The Big Unveil

Click on the image to visit my Library Resource Page

I surprised myself last week when advocacy took over my initial vision of our school Library website. While I am still intent on learning about my administrators’ strategic goals for the school so that I can frame my library programming around them, the actual creation of the website led me down a different path. It quickly became apparent to me that the website, ultimately, is for my colleagues, the students, and their parents. They are my main clientele — the ones who have the most questions for me and the ones whose lives I hope to make easier. By extension, I am hoping this will reduce the amount of time I spend responding to repeated questions because the answers are all found on my website.

Before sharing this post and my website, I wanted to meet with the Marketing and Communications Team and update everyone on my battle with this department. I met with our Vice Principal of Curriculum earlier this week to show her the website design, knowing she would love it and find it to be a wonderful resource. In that moment, we both realized that we needed to reframe what this creation actually was. It is a helpful collection of every library resource available and it is directly tied to supporting student learning. We prepared for a follow up meeting with the Marcom director today by removing the word “website” from our vocabulary. I’m happy to report that our meeting went very successfully! This “library website” is now known as a Library Resource Page. We explained how it is akin to all the other learning documents I send out, except that it’s better organized and all the information is centralized in one document link. Somehow this explanation brought both us educators and the marketing/business side of our school to a common understanding. The Marcom department even offered to redesign the banners of the resource page so it looks more aligned and seamless with the school’s branding. I couldn’t have asked for a better result. Now I can share the link with the students, parents, and teachers and truly make this a resource for EVERYONE. I am incredibly excited! It feels like my hard work in creating the website and in advocacy has paid off.

Resources Used

I created the Resource page in two stages. Once I had the main components of my website put together, I turned to some school library websites that I had bookmarked a couple of years ago for inspiration because I liked the content and design. These include Wellesley Middle School, Castilleja School, Dr. Charles Best Secondary, and the Valleyview Learning Commons from our very own Dianne Bell. From these sites, I was reminded to include the library Mission Statement, quick visual links on the Home Page, general need-to-know information about the library, and a direct form for collecting book recommendations. I also genuinely appreciated Valleyview’s Web 2.0 Resources, but I opted not to include this on the Library Resource Page. It would, instead, be a perfect addition to our Learning Technology page.

Some external sites I found helpful in the creating the visual aspect of my Resource Page were Canva (for my library link buttons), Amazon (for book cover images), YouTube (for uploading video content), and Surrey Libraries (for additional resources that complement our school library’s). Making this Resource Page pushed me to finally take time to apply for a library card in Surrey (I’m a Vancouver resident) so that I could provide a well-rounded scope of resources available to the students in my school community. I was also able to finalize most of my research documents on non-fiction, keyword search tips, fake news, and copyright. These are actual tools I use with students that teachers also request. Overall, this project was an excellent push to complete tasks that were important but not a priority to everyday library operations.

Challenges

WEB DESIGN

The greatest challenge I faced when putting together the website was keeping it clean and uncluttered. As mentioned in a previous post, I have a tendency to want to share ALL information and knowledge. However, I really wanted to prioritize making the website easy to navigate. I was constantly hiding and unhiding pages from the navigation bar, trying to negotiate how much information was too much.

KEEPING ORGANIZED

Like any technology creation, there was also a lot of previewing and testing involved, which always led to more revisions. I have a lot of links on my Resource Page and each of these links had to be verified, and each database login and password had to be tested. Once I discovered an incorrect link, I had to rectify it but it was difficult keeping track of which ones I had tested or not. I’m curious how web designers do these, as I am sure there is a systematic method. What I ended up doing was making rough sketches of each page and checking that each link went where it was supposed to and that the information provided (such as login information) was correct. This was very laborious but completely necessary. I was surprised how many errors there actually were, so it was satisfying to catch them in this process. Please don’t judge me if you test them and find and error, though! I have changed all login information for the published version of this course so that I do not violate our school’s information sharing policies.

These doodles ended up being an effective strategy to map out the links and check off the ones that were working properly.

To add to the confusion and margin for error, I was working on the Learning Technology resource page concurrently and also able to complete that. The database and research portion on both resource pages have identical information. However, working on two Google Sites at once meant that I would jump around from page to page across the different sites, which made it difficult for me to keep track of which ones had been updated or not. I have yet to go through the Learning Technology site as thoroughly as the Library Resource Page, so this will be my next project.

CITATIONS

Finally, I found it to be a near-impossible task to cite every resource I linked or referred to on my website. My entire website is a collection of resources that are linked to external sources. Ultimately, I only included resources that did not inform me of my site production.

Future Direction

Things I would like to do in the future:
1) Update the book lists to include descriptions and/or links to external sites that describe them.
2) Provide a space for students to leave their own book reviews and include a student book review section
3) Add a welcome video with library statistics and details about some of the lessons I do
4) Subscribe to Noodletools so that our school has a citation generator, then add this information to the Resource Page and provide an in service to help staff and students use it
5) I have been given January 20 as the official launch date for the Library Resource Page and the Learning Technologies Page. The IT Leader and myself will lead our Monday after school meeting that day where we plan to give teachers time to play, incorporate their feedback, make changes, then officially share the Resource Page link with the community two days later. I am brimming with excitement and have high hopes this will make a massive difference for everyone’s teaching and learning.

Like many things in teaching and libraries, the work is never done. The great advantage of publishing this Resource Page through Google Sites is the ease in which I can edit it regularly even after the link has been shared and distributed. In this span of a couple of weeks alone, I made constant changes in login information, books available for the book list, and research documents. I suppose that is the outcome of a brain that never sleeps – only now, I have a centralized place to place that wealth of information.

Works Cited:

Castilleja Library. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2019, from http://library.castilleja.org/.

Dr. Charles Best Secondary School Library. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2019, from https://www.bestlibrary.org/.

Valleyview Learning Commons. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2019, from http://valleyviewvikes.weebly.com/.

Wellesley Middle School Library. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2019, from https://wmslib1.weebly.com/.

Just Doing My Job…

One of the most surprising skills I have had to develop as a teacher-librarian is how to talk about myself and to brag a little bit. I’ve never been one to do this, but I’ve come to discover that this is integral to my job. I recently read an excellent article by Debra Kachel (2017) on library advocacy, which informed me that the majority of what administrators know about the library comes from the librarian itself. I would say that this fact could easily apply to the perception of the library among students, teachers, and parents’ eyes as well. With such a specialized role in the school, it’s often easier to do it all yourself and ask that no one distract you from completing the many parts of your job. It’s also common to get caught up in fulfilling the constant incoming requests, which can end up feeling like you are doing so much without getting anything done, while no one has a clue how many things teacher librarians are actually juggling at once.

