techshy

Is It the End or Only the Beginning?

2008-01-17T16:16:00.000-08:00

This has definitely been a learning journey for me. Like Book Maid stated, I also feel as if I have completed a Master's Thesis. Instead of twenty-three "fifteen-minute projects," some have been very time-consuming and frustrating. My favorite discoveries were the image generators, the LibraryThing, and Zoho Writer, which I will definitely share with some of the students. I particularly enjoyed the LibraryThing because I can read updates on new books, and I can read reviews and recommendations from other book lovers.

Twenty-three things would surely be a lifelong learning goal for me because my "life" is not spending day and night on a computer. I did learn a lot from this discovery journey and can see a use for many of the applications I have learned.

Surprisingly, I never thought I would be creating a web page much less a blog. I have learned many technology skills, some taking forever to complete, and some I completed quickly. I have even shared several of the "things" with friends, teachers, and students.

To improve the program, the override needs to be eliminated. If these tools are implemented at
school, there needs to be an easier way to get around these blocked sites and the district filter.
I soon discovered arriving early at school or staying late was wasting my time. Too many of the applications could not be successfully completed at work.

I would probably participate in another discovery program like this in the future. Hopefully, then I will receive the PGH. My next forty-five hours will not begin until August 2008, and I have definitely earned the hours through this program. I know that I have spent far more than eighteen hours on these exercises.

As for its influence on me as a school librarian, the journey has opened my eyes to the vast amount of technological tools available. I have already been sharing some of these tools with others and hope to continue. Some I will continue to use and others will probably be forgotten or referred to at a later date. For sure, I have gained a little more confidence in myself with computers and usage of technological applications.

Animoto

2008-01-17T16:01:00.000-08:00

Thing Twenty-two

This at first was definitely not my favorite thing. Finally, I figured out the way to move my pictures from Flickr to another location. The pictures then loaded on Animoto and the process went quickly, but only after spending a couple of hours trying to figure out the problem. Animoto would be a great way for students to produce short video clips for class presentations. Teachers could also use it to add visual presentations or attention-grabbing aspects to their lessons.

My Favorite Artists

2008-01-17T15:58:00.001-08:00

Creative Commons

2008-01-17T05:13:00.000-08:00

Thing Twenty-three

This thing was definitely something new to me. Creative Commons is a copyright license that grants permission for an author's work to be edited, shared or reused. Within reason or under certain conditions, a song, movie, book or any other publication can be altered. So, with the "cc" license an author or owner has given up "all rights reserved" protection and freely given the rights for someone to collaborate, change, and use his creation. An example of a creative commons article is "The Eiffel Tower." Also, flickr is another tool that implements this copyright license with its pictures.
Students could use creative commons to download pictures for science fair or art projects. Also,
they could alter songs to create a musical background for video or oral presentations. However, as a librarian, I feel copyright laws or respect for one's publication should be taught or stressed.

Yes, I skipped thing 22; I will return to it later. It is creating much stress for me!!

Podcasts

2008-01-15T18:32:00.000-08:00

Thing Twenty-One

I browsed all the podcast directories and discovered that podcast.net was the easier one to use.
I found a set of podcasts on teen/librarians that had podcasts on an array of topics that teens and librarians face today. Some were MySpace, anime and manga, blogs, social networking, and wikis. Since MySpace and other social networks are so controversial, I chose "Need a Reason to Allow Social Networking Sites?" According to a survey of teens, "more that 50 percent specifically talk about schoolwork." As of now, I do not know how useful some of the podcasts would be to me, but I found a lot of interesting ones on teens and the new trends in technology.

I also added this article to my shared items.

YouTube

2008-01-13T13:14:00.000-08:00

Thing Twenty

YouTube is a website that allows one to upload, tag or share segments of videos. It has hundreds of video clips on an array of topics. What I like about it is no one can download clips on nudity or pornography. Also, since teachers are not allowed to show a full-length film, teachers could possibly find short video clips to support a topic they are teaching. Many students tend to learn better from visual aides. I did not find a particular dislike or use for my library website. I would just need to spend more time searching the various video clippings. However, I did find the video clip below that might be good for an elementary website.

YouTube Video Clip

2008-01-13T13:03:00.000-08:00

Go With the Flow

2008-01-11T04:51:00.000-08:00

Thing Nineteen

I explored the flowchart Gliffy and the mindtrap Blbbl.us. Both offer a way to organize your thoughts. Bubbl.us is a tool to brainstorm ideas and visually sort them out through bubble boxes. The mindtrap would be an excellent graphic organizer for students to prewrite notes for essays, projects, or class notes. I was not impressed with Gliffy. Online flowcharts and diagrams can be created for floor plans, seating charts, and various other uses, but it was not a very user-friendly tool. I see Gliffy more as a business-oriented application and Bubbl.us easier for classroom students. Both online tools allow information to be edited, saved and shared with others.

