Media matters, Vol. 9, Issue 4 (Nov. 2010)

November 2010

Volume 9 Number 4

Media Matters
A newsletter for people who care about Library Media Programs
Manifesto for 21st Century School Librarians
(continued from last month)
Joyce Kasman Valenza Reprinted with permission Attribution: Non Commercial
VOYA October 2010
Communication and publishing and storytelling
You know that communication is the end-product of research and you teach learners how to communicate and participate creatively and engagingly. You consider new interactive and engaging communication tools for student projects.
Include and collaborate with your learners. You let them in. You fill your physical and virtual space with student work, student contributions--their video productions, their original music, their art.
Know and celebrate that students can now publish their written work digitally. (See these pathfinders: Digital Publishing, Digital Storytelling)
Collection Development
You expand your notion of collection.
You no longer strive for the standard catalog, long-tail, just-in-case approach. In tight times, with shared catalogs and easy online purchasing, a just-in-time approach is far more effective. You build your own collection collaboratively, with an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the available collections around you.
Collection should include: ebooks, audiobooks, open source software, streaming media, flash drives, digital video cameras, laptops, tripods, RSS feeds, and much more! And we should seek effective, federated approaches to ensure these diverse formats and platforms are equally and seamlessly accessible.
You involve your community in collection building using interactive polls and web-based suggestion forms.
You understand that library is not just a place to get stuff, it is a place to make stuff, collaborate on and share stuff. Not a grocery store, but a kitchen!
Your collectionon- and offlineincludes student work. You use digital publishing tools to help students share and celebrate their written and artistic work.
Continued on page 3
Don't go around saying the world owes you a living; the world owes you nothing; it was here first. ~ Mark Twain

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In memory of Jo Albert-Hill
Jo Albert-Hill died unexpectedly Tuesday, October 19. Jo was the media specialist in McDuffie County at the Thomson-McDuffie Middle School and also worked as the evening librarian at the Thomson campus of Augusta Technical College.
Her kindness, generosity and wisdom will be missed by all who knew her.
Our sympathy to Jo's family and friends.

Inside this issue:

Manifesto

1

Our sympathy

2

Read for the

8

Record Day

42nd Annual

9

Conference on

Children's Lit

Book Club ideas 10

Academic All

10

Stars

Glynn Academy 11 Open House

Dewar

12

Elementary Open

House

Book Cart Drill 13 Team

GALILEO

14

Training Sessions

Calendar

15

In memory of Suzette Rainer
Suzette Rainer died September 28, 2010. Suzette was the Library Media Specialist at Henry County High School and taught in Henry County for 27 years.
Michael Surma , Henry County Schools Superintendent, said that Rainer will be remembered by educators and students. She was a wonderful employee, who served our students to ensure their success, Surma said.
Suzette was a member of McDonough Presbyterian Church, where she formerly served as a deacon.
Our sympathy to Suzette's family and friends.

Continued from page 1

Facilities, your physical space
You know your physical space is about books and way more than books. Your space is a libratory. You welcome, and create space for, media production--podcasting, video production, storytellingproducing and presenting.

You welcome and host telecommunications events and group gathering for planning and research and social networking.

You cope with ubiquity. No, you learn to love it. Ubiquity changes everything. In one-to-one schools, students may visit the library less frequently. In such environments, in all modern, truly relevant environments, library must also be ubiquitous. Library MUST be everywhere. Librarians must teach everywhere, in and outside of the library.

You realize you will often have to partner and teach in classroom teachers' classrooms. One-to-one classrooms change your teaching logistics. You teach virtually. You are available across the school via email and chat.

You know that laptops can actually walk back to the library for its space and additional resources in all formats.

Access , Equity, Advocacy
You are concerned about a new digital divide: those who can effectively find quality information in all media formats, and those who cannot.

You are concerned about a new digital divide: those who have access to the new tools for creation and publishing and those who do not.

