Tuesday, July 20, 2010

My Link Library 07/21/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/30/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/28/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/27/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/21/2010

  • This Freemind tutorial is made by Shailaja Kishor Kumar. FreeMind is an open source mind mapping tool that enables you to visualize ideas, projects, concepts, brainstorming, internet research or any other task that can benefit from a structured overview. You can create nodes with child and sibling nodes and add icons, clouds, notes and custom formatting for better presentation. The nodes can be expanded or collapsed, or interactively linked to local files, other maps, online resources and more. You can also insert encrypted nodes or create encrypted maps for sesitive projects. The finished maps can be exported to HTML, clickable XHTML, Open Office document, image file and other formats.

    Tags: mindmapping, tutorial, software

  • "Margaret Stewart, YouTube's head of user experience, talks about how the ubiquitous video site works with copyright holders and creators to foster (at the best of times) a creative ecosystem where everybody wins."

    Tags: ted, youtube, copyright, drm


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Friday, June 18, 2010

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/16/2010

  • hese resources examine copyright law in the history of “borrowing” sounds in music, and raise provocative questions about what is creative and what is criminal. These lessons are directed toward grades 9 through 12, and college students for use in the following subject areas: media studies, media literacy, social studies, history, sociology, media production, music and language arts, business, and legal studies.

    Tags: copyright, lesson, resources

  • 7 points of information literacy:
    * IL as context specific and context sensitive;
    * IL demanding a variety of behaviours: not just searching, but also encountering, browsing, monitoring, managing and creating;
    * People moving along complex paths to meet their information needs: moving between the virtual and physical worlds, and using different sources and spaces;
    * IL in digital environments;
    * IL with people sources;
    * People being information literate individually and collaboratively
    * People being aware they are information literate: you cannot be an information literate 21st Century citizen without being conscious of the need to develop these IL skills and attitudes, and continue to update your IL through your life!
    Excellent article.

    Tags: learning commons, information literacy


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Monday, June 14, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/15/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Friday, June 4, 2010

Infographics

Infographics, digital presentations, digital storytelling and others are all names for the act of visually presenting data or information to make it more appealing. As a visual learner, this is something of interest to me on a personal and professional level. Recently I was shown a video on youtube of a visual representation done by Cognitive Media in a style called scribing. The example I will show is of Daniel Pink speaking about Motivation in regards to his book Drive.



This is a very professional and high level infographic, but there are many other types that can allow students and teachers to use this very powerful display method to share ideas and information. Not having access to a group like Cognitive Media, students and teachers alike will need to find other tools and strategies to make their information POP!

The Wild Apricot Blog has a great post on Making your own Infographic. This article has links to strategies, examples and How-To websites. The Wild Apricot Blog quotes Wikipedia,
Information graphics or infographics are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge. These graphics present complex information quickly and clearly, such as in signs, maps, journalism, technical writing, and education. With an information graphic, computer scientists, mathematicians, and statisticians develop and communicate concepts using a single symbol to process information.
Like much of the information we access in today's educational settings, students need to have information readily available and the ability to quickly present complex information is essential for teachers of these types of students.

One of the best guides to help anyone create an effective infographic is an article by Sneh Roy, The Anatomy of An Infographic: 5 Steps to Create a Powerful Visual. With a working knowledge of the 5 steps a student or a teacher could create an easy to navigate informational visual on almost any topic.

Two of my favorite tools for engaging info graphics (this is just two of many) are Wordle and Prezi. Wordle is a word cloud creator that is easy to use, customizable and allows the user to cut and paste any text into it. prezi is a unique presentation tool that instead of using traditional slides, allows the information to be placed on one single workspace and then the user can navigate, zoom and rotate the view from piece of information to piece of information to make an interactive visual presentation.

While this post only shows a few of the tools and resources for infographics, it is meant as an introduction to the topic and how it can be used more effectively in educational settings and in particular for those involved with Media and Technology within education.

My Link Library 06/05/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Teacher Librarian Links 06/05/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/04/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Monday, May 31, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 06/01/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.

Secrets of Change: Secret 2


I have now finished the second secret in Michael Fullan's book, The Six Secrets of Change. This chapter is on Secret 2: Connecting Peers with Purpose. In my new position as CIO I have a vision of an integrated Library and Technology Departments into one Information Department. Right now in theory, we are all housed under the guise of "information services", but in reality each department functions independently of the other. When I was reading this chapter, I tried to envision how to utilize what was said in the effort to unite the two information families into one united information hub.

Initially in the opening statement for this chapter, Fullan talks about the nuance of connecting peers with purpose. "The nuance is that connecting peers with purpose does not require less leadership at the top, but rather more -- more of a different kind. (Fullan, 2008, pg.41) This, much like secret one, does not see exceptional leadership as top-down, rather with the leader being able to skillfully navigate the potentially choppy waters of interpersonal interactions.

Fullan does set forth three conditions that positive purposeful peer interaction effectively occurs with:
1) When the larger values of the organization and those of individuals and groups mesh.
In our school environment I feel that everyone in the information services department loves the school, and that was a strong draw for me to take this job. When everyone is there for the good of the students and the good of the school, you will have step one in the bag. Not having to create a foundation is a plus, though if this step is not already in place, a good leader must start from scratch. The way that I look at it is, if step one is not in place, you will need to examine what each of your group's members have in common and build coherency around like elements.

2) When information and knowledge about effective practices are widely and openly shared.
This is something that I feel happens among members of PLN's but within schools this is something that is at times reticent to happen. I am not sure why, but I find that those that work in schools are most apt to keep their cards close to their vests when it comes to things that might gain accolades. What everyone needs to know is that best practices and sharing of knowledge and information raises the bar and standards for every member of the team and the team as a whole. When step 1 is in place and people begin to feel responsibility for the school, the team and themselves, everyone wins!

3) When monitoring mechanisms are in place to detect and address ineffective actions while also identifying and consolidating effective practices.
Step 3 can only happen when steps 1 and 2 are solidly in place. There is also the underlying need for trust. If a team does not trust it's leader then monitoring mechanisms and efforts to unite best practices will be met with animosity and second guessing. If you are at the point where step 3 is in the queue and you are setting up monitoring mechanisms, you should also have the trust of your team. Remember, these mechanisms cannot and should not be developed in a vacuum and not only should a good leader be transparent, but a team should be united by best practice to collectively create and use the monitoring mechanisms to continually evolve.

While Peer to Peer purposeful interaction can be used as a common thread within a team, it is much more than simply that. Beyond purposeful, there needs to be higher level interactions that can align a team to continue along those paths indefinitely.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Teacher Librarian Links 05/30/2010


Posted from Diigo. The rest of teacher-librarians group favorite links are here.