A Must Read...and It's Free.

Another reason to love Doug Johnson: He wrote a wonderful little book that every librarian should read...and made it a free download.

I can best describe Machines are the easy part as the "Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" for the teacher/librarian.  These are  not detailed policies or how-to's for technology, but snippets of incredible and often-overlooked wisdom we would all do well to remember.  Basically, in an easy-to-read form, Doug encapsulates the philosophies that should drive both our technology use and our decision making.

I've been reading it this morning, and here is just one snippet that struck me as profound in its simplicity:

Change anything, and someone is not going to like it.  But some people will...the real key to getting people to accept a new way of doing things is the What's In It For Me factor.  Show people how the new policy, technology or plan is going to 1) make their jobs easier, 2) make them more efficient, 3) make them more effective.

If the change doesn't result in one of these things happening, you might want to question your motive for asking people to make the change.  To make YOUR life easier is not sufficient reason (p 25).

I have always been one of the "I enjoy theory, but give me something I can do in class tomorrow" types, and I try to show teachers how technology can make their lives/jobs easier...but I need to do a better job of that and this was a good reminder not to get carried away by my own tech-enthusiasm.

The book also gave me the title for my re-branded blog, which I hope will be up in the next week or two:  The Imperative Library   (which probably also gives a nod to Buffy Hamilton's The Unquiet Library/Librarian).  In these days of slashing libraries and jobs, how do we make sure we, and the libraries we run, are an imperative in the school?

Reading Doug's book is a good start for everyone.

Living on the Edge with Doug Johnson

I just finished Doug Johnson's new book, School Libraries Head for the Edge.  I must admit, I bought it a while ago, and it sat around for a few months.  I should have cracked it open sooner.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know Doug is a personal guru of mine.  Well, not mine personally, but.....oh, you know what I mean! I blogged about the thrill of meeting him at ISTE a couple years ago.

Anyway, I like his very down-to-earth  been there, done that, we're in it for the kids approach to libraries.  He's idealistic without being impractical, and he's willing to call out the profession when he needs to. I can respect that.

The book is a collection of his "Head for the Edge" columns for the Library Media Connection. And, as I prepare to start building a library program in Mongolia, it's really helping me think through what I'm happy about with my current program, and where I need to improve it.

He covers everything from values to technology, and is seriously re-thinking what it means to be a library media specialist in this age of increasing layoffs. As he says in the intro: "As education changes because of the information explosion, everyone's role in it will change, including yours and mine." The rest of the book explores how to make your library a meaningful, influential and integral part of the school.

This is a must-read, and ought to be on the reading list of every library school; in fact, I'm going to email a couple of my old professors at Pitt and suggest it.

Doug Johnson's Call to Arms

I have a confession to make. I spent the last year acting like the copyright police. Oh my intentions were good. As a teacher, I spent years grabbing whatever I needed, copyright-be-damned. Once in library school, where copyright laws and our need to enforce them were pounded into our head, I emerged with the fiery passion of the newly converted.

But it was an uneasy fit, and I was never really comfortable telling teachers what they could and couldn't do. Moreover, as I taught my new film studies class, with students eager to create video mash-ups, I struggled between my desire to encourage their creativity and my role as policeman.

Yesterday, Doug Johnson set me free.

I've read his copyright views before, but he gave an eloquent and convincing presentation yesterday attacking one of library's "sacred cows," copyright enforcement. In his words, "Our job is to counsel, not enforce laws."

I have slowly been coming to this conclusion myself, to a belief that we must push the boundaries of fair use, not cower timidly within the safety of its borders. (I'm really mixing my metaphors here, aren't I?) As Johnson stated, we must focus not on what's forbidden, but on what's permitted, and always with the needs of our students and faculty foremost. After all, the school pays my salary, not Disney.

So I think I've finally hit a comfortable middle of the road position. I no longer practice my copyright version of eminent domain, grabbing whatever I think I need, but I'm not the copyright Gestapo, either.

Doug's simple rule of thumb? If it's transformative, if it uses the work for purposes other than those originally intended, it's fair use.

Sounds good to me.

The Doug Johnson Desktop Challenge

Doug Johnson, on his Blue Skunk Blog, posted the following challenge: As long as you are putting up a picture of your home office, share a screen shot of your computer's desk top too! If you dare.