You consider just-in-time, just-for-me learning as your responsibility and are proud that you own real estate your students' desktops and mobile devices 24/7.

You grapple with issues of equity. You provide open source alternatives to students and teachers who need them. You lend flash sticks and laptops and cameras and . . . You ensure your students can easily get to the stuff they most need by using kid-friendly terms and by creating pathfinders.

You ensure that all students have access to readings appropriate for their differentiated needs and offer books in a variety of formats.

You know that one-to-one classrooms will change your teaching logistics. You realize you will often have to partner and teach in classroom teachers' classrooms. You will teach virtually. You will be available across and outside the school via email and chat.

You don't stop at no. You fight for the rights of students to have and use the tools they need. This is an equity issue. Access to the new tools is an intellectual freedom issue.

Audience and collaboration
You recognize that the work your students create has audience and that they may share newly constructed knowledge globally on powerful networks,. You help them see that they have the potential to make social, cultural, and political impact.

You recognize that learners may share their ideas and participate in dialogs beyond the walls of the library or classroom.

You exploit the cloud as a strategy for student collaboration, sharing and publishing.

You share with students their responsibilities for participating in social networks.

Continued on next page

You see teleconferencing tools like Skype as ways to open your library to authors, experts, book discussion, debates, and more. Consider starting by examining Skype an Author Network.
You use new tools for collaboration. Your students create together, They synthesize information, enhance their writing through peer review and negotiate content in blogs and wikis and using tools like GoogleDocs, Flickr, Voicethread, Animoto and a variety of other writing or mind mapping and storytelling tools.
You help students create their own networks for learning and extracurricular activities.
Copyright, Copyleft and Information Ethics
You teach students to care about their own digital footprintsand monitor them using people search tools.
You encourage students to develop academicNOT invisibledigital footprints.
You teach students about norms for appropriate behavior in wikis and blogs.
You model respect for intellectual property in a world of shift and change. You encourage and guide documentation for media in all formats.
You lead students to Web-based citation generators and note-taking tools to guide them in these efforts.
You recognize and lead students and teachers to the growing number of copyright-friendly or copyleft portals.
You understand Creative Commons licensing and you are spreading its gospel.
You encourage learners to apply Creative Commons licenses to their own creations.
You are revising and expanding your notion of Fair Use in line with the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media LiteracyEducation .
You say yes a lot more. You know that in their creative remixes and mash-ups, students may use the copyrighted works of others in their own work without asking permission under certain conditions. You are discussing transformativeness with students and faculty. (See The Cost of Copyright Confusion for Media Literacy and Fair use and transformativeness: It may shake your world)
You use a tool for reasoning whether a proposed use is Fair Use. (Tool for reasoning Fair Use.pdf)
You ask students to ask these two questions when they are using the copyrighted work of others in their own media:
1. Did the unlicensed use transform the material taken from the copyrighted work by using it for a different purpose than that of the original, or did it just repeat the work for the same intent and value as the original?
2. Was the material taken appropriate in kind and amount, considering the nature of the copyrighted work and of the use?
(From the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education)
New Technology Tools
You consider iPods and iPhones and iPads learning tools and storage devices and reference sources. You know that when you interrupt a student she might be in the middle of a chapter, recording a podcast, transferring data, taking audio notes. You establish classroom or library academic guidelines and norms for their use during the school day.
You know this is only the beginning of social networking. Students will get to their Facebook accounts through proxy servers and their mobile devices despite any efforts to block them. You plan educationally meaningful ways to incorporate student excitement (and your own) for social networking. You establish classroom
Continued on next page