A simple inventory sometimes puts it all into perspective. I currently have large piles of books for:

  1. Books that need repair
  2. Books that need spines relabelled
  3. Books that need to be redistributed to classrooms and other libraries
  4. Books that are brand new
  5. Books that are at various stages of processing
  6. Books that are difficult to catalog
  7. Books that are ready to be weeded
  8. Books that are weeded and need to be donated or recycled

I currently have requests from:

  1. Kindergarten for theme books
  2. Kindergarten and Grade 1 for social-emotional picture books
  3. Grade 2 theme books
  4. Grade 5 theme books
  5. Grade 7 websites for news

I’m currently teaching:

  1. How to browse and take care of books in Kindergarten and Grade 1
  2. How to choose books at a just right reading level in Grade 2 and 3 and how to make things with our hands to show our inquiry and learning
  3. How to locate books in the library and use databases and our library catalog to find book recommendations in Grade 4
  4. How to use the various databases available for different types of research to Grade 5
  5. How to conduct personal inquiry in Grade 6
  6. Research skills in Grade 7

I’m trying to advocate and hustle for:

  1. Extended opening times for students in the library
  2. Pro-D funding so I can attend workshops with Indigenous leaders in order to help teachers better integrate Indigenous perspectives into the curriculum
  3. Business cards for myself to network with those in the book trade and other educators
  4. Author visits that tie in with thematic units as well as represent a diverse and inclusive demographic
  5. A more cohesive student sustainability plan between the junior and senior schools

I also have side jobs to:

  1. Take care of my library plants and fish
  2. Run the library social media account
  3. Manage the budget
  4. Keeping volunteers busy with jobs and procedures up-to-date
  5. Prepare students for the upcoming Kids Lit Quiz competition
  6. Organize and promote the Scholastic Book Fair
  7. And more I am sure that I have forgotten!

When I document my job like this, I become acutely aware that there really can be no one else who understands my role unless they have been a full-time librarian. My mention of this is not to complain about the job or the lack of appreciation for all I do, but to remind myself that my future vision project completely aligns with advocacy and leadership in my role.

I really appreciate this document produced by AASL and how it frames the role of a school librarian in the eyes of an administrator. We truly need administrators to be our allies, but we need to advocate for ourselves in order for administrators to see us this way. I love how the document embeds direct links to articles, videos, and infographics so that people can get a quick yet comprehensive snapshot of what our role entails. This helps to inform the design and layout of my final project. To me, my library “website” should capture a similar essence, demonstrating what I teach, how I can be a leader, and providing evidence of the work I do for the greater school community.

AASL (2016)

Although I defined my audience in last week’s post as my teaching colleagues, it is becoming more and more clear to me that my purpose for creating the website is as much for advocacy among administrators as it is for teacher access and utility. Kachel proposes for librarians to work on advocacy within the framework of the principal’s school objectives. She cites Hartzell’s work in Building Influence for the School Librarian (2003), where he shares that “Influence is derived from the perceptions of the person to be influenced, not from the perceptions of the person doing the influencing. The key to building your influence lies in your ability to shape the perceptions of others” (p. vii). It is not going to be enough to build a library website to help teachers and to show administrators just how much I do. I realize I also need to demonstrate on the website how the work within the library aligns with my principal and vice principals’ objectives for the school. In order to accomplish this, I need to do a bit more work in these next couple of weeks to uncover any hidden agendas and goals that have yet to be shared with the staff. This will certainly not be easy!

Kachel suggests for librarians to develop SMART objectives in our strategic plan within the school’s. Interestingly, this is the precise framework that I give to students when conducting personal inquiries. Sometimes it amazes me that the very principles I use for teaching can also be excellent professional tools as well.

My adapted SMART goals graphic organizer for students

The technical process of building the website now looks to be the fun, easy part which I will be superficially assessed on by my audience. However, the thought and cohesion behind the website will be my true metric of whether I have achieved my advocacy goals in the eyes of the administrative beholders.

Works Cited:

American Association of School Librarians (AASL). (2017). School librarians as learning leaders: An administrators guide. [infographic] Retrieved from: http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslissues/advocacy/AASL_LearningLeaders_Admin_V2_FINAL_R2.pdf

Hartzell, G. (2003). Building influence for the school librarian: Tenets, targets, and tactics (2nd ed.). Worthington, OH: Linworth.

Kachel, D. (2017). The principal and the librarian: Positioning the school library program. Teacher Librarian, 45(1), 50–52.

Time To Practice What We Preach

Here comes the exciting part of the course – and the most daunting. It’s one thing to learn new information. It’s another to put that learning into action and produce a bona fide artifact that will be useful in my community. I suppose this sense of trepidation I feel in accomplishing this might be similar to how students’ sense of excitement and overwhelm when given an open-ended learning task to tackle world problems. There is no learning experience more authentic than applying your learning to create something useful in the world, but it comes with an intense pressure and feeling of inadequacy.

I’ve been using Google Sites in these early months of the school year to put together some learning tools which I hoped will be useful for my colleagues and the students. I thought this would be a good time to share a preview of each document.

School Website

My priority from the offset of the school year has been to build a school library website. I strongly wish for a centralized location to share information related to the AR program at our school, research tips, information on how to access databases from home, and book lists. These are all areas where I receive the most requests, and this would be a useful resource to parents, students, and teachers.

Scope and Sequence

Meanwhile, our school technology leader and I have been collaborating on a Google Doc to create a cohesive IT and digital citizenship scope and sequence that incorporates the BC Ministry Curriculum on ADST, IB documents on ICT in PYP, Teaching and Learning with Technology, and Technology and the Design of Learning Spaces in the Library, as well as recommendations from Common Sense Media, MediaSmarts, and ISTE on digital citizenship. So far we have organized skills into three strands:

  1. Technology Skills (learning to use technology)
  2. Information Literacy and Digital Citizenship (learning about technology),
  3. Technology Integration (learning with technology).

Learning Technologies Site

Through our exploration of a documents creating a technology scope and sequence, we discovered that another gap in our school is the amount of technology we subscribe to and pay for versus the reality of the (limited) technology that is actually being used by teachers and students. The tech leader and I embarked on a new project to create another Google Site that provides teachers with information on all the technology available across different devices (iPads, Chromebooks, Websites) and technology that can be used to teach different subject areas.

Narrowing the Focus

Like most librarians, my tendencies lean towards trying to do too much at once. The creation of all three of these documents are large projects that I am trying to complete outside of my regular teaching and library duties, and each project expands with every new aspect of technology that I learn about in this course. However, the process of sharing these documents on this blog has helped me to select the Library Website as my final project for this course, as I have more autonomy and control over this document. Inevitably, there will be elements from the Learning Technologies website that will overlap, such as research technologies and information on digital citizenship, but this underscores their importance.

The first step I have taken is to decide on my audience for this project. Although a school website has many functions, such as providing information about the library for students and parents, being a resource for teachers, and connecting with the greater library community, I have determined that I would like this to primarily be a functional teaching tool for my fellow educators at school. If it is useful, they will be the ones who will eventually help to disseminate the library website and its related information to the greater community. I only see the upper grades sporadically and they are the students who would find it the most useful.

My learning from this course has implored me to expand on this website project beyond my initial vision. I first aspired to create a document that contained all library-related resources and was easy to navigate. My desperation to get it up and running had me looking towards a very basic website with simple links. This course has really boosted the value of YouTube in my eyes, and helped me to understand its appeal to students and teachers. I now would like to incorporate more video elements onto the Library website. One example where I am planning on using this is the tab for booklists. I was planning on typing them out or creating PDFs for different genres and ages, but I have begun to create YouTube playlists with curated book trailers for our younger and older students and will include this as part of the Booklist tab. I would also love to create a welcome video on the library homepage, with photo and video highlights of what our students are doing and circulation statistics. I see this as a huge opportunity for library advocacy.

With my newfound intention of building my PLN, I would really like to encourage others to do so as well. In the context of the library website, I feel I can present the idea of forming a learning network and suggest individual starting points for teachers – and ultimately for students – to effectively build their own. Even if no one seeks external networks initially, I hope that the minimal outcome of this website will be that it will become a well-used digital space that encourages collaboration within the school. Our teachers rarely have the opportunity to share the digital tools and technologies they are using within one another. I hope to create a bridge between them by allowing them to contribute to the website and share additional resources, such as for research and book list recommendations.

