My final post tonight....

Before the deadline...I want to post so much more, but I have to work tomorrow. Instead, I will leave you with a medley of pictures of my library TODAY (sans students).

And...
From M.A.S.H.: "Over and out, Radar."
From the WALTONS: "Goodnight, John Boy."

Yes I know this dates me...I don't care.

Picture #1 shows the "research centre"...it needs work.

Picture #2 shows the "protected" reference section(see earlier post) and stacks in the back.

Picture #3 does not show much more, but there is more of the reference section with fiction in the shadows.

Picture #4 is the inviting circulation desk...it probably needs work.


Good night.
Rita


P.S. I know the pictures are out of line...but a blog does NOT work the same as a word processor.

Article: Flip this Library.

Loertscher, D. (2008, Nov.1). Flip this library: School Libraries Need a Revolution. School Library Journal Online, Retrieved November 6, 2008, from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/index.asp?layout=talkBackCommentsFull&articleid=CA6610496&talk_back_header_id=6565419


A “school library learning commons” (Loertscher, 2008) …maybe in Utopia, or a library that is well funded, well supported, and widely promoted. I read this article with much interest, as the opening statement had nothing to do with libraries, “One of the biggest business battles of our time is between Microsoft and Google.” (Loertscher, 2008), or so I thought. Loertscher sets up the discussion by explaining that we use Microsoft products on their terms, but we use Google products on our terms. (Loertscher, 2008)

Loertscher goes on to explain that we (the adults) have created library media centres and library web pages for students to use on our terms. Students aren’t using these “products” the way we (the creators) intended them to be used. “Our school libraries and Web sites are the last things on most kids’ minds” (Loertscher, 2008). I have to agree with Loertscher. In the past week I have had three different teachers bring their classes into the library to “do research”. Do they go the school library Web site where I have carefully screened and selected web sites to match curriculum? No! Do they go to OPAC and the stacks to search out just the right resource for their project? No! Who is to blame? The teachers, the students or me? After reading Loertscher’s article, I think no one is to blame…it is time to face reality that we adults (digital immigrants) are not part of the Google generation (digital natives) and that we need to get with the times to meet the learners at their level of need. As Loertscher states, “it’s time for school libraries to become a lot less like Microsoft and a lot more like Google.” (Loertscher, 2008). Loertscher collaborated with Carol Koechlin and Sandi Zwaan to develop the idea of the “school library learning commons.” (Loertscher, 2008) I am not entirely sure I understand the whole concept, but it does sound like a new way to look at the school library, teacher-librarians, and teachers that revamps our program to become more “Google-like”.

The idea is that the learning commons involves a whole staff. Loertscher’s example outlines how school specialist (non-enrolling) teachers can collaborate to create learning experiences and co-teaching lessons that get kids’ attention outside of the classroom (where we often can’t access students). “The main objective of the open commons is to showcase the school’s best teaching and learning practices.” (Loertscher, 2008) Once these teaching and learning practices have been showcased at the school level, school boards or even parents can be invited to the learning commons.

The physical space of the learning commons is one that is flexible and furnishing can be moved about to accommodate different functions and groupings. (Loertscher, 2008) What a concept this would be, how in the heck can I move my library shelves? Maybe the library wouldn’t be the learning commons. Personally, I laugh at this idea of moving furnishings as I have a library clerk who is totally thrown off if things are moved in the library. Under a subheading “Get Spacey”, Loertscher says to consider getting rid of immovable bookshelves…hmmm, I am not sure the school higher ups would appreciate that “waste of money”. Get rid of desk top computers and replace with laptops, again my concern is $$$.