Biblio.com

2008-01-09T18:35:00.000-08:00

Thing Eighteen

At first, I wanted to again explore The LibraryThing, but since I had already blogged about it in Thing 17, I decided to branch out and chose Biblio.com. It is an online source for used, rare, and out-of-print books and textbooks. One can search by subject categories or browse many online bookstores. Biblio offers books and shipping at an economical price, and for those who are concerned about the environment the packaging is eco-friendly. This marketplace supports the community businesses and works toward "fostering education and literacy." As for its applicable use in a library, I wish I had known about this site several years ago. A friend and I spent a lot of time searching online and at bookstores for an out-of-print book for use in her classroom. She and her husband are still browsing bookstores for chemistry and physics books. I will definitely share this tool with them and use it to help me find discarded, worn-out books that students and teachers love but are out-of-publication.

Zoho Writer

2008-01-09T18:15:00.003-08:00

Thing Seventeen

Zoho Writer is an advantageous web-based tool for word processing, spreadsheets, databases and other applications. Its particular values are having access to your documents from any computer and the capability of multiple users editing and collaboratively working on a project together. Also, the document can then be emailed to anyone without sending it as an attachment. Since many of my students do not have computers at home, another asset is their projects and essays can be typed online. Now, I do not have to worry that the students' assignments cannot be saved on the PC computers. I can definitely see a use for Zoho Writer at my library.

Here is my test document for Zoho Writer.

Now that Christmas break has ended, school has returned to its normal routine. Since this school year is the first in many years that the term did not end before Christmas, the teachers are frantically reviewing materials and trying to get in late work for the six weeks. I am visiting with the reading teachers to schedule their classes into the library to work on TAKS skills. Also, I have a math teacher willing to work on a TAKS project in the library. In addition, I am trying to again promote my Texas Lone Star books, hoping to have a greater number of students attending Celebration Station.

Sandbox Wiki

2008-01-08T17:12:00.000-08:00

Thing Sixteen

I added one of my image generators to the sandbox wiki. This is one of the simpler "things" to complete. Described as "pure play," this website could be as fun as the image generator thing.
After viewing the PB Wiki Tour I learned pages can be linked, plug-ins can be inserted, different features can be added, and there are settings to make the wiki public or private. I could use a wiki as a way of communicating teen favorite books or new arrivals to the students and teachers. It also could be a way to communicate to teachers beneficial information for use in their lessons or class projects.

Wikis

2008-01-08T16:35:00.000-08:00

Thing Fifteen

A wiki is another web-based social networking tool for online collaboration/communication.
It is designed so that anyone can make changes to the content or add and delete pages. This can be problematic, since entries can be easily spammed or vandalized . Also, there can be issues with the entries not being authoritative. I personally do not want to create a wiki without having control of the information that is published. I guess the interesting aspect of a wiki is viewing the creation of those who enjoy this form of communication, and if one has to create a wiki, it can be developed without knowledge of HTML or "other markup languages." In a library, I feel a wiki is a useful tool for book lists or reviews, presentations, projects, library information resource, or as a connection to the community, patrons, and teachers.

Library Web 2.0

2007-12-20T08:30:00.000-08:00

Thing Fourteen

Library 2.0 is an upcoming model for libraries that allow users to have a more active role in the day-to-day operation of the library, giving the patrons the ability to shape libraries of the future. To me, it sounds like a democracy is being created between the librarian, the members of the community and the library users. The patrons are encouraged to give feedback on book selections, technology and operational procedures of the library. I do feel that most libraries today have evolved from the "traditional, one-directional offerings" as stated in the
Library 2.0 article from Wikipedia to a more user-friendly one. I know that other librarians and I provide the faculty and students the opportunity to fill out questionnaires on materials needed. Also, I try to listen to students' and teachers' requests and interests so that I can make purchases according to their needs and the requirements of the curriculum. Teachers are given a library evaluation form, providing the chance to suggest ways to improve the library so that it meets their needs and the students. The MISD online catalog also allows for suggestions or questions to the librarian. Students and community members have access to the district's and school's web page, offering access to databases and the online catalog of books.

In Librarian's 2.0 Manifesto, many of us already "go where users are" by visiting classrooms and the computer lab. Also, we are already "an active participant in moving my library forward" by completing the "23 Things." Therefore, I think the Mesquite libraries are moving toward the future with our blog, web page, the completion of the "23 Things," and the inclusion of students' and teachers' participation and suggestions. However, thoughts still need to be given to the privacy of the librarian and its users and not force them in to joining MySpace, Facebook and other networks that can invade or compromise their privacy and personal space.