or library academic guidelines and norms for their use during the school day.
You consider your role as info-technology scout. You look to make learning sense of the authentic new information and communication tools used in business and academics. You figure out how to use them thoughtfully and you help classroom teachers use them with their classes.
Professional Development and Professionalism
You seek professional development that will help you grow even if it is not offered by your school district. Even if you don't get PD credit. You can't clock these hours.
You build your own personal/professional learning network using social networking tools
You guide your teacher colleagues in setting up their own professional learning networks.
You read both edtech journals and edtech blogs, not just the print literature of our own profession.
You follow selected educators, experts, authors, etc. with microblogging apps like Twitter
You use Twitter to mine realtime chat about your professional interests. You use hashtags like #tlchat and #edchat
You learn by visiting the webcast archives of conferences you cannot attend. (For instance, ISTE)
You share your new knowledge with others using social bookmarking tools like Delicious and Diigo.
You set up feed readers to push the blog of experts and educators you respect to you on a regular basis.
You join a Ning or other social network for instance:
Classroom20NingTeacherLibrarianNing
English Companion
NCTE Conference Ning
ISTE Ning
Future of Education
You are contributing to the development of a new brand for our profession. When your students move on to the next library, they are going to expect visionary service and instruction and caring, helpful relationships.
Teaching and Learning and Reference
You are figuring out how to be present for your learners and teachers 24/7, at the point of the information, research, or communication need. Ubiquity changes everything. With computers in every classroom and every home, heck with computers in every pocket, how are you going to share your wisdom and collaborate?
You understand that learning can (and should) be playful.
You understand that learning should be authentic.
You understand that learning can be multi-modal, media-rich, customized to the needs of individual learners.
You know the potential new technologies offer for interactionlearners as both information consumers and producers. You understand that in this world learners have the power to create and share knowledge.
Continued on next page

You are concerned that, when it matters, your students move beyond information satisficing. They make solid information decisions.

You are concerned that students learn to evaluate, to triangulate information in all media formats. We must guide them in an increasingly complex world, to make information decisions, to evaluate all their information choices, including books, blogs, wikis, streamed media, whatever comes next.

You are concerned and excited about what you can do that Google or Wikipedia cannot. What customized services and instruction will you offer that will not be outsourced to Bangalore?

You continually share new understandings of searching, and evaluation, and analysis and synthesis, and digital citizenship, and communication, integrating and modeling our new standards, dispositions and common beliefs.

You understand that exploration and freedom are key to engaging students in a virtual environment to promote independent learning.

You know the potential new technologies offer for interactionlearners as both information consumers and creative information producers.

You ensure that the library provides an independent learning environment that connects students and teachers in a social, digital, community.

Into the Future (acknowledging the best of the past)
You unpack the good stuff you carried from your 20th century trunk. Rigor, and inquiry, and high expectations, and information and media fluency matter no matter what the medium. So do excitement, engagement, and enthusiasm.

You lead. And you look ahead for what is coming down the road. You continually scan the landscape. As the information and communication landscapes continue to shift, do you know where you are going? You plan for change. Not for yourself, not just for the library, but for the building, for your learners.

You see the big picture and let others see you seeing it. It's about learning and teaching. It's about engagement. If you are seen only as the one who closes up for inventory, as the book chaser, and NOT as the CIO, the inventor, the creative force, you won't be seen as a big picture person.

You continue to retool and learn.

You represent our brand (who the teacher-librarian is) as a 21st century information professional. What does the information professional look like today? Ten years from today? If you do not develop strong vision, your vision will be usurped by the visions of others. You will not be able to lead from the center.

You enjoy what you do and let others know it. It's always better when you do what you love. (If you don't love this new library world, find something else to do.)

You continue to consider and revise your vision and feed it with imagination. Think outside the box. Heck, there is no box!

This modest "manifesto" describes my idea what today's practice ought to look like. In a blog post, a little while back I pondered the flip side of that young librarian's question.

What modern practice looks like also has a lot to do with what it doesn't look like.

Here's a list of things I believe teacher librarians should unlearn:

1. That the little things really matter to those we serve and teach. (For instance, whether or not we decide to shelve Mc and Mac together.)

