EDIM 516 intro video from Deb Cherry on Vimeo.
Information overload may very well be the bane of the librarian. As an elementary school librarian enamored with all things tech I am constantly reading and researching new ideas. There is no shortage of information, that’s for sure. The real problem for me is keeping track of what I’ve read and want to use, what I’ve done previously, and what I might need for a future lesson. When I’m searching for true ‘librarian stuff’ there’s no place like LM_Net, the ‘original’ librarian’s listserve. I believe the listserve dates back to 1994 – when I started teaching in 2003 it was already well established. I do feel a little guilty that I’m not a very active contributor. I have all of the LM_Net mail going to a specific gmail account so I can easily search for whatever I need for my library classes. I also use the online sites for some great journals like LibrarySparks and School Library Journal. When I’m looking for new books to read with my students I use the state librarians association websites for my state, Pennsylvania, as well as others. I also have a list of blogs that are great sources of literature reviews. I must confess I rarely touch any of the ‘teacher books’ of lessons and ideas that line the shelves of my office. Why would I when I can find more than what I could possibly use online? Finding new ideas that help me integrate technology in my library lessons is another story. I have piles of paper, brochures, websites and app lists gathered from conferences, in-services, and snail mail just waiting for me to review them. I’ve got collections of useful sites in Symbaloo. Screenshots of items saved in Evernote. Lists of blogs that I would like to read regularly. Webinars and videos I’d like to view. Not only that – one little bit of research often leads me to more and more and more. Who doesn’t end up looking over several(!) blog posts when a link leads you to an interesting a new blog? And then in my quest to find out more about the blogger I might google them. I’ve been using Twitter more and more now that it is allowed in my district, and that is one more source for a myriad of links, blogs, products and articles that I would like to read someday. I’ve had to get over the fact that you can’t possibly read everything on the Twitter feeds, and that wasn’t easy! Support is a little harder to come by. We have an informal group of teachers trying to integrate more technology in their classrooms that meets once a month. And a few people here and there will comment on things I’ve tried. My students are the best support – they are engaged and interested, questioning and curious, and most would stay much longer than their allotted time if allowed. I’ve been snapping lots of pics of my new makerspace initiative but I haven’t found the time to get a lot of them onto my school website yet. The three biggest challenges I face are access to technology, district level support and colleague support. We do not have near enough technology for our students. We have 4 or 5 desktop computers in each classroom, a cart of 30 poorly working laptops, one computer lab without an instructor and a cart of 30 iPads for a building with 375 students. Needless to say it is impossible to reserve iPads or the lab. I have 10 desktops in the library – not enough to even work with partners – and 6 iPads assigned just to my library. In an age where there are often more devices than people in homes it is hard to understand an affluent district that will not properly supply the schools. Addressing my second challenge, my district is data driven. I am currently trying to figure out how to collect data to show the value of my Maker Mondays program. It is a fluke of scheduling that I was able to work it in this year for the first time, and I need to come up with a plan so the project is sustainable. Lastly, my colleagues, outstanding librarians all, are not particularly thrilled about the changes I’ve made to my library program. We’ve been downsized and downsized and downsized, we are all traveling, and we are lucky if we get to the right school on the right day. And we all have our own passions. I really want my students to have opportunities to have relevant, creative outlets that will help them become independent thinkers and not just test-takers but I understand that everyone doesn’t share my view of fitting those opportunities into a traditional elementary school library program. I’ll tackle that sometime in the future. |
AuthorI'm an elementary school librarian fascinated by all things Tech. I'm trying to give my students 21st century learning experiences as I feel this is crucial to their success. Yet often it feels like a Sisyphean task! Archives
December 2015
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