Final Website Project

Blog Post 4: Technology Leadership Role of School Librarians

The benefits of technology in education are limitless and the role of the librarian is essential for school wide digital understanding and information literacy skills. Students should gain technology skills in the classroom in order to access academic information and function in the modern business environment. The amount of information available through the internet and databases continues to grow and students need to both access that information and contain the knowledge to determine what data is reliable. The American Association of School Librarians (2007) states that librarians must “create products that apply to authentic, real-world contexts” in order to meet the standards for a 21st century learner. When librarians collaborate with teachers to form lessons with technology integration like class Wiki pages, students gain digital knowledge and confidence as well as develop a comfort in collaborative projects. A key component in helping children develop as digital learners is to remain an active figure throughout library activities. Kuhlthau (2010) states that “Guided inquiry is planned, targeted, supervised intervention throughout the inquiry process” (p. 2). By designing library lessons and activities to fit subject based curriculum and real world skills, student actively engage in the proceedings and request additional information. Because, students are aware of the importance of technology they have a high level of interest in learning new skills, this helps encourage subject interest as well. Dweck (2009) found that “Students with a growth mindset seek out learning, develop deeper learning strategies, and strive for an honest assessment of their weaknesses so that they can work to remedy them” (p. 8). Students want to learn and they value technology skills that will benefit them in their current studies as well as in life. Planning activities to captivate student interest and serve as life long learning tools, ensures that students will absorb more information and enjoy the process of learning. The school librarian should help teachers integrate technology in both the classroom and the library to better prepare students for necessary life skills.

References
American Library Association. (2007). Retrieved from      http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/context/guidelinesandstandards/learningstandards/AASL_LearningStandards.pdf

Dweck, C. (2009). Who will the 21st century learners be?. Knowledge Quest, 38(2), 8-9.

Kuhlthau, C. (2010). Guided inquiry: school libraries in the 21st century. School Libraries Worldwide, 16(1), 1-12.

Class Projects

Diigo List

5720

Shelfari Page

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

Voice Thread Discussion

Blog Post 3: Technology Implementations Strategies

In my search to optimize technology use in the library to support school curriculum and advance student skills I came upon Dr. Michael Hough’s (2011) article Libraries as iCenters: helping schools. In the article Dr. Hough suggest a new view to the school library as a whole. He encourages librarians to view themselves as the chief information officer (CIO) of the school. He states that the end goal of education is to ensure that students are prepared to join the workforce. However, due to technology demands on society students need more technology training and education needs to be revamped to accommodate these changes.

Some key points in his article include: the necessity for libraries to be the technology hub of the school, current trends in information and communication technologies, and the significance of those trends for school libraries.

There are many advantages of the library being the technology hub of the school. First, in order for students to fully understand the digital learning environment trained adult supervision is key to building proper information retrieval skills. Second, the library must be better equipped than home environments to provide comprehensive training to students and one area in the school should head the technology department. Finally, with such rapid growth in technology and a wide variety of faculty experience in technology, librarians must keep teachers up to date and comfortable with all digital applications.

The progression of technology use in the business world establishes a higher need for information and communication technology training to be geared toward future uses for students. Students will need to access digital services in the library 24/7 just as they would in the workforce. Students will also face barriers in technology without instruction on information literacy and digital citizenship. It is essential for students to differentiate between relevant and unreliable information on the web.

What does this mean for the school library? It means the library must grow with technology and society. Libraries are no longer limited to physical objects and the librarians must assert themselves as technology leaders that promote the library. Library resources must reflect current trends in society and become the school technology base. Students should have all digital resources available to them in the library.

In today’s library environment, information literacy and digital citizenship are top priorities. I believe those skills should be shared will all students and the lessons should be continually be updated. I would incorporate class lessons that allow students to engage in both technical applications for research and Web 2.0 tools that address their social interest to promote better digital practices. Another idea is to collaborate with teachers to create class assignments that teach digital skills, but create mock business situations or contests to strengthen student understand without straying from curriculum.
References

Hough, M. (2011). Libraries as iCentres: helping schools. Access (10300155), 25(1), 5-9.

Program Advertisement

Try our slideshow maker at Animoto.

