the information.

Another idea that was a little bit troubling for me was mentioned in “Cloud Computing for the Masses” by Greg Cruey. He says that there is a trend toward “permanent connectivity” where computers are always online. It seems to me that being always online would increase the chances of a computer being hacked or of data being stolen. I think I tend to agree with the positions stated by Jenny Levine (“We’re Not All Ready for the Cloud Yet”)—back up data, realize that there are other options besides Google, and think about privacy issues.

Even with those reservations, I do think that there are some tools in the cloud that could be useful in libraries. Some examples are listed below.

Google Docs and Zoho Writer—would allow students to prepare papers and reports, and would allow students to access work from school or home. This would eliminate a problem that I have with students not being able to save work unless they have a flash drive. My school computers are in Deep Freeze, so anything saved during the day is wiped out at night when the computers are scrubbed. Online spreadsheets and presentation programs would have the same advantages.

Zoho Chat would be an excellent tool for students working on a group project. Google Docs would be very useful, too. Both would allow students to chat and edit. That would save a lot of emailing documents back and forth. Zoho Wiki would also allow for collaboration.

Google Calendar would be a good way to let teachers sign up to bring classes to the library. They would be able to tell when it was available without having to come to the library to look at a paper calendar.

Google Reader is useful and helpful for keeping up with blogs that are interesting. I like that it recommends other blogs based on what the user has chosen to follow.

Google Sites would be a fun way to do a class assignment. I think students would enjoy creating a site and maybe wouldn’t realize that they were actually working and learning while they were doing it.

I know that there are lots more applications for Google and Zoho in the school library. From the exploration that I have done so far, I find Google a little easier to use and navigate than Zoho. Probably because I have not used Zoho as much.
It will be fun to explore more and talk to teachers who are tech-savvy and see what ideas they have.

A Random Thought

For some reason--and who knows where that thought came from--reading in Method 3 about all the tools and gadgets available in the cloud made me think about the fact that shoe stores in the 1930s through the 1950s would use a type of X-ray machine in the store to check the fit of shoes. The customer would step on a machine that was basically an unshielded X-ray and be able to see how their feet fit into the shoes. (See information at http://www.orau.org/ptp/collection/shoefittingfluor/shoe.htm).
Of course it was later discovered that the radiation was causing serious health problems and the practice was discontinued.

I guess the connection between the X-ray machine and the tools mentioned in Method 3 is that, when we are using a new technology, we should be careful to use it appropriately and be aware of the potential downside.

As I said, just a random thought.

Image Source: www.orau.org/.../shoefittingfluor/shoe.htm

One type of shoe-fitting fluoroscope.

Method 2--Thoughts on Web 2.0 and Library 2.0

From what I have read and seen, it seems to me that Web 2.0 is a term for describing how the Web is becoming more and more user-friendly and interactive. It used to be that only experienced programmers could create web pages, and the pages they created were fairly static and didn’t invite or allow “audience participation.” The user read the information on the page, and that was about it.

The Web now is highly interactive and so easy to use that even “old dogs” like me can learn new tricks: using wikis, creating web pages, and blogging, for example. The Web is about personalizing the experience, networking, and cooperating.

I really enjoyed the video “The Machine is Us/ing Us (Final Version)” by Michael Wesch. It is interesting to watch and presents a lot of things to think about. The way that the images change so fast is like a visual representation of how fast technology itself is changing and expanding.

I think that Library 2.0 is the attempt to keep libraries relevant in the Web 2.0 world, and the attempt to give patrons the assistance they need. In his video, “Stephen Abram launches Murdoch University’s 23 Things,” Abram says that it is “putting the library in the space where people are.” I think that is what librarians have always done—taken people where they are and given them information and ways to use it. When asked how we can keep up with advances in technology, Abrams says we just have to make the time and make it a priority, as we do with the other things that are important to us.

Libraries have always had to change and evolve with the times. One recent example of that is an article that I read about the Cushing Academy library in Massachusetts. The library is discarding its entire collection of books and replacing them with electronic readers. I understand the need to keep up with changing technology, but I do have a problem with this quote from the school’s headmaster: “When I look at books, I see an outdated technology, like scrolls before books,’’ said James Tracy, headmaster of Cushing and chief promoter of the bookless campus. As a life-long lover of books, that one hurts!

Library 2.0 is an opportunity to have a profound impact on the future, according to Stephen Abram (School Libraries article). He says that libraries should embrace the future, not block new technologies. Echoing what he said in his video, he says “Librarian 2.0 is where the user is, when the user is there.” Sounds like a mission statement to me!

Method 1--Introduction

Greetings from West Texas!

This blog has been created in partial fulfillment of the requirements for The Texas State Library's Learning 2.0 program A Dozen Ways to Two Step: Essential Web 2.0 Training for Texas Librarians.

More postings will follow. Please come back.