In all honestly, incorporating information about learning networks is something I am not fully prepared to share at this point when I have not had much time to personally engage in them myself. It would be like recommending a recipe to someone when I haven’t yet tested it in my own kitchen. In my preliminary searches for learning networks, I have already discovered the enormous amounts of time it takes to carefully select learning networks that are worthwhile of teachers’ busy schedules. It is an exhaustive task to find the communities – valuable ones on social networks (Instagram, Twitter) as well as blogs, organizations and websites. It also takes time to sign up for online communities, engage in them, and see if they are useful. I am feeling overwhelmed by the breadth of things out there and I also don’t want to be online more than I need to. By building a PLN, I can imagine being caught up in updates and replies. Time is not on the side of teachers. I know many who do not have social media because of this, and I can foresee a great deal of reluctance for teachers to build a PLN. It makes me question whether this will be a fruitful and worthwhile quest but I am determined to incorporate it on the website in some manner that I have yet to determine.

Being a T-L, I know my purpose is to be useful and relevant to the community. If I am going to promote building a PLN, I must unequivocally be convinced of it myself and to be able to model the successes that came come from it. Alternatively, perhaps, teachers can merely reap the benefits of my expanded PLN because I will be able to connect with them to resources that they never imagined they would access. I really cannot foresee how this will all unfold, but I am certain that student engagement will be the greatest measurable success criteria. I keep reminding myself that we are a technology focussed school and all teachers should be using technology in innovative ways.

Marketing the Document

I hesitate to call this a website because of my documented barriers in a previous post. I have since been given permission to share my library website design with Marketing and Communications and have them build a portal page within the school website. They will pull all the information from my Google Site and build it within a Library portal page. Parents, students, and teachers have access to this site. However, there are restrictions with the addition of external links to the school portal pages, so I cannot have the school link the Google site I create onto the school website. Intuitively, I know that teachers (and students) are less likely to use the site if they need to access it through the school portal page. Since the creation of the site is primarily for them, I have decided I will push forward the Google Site and circulate it among staff in an email as a shared document. Although the design is akin to a website, the function is more similar to a shared G+ suite file, and this is how I will be marketing the “document” to my school. This is one reason why parents are not part of the audience for this website; the information communicated to them through the portal page should be sufficient for elementary school parents who seek additional resources to help their younger children.

I do plan on sharing this document with the educational administration at our school because I want them to be aware of the extent that I work with students and teachers, and the layers of learning enhancements that I support the school community in. We have weekly after school meetings on Mondays, and I will be asking for a time slot once the website is complete so that I can formally introduce the staff to this document and answer any questions they have about it.

Further Research

I will continue reading Digital Citizenship In Action for ideas on authentic digital engagement. I’m going to teach myself how to use Powtoon or another movie maker to create a video so that I can come up with one to introduce everyone to the school library. I have a librarian friend who recently shared one that she created for her school, so I will get in touch with her on how she pulled statistics from Follett and what technology she used to make her video. I’m also going to review other school library websites I have discovered in the past (including Diane’s) to glean ideas from those. It feels like there are a lot of moving parts at the moment, but I know that I must lay a solid foundation for something that will hopefully only require fine tuning going forward.

The Sway of Other Voices

The most important takeaway I have from these weeks of exploration is the role that librarians in creating connections with the outside world. Although librarians are well-accustomed to teachers asking for books, making requests for digital resources, and inquiring about our community connections, I have come to realize that the quality of resources we provide can only grow by expanding our network.

With encouragement from everyone engaging in this blog, it is now a definitive goal for me to grow my Professional Learning Network (once this course is over!). Some of my peers have suggested great Twitter accounts and I will certainly use those recommendations as a starting point. I would love to make global connections with educators of all backgrounds and with individuals involved in the book trade, and to broaden the local connections with our diverse community in B.C. This new focus is an interesting shift away from my initial interest in digital citizenship and student wellbeing, though developing a PLN can certainly inform my knowledge and practice of digital citizenship and improving student wellbeing.

The reality is that digital citizenship is a permanent fixture in our educational landscape, and it is still intertwined with my new goal. I envision myself learning alongside students. I can model for them how I created my PLN, how to connect with strangers online safely and respectfully, and provide another means for them to conduct research and engage in learning. I will also be demonstrating the importance of diverse perspectives from around the world, as I aspire to build connections around the world with different schools, authors, and experts in different fields that relate to student inquiries.

I can incorporate this new PLN focus as I continue working on building Google Sites for the Library. I am creating one site to centralize all library-related information about literacy and research, and another site highlighting all the Learning Technologies used in the school. I now realize I need to actively seek out different platforms that can enhance online collaboration. I’m currently at an IB Conference in Denver and I have learned about the global network I have instant access to as an IB Educator through MyIB, as well as the one available through Future Ready Schools (sponsored by Follett and AASL). I’ve also discovered Padlet and Trello, along with many other platforms such as Powtoon, that can be used to increase student collaboration and engagement with projects that can be shared with the outside world. In the research section of the Library page, I can include forums for students to make real world connections, though admittedly, I do not even have a starting point for this. I ordered a copy of Digital Citizenship In Action: Empowering Students to Engage in Online Communities by Kristen Mattson, so I’m looking forward to perusing this for some real world ideas.

Scene from my IB Conference in Denver #whatimcurrentlyreading

With so many rules and restrictions to secure safety, I think it’s important to nurture student agency with technology. These past weeks in Phase 2 have given me many ideas on how to incorporate student voice in conjunction with exposure to other library and learning settings. I love the idea of showing them examples of library spaces and events from around the world, digital and mobile libraries, different names for libraries, and having them participate in a rebranding of the library. It’s something that gets me really excited, and I know the excitement will transmit to the students. The most important aspect of my learning journey is that my learning becomes “our learning” in our school, and that the library feels like “our library” – one that everyone is invested in and extends far beyond our walls and books.

World Libraries: No Famine For Thought

When I consider world libraries and access to resources in non-industrialized countries, I am of two minds. I most certainly believe in improving access to information through diverse means, and libraries should be a community space for citizens to gather and learn. However, as someone who also has a strong belief in disruptting systems of oppression, I approach this debate with caution. I am mindful of how Western societies project our version of reality to societies in other regions of the world – regions that have large populations of Indigenous people who still live as traditional societies. The idea of proposing a mobile library to non-industrialized countries prioritizes a particular type of knowledge, and I am concerned with how these differing values and societal structures undermines traditional knowledge keeping. My thoughts also wander to the degrees of corruption and the disparity in wealth that exist in these regions and how library access might be distributed among different socio-economic classes. With these considerations, my starting point for discussion and research is whether there is a universally agreed upon definition of a library and its function.

Public Library Online (2016)

From my cultural perspective, the above video summarizes the role of a library aptly. However, when I think critically about it, the mere notion of a library being a place to help someone find a job is a very industrialized concept. I think back to the powerful film, Schooling the World (2010) featuring many big names such as Carol Black, Wade Davis and Helena Norberg Hodge who present evidence on how Western education has negatively impacted traditional societies. We make a grand assumption that Western versions of schools and, by extension, libraries are places for knowledge growth. The reality is that when such institutions are established in traditional societies, children are taught scientific concepts, such as flora and fauna, that do not pertain to any aspect of their local lives. They have difficulty finding work because their society is not rooted in industrial employment, then return home to their societies with little traditional knowledge of how to grow food and sustain themselves in their climate. Before planning a library for any society, one must always consider their cultural priorities. Some countries may continue to solely prioritize academic learning in their libraries while others need to prioritize local knowledge and keep their traditions intact. It has been difficult for me to respond to this week’s topic without feeling like I am making grand assumptions about society, knowledge, and betterment of life, and it has taken me by surprise how tumultuous my thoughts have become of libraries, library services, and resources.