He claims it's a snapshot of the user's brain... I'm in trouble!

Though, in my own defense, I've been working on a big video project. (hey, any excuse....)

Uploaded with Skitch!

Engaging Students in Real Learning

As the semester winds down, I've been thinking a lot about how much I've learned doing this independent study. I recognize the difference in how I think about this "class," vs. the other three "have-to's" I'm taking. They've been interesting, but haven't generated the same kind of passion and intensity and excitement. I willingly spend HOURS reading and researching Web 2.0, and only grudgingly skim the readings for, as an example, my organizing information class. My only guidance has been the initial planner I set up for myself and the plethora of blogs and books I found. Gurus like David Warlick, Will Richardson, Doug Johnson, Joyce Valenza and Vicki Davis act as signposts on the journey, wisely suggesting directions I might like to explore; immersing myself in the ed tech network until I all but live, eat and breathe the stuff has profoundly affected my understanding of technology and its use . I don't know if I would be so melodramatic as to say it changed my life, but it certainly changed how I think about my teaching and, more importantly, my own learning.

As I start making plans for using this information next year, I realize this is what student-centered learning is all about: guiding students to discover and explore their bliss, as Joseph Campbell would put it. While I do have an obligation to teach some content (!), I also want to recreate this experience for my students, to help them find the passion to become motivated self-teachers and learners. Obviously, giving assignments on the use of symbolism in The Joy Luck Club isn't going to do that.

So I'm thinking that, in addition to the usual kinds of assignments--which will now be A LOT more collaborative and student led, I want to give them the chance to research, explore and blog about one topic per semester that's of interest to them. They'll still need to incorporate the writing, technical and analytical skills needed for class, but that should be inherent in the topic, especially as, (Inshallah!) they work deeper into the topic and become more engaged.

I have a paper to write for Friday, then I'm going to sit down and plan out the general overview of how such a project will look. I'll blog it when I'm finished.

Digital Divide 2.0

I've been thinking a lot about the new digital divide recently, and how to bridge that gap. I blogged awhile back about Joyce Valenza's new manifesto, and just read Doug Johnson's latest post on the subject, both of which discuss the newest incarnation of digital inequity. While there are still disparities in access to technology, "efforts like eRate in the US and MIT’s laptop initiative in various parts of the world have gone a long way toward getting the Internet into people’s lives," according to an article on the Digital Divide Network.

We've even recognized the "new" digital divide in the need for students to use technology effectively to access information. As my classmates interview for their first library job, most of them report that (aside from the ghastly "What can you coach?" question, which is a whole 'nother rant!), much of their interview related to their use of technology. Enlightened administrators understand that access to technology is meaningless without the ability to use it not as a stand-alone tool, but within the context of real, relevant and worthwhile projects.

It worries me, however, that while we discuss these issues, we really don't seem to be doing much about them. And this is where I found the DDN article especially interesting, for in it the author defines two additional divides: policy and motivation. We all know there are dangers out there in the virtual world. Whatever you think about filtering in schools, it does serve some purpose in protecting students from the seamier side of the web. Unfortunately, in their eagerness to avoid parental confrontations, many district have gone overboard by blocking access to many Web 2.0 technologies, such as blogs, wikis, Flickr, YouTube and, most infamously, MySpace.

Yet the Advisory Panel to the Congressional Internet Caucus recently held a forum on Online Youth Victimization that debunked many commonly held beliefs regarding students' online presence and stranger danger. Basically, research shows most kids are pretty smart about online behavior. In Totally Wired, Anastasia Goodstein reports that only 150 of the 800,000 kids reported missing each year are taken by strangers. This isn't to say we don't need to teach students to be careful, but to suggest that completely banning the technologies is an over-reaction.

These tools are only going to grow increasingly ubiquitous, with modifications for use in business and education. By banning their use in schools, districts limit their students' ability to collaborate, develop analytical skills, and learn to use these tools in meaningful ways rather than as an extension of their social calendar. Students unfamiliar with their intelligent use will suffer very real disadvantages as they enter the college and job markets.