Tagging and Social Bookmarking

2007-12-18T06:45:00.000-08:00

Thing Thirteen

Del.icio.us and Furl are two social bookmarking sites that offer a way to organize, store, or discover web bookmarks from other users. Since they are sites that collectively organizes bookmarks through tagging, users can view bookmarks from other users with similar interests or read their comments on the article. Thus, making research possibly easier by searching other users' stored web pages and seeing how they also tagged the information.

One aspect of Furl that is beneficial is it "privately archives a complete copy of the html of each web page that a user bookmarks." This allows one access to the article researched even if it has been modified, removed from the web site, or if the web site is down. While researching, I can recall a couple of times that this archival feature would have been assisted me when an earlier article I wanted to use could not be accessed or located. Also, several times students have researched one day and returned the next day at a loss where to locate the previously used article. Since so many middle school students are poor note takers and fail to properly cite the source, Furl would be an advantage to libraries. Therefore, creating bookmarks and improving the accessibility of articles in personal or library research are advantages of social bookmarking. My problem is finding the time to do it.

Social Networking

2007-12-14T08:44:00.000-08:00

Thing Twelve

This was a very time-consuming, thought-provoking "Thing" for me. As an educator, I guess it is important to know about social networking, since it has become a raging teen fad, and many of the students probably have a MySpace profile. Even though these networks may help one learn about the interests and social aspects of our students or help one find a friend with similar personality traits, I see no educational value in them. There are too many controversial, privacy and moral issues surrounding these networks. Nearly every day there is an article in the news or the newspaper of some child or adult who has fallen prey to some deranged individual who had access to private information posted in his profile. As Jacquielynn Floyd stated in her editorial in DMN, "I am genuinely surprised that so many people wish to share their photos, likes and dislikes and personal preferences in so public a setting, as if they were renting billboards." If I had to give a reason why I would like these networks, I guess it would be the contact one could have to family and friends, but I am perfectly happy using email or the phone. The useful feature feature might be having contacts with similar social interests, but I still would not want to see these sites as part of a library or educational purpose. I personally would not want to be responsible for any legal issues that might occur. Therefore, I am extremely hesitant and having a difficult time joining one of these social networks, but I guess I must to receive credit for "Thing 12." As Ms. Floyd stated, for a culture that seems to "cherish individual privacy, we certainly seem to be in a hurry to throw it away."

Here is my link to my Facebook Profile.

I was unable to access Ning, the school-related groups on Ning, or the Mesquite Librarians Ning Network due to the override. It was blocked due to pornography, nudity, etc. I have been very hesitant to join these groups, but I guess I am required to receive credit. I tried at home and saw a different link than at school. I am now a reluctant member of the Ning Network and Facebook.

The LibraryThing

2007-12-04T10:56:00.003-08:00

Thing Eleven

The LibraryThing
Originally uploaded by techshy

LibraryThing would be a great site for those who have a large collection of books at home and wanted to catalog their books, sort them by subjects, or share their collection with others. Using LibraryThing , I could access other people's catalog who share similar reading tastes and discover recommendations of books to read. The ratings and reviews would also help me decide if I wanted the books before purchasing them, which would be useful for personal or school-related purchases. I am already excited because as I was adding books to my catalog I discovered one of my favorite authors is publishing a new book. It is Where Are You Now? by Mary Higgins Clark. Can't wait until March 2008!!

Image Generators

2007-11-30T08:17:00.001-08:00

Thing Ten

I played with the happy face, custom sign and comic strip generators. They are a little more user friendly than the other "Things." These generators could be used in the library web page or a library/school newsletter. Students could also use them to promote books they have read. They could create a sign of their favorite book with a couple of catchy phrases to hopefully encourage other students to read the book.

Are you a Lone Star Reader?

2007-11-29T13:16:00.001-08:00

Are you a Lone Star Reader??
Originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/16178802@N07/

Here is my happy face generator.

Take a chance at reading. Check out the Lone Star section of the library.

Reading makes me happy!!

2007-11-29T13:15:00.001-08:00

My custom sign generator.

Read to enrich your life. Visit the library to check out your favorite book.

Reading makes me happy!!
Originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/16178802@N07/

On the Road to Success

2007-11-29T10:52:00.001-08:00

http://www.license.plates.txt2pic.com

license
Originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/16178802@N07/

Thing Ten

The Happy Face and the Custom Sign Generators were my favorite to create. I also found many of the happy face images availabe through the Comic Strip. These image generators could be used in our library web page or a newsletter. The generators could also be used by the students to post signs with a couple of brief sentences promoting their favorites. I found this Thing to be one of the more enjoyable ones to complete.