An Encouraging Co-Existence

This brief video packs a punch and is a great example of how libraries can be of service in Western societies that co-exist with traditional societies. Language preservation is essential to the preservation of a culture, and it’s wonderful to hear that this is happening in the South Pacific.

A counter to Linguicide: engaging in identity formation through youth being tied to language and culture leads to success in life

In order for libraries to be successful in non-industrialized nations, local people must have agency and representation. In a random investigation of libraries in capital cities, examples from Kenya and Cambodia cited a lack of funding and staff. They seem to operate through donations, but with foreign-motivated involvement (eg. France contributing to the preservation of colonial documents in Cambodia, weeded books from Western libraries being sent to other parts of the world) it’s questionable how much quality material is being housed in these collections and how much local knowledge is being preserved in the libraries. Fortunately, libraries do extend beyond walls and can be measured by more than a physical collection and I do believe the merit of the digital library space is invaluable to all societies as we learn to become digital citizens of the world.

The Argument for Digital Libraries

In this older video, Brewster Kahle (2007) brings together the main notion of a library and how it can help industrialized and non-industrialized societies: universal access to all knowledge. It’s great to hear that over ten years ago, people from countries all over the world were already trying to scan books, record audio, and archive films. It’s a great reminder of the need to actively seek out diverse perspectives and voices and bring them into our libraries because, as Ann Morgan (2015) proves, they are out there if we connect with real people.

Read A Book From Every Country in the World

Innovative Libraries

Mobile libraries are novel and practical. I’ve heard of the biblioburro in Colombia, as well as donkey-mobile libraries in Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and other parts of the continent. There is great enthusiasm for how mobile libraries increase literacy. Although not a library, locally, Iron Dog Books is a mobile bookstore run by an Indigenous pair that focuses on access by providing low-cost books and giving back to the Indigenous community.

This post outlines four examples of how innovative libraries can be personalized to meet the needs of a community. It was great to see the example from Africa, and how a knowledge centre was created to “help people with day-to-day problems like increasing crop yields, dealing with pests, and accessing health information” (Higgins, 2013). I’m particularly excited about this because it is where the name of my blog came from; I always strive to make learning relevant and provide real world contexts for all knowledge. The organization behind these knowledge centres, Arid Lands Information Network (ALIN), has been awarded an Access to Learning Award by the Gates Foundation and it is a true example of empowering communities with local knowledge. A common thread in world libraries is that they are remain a place for gathering. Even in Metro Vancouver, many of our libraries are located within community centres and they are certainly well-used.

Gates Foundation

While considering all these visions and versions of libraries, I wanted to debate whether one “analog” feature of a library can ever be replaced digitally: the librarian. I have always loved this poster from the ALA regarding the school librarian and the space that is created for learners. Interestingly, I had one of my students tell me this past week that school librarians are different from regular librarians because we do more, but I wanted to come to the defense of all librarians because I feel it is one of the most misunderstood, underrated roles in society. The fact that we are even having this conversation about world library access demonstrates the behind-the-scenes advocacy librarians do and that we really are providing a public service for the betterment of society, regardless of how that might look. To me, having someone like this visibly on someone’s side is invaluable…but I’m also willing to admit that I might be the slightest bit biased.

ALA (2013)

Works Cited:

American Library Association, American Association of School Libraries, Library Media
Connection, & Florida State University. (2013). Retrieved from
http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslissues/advocacy/100_Things_Poster.pdf

Black, Carol. (2010). Schooling the world: The white man’s last burden: A discussion guide and companion to the film. Retrieved from: http://schoolingtheworld.org/film/discussion-guide/

Higgins, C. (2013, September 4). Retrieved from Higgins, C. (2013, September 4). 4 Innovative Libraries Transforming Lives Around the World. Retrieved from http://mentalfloss.com/article/52525/4-innovative-libraries-transforming-lives-around-world.

Kahle, B. (2007, December). Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/brewster_kahle_builds_a_free_digital_library?language=en.

Morgan, A. (2015, September). Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/ann_morgan_my_year_reading_a_book_from_every_country_in_the_world.

N., Hurst, J., & Grossman, M. (Producers). (2010). Schooling the world: The white man’s last burden. [Film]. Telluride, CO: Lost People Films. [Shown in class]

PublicLibraryOnline. (2016, December 7). Retrieved October 28, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUPaKBACIUQ&t=3s.

State Library of New South Wales. (2017, April 27). Retrieved October 28, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ng6DZhTPr10.

The Triple Threat

The notion of the school librarian position being a leadership role has surfaced in a couple of my previous UBC T-L courses, and I wholeheartedly agree. When I interviewed for the T-L role at our school, I did not have any formal T-L training. They asked me why I wanted to move into the role after teaching Grade 3 for several years. Without having rehearsed a response to this question, I instinctively replied that I was ready for a leadership role in the school but not interested in administration. To me, being a school librarian is the perfect balance of teaching and leadership, without the leadership title. Not only do I have my pulse on the entire school curriculum, it is my job to build relationships with every single member of the school community (Toor & Weisburg, 2012). I need students to feel safe in the library and to trust me with their inquiries; my colleagues should be able to turn to me when in need for resources, a physical space, or even a sounding board; and I must have the strength to speak up to the administrative team so that I am heard and respected. Having positive relationships with students, teachers, and the school leadership team is truly the triple threat needed to effectively implement a learning commons philosophy.

However, it is a fine balance between leading by example and the actual leadership in the school. I have confronted some frustrating road blocks in my drive towards improving access to new resources and providing in-service for teachers in areas where I know they would appreciate support. One of my goals has been to create a library website, which would be a one-stop-shop for database access, links and tips related to the Accelerated Reader (AR) program at our school, research tips, and book list recommendations. When I pitched this idea in the summer prior to this school year, I could not believe the resistance I faced. Working in an independent school, it becomes apparent how such schools often operate as a business. There is an extensive team in the Marketing & Communications (Marcom) department, and the Director of Marcom is a member of the school’s executive team. In translation: she has a lot of power. In my first conversation with her, she brought up concerns with budgeting time and, therefore, humanpower and finances to this project. There was also the broader perspective of how this website might integrate within the existing platforms of communication we have with parents and the greater community, as well as how it might align with the design standards of the school website, and whether this was a longterm, sustainable project. What seemed like a great idea to me from a teaching perspective was one that likely appeared to be thoughtless of consideration from the business operation end of things.

I received advice from a friend that in this instance, it would be a good idea to build something myself and present it to them so they have a better idea of my vision. I’ve taken to using Google Sites to accomplish this, and I have found it to be a lot of fun playing around with the design. I do agree that this will likely be the best approach because ultimately, teachers at my school are at odds with the executive team. We simply don’t think similarly and sometimes need to follow the old teaching principle of “show, not tell.”

