There were two things that really stood out for the arcticle discussions. The first was that as a library media specialist it really is important to educate the teachers in the building about all the online databases and other reference materials that are present. In order for teachers to teach their students about the reference materials they first must feel comfortable using these materials. The other information I really enjoyed was the musty technique when looking at materials and trying to determine whether to keep them in the library or get rid of them.
In the school I am working with there isn't a lot of talk about "digital footprints." The students do use the computers a good deal but mostly for writing papers and research. The students seem to know how to navigate computers well enough but I have honestly never heard any of my students speak of facebook, myspace, etc, Granted the students I work with are only in elementary school; it's still pretty amazing considering these sites seem to be out there everywhere. Throughout the week I think I am going to "poll" the kids in my after school program and just see exactly how much they use the computer for and what purposes they are using it for. I'm excited to see the results!
My internet log is coming along nicely. I have a number of sites already picked out and I just need to review them. I am planning on focusing on fourth grade science especially weather and land formations.
I've narrowed my library visit down to two libraries. I will either be visiting the Verona Public Library or the middle school library in Verona. I'm not sure which one yet, but I'll decide by the end of the week.
I am currently job searching at the moment. After watching the digital footprint video, class has encouraged me to take a closer look at my facebook page and make sure it is nice and clean it up a bit. I'm pretty confident my page is pretty good, but I'll take a closer look just to make sure after reading all of the statistics on the video. Class this week just reinforced how important it is to make sure you are leaving a clean "digital footprint" out there and reference collections seem to be an ongoing task/struggle for library media specialists to figure out. This meaning whether to get rid of reference materials, whether to keep materials, what databases to use, and how to make sure people know how to find what they are looking for.
I agree with you comment on the reference section being a struggle for librarians. The information is so important, but we all need to take a look at how we educate our staff and students. Also, I know I need to look at my reference section and weed through it. I would rather teachers have the books in their classroom and actually use them because most of them just sit in the library with little use.
ReplyDeleteI don't really know how much the digital footprint issue has been addressed with the two schools I work at as a school psych; however, I know that my son who is in second grade mentioned something about facebook to me the other day. I forgot to follow up with him regarding his comment. My 10 year nephew was on it for awhile and I was his friend. I was not impressed with the language that was going back and forth between his group of friends. I mentioned this to my brother-in-law and he no longer has an account. My husband who has subbed in the middle school says that many of the students have facebook pages.
ReplyDeleteOne of the teachers at my son's school made a video on Youtube. It was a parody of Justin
Timberlake's song "Sexy Back" changed to Fanny-pack. The school actually had a fanny-pack Friday. I watched the video prior to letting my son see it. It was harmless; however, the song it parodied would never be heard in my household so I don't know if I like that part of it.
You are quite right about the reference section, it's content, format and promotion, being a constant struggle and continuing concern. I'm hoping that our class will give you lots of things to think about and ideas for addressing this concern. And, remember, the same answer doesn't fit all library media centers. You really have to think of your community, patrons, grade level, budget, etc. Also, we will discuss the digital footprint issue more in coming weeks, because it doesn't just involve the most obvious social media like facebook, but it also involves all of the Web 2.0 applications that we have our staff and students using out in the "cloud". Things like our web pages, glogsters, google docs, blogs, etc. Lots to think about and to educate our staff, students and parents about.
ReplyDeleteHave you noticed a lot of postings for LMS jobs? Are there other jobs you are looking for besides LMS? I agree that I need to take a closer look at my facebook page as well.
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