2. That you should annually close a library for inventory.

Continued on next page

3. That Boolean logic is the best search strategy since sliced bread.
4. That Wikipedia is bad, or less-than-good, in almost every context.
5. That databases are the only online sources with value and credibility.
6. That having a web presence, nothat having a really good and really useful web presenceis optional.
7. That someone else is exclusively or ultimately responsible for learning relating to information and communication and search technologies.
8. That the price initially quoted is the price you have to pay.
9. That vendors' have the final say.
10. That issues relating to Fair Use are generally going to be answered with the word no.
11. That no really means no or will continue to mean no when it comes to issues relating to access to the information and communication tools of today and intellectual freedom.
12. That intellectual freedom is a phrase connected to books alone.
13. That libraries should be quiet.
14. That libraries should be tidy.
15. That a library's effectiveness and impact should be measured by the number of books it circulates.
16. That your stakeholders automatically will know what you contribute to your school or your community's culture.
17. That a library is merely a place to get stuff.
18. That your collection should be just-in-case rather than just-in-time.
19. That someone else is responsible for your professional development.
20. That ubiquity won't change your practice profoundly.
21. That your library is bounded by its walls.
22. That your library is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
23. That there is a box. (to think outside) Joyce Kasman Valenza loves her work as the librarian at Springfield Township High School (PA).For ten years, she was the techlife@school columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer. Joyce is the author of Power Tools, Power Research Tools and Power Tools Recharged for ALA Editions. (PowerTools Remixed is currently in progress.) She currently blogs for School Library Journal. Her NeverendingSearch Blog (now on the SLJ Web site) won an Edublogs Award for 2005, was nominated in 2008, and won again in 2009. She was awarded the AASL/ Highsmith research grant in 2005. Her Virtual Library won the IASL School Library Web Page of the Year Award for 2001. She has won her state's PSLA Outstanding Program (2005) and Outstanding Contributor (2009) Awards. Joyce is active in ALA, AASL, YALSA, and ISTE and contributes to Classroom Connect, VOYA, Technology and Learning, and School Library Journal. Joyce speaks nationally and internationally about issues relating to libraries and thoughtful use of educational technology. She earned her doctoral degree in Information Science from the University of North Texas in August, 2007.

Page 8

If you think you're leading and no one is following you, then you're only taking a walk. ~ Afghan proverb

Page 8

Jennifer Harkleroad of Thomas Crossroads Elementary in Sharpsburg shared this picture of kindergarteners on Read for the Record Day. The firemen read The Snowy Day to the children but also received a tour of the fire engine. What a treat!
How did you celebrate Read for the Record Day? Share your story.
Janie Kossak at Dunwoody Elementary School recently forwarded an email from DOEmedia to her faculty and staff. Her spell check didn't like the spelling of DOEmedia and suggested changing the word to dementia . This made me laugh!
Whoever gossips to you will gossip about you. ~ Spanish proverb

Page 9
Children need all school workers. A person is not just a janitor, not just a custodian. Janitors can see children when teachers don't see them, and bus drivers recognize that children who are disruptive on the bus are likely to be disorderly in the classroom. They're partners in education. We need each other to make this work. ~ Jesse Jackson

Page 10
Great Ideas! Got one? Share like Ashley did.
For 2010-11 school year I sponsored my 2nd book club and wanted to share with you because it has become very popular. More students are reading than ever.
Bobcat Book Club - has 35 members - we select books and everyone reads the same book and we discuss the book much like a regular book club would do.
CATS Club - (Career Agriculture Technology Students) In this Book Club students are allowed to read any book they like as long as it is above 5.0 Reading Level. To prove that the student has read the book - we offer several checks. They may take an AR test, write a book analysis, give an oral presentation of the book, illustrate a scene in the book or a character in the novel. They are given points for the books they read and are given incentives for points accrued.
For TEEN READ WEEK - we are having a BOOK SWAP - we are reading as many of the 26 books on the 2010 Peach Book Award for Teen Readers List. The students are swapping points. The winner is the student who has read the most on the list. On October 15th we are voting on their favorite one. We are also observing Literacy Day in Early County on Oct 14th - our students are reading at the elementary school and we are also having a book cover design contest.
Ashley Rhodes Collier Media Specialist at Early County High School shared these ideas.
Have a good idea? Please share.