Within this website, I will have links to various Google Docs and Slides that I have been creating on Research Tips, Databases (school and local library), Fact Checking and Media Bias. They are still a work in progress, but I know these will be invaluable in the long run. I also like how easy it is to continually update the document after it has been shared. I have been investing my time into improved digital access to information because most of the teachers at my school are tech savvy, plus they are busy enough with various other meetings and daily teaching work. Although these are not on one central website, I have started to circulate the documents and teachers have already given me feedback on how much they appreciate it. They are also very kid-friendly and shared with students and parents. I find the best opportunities to share such ICT resources and skills with my colleagues is when I am teaching their class while they are present. Often, I will hear “I’m glad I was there, I didn’t know that…” Ultimately, it is a collaborative, sharing environment that will nurture ICT skills the best.

Examples of my Google Docs and Slides so far

I do find some teachers have reservations when implementing new technology, simply because it takes them longer to master. In these instances, they benefit from one-on-one or small group instruction, but once they get going they are confident. I also think it’s always a great idea elicit teacher buy-in with upgrading ICT skills by inspiring them. The ISTE video about Rethinking Digital Citizenship that I posted about a few weeks ago remains my inspirational source, and I will strategically share this with my staff when I have finalized and polished all the documents I am creating for them.

Our school benefits from having a K-7 Technology Leader, so the responsibility does not actually rest on me to provide IT support. She is the one in charge of the school’s ICT curriculum and pedagogy with me and in some ways, my role with technology learning has been watered down to providing media literacy and research skills, in spite of the fact that I continue to complete a great deal of professional development with technology. This doesn’t bother me, as honing my ICT skills can only help me to improve as an educator. Plus, we collaborate well together and are currently working on drafting a cohesive Digital Citizenship Scope and Sequence. I do find it interesting how our positions are somewhat parallel positions (we both work with K-7 students, lead inservice workshops and share resources with teachers, have administrative duties that include budgeting) but are not regarded in a similar sense. It reminds me of how advocacy will forever remain a part of a librarian’s role, particularly in a 21st century learning commons.

Although this video is five years old, it captures what modern school libraries are becoming and highlights the struggle with public perception of libraries that remains. (On a side note, this video led me to the hashtag #SchoolLibrariesMatter, which I greatly appreciated)

Capstone Publishers (2014)

Finally, one area of digital citizenship that I find does not come up as frequently is copyright laws and infringement. It is an area of digital citizenship that most people need to be aware of daily, particularly teachers. We really need to model copyright and fair use; however, it isn’t exactly the most riveting subject matter, and I know for certain that teachers (myself included) are not completely confident with their knowledge in this area. I tried to take a MOOC course on Copyright and never saw it through. This is certainly an area for growth that I am eager to share. I do find videos and visual explanations on Copyright are the most useful, so I scoured YouTube for good quality, entertaining videos. There weren’t many options. It might be another instance of needing to create something for myself. In the interim, I wanted to share what I found here and perhaps our community can help me vet these resources before I share them with colleagues.

Common Sense Media clearly explains the concept in this video, though it’s a bit slow and dry:

Common Sense Media (2014)

Sometimes music can be a helpful mnemonic, though the quality of the message is debatable and the comments section should be avoided:

Media Lab Education (n.d.)

There is a comprehensive collection of copyright education resources here that is scaffolded for a wide range of grades. Again, the quality of the videos are not at the standard I would personally select.

Finally, this website has a nice selection of recommended resources, including other blogs, podcasts, and videos: https://www.teachingcopyright.org/resources.html

Works Cited

Capstone Publishers. (2014, October 22). School Libraries Matter: The Changing Role of the School Librarian. Retrieved October 18, 2019, from https://youtu.be/6eilZJp3_h8.

Common Sense Media. (2014, September 5). Copyright and Fair Use Animation. Retrieved October 19, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suMza6Q8J08&t=2s.

Copyright and Creativity for Ethical Digital Citizens. (2018). K-12 Teaching Resources on Copyright and Fair Use. Retrieved October 20, 2019, from https://www.copyrightandcreativity.org/.

Electronic Frontier Foundation. (n.d.). Teaching Copyright. Retrieved October 21, 2019, from https://www.teachingcopyright.org/resources.html.

Media Lab Education. (n.d.) Copyright, What’s Copyright. Retrieved October 19, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QiO_H0-ok8&t=1s.

Toor, R., & Weisburg, H. K. (2012). New on the job: A school library media specialist’s guide to success. 2nd edition. Chicago: American Library Association.

The Brain That Doesn’t Sleep

The trait that makes me an ideal teacher-librarian is also my one of my worst. My brain won’t ever turn off. I am always information seeking for a better understanding, a new way, and revelations I never realized were available to me. I love to share this knowledge with others, even during my colleagues’ well-deserved holidays. While some enjoy some time without a single thought of work, there I am sending them emails, texts or DM’s, excitedly sharing a perfect connection to one of their units. For the most part, I have learned to set professional boundaries between my personal learning and others’ rest periods. I have also found that continually improving my IT skills is one way to fulfill my desire to immediately implement my learning without disturbing others.

I was recently at a Google Educator Workshop and it taught me a lot about the way I learn and how technology education should be. Working in a technology-rich learning environment, I have experienced first hand how simultaneously empowering and crippling technology can be when students are not equipped with adequate knowledge and executive functioning skills. I started off in the Level One workshop because I was nervous about being overwhelmed by technology. It became apparent quite quickly that I was bored because I stopped completing the step-by-step tasks the instructor was giving and doing other work on my computer instead. When the opportunity presented itself to “level up,” I was forced into paying more attention, felt more excited about learning, and also had the autonomy to play around with certain G+ suite features I found useful when others were learning tips for G+ suite features I would never use.

This was a good reminder for me that this is a pretty common way for digital natives to learn. Students want time to play with features because many of them can approach new technology without that inhibiting fear of losing their work or messing up the computer that people from different generations have. Outside of technology, they need to be introduced to new ideas that challenge them and get them thinking long after a lesson. I suppose this is my long-winded way of saying that all the informal and formal learning that I do, I take immediately back into my teaching practice. I love learning and I want to share that love of learning with the students in hopes of inspiring them to pursue their love of learning as well. Additionally, I do feel the need to make myself useful in the eyes of my colleagues. Although there is a high level of collaboration as a T-L, being a librarian can be an isolated role.

Conferences and Workshops

BCTLA (2019), FNESC (2019), IBO (2019), ERAC (2019), Neufeld Institute (2019), Future Design School (2019)

I have completed a BA, B.Ed, M.Ed at UBC and am currently working on completing my T-L certificate. In addition to taking courses at UBC, I attend about 3-5 professional development conferences per year. I regularly attend the annual BCTLA Conference and often take workshops related to digital citizenship, innovative uses of technology in the library (such as Virtual Fieldtrips), and diversity in media and literature.

As part of my role in the school, I also attend IB Conferences for both PYP and MYP, the ERAC IT4K12 Conference, and workshops led by Future Design School. The school is also supportive of me pursuing my interest and developing expertise in child attachment theory and Indigenous education, and I have attended the FNESC Conference and Neufeld Institute conferences on several occasions.

The school supports the idea that every teacher is a language teacher and has brought in Adrienne Gear to do workshops with Fiction and Non-Fiction Reading and Writing Power, and primary teachers and specialists have completed their OG certification.

Social Media

I have a specially curated Facebook, Instagram and – to a certain degree – Twitter account where I follow people for book reviews, best teaching practices, tips on child development. I am also passionate about following media channels such as Yes! Magazine that challenge privilege, bias, and advocate for social justice.

