Diversity: Something to be Celebrated and Supported

Encouraging and supporting diversity through the media center means utilizing the media center space and resources in ways that promote learning support for all students and enhance the positive aspects of diversity in a student body. There are many characteristics that contribute to the diversity of students within a particular school. Culture, race, gender, special needs, and language are all examples of areas in which students' characteristics may differ.

I think it is very much a responsibility of the media center to strive to serve all of its students. Whether that means purchasing technology to assist special needs students or making sure to include foreign language films and CDs in the media center's collection, a media specialist should always be cognizant of students' diverse needs and seek to accommodate them.

I also think that the media center is a wonderful place for student congregation and should be used as a tool to encourage diversity and support the richness of experience it brings. When you have a group of students, where individuals come from all walks of life, those students have an opportunity to learn something valuable from each other. I think media centers should strive to promote diverse perspectives in regard to programs and should reach out to students in an effort to bring their diverse life experiences to the table for others to learn from.

Technology can be used to support this endeavor in a number of ways. With computers, students can email with other students across the world to learn more about their lives. Students can use various technologies for presentations that emphasize diverse peoples and perspectives. Online technologies, such as web pages, blogs, wikis, and podcasts can allow students who are disabled - and more likely to be absent from school - to view class materials and participate online. A physically handicapped student who typically has trouble holding and turning the pages of a book might find a Kindle or Nook to be much more user-friendly. There are endless ways in which technology can be used to support diversity within a student population.

I have not yet had the opportunity to see technology used to support diversity while doing my field experience. I have, however, seen this at the university library where I work. We have a room we call the Visual Aid Lab, which houses voice-to-text technology for visually impaired students and other technologies to assist physically handicapped students. The Visual Aid Lab is used on a regular basis by certain students who often visit the library. This resource is incredibly helpful to these students, and is a great example of how technology can be used to support a diverse student population.

Unique personal characteristics should always be celebrated, as it is these characteristics that set each student apart from all the rest. When a student with special or specific needs walks into his media center and finds nothing to support his specific learning needs, not only are his educational efforts inhibited, but he is also faced with the reality that no one noticed or cared enough to provide for his educational needs. Students should be provided with the tools they need in order to get the best education possible. They should also be made to feel confident about themselves and who they are, no matter what traits they have that make them different.

Kicking and e-Screaming!/It's (digital) Storytime!

“Kicking and e-Screaming!”

I’ll start out with a confession, I guess. I don’t own an e-reader (iPad, Nook, Kindle, etc.). For one, it’s not in my budget, and I’m also a little resistant to change. I really enjoy the convenience of reading the e-version of the AJC, and it’s definitely a good day when I find some free, helpful, e-book resources online. It’s so cool when I find published books and manuals in electronic format that cover everything from printer errors, to medical guides. So, I guess what I’m saying is I like the convenience and availability of some e-book resources out there for personal and business use, but I fear the unknown effects they may have on the future of the media center. My husband always tells me that there will always be a need for a media specialist no matter what format the books are in. I know schools need someone to sort through, organize and present appropriate materials for students. I guess that will be true whether they are print materials or electronic materials. I already teach students how to use Galileo and all of its many databases, and they are e-resources. I just don’t know when it will be feasible to incorporate e-readers in my media center or how this will change things. This is something I have begun to research, and I am reading about what other schools are doing with e-readers. I plan to stay informed about the degree of success elsewhere until we have the funds to support such devices and services.

“It’s (digital) Storytime!”

Digital stories are new to me, but I am quickly embracing this concept. I envision using this format to preserve and tell family stories. In the educational world, there seem to be endless possibilities for this type of presentation as well. A teacher or media specialist could use digital storytelling to communicate historical information, to illustrate scientific research, to demonstrate sequencing in various subjects.

