What Do You Think?

by

Libraries Obsolete?

Yes – some in the library world have been oblivious to the systemic
change brought about by new technologies.  But many have been on the
forefront of  that change.  Doug Johnson, Joyce Valenza, Buffy Hamilton,
Cathy Jo Nelson – just to name a very few.
I recently read a blog post, and saved it to think and write about in
the future.
Here are some excerpts:
Be an agent for the customer: Hospitality Revisited
http://tinyurl.com/2g5sbn3
…the difference between Agents and Gatekeepers …(from Danny Meyer’s
book, “Setting the Table”)
“An agent makes things happen for others. A gatekeeper sets up barriers
to keep people out. We’re looking for agents… did I present myself as
an agent or a gatekeeper? In the world of hospitality, there’s rarely
anything in between.”
I think the librarian as “agent that makes things happen” is where we
should be.  And the library should be the place where everything
happens.  Librarians are the ones in the strongest position to be an
agent for change in our schools.  We know the curriculum, we know the
teachers, we know the students, we know the technology. The library
should be the place where we move heaven and earth to bring all these
things together to educate students. If gates and barriers are put up in
front of students and teachers, it is the librarian’s job to find a way
around, over or under those barriers to bring kids together with the
tools they need to become 21st century creative learners.
I plan to ask myself this question frequently in the future:  “In this
situation, am I an agent or a gatekeeper?”

That question was posted on LM_NET this week.  The original post placed some blame on the failure of library leaders to adapt to technological change.

Yes – some in the library world have been oblivious to the systemic change brought about by new technologies.  But many have been on the forefront of  that change. Doug Johnson, Joyce Valenza, Buffy Hamilton, Cathy Jo Nelson – just to name a very few.

I recently read a blog post – Be an agent for the customer: Hospitality Revisited.

Here is an excerpt:

…the difference between Agents and Gatekeepers …(from Danny Meyer’s book, “Setting the Table”) … An agent makes things happen for others. A gatekeeper sets up barriers to keep people out. We’re looking for agents… did I present myself as an agent or a gatekeeper? In the world of hospitality, there’s rarely anything in between.”

I think the librarian as “agent that makes things happen” is where we belong.

The library should be the place where everything happens.  Librarians are the ones in the strongest position to be an agent for change in our schools.  We know the curriculum, we know the teachers, we know the students, we know the technology. The library should be the place where we move heaven and earth to bring all these  things together to educate students. If gates and barriers are put up in front of students and teachers, it is the librarian’s job to find a way around, over or under those barriers to bring kids together with the tools they need to become 21st century creative learners.

I plan to ask myself this question frequently in the future:  “In this situation, am I an agent or a gatekeeper?”

by

Building the Plane While You Fly

This has been the most satisfying couple of weeks of my career.  Our 9th grade English teacher said – “I’d like the kids to come in and pick out a book to read.  Do you think they could each make a book trailer about their book?”  As it turns out – neither one of us had the first clue how to do this.  Since we are both either a.) brave or b.) out of our minds – we said “How hard could it be? Let’s do it!”

Kudos to Kathy, our intrepid AV/library clerk.  She immediately leaped into the fray to teach herself how to use ShowBiz – our movie-making software.  Once she was comfortable – she taught me.  I wrote up some directions for the first part of the project and gave them to the English teacher.  As time went on, we began to think that we MUST be out of our minds.

Here is how we are building that airplane…..

Day 1 – Choosing Books & Project Introduction

Before the kids chose books – we showed a book trailer page I put together.  We started with Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz. That one REALLY gets the kids interest.  Then we showed 2 versions of Afterlife by Gary Soto &  Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.  We spent some time talking about the different “feel” we got about the books, depending on a trailer’s use of images, music and words.

The kids reaction?  They were excited – but many were scared.  “But…..we don’t know how to make a movie!” they said.  To which we replied “Don’t worry – neither do we.  We’ll figure it out together!”

Day 2-4 – Producing Book Trailers

Fast forward…..  The students have read their books, and done a little storyboarding in class. They have the step-by-step directions I’d  put together for the first part of the project.  We did a “test-run” with the honors class, watched them fall through the gaps, edited the steps before the next group arrived, tried it out with that class ….. and then went through it all again with the next part of the project.

Students used a “copyright-friendly” web page I created to find  images, sounds and video clips, and learned the preliminary steps for using ShowBiz.  Lots of resistance here.  I am afraid most of them went to Google images anyway, knowing that means their trailers can not be posted anywhere on the web.  Oh well….