I am always hesitant to engage in discourse with strangers online. This has simply not been my mode of engaging in social media. I will engage with friends on our personal accounts about political and educational issues; I may occasionally post comments of support and enthusiasm on public accounts, but I am not comfortable “putting myself out there” and stating an opinion that I know will be attacked, even when I am certain I am correct. Therefore, these reservations have caused me to never develop digital relationships with like-minded educators. This is certainly an area for growth for me, and I get the sense that Twitter might be the best platform for this because there isn’t as much emphasis on visual content. I’ve noticed that the accounts I am interested in following on Twitter also differ from the accounts I follow on Instagram and Facebook. I tend to learn through imitation and I hope through following and connecting with the right balance of accounts in Twitter, I can refine my usage of that platform to develop more professional networks with book sellers, educational and technology thinkers, and credible news channels. I think learning to engage with others online is a skill that I can both model and learn alongside my students to practice the advice shared by Will Richardson (2012) to talk to strangers, since “the reality is that the kids in our schools will interact and learn with strangers online on a regular basis throughout their lives.”

Professional Networks

As part of the ISABC, there is a teacher librarian network which collaborates and meets twice per year. We discuss various topics related to libraries and share resources. I wouldn’t say that I am actively involved beyond attending the meetings. However, I did challenge myself to lead a workshop at our annual ISABC Conference in 2017 on Indigenous Ways of Knowing. Although I feel confident sharing my knowledge with my colleagues, it was definitely out of my comfort zone to address an audience of strangers. I would definitely consider another opportunity like this, but the topic and climate need to be right. Again, it would only come from a need to share information that I feel very knowledgeable about that I feel needs to be clarified for a greater audience. My current topics of passion are: the problems with our current economy and its ecological impact, curbing consumerism, and nurturing a connection with nature.

Click to access the presentation

We have a professional reading book club at work, which I participated in until recently. We have read a variety of books including Alfie Kohn’s Punished by Rewards, Tony Wagner’s Global Achievement Gap, and Elena Aguilar’s Onward: Cultivating Emotional Resilience in Educators. The area where I am most lacking for my personal learning is networking. Admittedly, in my professional realm, I like to stick with those who I have been able to rely on and I do not expand that circle rapidly. I have never been a networker, collecting professional acquaintances like a young adult collects stamps in a passport. I have a circle of experienced teachers and T-L’s as mentors, a connection with a literature professor and someone in the book trade, and younger T-L’s to grow with. I find it difficult to carve out time and energy to expand beyond this.

Outside of education, I try to stay involved in the literary community. This past year, I was a judge for the Christie Harris Illustrated Literature BC Book Prize. It was a tremendous opportunity to read a variety of works, and it was a thrill to attend the gala with so many literary icons from our province in attendance. I love to attend events through the Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable and author talks organized by Kidsbooks. Through my children, I am a regularly user of the Vancouver Public Libraries and am always inspired by the various events and offerings they have, including The Human Library, The Indigenous Storyteller in Residence, and their historical photos collection.

I also think a large piece of expanding my professional learning is to start investing energy into topics that I am not as interested in. As a lifelong learner with a deep appreciation for different ways of knowing, I am interested in a lot of people, places, and stories, but there are certainly gaps and areas where I have a difficult time expanding my knowledge. One simple example is my lack of interest in the fantasy genre. Although I read A LOT of children’s literature, inclusive of picture books, graphic novels, middle grades and YA, I do gravitate towards realistic and historical fiction. I rely on students to share their current fantasy favourites when making recommendations to other students. I have never finished a single Harry Potter novel. To me, this is a large bias which I have never confronted. The more I can learn about things that I am not intrinsically motivated to learn, the more I can empathize with my students who are often in a similar situation. And empathy can only make someone a better person and teacher.

Works Cited:

Richardson, W. (2012). Why School?: How Education Must Change When Learning and Information Are Everywhere. TED Conferences Publishing. [EBOOK]

Mo’ money, mo’ readers

Confession: I work at an independent school with a well-funded library.

I often approach conversation with other librarians with caution because of this little secret. I have always felt my challenges with student reading are vastly different than those who work in a library with a very small budget. From my experience, it is a correct assumption people make that a generous library collection budget makes a librarian’s job of inspiring a culture of reading much easier. However, some challenges with reluctant readers are universal and there are aspects of our school reading program that are in opposition to Pamela Paul’s (2019) opinion that one should not reward children for reading nor use reading as a punishment.

Let’s start with the successes.

I would say one pivotal aspect of promoting reading culture at our school is how I model my own reading. I have a sign in the library that indicates what I am currently reading, and then I take these titles and move them to a big poster that shows students “Books I’ve Read.” I have been at my school for a number of years and know many of the students well, so I frequently have conversations with students about what they’re currently into. I am usually able to demonstrate expertise with book recommendations because I can identify student personality types and books those personality types tend to enjoy. This helps to build trust in my school community. Finally, I also include all staff members when promoting our school as a reading community. One of my bulletins is inspired by this blog post and the students always enjoy seeing and guessing what other teachers and administrative staff are reading.

We are fortunate to be able to bring in 3-5 authors each year, which always generates student interest in reading. I would also like to take advantage of organizations like Stories from Space to demonstrate how reading can happen anywhere with anyone.

T2 Education (2016)

I make a point to read to all students from Grades K-7. For intermediate students, I do a combination of reading excerpts from books that they may not pick up to read on their own and reading from picture books which have rich content, higher level vocabulary or subtle humour that would only be understood by older students or adults. This “sales pitch” is effective most of the time and circulation of titles improves when I read them aloud.

I am also constantly reworking the organization of the library so that books are more easily seen and accessed. This is especially important in fostering a reading culture of non-fiction materials. After reading a School Library Journal article about going Dewey-less, I consulted with students on the subject categories that they are most interested in having clearly marked. I have ordered these shelf markers to support Kaplan, Doloff, Giffard and Still-Schiff’s (2012) belief that non-fiction circulation will improve if the organization system is child-centred, browsable, flexible, and allowed students to be as independent as possible.

If you have seen my intro video that I posted, this year I have a new News Hot Spot section where I clip articles from world events, pin them on a map, and then display non-fiction and fiction reading that pairs well with current events. I frequently change my book display (sometimes weekly) to align with significant events. So far this year, I have highlighted Terry Fox, Orange Shirt Day, Media Literacy Week, and next week I will display books about Canadian government and elections.

Also new this year is the school library Instagram account that I have started. I have already seen increased engagement in sharing our reading culture because students are looking forward to having their book review posted. Grade 6 and 7 students are also designing book trailers, which I will use on the account as well.

Finally, we also have funds to invest in Playaway audiobooks, Sora, and Overdrive to assist students with IEP’s to participate in our reading culture as well. I cannot underscore enough what a difference it makes to be able to build the reading culture that I envision. In spite of this, there are inevitably students who do not enjoy reading or who struggle with reading. I often think of the quote by Emilie Buchwald that “Readers are made on the laps of their parents.” I often communicate to parents to read to and to read with their children for this reason, and also to promote the culture of reading beyond school walls.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is CHildren-are-made-readers.jpg
Rediscovered Families (2018)

Kevin Hennah (2018) suggested that forward-thinking libraries should move entirely to self-checkout stations because they would “free up the librarian to promote the library and allow students to take out books that they might otherwise be embarrassed to borrow.” I have not yet fully committed to this model because I work with so many young students; however, I could perhaps implement this for Grades 5-7 students.