From what I gather in reading about digital storytelling, the element that sets it apart from just reporting facts is emotion. Combining voice narration, pictures, videos, and music allows you to communicate more vivid and life-touching presentations. In Library 2.0 and Beyond, Karen Diaz and Anne M. Fields talk about the potential for a sense of community that is created by digital storytelling. They say we need to tell stories about how library users interact with the library, about who works there, and about how people can support the library. These creative stories can have a tremendous effect on the sense of community within a school.

Considering the idea of promoting community, I can’t help but think of story-like medium that I’ve seen used recently in high schools and other organizations that seems to be very similar. They call them lip dubs. The product is a video, set to music, with high school students or members of the organization actively moving around in various activities while mouthing the words to the song. I have seen three of these, and they each had a very specific message they wanted to communicate. One was about breast cancer. One was about gearing up to have a positive day at school by seeing the student body as a family. One was about celebrating academic success while approaching spring break. Talk about community. I felt like I was part of the community after watching the videos. These videos lack still images and voice narration, so they are a little different from digital stories. The emotion and sense of community are definitely there. After looking at various samples of digital stories, I am really excited about learning to use them at school and for personal use.

Follow-Up is Key to Effective Technology Training

As a new media specialist, I have only been called upon to deliver one session of formal technology training. This involved instructing teachers on how to use School Center to design and update their classroom web pages. I designed a scaled down handout with step-by-step instructions for them to follow. I chose to demonstrate the steps using a data projector and screen while they watched. They did not have access to computers during this session. Sometimes having the computers in front of them is distracting and it’s difficult to keep everyone working on the same page. This initial session was designed to demonstrate the steps involved as they followed along in their handout and made notes. The handout would serve as their guide when they returned to their classroom to set up their pages. The session lasted 45 minutes. I was available for individual questions for an hour afterwards. I also invited teachers to come to me with questions as needed when they began working on their pages.

I think the main challenge with technology training is a lack of follow-up and ongoing training. I’ve only worked in two schools for six years, but my county has rolled out a lot of new technology during that time. Sometimes the training is done by other teachers, and sometimes by outside groups. The complaint I hear most often from teachers is that they receive training for new equipment/materials, and then the trainer leaves never to return. In the best case scenario, during the days and weeks following the training, teachers begin to attempt to use the new technology. It is during this hands-on application that they discover they have more questions. Unfortunately, follow-up support is very limited and sometimes non-existent at that time.

At my former school we had a regular classroom teacher who was also paid a stipend to be the master tech teacher. She would occasionally deliver tech training lessons during planning periods to follow up on earlier training. This proved to be very effective. She offered individual help along the way as needed, but she offered the follow-up courses on a monthly basis. I really like the idea of the media specialist and/or master tech teacher offering monthly training opportunities for teachers and staff, maybe something like “Tech Tidbits”. Finding time to piggyback initial training with some smaller follow-up training sessions would likely complete this process and help teachers use the new technology more effectively and with greater confidence.

Copyright in the Classroom

By: Beth Holcomb

The media specialist must assist students with writing essays, collaborate with teachers to build classroom assignments, and educate these individuals about the library's resources. The media specialist must be informed about the current copyright law and fair use rights to have the skills to educate students and teachers how they can use the library tools. I think that I had numerous misinterpretations about the copyright law and the fair use provision; however, the Fair Use article written by the Center for Social Media: http://mediaeducationlab.com/sites/mediaeducationlab.com/files/CodeofBestPracticesinFairUse_0.pdf improved by knowledge of copyright in the classroom.

I made the incorrect assumption that there were comprehensive policies that summarized what was categorized as fair use. I learned that no more than ten percent of a text could be copied, five photographs could be used from a single artist, and three poems could be copied that were written by a single author. Although many schools use these policies, fair use neglects to include individual standards that mandate the number of pages or works that can be copied by teachers. Individuals can use copyrighted material if it creates social or cultural benefits larger than the financial expenses it creates on the copyright owner. The policy also implies that students and teachers must use an appropriate amount of the work to achieve the fair use provision. I think that this interpretation of fair use provides teachers and students with the opportunity to use more copyrighted works; however, I also argue that it creates issues for individuals regulating the use of copyrighted works. The policy neglects to include comprehensive rules; therefore, individuals are inclined to disagree about what behaviors are endorsed by fair use and what activities infringe on the First Amendment rights of the artist or author.