Loertscher discusses social networking and the new web technology (2.0?) as being a facilitator to the learning commons. No longer is the library accessible only during school hours, but the learning commons would be available 24/7…my question is, would the students use it even if it is accessible at all times. In my opinion, there is still the motivation factor. The learning commons is a great idea if the students buy in, but I am not convinced they will. Loertscher says to “resolve to think like a patron rather than a provider.” (Loertscher, 2008) He says we need to do some “180 degree flips” and we can start small and work our way up to bigger challenges. For example,
"A typical classroom assignment and library Web site are examples of one-way communication. Adults tell learners what to do, how to do it and where to find information. (The flip). The teacher posts the assignments on a blog that is linked through an RSS feed to individual students in the class, each of whom can access the blog through an iGoogle page…Everyone can comment, coach, recommend, suggest and discover together….Content flows in and out of students’ iGoogle pages via RSS feeds…” (Loertscher, 2008)
Okay, what a great idea…but, I am not sure I am going to grab the teacher who is retiring in June and get him on board. I don’t mean to be a pessimist, but I have seen how well “new innovations” go over in our school. On the optimistic side, I managed to get one teacher on board to create class wikis and she had been very vocal in spreading the word. Perhaps this is how the learning commons will have to work. I am just not sure I want to be the one to take it on quite yet…baby steps!

See “The Paradigm Flip” in this entry to truly appreciate Loertscher’s ideas. Not sure I can post it the way I would like to, but the chart is informative, see it somewhere in this document.

A wiki has been started for this very article. Click on this link to read it.

I wish I could figure out how to make a blog application work like a word processor. Can we "mash up" word processors with blogs and wikis? Or has this already been done?

My attempts at promoting REFERENCE services.

I have been working on advertising and promoting the library through brochures...although I think now, there must be GOOGLE way to promote my program.

Teacher Brochure: to promote collaboration and new ideas. See at my Google Doc.

A parent brochure was created last year for PT interviews, but already it needs revision....see original parent brochure.

I also have a student brochure, but I believe this is a thing of the past according to the Loertscher article you will see in the next post.

Well, I have run out of time:

I planned on posting many insightful comments on geographical references, almanacs, yearbooks, indexes, directories, databases, etc. But, what I discovered through this course, is that I have SO MUCH MORE TO LEARN!

Aside from this course, I had some BLOG technical difficulties...apparently you can NOT undo mistakes, which includes replacing whole body of text with a "paste" that you did not want to do. Yes I was procrastinating, and I should have scheduled my work load, but hey,.....never mind.

I may add to this blog after the due date of tonight. I really wanted to get this done on time. I will continue to post on the topics I wanted to post on...if I have time.

In the meantime, my last post is dedicated to one more journal article.

General and Specialized Encyclopedias.

The Wikipedia vs Britannica debate. Established vs. free citizen-built encyclopedias.

Well, this has been an interesting discussion on the message boards in LIBE 467. I will post what I posted on the discussion pages and add further comment.

Message

Subject: Wikipedia	Topic: Encyclopedias
Author: Rita Keskinen	Date: November 23, 2008 2:41 PM

Message

Subject: Wikipedia	Topic: Encyclopedias
Author: Rita Keskinen	Date: November 23, 2008 2:41 PM

Well, I don't really have anything new to add to the discussion, but many of you have posted some interesting ideas and thoughts for me to consider. But Lorraine N. put out a very concise idea that "triangulation of resources is the critical step"...love the word triangulation, it reminds me of science and math. I completely agree. Students are definitely using Wikipedia, so we need to teach them responsibility, I am formulating and idea for a lesson that involves compare/contrast between Wikipedia, Britannica and World book. Just for the fun of it, I created a simple table to see what a comparison between Britannica and Wikipedia would look like (for some reason I can't access my World Book since our district got the new ERAC bundle...hmmm they forgot to furnish us with passwords - have to get on that for Monday. Anyway, the simple table is below

Britannica on John A. Macdonald

Wikipedia on John A. Macdonald

Sir John Macdonald born Jan. 11, 1815, Glasgow died June 6, 1891, Ottawa the first prime minister of the Dominion of Canada (1867–73, 1878–91), who led Canada through its period of early growth. Though accused of devious and unscrupulous methods, he is remembered for his achievements. Macdonald emigrated from Scotland to Kingston, in what is now Ontario, in 1820. He was called to the bar in 1836. After the British Parliament united Upper and Lower Canada as Canada West (now in Ontario) and Canada East (now in Quebec) in the Act of Union of 1840, Macdonald was elected to the assembly of the Province of Canada as a Conservative for Kingston in 1844. From 1848 to 1854, while his party was in opposition, Macdonald worked at promoting the British America League, designed to unify Canada and strengthen its ties to Great Britain. Growing sympathy for reform led him to bring about a coalition government in 1854 with Sir George Étienne Cartier (q.v.), leader of Canada East, out of which developed the Liberal-Conservative Party, with Macdonald its leader. He became prime minister of the Province of Canada in 1857. In June 1864 Macdonald and Cartier joined with their chief opponent, George Brown, in order to further the scheme of confederation of British North America. After conferences in Charlottetown, P.E.I.; Quebec; and London, the British North America Act was passed (1867), creating the Dominion of Canada, and Macdonald became its first leader. He was created Knight Commander of the Bath in that year in recognition of his services to the British Empire.

