Online-powered school libraries: Web 2.0 technologies are transforming the school library.With all the buzz about "Web 2.0 technologies' and the implications that new social Web tools such as Weblogs, wikis See wiki. and the like have for education and information literacy Several conceptions and definitions of information literacy have become prevalent. For example, one conception defines information literacy in terms of a set of competencies that an informed citizen of an information society ought to possess to participate intelligently and , it's no wonder that school libraries are suddenly on the front lines of change. But what exactly does a "School Library 2.0" look like, and how does your library stack up? (No pun intended.) Is your library a "24/7 digital workspace," a "learning-centered laboratory," and/or a "participatory, social, user-centered space"? They are all descriptions that came from the recent School Library 2.0 Summit (sljsummit.pbwiki.com) sponsored by School Library Journal. Libraries were also described as places where "librarians are connectors," where there is a "community of trust emphasizing personal responsibility," and a place for "interactive learning and collaboration with others." In other words Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke" put differently , today's libraries are much different from how they were in the past. So how are libraries and schools being reinvented in this much more social, connected, always-online world? The following are groundbreaking models and examples. Blogs Librarians are now launching blogs, not only to give updates on resources but also to interact with users and host collaborative discussions. For example, one of the earliest and best school library blogs comes from Galileo High School in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden , where librarian Pat Delaney Pat Delaney may refer to:
Social Networking Sites Taking blogging one step further, libraries are connecting to teen readers by creating pages on social networking sites such as MySpace.com. An example is the Stoneham, Mass., public library site which comes complete with hip hop hip-hop or hip hop n. 1. A popular urban youth culture, closely associated with rap music and with the style and fashions of African-American inner-city residents. 2. Rap music. adj. music, notices on recently arrived CDs, and links to teen authors who have their own MySpace sites. Wikis Libraries are also using wiki sites to get staff and students involved in creating online library-related resources. Examples include the Teacherlibrarianwiki site hosted by Joyce Valenza, a librarian/blogger, from the Springfield Township High School Springfield Township High School is a 8-12th grade high school located at 1801 E. Paper Mill Road, Erdenheim, Montgomery County, PA. It has an approximate enrollment of 875. in Pennsylvania to collect information from staff members, and the Moncrief Library Wiki in Texas, developed by freshmen at Fort Worth Country Day School Fort Worth Country Day School is an independent school in Fort Worth, Texas, a member of the Southwest Preparatory Conference. The school has an enrollment of approximately 1100 students in grades K-12. to help other students learn to use library resources. Podcasts and Videocasts There are now growing numbers of podcasts and videocasts in the library ranks, including RES Library Learners podcasts that Randolph Elementary School elementary school: see school. in Virginia offers, and student book review podcasts posted by Grandview Elementary School
Grandview Elementary is a public elementary school in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. in Monsey, N.Y. RSS (Really Simple Syndication) A syndication format that was developed by Netscape in 1999 and became very popular for aggregating updates to blogs and the news sites. RSS has also stood for "Rich Site Summary" and "RDF Site Summary. and Social Bookmarking Ranking a Web site by users who like the content rather than by the total number of links to the site. Social bookmarking sites such as del.icio.us (http://del.icio.us) let users tag their favorite sites with key words and post them for others to see. See folksonomy and page ranking. School libraries are also offering Real Simple Syndication (RSS) tools that allow users to subscribe to online information so they get new content as soon as it goes online. One example is the Media Center site of Nashville Community High School in Illinois, which uses RSS to compile dynamic pages of constantly updated local and world news from various sources. Other useful Web 2.0 technologies include social bookmarking tools such as del.icio.us, where you can find online resources that people have labeled with specific topic tags. For example, searching on "library 2.0" will identify several thousand recommended resources. Web 2.0 technologies are transforming the ways in which school libraries operate and deliver their services in this fast changing online social and collaborative world. The sites on the previous page offer models and resources for your staff to consider. RESOURCES Blogging Libraries Wiki www.blogwithoutalibrary.net/links Grandview Elementary School www.grandviewlibrary.org/fold/grandviewnews.aspx Li-Blog-ary www.galileoweb.org/galileoLibrary Mission Read cjhsimc.edublogs.org Moncrief Library Wiki moncrieflibrary.pbwiki.com Randolph Elementary School www.glnd.k12.va.us/weblog Stoneham Library on Myspace www.rnyspace.com/stonehamlibrary Teacherlibrarianwiki www.teacherlibrarianwiki.pbwiki.com Will Richardson is a contributing editor to The Pulse: Education's Place for Debate. |
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