The third day, we taught them more about ShowBiz and the fourth day was a work day.

After every period, I updated the instructions to make them better.

Next year, we might actually board a fully funcional airplane to take this ride.

How about the finished book trailers?  We’re not there.  Next week is “show time”.  I’ll let you know whether those planes fly!!

In spite of some ups and downs, Joy, Kathy and I would recommend the project to others.  It was interesting to see the kids have to THINK. Creating a video is motivating to kids in and of itself – but having to think about what images and sounds best expressed a feeling, a mood, a character – in addition to telling a story,  was very beneficial for their communication skills.  Not to mention having to choose just the right words to move the story along without giving away too much.

Anyway – here are the directions for creating a movie using Showbiz.  The directions could probably be modified for whatever program you want to use:  Creating a Movie With ShowBiz

Pages 1-3 deal with copyright and citation issues.

Pages 4-6 deal with the mechanics of ShowBiz.

I also shared this project with the rest of my teachers, in the hopes I could encourage someone else to give it a try.  I was able to rope in another teacher that way.  One step at a time…..a thousand miles begins with one step….and all the other cliches you can think of!  Creating Videos for Dummies.

by

A gift of talent

I have a wonderful student who I will miss very much next year. This is how I described him in a college recommendation letter:

He is a scholar – a seeker of knowledge and understanding. Curiosity drives him. He is never completely satisfied with an answer – there is always one more side of the story to study, one more question to ask, one more hypothesis to test, one more insight to express. He is multi-talented. I have seen the spark of passion in his historical, scientific, literary and artistic studies. He has the kind of mind that will one day bring new, vibrant ideas & discoveries to whatever field he chooses. That will be the biggest challenge he will face – where to focus his prodigious abilities and passions. I will be excited to find out what field of study finally captures his renaissance mind.

I mentioned to him that I often think and write about the effects (good and bad) of  the merger of humans with information technology.  My divided mind. What is the net result of this merge?  Does it allow us to enhance our learning, our impact on the world, and ultimately our humanity? Or do we risk losing touch with that humanity?

Turns out – he is developing an art portfolio that examines the man/machine connection.  He promised that his next piece would examine my ideas and concerns.   He just finished the piece, and he has given me permission to use the digital image.

Here it is.  I am so honored to be able to share it on my blog.  I forgot to ask if it had a title. If it does – I will add that information.

By Ernesto G. (please click to enlarge picture)

JohnByErnestoGaxha

by

Libraries and Laptops and Labs … Oh My!

We just acquired a mobile laptop cart.  It has made scheduling both easier and more complex.

Our procedures are designed to accomplish 3 major objectives:

FIRST (and most important) – Provide classes with maximum access to computers.

SECOND – Maintain the library as the “go to” place for all research needs.

THIRD – Minimize wear and tear and vandalism of the equipment.

Here’s what we have shared with the teachers:

Laptops and Libraries and Labs … Oh My!

I will let you know how this works for us.  If you have any ideas, tips, war stories etc.  – please share 🙂

by

What will I be when I grow up?

I am SUPPOSED to be retired.  Several teachers, including myself, were offered a retirement incentive last spring.  I am the only one who did not take it.  I watch my much younger colleagues happily retiring and wonder what is wrong with me.

My whole life has been centered around libraries.  I love them.  I need them like I need air to breathe.  What on earth will I DO when I retire?  Of course, I can still be involved in libraries.  I suppose I could volunteer…. But can I stand to not be in charge???

In recent years, it has been a rare semester that doesn’t bring me a fresh new intern to terrorize – whoops – mentor.  I LOVE doing this.  I love the idea of sharing the “mission from God” with the next generation of librarians.  Several folks have urged me to look into teaching grad school classes.  But – when I DO retire, I just don’t think I want to jump into another regular job – even a part-time one.  The only reason I would leave the job I love, is so I can wake up and plan my own day or week, without pesky job obligations

My hubby and I spent 4 glorious weeks of vacation this summer, celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary.  If I thought retirement would be a series of such trips, I’d sign on the dotted line in a heartbeat.  Alas!  Were we to adopt such a wandering life style, we’d soon be broke and practicing our dumpster diving skills.

So my friends – got any ideas for me?  I have to grow up someday.  But I really don’t want to…..