Sir John Alexander Macdonald GCB, KCMG, PC, PC (Can), (January 11,[1] 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first Prime Minister of Canada and the dominant figure of Canadian Confederation. Macdonald's tenure in office spanned 19 years, making him the second longest serving Prime Minister of Canada. He is the only Canadian Prime Minister to win six majority governments. He was the major proponent of a national railway, completed in 1885, linking Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. He won praise for having helped forge a nation of sprawling geographic size, with two diverse European colonial origins, and a multiplicity of cultural backgrounds and political views.John Alexander Macdonald was born in Glasgow, Scotland on January 11,[2] 1815 at 4:15 (am or pm is not listed).[1] His father was Hugh Macdonald, an unsuccessful merchant, who had married Helen Shaw on October 21, 1811.[3] Together, they produced six children. The first-born, William died in infancy. The next was Margaret who was followed a year and a half later by John Alexander, then a younger brother, James, another brother Alexander Ross who suffered from Mowat-Wilson syndrome, and a baby sister named Louisa. After the failure of Hugh Mcdonald's business ventures, the family immigrated to Kingston, Upper Canada in 1820 along with thousands of others seeking affordable land and promises of new prosperity.[4]

Actually, I don't know if the format will come through correctly...but, what I learned through this little comparison is that Wikipedia has a vast amount of information on John A. Macdonald, and it is all in one place. Britannica has a much more pared down and concise entry. Now, students like Wikipedia, but if they were to see that the "vastness" of information is not always a good thing, they may be more open to sources other than Wikipedia. I don't know that it is necessary for a student to know that "another brother Alexander Ross who suffered from Mowat-Wilson syndrome," but it makes for an interesting bit of trivia. If they were researching Mowat-Wilson Sydrome, that may be another story entirely. Britannica seems to report in a more "just the facts" kind of way. Maybe students would see this with a simple lesson on comparing and contrasting - and then be more likely to use "reputable" encyclopedias. Just a thought...sorry this is so long. Rita

Wikipedia:
I am sold...and was this summer. It is a fountain of information and students are using it. We just need to teach them responsibility. I recently had the opportunity to collaborate with the French 12 teacher and together with the students, we created a class wiki. We were able to discuss the fact that anyone can change the pages and therefore, the source at the time it is viewed, may not be reliable.

Classmate Misty S. evaluated Wikipedia and came up with this:
" These are their conclusions:

-Wikipedia does serve a purpose, though is somewhat vague
-authority is “the major challenge”
-it is difficult to determine its scope due to the massive amount of information contained on the site, and it is “what Wikipedia contributes in terms of actual content"
-there is no appearance of a target audience, though its founder stated that it is not intended for children
-there are no costs for the user, but does rely on donations
-is has a “standardized, consistent format” but is information dense and the display of several hyperlinks can be distracting

According to this set of criteria, Wikipedia does not qualify as a valid reference resource. "

So, can we use it as a source...YES WE CAN!

The Berinstein article raises a crucial point in my opinion:
"Wikipedia makes a good starting place for a search. You get terminology, names and a feel for the subject." (Beinstein, 2006). Our print encyclopedias can do the same, but lets meet our students where they are at...it is Wikipedia. Use this as a teachable moment.

I like Sherrie F.'s statement:
"I disagree with people who say that Wikipedia is not reliable. I believe that it is every bit as reliable as traditional Encyclopaedias, perhaps even more reliable. This is because people who are passionate about their chosen field of study/expertise update the site regularly and are not about to let hooligans or those who are ignorant of said subjects taint the information." (Farquhar, 2008). I think I can refer back to my simple table to agree with Sherrie. I did find it interesting that Wikipedia has been plagued by "malicious trollers"...I never even thought of that.