The biggest possible hindrance to our school’s reading culture is the use of the Accelerated Reader program. I approached it cautiously when I first started working at the school teaching Grade 3 – the year of implementation for AR. Over the years, I could see its merits and that it truly made a difference in motivating certain readers. However, there was perhaps too much emphasis on the program and there were serious limitations, such as the fact that many great Canadian, British and Australian books were excluded from the program and therefore, students were not motivated to read these titles. Our school has since been communicating how AR is merely one tool for reading assessment, and that it can help students to set goals and to have reading conversations with parents and teachers, but that our main objective is for students to read a variety and to love reading. This is my first year back from a two-year leave and the first time I have been encouraged to promote this message in relation to AR, so we shall see if it resonates or whether the competitive nature or AR continues to be a challenge.

Aside from AR, our school hosts an annual Read-A-Thon for upper intermediate students. This event is to fundraise for a global charity, while also promoting reading as a fun event. There are prize draws, treats, and dinner, along with measured chunks of reading time. In terms of providing incentives for reading, this event certainly is it and I am mindful of Pamela Paul’s (2019) perspective that “Reading is itself a privilege, an advantage and a pleasure. Let’s treat it that way” (para. 10). She also contends that “By emphasizing how terribly important reading is, well-intentioned parents [and teachers] risk turning it into something obligatory, depleting the activity of its inherent delight and joy” (para. 10). Her best advice, however, is certainly the most fun. She suggests if adults would really like children to engage in reading, then to make them curious about a book by telling them they aren’t ready for it. I have always been protective about censoring and screening mature reads for students because of parent backlash, but perhaps this intrigue and mystery is the best gateway to reading afterall.

Works Cited:

Beaty, A., Roberts, D., & Aunon-Chancellor, S. (2019, September 24). Ada Twist, Scientist. Retrieved October 6, 2019, from https://storytimefromspace.com/ada-twist-scientist/.

Harding, S. (2017, August 15). How To Get Your Child Reading in 15 Minutes a Day. Retrieved October 6, 2019, from https://rediscoveredfamilies.com/get-your-child-reading/.

Hennah, K. (2018, May). Vision 2020. Vision 2020. West Vancouver.

Kaplan, T. B., Dolloff, A. K., Giffard, S., & Still-Schiff, J. (2012). Are Dewey’s Days Numbered?: Libraries Nationwide Are Ditching the Old Classification System. School Library Journal. Retrieved from https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=are-deweys-days-numbered-libraries-across-the-country-are-giving-the-old-classification-system-the-heave-ho-heres-one-schools-story

Paul, Pamela. “No, Your Kid Shouldn’t Get a Gold Star for Reading.” The New York Times, 30 Aug. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/30/sunday-review/children-reading.html?fbclid=IwAR3jd6suofvSXMqMxyTQrEw7b_eUYXXuWWlMtWZ9sY1Y08mlVcNtUpsuzRA.

Week 4: Research Synopsis

Although I had completed a similar type of research synopsis in last week’s post, it was incredibly liberating to receive feedback that I should search for multimedia sources rather than for articles in the UBC library catalog. Like many students my age, I was conditioned to use peer reviewed articles in academic research. The reality, however, is that I rarely employ this type of research in my everyday research for teaching. It was rather amusing that I was unknowingly awaiting permission to use videos and social media for research in a course on Media and Technology. In addition to the traditional published text resources I found last week, this is a collection of research that helped to orient my understanding of digital citizenship.

Rethinking Digital Citizenship

(ISTE, 2018)

I really enjoyed the video on rethinking digital citizenship by ISTE. The presenter, Richard Culatta, highlighted the precise challenges with teaching digital citizenship: an unclear definition of what it means and a lack of explicit instruction on authentic digital engagement. Culatta was inspiring and practical, and shared many nuggets that I will take away with me as I develop my school’s K-7 scope and sequence on Digital Citizenship.

In Culatta’s concise definition of digital citizenship, he extracts the core value of citizenship and places it in a digital context. For him, it was using technology to: make your community better; respectfully engage with people who have different beliefs than yours; be able to shape and change public policy; and be able to recognize the validity of online sources and information. Ultimately, these are ways to make student voices heard and to teach students to use technology for the greater good.

I also appreciated how Culatta framed digital citizenship as “not a list of ‘Don’ts’, but a list of ‘Do’s'” (2011). It helped me to recognize that teachers might be more occupied policing students’ usage of technology rather than helping students connect the dots between technology and social, thinking, and research skills. As Culatta points out, “Learning to be a good digital citizen is not what happens if you don’t actively teach it.” This advice mirrored what we learned from Will Richardson about doing real work for real audiences.

Culatta directs individuals to more resources from ISTE, which gave me the infographic below. It appropriately frames digital citizenship as “citizenship in a digital age,” which is a much clearer definition of digital citizenship than the term itself. I am also looking forward to exploring Digital Citizenship in Action by Kristen Mattson for further ideas on how to engage students in authentic digital contexts. I always try to bring hands on, real world applications of learning into the classroom and I simply have not been doing this enough in the digital realm.

ISTE (2017)

Turning Digital Natives to Digital Citizens

T.E.D. Talks (2017)

ISTE’s inspiring video led me to search for more video presentations through T.E.D. It was important for me to hear a perspective from an individual outside of North America. Anne Mette Thorhauge highlights the incorrect assumption people make that digital natives know how to be digital citizens, using the example that today’s youth understand privacy on the internet, but have no concept of privacy on online platforms, internet providers, and servers. I was looking for a source that would challenge me and make me uncomfortable, and Thorhauge accomplishes this when discussing Facebook privacy accountability. As she assesses, “Using media is not the same as understanding the media, and understanding the media is [often] not even enough […because] some of the challenges posed by digital technology today cannot be met by media users being a little more careful. They need to met by digital citizens co-creating the future.” (2017).

The most powerful idea in Thorhauge’s TED talk was the idea of agency in digital citizenship. The power of the collective over the individual, staying informed of one’s rights, and using the principles of democracy to shape the future of the internet are all empowering concepts for digital natives AND digital immigrants.

Connected, but Alone?

A helpful counterpoint to the benefits of technology; supports my concerns for student wellbeing and true connection and relationship development
Turkle (2012)

Sherry Turkle shares the psychology perspective on digital citizenship that I was seeking, and she addresses what feels like the elephant in the room when it comes to technology use: it leads to disconnection. This fact is one that is perhaps commonly known but that many people, particularly youth, refuse to acknowledge because of how psychologically powerful those little devices in our pockets are. “They not only change what we do, but who we are” (2012), Turkle suggests. She challenges people to examine the pervasive use of technology in scenarios we would have found bizarre a few years ago, including during board meetings, when a group of friends are spending time together, and even funerals. Her points confirm that our society not only has a technology addiction, but there is “trouble in how we relate to each other, and to ourselves. It hinders our capacity for self-reflection” (2012).

What I have been the most curious about is how to circumnavigate this minefield of mental health triggers in a world of growing disconnection, and she responds to this pointedly. It is only through conversation in real time, where we experience a loss of control, where we do not edit and filter our responses, and we allow relationships to develop richly with all its messiness. Her other noteworthy point about reconnecting as humans in a technology-rich world is to “start seeing solitude as a good thing” (2012). The irony of being connected online at all times is that we have developed a loneliness. I feel like these two recommendations for more face-to-face conversation and teaching children to be alone are feasible and reasonable, though I feel the need to continue researching more in this area of mental health in the digital sphere.