Search Engine

My Search Engine

Class Web 2.0 Wiki

http://smslis5720sum13.wikispaces.com

Copyright Lesson Plan Presentation and Materials

Strategies Professional Development Presentation and Handout

Blog Post 2: Handheld Devices

Technology advances open the door to new activities in the library that encourage student participation and a more comprehensive educational experience for students.  Mobile devices increase student interest in the library and allow for new teaching moments in the fields of research and technology.  Anderson (2013) states that mobile student usage calls for proper student training in device usage in school library and classroom integration.  As students continue to rely on smart phones and tablets, it is essential to ensure formal academic practices are become a part of student’s technology knowledge base. Anderson (2013) also insist that mobile devices will not replace computers, but instead allow students to practice technology skills on the go without limiting them to stationary study locations.  Because, mobile devices play such an important role in life and information retrieval, Anderson (2013) believes that libraries must evolve with technology and incorporate mobile devices in library curriculum.

I also, believe students should extend their abilities in mobile technology beyond entertainment practices and develop practical skills they can use throughout their academic careers.  As technology continues to grow and encompass so many aspects of our lives it is more important than ever for students to understand the latest technology and readily apply it to school projects.  As a school librarian, I would continue to use computers and laptops for student projects, but cell phones and smart tablets have valuable applications that take learning to the next level.  Students carry their phones everywhere and E-book selections encourage students to download and read books on their cell phones in situations where toting books around is implausible.  Tablets added even more options to the library learning environment.  Classrooms and the library can incorporate downloadable applications to the tablet to add to or reinforce previous lessons.  In some cases, the digital environment introduces new methods of discovery on old classroom practices.  For example, biology classes offer only one session of classroom dissection due sample and chemical expenses.  Some students don’t even participate in traditional dissections.  Introducing digital dissections on tablets allows students to see and review the material whenever necessary without the mess and expense of traditional dissections.  Incorporating tablets into the library has the potential to draw in classes that don’t traditionally use the library, but will value from opening the class up to a new experience. 

References

Anderson, T. (2013). Tweens and their in-betweens: giving voice to young people when                       

     exploring emerging information practices associated with smart devices. Information  

     Research, 18(1), 1-11.

Blog Post 1: Technology Strengths and Weaknesses

To evaluate my technology based skills in the field of education, I referred to the International Society for Technology in Education standards to establish my strengths and weaknesses.  
As an educator, my major weakness is a lack of field experience.  While, I am proficient in computer and internet applications, I have little experience applying technology savvy lesson plans in a classroom setting.  One example of building student technology skills through classroom experience is to promote student creativity and participation in a virtual format.  Creative projects encourage students to produce original ideas and build higher thinking skills.  Although, I am currently working toward building my professional and leadership skills, I think this is an ongoing process.  I enjoy learning and I plan to continuously participate in academic workshops and graduate courses to further my skills in technology and education.  Lifelong learning will increase the depth of my understanding of technology and better prepare me to incorporate new technology into classroom projects.  
My strengths in technology outweigh my weaknesses.  Students today are inundated with technology and information.  As a library science student, I have the knowledge and skills necessary to foster proper digital citizenship in students.  Students must be informed of their ethical obligation to respect proper citation policies and use safe internet behavior.  Project interaction and class modules will help to build these skills in students.  As students move to the library for research and skills building sessions, internet etiquette skills should be reinforced.  Collaboration between teachers and students during digital projects allows for instant student feedback and an opportunity to focus on areas of concern.  
As an educator, I plan to use my experience with technology to build student technology skills by incorporating technology into regular class assignments.  Hands on technology experience will inspire higher levels of student confidence in digital formats and better digital citizenship skills.  Requiring digital projects in various lessons will allow students to build a virtual portfolio of their own and better prepare them for their future in college.  To improve my instructional skills I plan to obtain more experience applying digital lesson plans in the classroom.  It is also my goal to continually seek out new information and creative ideas to capture the attention of my students so that they look forward to learning more about technology and applying those skills. 

References

International Society for Technology in Education. (2013). International society for technology in education standards. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/nets-t-standards.pdf?sfvrsn=2