Britannica gets "wikified"...a meeting of the minds?

Sherrie F. originally posted the excellent review of this article in our 467 course. I discovered her post after I too read the article. This quote from Sherrie "
"I was delighted when I read that a traditional encyclopedia brand was willing to let go of being the keeper of information; and let the public and experts in their fields contribute and share their knowledge in an online public forum." (Farquhar, 2008). I think Sherrie and I are on the same page.

Here is my response to Sherrie:
I too discovered this article as I was catching up on my professional reading. I get piles of journals and do not often get time to read them. But this article did catch my eye. I have been reading all the debates about Wikipedia and Britannica. After taking LIBE 477 this summer at UBC, I was a Wikipedia convert with the disclaimer, as many have commented, that always verify sources. Students ARE using it, so we need to teach them responsibility in using it as a source. Back to the article, I liked the idea that there would be a "new community of scholars" - but that it would be "invited" experts. My take is that they will still have Britannica fairly "private" and that they will pick and choose their contributors. This makes sense for them to do it this way as they would still want to maintain credibility and keep Britannica free of "malicious trollers". I don't think "I" will be invited to contribute, unless of course I publish a paper. I wonder if Britannica felt they were honestly at risk to losing out to Wikipedia in terms of popularity and hence the move toward open source approach.



TTFN

Reference Interview and CPPT.

This lesson brings me back to a couple of CPPT experiences from last year and my research project this year. First of all CPPT from last year. I collaborated with and Earth Science 11 teacher who had never taught Earth Science before. I had just moved from the Science classroom where I had taught Earth Science 11 for the past 7 years. She and I felt this would be a great opportunity for me to practice being in the teacher-librarian role and her as the new Earth Science teacher. The flaw in this thinking is that we made the CPPT process match where she was at in the curriculum and where I felt I needed to be in the CPPT process. We, I think, put the cart before the horse. This planning session was also to finish an assignment for LIBE 469. I think it was too contrived, but I did learn a tremendous amount from the process. I will be honest, I have not attempted quite the session since. There never seems to be enough time in my day. I know, excuses, excuses! I guess I haven't been brave enough and I also have not been confident enough. You can look at the CPPT project through my Google Docs. Again, if you need an invite to view, let me know. So, that is my story regarding CPPT and my first attempt.

I absolutely love the quote in lesson 5 "Sure, I want to help you with your research, but why hasn't your teacher told me about this assignment so that I can prepare better?" This exact scenario happened last week. And, the assignment in question is found in the body of this blog entry. I know it doesn't fit exactly, but I haven't figured out how to add images "in text" using this blog application. Maybe I can't, but I don't have time to figure it out, this blog is due at midnight...don't you hate procrastinators. Now let me set this straight. I am NOT condemning the colleague who created it, thank goodness their name was not on it. I am merely trying to highlight what many of us face in the library. It is an assignment that has had no CPPT, no mention of what sources they need to use, and the student has no idea how they will be evaluated / assessed. I get a lot of these in the library, and I see it as my mission to try to change the way teachers design assignments so that it takes the student further and that they get the right / efficient research skills necessary to apply to other endeavors.

Finally, about my "library research skills" project (see link on another blog entry). Oh my goodness...this was NOT a success. The skills I was trying to instill in the students got lost in the mayhem of trying to find a topic they could research (how in the heck do you get students focused on choosing a topic - help please). Note to self: have students be introduced to the concept of learning library research skills and choosing topics, before actually bringing them into the library. Below are some notes / thoughts about the process.

• when students are faced with frustration at formulating a topic, they will default to the "bird, mammal, weather, etc." project. Back to grade 5?
• when students are not given ample instruction regarding citations and the importance of citations, they will default to plagiarism
• when students don't CARE about the assignment, they will produce poor work
• when students don't see any consequences to not completing the assignment given (ie. no late marks taken off - our school does not allow it), they are not motivated to complete the assignment. FORESHADOW: see article submission for the end of this assignment.

Anyway, I see I have a long way to go when it comes to preparing for and implementing CPPT, as well as being the reference specialist with regards to student research.