Academic All Stars Deadline November 11th
Georgia Public Broadcasting has reopened the nomination opportunity for high school students only. The nominated student must have lettered in a high school sport, have a 3.7 GPS a minimum of 1 AP course, a SAT combined score of 1880 or better or an ACT of 28 or better.
Nominate 1 male and 1 female Senior fulfilling the listed criteria by 5:00 PM, Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010.
Information was sent via the GaDOE Library Media List Service on October 12th.

My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was much less competition. ~ Indira Gandhi

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Page 12
Please join us for Dewar Elementary School's
Media Open House as we celebrate winning the
2010 Georgia Exceptional Elementary Media
Program Award Thursday, November 18th
4:30-6:30 3539 Mount Zion Church Road
Valdosta, Georgia 32605
Rule #1: Use your good judgment in all situations. There will be no additional rules. ~ Nordstrom's Employee Handbook

Remember: The value of time. The success of perseverance. The pleasure of working. The dignity of simplicity. The worth of character. The power of kindness. The influence of example. The obligation of duty. The wisdom of economy. The virtue of patience. The improvement of talent. The joy of originating. ~
Marshall Field

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Are you a member of the GaDOE List Service? If you would like to join send a BLANK email to:
join-doemedia@list.doe.k12.ga.us
You will receive a confirmation to which you will need to respond. You can unsubscribe at any time.
To join the GaMedia List Service go to:
http://www.georgiamedia.net/ mailman/listinfo/members
Cobb County's very own Book Cart Drill Team performed at COMO - came in second - but they have a lot of fun promoting the Library Media program. The audience cheered their footwork, creativity, and artistic ability.
Under the leadership of Robin Wofford the "performers" include Susan Lamothe, Janell McClure, Cara Harpin, Beth Finnegan, Kari Zimmerman, Jessica Schultz-Suggs and Nora Whisenant.

One of the greatest gift adults can give----to their offspring and to their society----is to read to children.~ Carl Sagan

We will lead the nation in improving student achievement.
1754 Twin Towers East 205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive Atlanta, Georgia 30334
Phone: 404-657-9800 Fax: 404-656-5744 E-mail: jserrite@doe.k12.ga.us

Brad Bryant, State Superintendent of Schools

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November GALILEO training sessions have topics of interest to all communities, including the newly added Britannica webinars that feature sessions for elementary, middle and high, public library, and academic communities. Except for the recently added Campus Research on-site session, the trainings are all online.
For K-12: Webinars on Britannica and EBSCO resources, in addition to the "Where I'm from in GALILEO" lesson plan webinar
For public libraries: Britannica, genealogy, and a small business webinar to help the entrepreneurs in your library (also useful for academic libraries)
For academic libraries: Britannica, Campus Research, and LexisNexis webinars and an on-site Campus Research class
For everyone: Usage statistics, basic and advanced EBSCOhost, and a preview of the new ProQuest platform
Register at http://help.galileo.usg.edu/librarians/training/
If you have questions or suggestions, please use the GALILEO comment form at http://www.galileo.usg.edu/contact.

When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this. You haven't. ~ Thomas Edison

There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is best of all. ~ Jacqueline Kennedy

Su nday

November 2010

Georgia Department of Education

Mond ay

Tuesday

Wed nesday

1

2

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Birthday of

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What was the

Stephen Crane: James Polk:1795- first animal

1871-1900

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Thu rsday
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Birthday ofWill Rogers: 18791935

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Birthday of Ida Tarbell: 18571944

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11 12 13

Veterans Day Birthday ofAugu- Birthday of

(Armistice Day, ste Rodin:1840- Robert Louis

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Memorial Day)

14 15 16 17 18

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formally opened: discovered:

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birthday: 1835

Octob er
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Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. ~ Will Rogers