Finding Feeds

2007-11-07T08:19:00.000-08:00

Thing Nine

I found the Topix feed the easiest to use. I enjoyed being able to search for news items from a particular city's name, by state, or by topic. I wish I had known about this in the past because I have had, on occasion, teachers inquire about news items from past issues of the newspapers. The Google Blog Search was one of my favorites. I guess since Google is used more by me and in the library by the students this one would be my first choice. This feed and Google Reader would be less time- consuming if the librarians had access without the override. I also tried to create a Google Alert but have not succeeded. I have not been able to receive a Google verification. The Feedster was under construction when I previewed it the second time, but what I have seen I think I would like it. I enjoy searching in feeds that include newsworthy information. Technorati is the more confusing and difficult to me, and I do not have the patience nor the time to tinker with it.

I liked School Library Blogs on Suprglu because it gave me easy access to school library-related articles. One I found interesting was the Young Hoosier Award Book Site. It provided a list of questions that teachers can use for book discussions or book reports. I have also included this in my shared items. I will be happy when I learn how to remove some of the shared items I do not want on my blog. I have tried various ways, and they refuse to delele or "unshare."

RSS Reader

2007-10-31T13:40:00.001-07:00

Thing Eight

I think RSS reader will make searching for information from the internet much easier. Once a RSS feed or newsreader is created all my loved web sites will come to me with updated information on my favorite topics. I have no personal friends or family members that have blogs, but I guess this could be one way to share information and keep current with my Mesquite librarian bloggers.

I am not for sure how I would use this in the library. I thought it might be useful as a way to build an information system so that teachers and students could have easy access to researcharticles or items that are in the news that might grab their interest or attention. Also, RSS might provide an online connection to school-related research from home. Students could then have online learning through homeschooling. This seems similar to the class projects page or the pathfinders that the other librarians and I use. Since class periods are so short, it would give students quick access to information, saving them valuable research time.
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Monday, October 29, 2007

Google Alert

2007-10-29T10:36:00.000-07:00

Thing Seven

I have set up a Google Alert, but I am waiting for my verification. Hopefully, the problem will soon be resolved I have chosen to be alerted about books for the library. This would be a great way to receive updates on upcoming and new young adult novels for the library. This could also provide current news on events or people that my classes are researching in the library. I also have a home page on iGoogle. This is just a fun way to gather any information that interests me, or educational information that would be useful to the students or teachers. The Google calendar would be similar to the localendar that I currently use on my web page to inform the faculty and the students when they are scheduled for a library visit.

The link to visit my iGoogle home page is http://www.google.com/ig.

Flickr Mashups

2007-10-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

Thing Six

This was a time-consuming task for me. I tried downloading a picture from Photobucket, but each time I hit the create button no card appeared. After an hour or so of frustration, I was finally successful with Flickr. This would be a good tool to make reading posters for the library or trading cards of the students with their favorite books. I could also probably adapt the tool to create bookmarks.

Spook Up a Good Book

2007-10-28T14:44:00.001-07:00

Spook Up a Good Book
Originally uploaded by bnelson1972@sbcglobal.net

I wish all students a frightfully good time
browsing the shelves for a scary book.

Discover Flickr

2007-10-26T12:48:00.000-07:00

Thing Five

This was a very stressful number 5. With no written instructions to follow, this assignment took a lot of time. I am now stressed to the max and could use a visit to the lake. I would then sit on the porch in a comfortable lounge chair and throw Flickr into the peaceful water. Hopefully, then, I could relax again and have a stress-free time without technology barking at my backdoor.

Vacation Spot

2007-10-26T12:47:00.001-07:00

vacation spot
Originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/16178802@N07/

How nice it would be to have this view every day from your backyard!! I love being at the lake, but to have the water and the mountains at the same time would be heaven. It would be so relaxing.

Register Your Blog

2007-10-25T10:41:00.000-07:00

Thing Four

There are several ways that a blog can be used in the library. One way
is to announce the new materials available to the teachers and students.
I could provide up-to-date information on events occurring in the library,
such as book fairs,teen read week, or information on library promotions.
A blog could be used for librarians to share ideas for new books or ones
that their students enjoyed reading. Also, a blog could be useful in making
suggestions of databases, books, or materials beneficial to classroom
instruction.

Create a Blog/Avatar

2007-10-22T12:05:00.000-07:00

Thing Three

What a lifesaver!! Anne walked me through the steps of posting my avatar. Becky Frierson and I were thankful she remembered, since Debbie was busy helping the other librians. I now have it on my blog. I am ready to proceed to thing 4.

Thing One and Thing Two

2007-10-22T09:46:00.000-07:00

What is Web 2.0 ? This is what I wondered when staff development began today. Now that I know it is blogging I am faced with a new challenge and finding the time to complete it. However, this will provide me with a new skill technology skill that will not only broaden my knowledge but also enable me to better educate my students.

The hardest challenge for me is learning a new technology skill. I have little confidence in my ability to learn new skills on the computer, but I hope to use this to my advantage, learn a new skill, and then try to teach it to my students or teachers.

The easiest thing will be accepting responsibility for my own learning. I will face the challenge, do my best, and hopefully complete this new challenge by February 1, 2008.