Article: What can we do to curb student cheating?

Cromwell, S. (2006). What Can We Do to Curb Student Cheating? Educationworld. NB First published in 2004; updated in 2006. Retrieved October 28, 2008 from: http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin375.shtml/

This article provided me with some good thinking points and tools to work with when it comes to working with teachers and plagiarism. The statistics regarding 4 out of 5 students admitting to cheating does not surprise me at all. I recently started working with the Science department to have their classes in the library learning library research skills, including information on academic integrity. A large number of students did not know that there is more to plagiarism than just copying someone’s work. They did not know about being accomplices, or what exactly constituted plagiarism. I hope I got my message through, but I will know when I see their final products. The other statistic regarding 9 out 10 high school teachers acknowledging that cheating is a problem also does not surprise me. I have teachers come to me to find out if I can find websites that students may have cut and pasted from. Sometimes I get lucky, other times not. I recently purchased an individual copy of an online plagiarism checking software so that teachers can bring me documents and I can submit them to this service. What I observe with my colleagues when it comes to plagiarism is that sometimes they are too tired and couldn’t be bothered to check for plagiarism. It seems they will mark the papers and highlight the areas they “think” are plagiarized, and then let the students confess. This strategy sometimes works, but some students are adamant that they have not cheated or plagiarized.
When the article discusses the fact that parents will sometimes refuse to believe their child has plagiarized, this also does not surprise me. I have not encountered it myself, but I know of colleagues that this has happened to. Also, not related to plagiarism, but related to parent cover ups, is the fact that parents will lie for their children who have skipped school so that their children do not suffer the consequences. I am not a parent, so I don’t quite understand this instinct, but I know it happens.
I was a little offended by the comment of the founder of the School Sucks website when he said, “A teacher who’s giving original and creative assignments, who’s reading the students’ writing and knows what it’s like, has nothing to fear from School Sucks.” (Cromwell, 2006). I thought to myself who is he to criticize the work of a teacher. But, then I flashed back to some of the assignments I have seen come through the library. I have been at the school for 10 years, and I see a Social Studies teacher giving the same “alphabet book” assignment for Canada each year. Maybe it is not so creative after all. I would never judge a teacher for the assignments they give, but if they are open to suggestions, I might be able to tweak some of the their assignments to curb the opportunity for plagiarism. The key information regarding assignments that I thought was valuable was to “structure assignments so cheating becomes extremely difficult.” (Cromwell, 2006) This may be easier said than done, but it might be a good way to challenge teachers to come up with different assignments. When plagiarism is discovered, one teacher tries to turn it into a learning experience by exposing it to the whole class, and allowing the student to fix it.
The article provides some practical advice on how to prevent cheating. First, find out what the students perceive cheating / plagiarizing to be. Is letting someone copy your work cheating or helping a friend? (Cromwell, 2006). Second, discuss personal integrity at the beginning of the year, going over expectations and logical consequences. If this is done as an open class discussion, students may be more likely to comply. A simple strategy (that I was reminded of) that I think is useful is setting a schedule for work to be submitted. The unit I am doing with the grade nine students right now does not have a schedule; I guess I should have set a schedule. Maybe it is not too late? Other approaches outlined in the article that I think are valuable include the following:
o Remove underlying factors that foster cheating – if the information presented is too high level for a student, they will be tempted to cheat to cover up the fact that they do not understand.
o Give the student a zero on the assignment. May or may not work – depends on the motivation for cheating.
o Involve parents in the consequences – if they will cooperate that is.
o Focus on a kids’ sense of pride – that they did something on their own.
o Use real life examples of how they would feel if “their doctor cheated on his or her medical exams.” (Cromwell, 2006)

The final statement sums up and aligns with my overall feelings about cheating. “Teachers can structure assignments and classrooms to discourage cheating and ensure its negative consequences, always remaining careful to accuse only those students who have clearly done wrong.” (Cromwell, 2006). I remember a time in Grade 11 when I was wrongly accused of cheating. I stood up for myself and had the teacher make me another test and sit with me while I wrote it – he did not want to do it, but I went to the principal to fight for the right and the teacher complied. It felt good!