The Virtual Community

This podcast features an interview with Howard Rheingold who provides insights into the landscape of online communication since its inception. When this mode of communication first originated, it was entirely text-based. Yet, Rheingold addresses the need for people to reach out to each other as human beings and, through text communication, groups of people were able to band together and unite on a cause. Although the use of images, videos and interactive platforms have evolved the present mode of online communication, the defining qualities of community remain the same – rooted in a shared cause or experience.

Based on the interview, it appears the concerns with online spaces and have also persisted over the past four decades. Fortunately, so have the counterpoints to these concerns – media literacy and digital citizenship are at the heart of effective online communication and it will continue to be an area of utmost importance in school curriculum.

Teaching Digital Citizenship All Year

I discovered this blog post by Erin Flanagan through Pinterest. It brought forward the idea that Digital Citizenship education is curriculum that is continually ongoing, evolving, and relevant. She urges teachers to get in touch with the technology students are using because “if your lessons and discussions about digital citizenship are not tailored to your group, [students] will tune you out and your very sound advice seems inauthentic” (2017). She also suggests that teachers are doing a disservice to students if they only present “vetted school-based site with everything filtered and locked down” (2017), as they are not taught to think for themselves about searching, advertisements and credibility. As the T-L at my school, I have certainly felt it was my responsibility to complete the vetting process for students and staff and to only present the best quality sites to them. While I will continue to do this to save everybody time, I also need to provide everyone find opportunities to learn this process for themselves.

Conclusion

These resources will be pivotal in building a Digital Citizenship Scope & Sequence that aligns well with the strong foundation of design thinking and global citizenship at our school. I was very satisfied with the scope of my research, as I feel it is a holistic perspective on Digital Citizenship. Prior to this research, I had held Common Sense Media’s resources in high regard; however, I have a deeper understanding of how Digital Citizenship education is to produce engaged and caring citizens – not just effective users of today’s technology.

Works Cited:

Flanagan, E. (2017, February 22). TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP ALL YEAR IN THE CLASSROOM. Retrieved September 28, 2019, from https://www.erintegration.com/2017/02/21/digital-citizenship-all-year/.

ISTE. (2018, October 11). Rethinking digital citizenship. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwKTYHBG5kk

ISTE. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.iste.org/explore/Digital-citizenship/Infographic:-Citizenship-in-the-digital-age

Modern Learners. (2019, September 9). #70 – Virtual Community with Howard Rheingold. Retrieved from https://modernlearners.com/70-rheingold/.

Talks, T. E. D. (2017, December 5). Let’s turn our digital natives into digital citizens | Anne Mette Thorhauge | TEDxCopenhagenSalon. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6cS9uR1NRA

Turkle, S. (2012, February). Connected, but alone? Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/sherry_turkle_alone_together?referrer=playlist-our_digital_lives

Week 3: Literature Research & Data Collection

In my previous post, I stated various issues related to technology education that were my primary concerns. It was helpful feedback to hear that my concerns were oriented around digital citizenship. Global citizenship has always been a high priority for me in education, and my interest in digital citizenship is a natural extension. As I searched for potential references, I was enthused by the number of resources available regarding digital citizenship.

It is apparent and logical that digital citizenship has been part of research studies across the globe. Historically, when I have researched other subject matters, there were certain pockets of the world that studied specific issues more intensely. Yet, I readily found articles about digital citizenship from East Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Australia, and North America. This certainly made sense, since the most powerful aspect of the digital realm is the ability to access information and data around the world at any time of the day.

As I located a few articles that centred the librarian’s role in digital citizenship literacy, I realized that an important aspect of my research will be for advocacy of my position at the school. Often, the perception of my role feels dated, as it involves language literacy over more modern concepts of literacy, as suggested by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) in Why School by Will Richardson. This strikes me as ironic since my school adheres to the International Baccalaureate curriculum framework, which includes Approaches to Learning (ATL) skills (thinking, communication, self-management, research and social), and also follows the new BC Ministry curriculum, which emphasizes similar Core Competencies that are essential to learning. My concerns with the socio-emotional learning (SEL) aspect of digital citizenship are right in line with the focus of the school. Additionally, we have a heavy technology focus in the school; it would be in vain to teach socio-emotional learning (SEL) in isolation without helping students make direct connections between the impact of technology on SEL and executive functioning skills. However, a clear digital citizenship and information literacy scope and sequence does not exist in my school, and my initial searches on technology in education and student mental health were not fruitful. Many articles I yielded described the use of technology in mental health education vs. the impact of technology on mental health.

The most useful article I located was a paper by Maria Ghosn-Chelala (2019). I appreciate her perspective as a researcher from Lebanon. She describes the complexities of digital citizenship through rights and responsibilities, civic and economic participation, and responsible behaviour. Ghosn-Chelala also addresses the influence of political, socioeconomic and educational settings on digital citizenship. Her article presents many examples of access, types of digital useage, digital etiquette that pertain to today’s student population.

Lee Watanabe Crockett’s article was of interest to me because I attended a conference where he was the keynote speaker. He confirms my belief that “the libraries of the future are more than just housing centers for books and media” (2018, p. 30). He also presents concise and concrete steps towards becoming effective educators of information literacy and global digital citizenship.

The comprehensive document created by Nesta (2012) helped to frame 21st century education through technology. I appreciated the multitude of examples they shared of technological tools that can enhance learning, as well as the range of their uses across different subject areas. I found the document credible because it addressed the modes and applications of learning (from experts, with others, through making, through exploring, through inquiry, through practicing, from assessment, in and across settings) that have always been a part of best teaching practices, but are more easily afforded through today’s technology. I am certain I will continually refer to this document for inspiration as well as evidence with regard to the benefits of digital learning and student agency in learning.

Finally, Donna Young’s (2014) perspective on digital citizenship serves as the counterpoint to Nesta’s student-led digital learning. She bluntly states that students “are great at navigating a new app or figuring out how to use the latest gadget, [but] kids are not experts when it comes to properly communicating and ethically handling everything that goes along with digital tools” (p. 9). With an understanding of child brain development, this makes complete sense. However, I do believe many teachers have trepidation when approaching new technology that students seem to navigate better than they do, thereby giving students more credit than they might deserve in regard to digital citizenship. Young believes in “[connecting] students to the global community with which they will be communicating” (p. 11) and seeking “meaningful, real-world, collaborative experiences with experts and classrooms all over the world” (p. 10). She shares many resources that she uses to provide students with these learning experiences, through deliberate, guided instruction. I will certainly be referring to this article as I meet with our school’s technology leader to compile and finalize our Information and Digital Citizenship Scope & Sequence (tomorrow!).

Works Cited:

Crockett, L. W. (2018). LIBRARIANS LEAD THE GROWTH: of Information Literacy and Global Digital Citizens. Knowledge Quest, 46(4), 28–33. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=128199629&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Ghosn-Chelala, M. (2019). Exploring sustainable learning and practice of digital citizenship: Education and place-based challenges. Education, Citizenship and Social Justice, 14(I), 40–56. doi: 10.1177/1746197918759155

Luckin, R., Bligh, B., Manches, A., Ainsworth, S., Crook, C., & Noss, R. (2012). Decoding Learning: The Proof, Promise and Potential of Digital Education. Decoding Learning: The Proof, Promise and Potential of Digital Education (pp. 1–89). London, UK: Nesta.

Preddy, L. (2016). The Critical Role of the School Librarian in Digital Citizenship Education. Knowledge Quest, 44(4), 4–5. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=113437742&site=ehost-live&scope=site

YOUNG, D. (2014). A 21st-CENTURY MODEL FOR TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP. Educational Horizons,92(3), 9-12. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/stable/42927228

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