While I find that worrisome, the lack of motivation to incorporate the technologies into daily practice bothers me even more. I'm in a top-ranked library school, yet the one technology course students are required to take starts with "this is a mouse." The students' final project does include creating a basic web page, but there is almost no discussion/use of the read/write web. Nor are these tools integrated into the classes themselves. We spend a lot of time creating posters, class discussions through BlackBoard, and (very deadly) Power Point presentations, yet little on anything else. Our use of these technologies just transfers paper and pencil onto the internet.

More significantly, when I tried to get my group to collaborate through Google Docs and a wiki, I met with considerable passive resistance. (Basically, my groups ignored the opportunity and just posted individual responses, which another group member later combined by hand.) This disappointed me no end, but was understandable, I suppose, as my classmates were unfamiliar with the process, and didn't want to add that learning curve to the already extensive project workload. However, if we don't learn these skills in college, of all places, will there be time/opportunity on the job, when we're multi-tasked into near-exhaustion?

The bigger problem is that we, this graduating class of cutting-edge librarians, are the ones schools trust to train faculty and students, yet we're not using the tools on a daily basis ourselves. How are we supposed to encourage others to do so? In order to be technology leaders, we must be technology users. How can we teach faculty to integrate blogging and wikis, give them ideas for their use, if we've never used them ourselves? Where's the credibility? To stand in front of a group and say, "Well, Will Richardson's book says they're very effective," lacks motivational oomph. And if teachers won't use the technology, students won't be able to.

As educators we have, if not a moral imperative, at least an educational imperative to move into the pedagogical 21st century. We owe it to our students. We owe it to ourselves.

Research That Rocks

Doug Johnson absolutely nailed it in his latest blog on research projects. It really is a must-read for anyone at all interested in real assessment. Here's why.

A few years ago, after 18 years of teaching English, I was growing bored with the usual persuasive essays, so decided in one of those "fools rush in" kind of moments that I'd have my 10th grade class do a video documentary on a current problem in Cairo (where I was teaching at the time.) I figured it would take, oh, 3-4 weeks, tops. I knew absolutely nothing about filming, or editing software, but when did I ever let mere ignorance stop me? Three months later, the students turned in their final documentaries, most of which were awful (though not all. Not that I can take any credit for that!)

Yet I consider that unit one of the most successful of my career. I was almost as clueless as the students were, so when problems arose with camera or sound or editing, we'd hold brainstorming sessions and I'd often turn the spotlight over to one of the students. They had to work in teams and collaborate and compromise. They researched. They interviewed. They wrote. And then, poor kids, I turned them loose on the filming/editing and said "You have six weeks." I don't know what I was thinking. Live and learn.

Well, after we sat in agony (or laughter) through all of the documentaries, and I was wondering if I'd just wasted twelve weeks of valuable class time, I had the students write an evaluation with suggestions for improving the project next time. I told them I wanted honest comments, thoughtful comments. And they complied. Those evaluations were their real assessment; I was floored by the students' insight into the process, their own strategies, and where my management helped/hindered. They moved beyond mere iteration of content to a profound understanding of what worked, what didn't work, and how they would improve the experience.

That summer I took a class on making videos, which gave my next class a far better experience; they produced good--occasionally astounding--documentaries, and certainly learned a great deal. Moreover, their videos are being used for real audieces: the Sudanese refugee video helps recruit volunteer workers, the animal abuse documentary educates local Cairo children. And yet I sometimes think the earlier class learned more because I was less in control. I also worry that, now that I'm back in the States and tied to NCLB, there will be less and less time for these sorts of authentic projects. For as Doug points out, they are not about correct answers, covering the curriculum, or multiple-choice tests. Few teachers will take the risk.

There are also few teachers willing to take the time. Last year, the documentaries took six months to complete. Obviously, we worked on other tasks; nevertheless, that's a lot of time in an already crowded curriculum. I also took quite a bit of flack from others in my department who said, "These kids can't even write essays, and you're having them do films??" To his credit, the teacher who made that remark came up to me after seeing the Sudanese refugee documentary and ruefully admitted, "OK, I get it now."

Thus, next year, I'll not only do the documentaries again, I'm giving a workshop for other staff in digital storytelling. I'm plugged in to the AFI, which makes wonderful tools available free to teachers, George Lucas's Edutopia website, and Library of Congress' link to primary source materials that can be used in student videos. And I plan to ask Doug if I can open my presentation with his posting. I can't imagine a better way to start!