I think that the media specialist must be educated about copyright law and the fair use policy. I also insist that providing teachers with workshops to inform these individuals how the law can affect their classroom is an effective strategy for promoting appropriate activities and obeying the policies. These workshops will educate teachers about what information can be used in the classroom.

I also assert that the media specialist could distribute a handout about copyright law to teachers with other curriculum resources, and this tactic could provide fundamental standards for copyright in the classroom. The media specialist should also obey the copyright law in building assignments and designing activities. The teachers are inclined to see this behavior; therefore, they would likely use these techniques and collaborate with the media specialist to promote copyright in the classroom.

Video Distribution Systems & Georgia Public Broadcasting Resources

By: Katie Mitchell

At Carrollton Junior High School, the closed circuit cable system is being replaced by Safari Montage, a digital distribution system that provides video on demand. This is the case for all schools within the Carrollton City School System. Every teacher has access to the features of Safari Montage with their login information. Teachers can log in to show videos and video clips to their classes for specific lessons and activities.

At CJHS, teachers can access any resources available through GPB United Streaming. Teachers have access to 9 different channels along with the CJHS production channel. Morning announcements and school news are taped every afternoon and then broadcast every morning at 8:20. This broadcast is the only thing CJHS actually distributes over their video distribution system. Other than this, the system is used as a resource within each classroom according to what the teacher wants to use for class. 

The GPB Education site is an excellent resource for learning. It offers resources for teachers, students, and families. Safari Montage is also an excellent tool for video distribution within a school. Using Safari Montage, teachers have access to a vast number of video clips for use within their instruction.   

Video Distribution and GPB

My school has a video distribution system. It works well for the most part. We show the daily Channel One News using this system each morning at the beginning of homeroom. Immediately following the news, we send a live broadcast of our daily announcements to all classrooms each morning. We have four teams of three students (2 anchors and a camera operator) that alternate on a weekly basis to present the announcements. An administrator, usually our principal, is also present to help with announcements. A few weeks ago, we also used this distribution system to show a special video featuring our cafeteria staff as “School Breakfast Detectives”. Each day, students were given new clues to solve mysteries related to School Breakfast Week. Occasionally, we also show Channel One Connections videos or other approved videos in order for multiple classrooms to view them simultaneously.

Our system does use Discovery Streaming, but I didn’t know that it was available through GPB. This in itself is an amazing resource. Teachers have access to so many videos, and they do not have to purchase them. There are a ton of other resources available free on the GPB Education website. The only other resource that I know teachers in my school have actually used is Georgia Stories. Our eighth grade social studies teachers have used this to some degree. GPB Education also offers a program called Science Central, including modules entitled Chemistry & Physics, Climate, Nature, Georgia Outdoors, and NOVA. I’m not aware of any of our teachers who use these. After taking a closer look, the Chemistry & Physics module would obviously be a good resource for our eighth grade physical science classes, and the information and units about the scientific method could be used in 6th-8th grades. They also have a program called Irasshai that teaches Japanese to students. They also offer give access to a television series called Road Trip that teaches students about the benefits of Georgia’s technical colleges. Another great resource offered by GPB is Teachers’ Domain. It offers a large variety of digital media that can be used in the classroom or for professional development. Some of these include lesson plans, videos, and handouts.

I plan to create some new links on our media center website to lead teachers to these valuable resources. I may also try to feature a new one each month during the school year. I enjoy assisting teachers by providing them with good leads for relevant resources like these.

Social Networking Websites in the Classroom:

By: Beth Holcomb

Social networking websites are internet tools that allow learners to use podcasts, tags, blogs, wikis, glogster, Flicker, and other online resources to improve their knowledge of the curriculum. These social networking websites can allow teachers to use podcasts in the classroom. The media specialist can include a blog on the library's website, and students can collaborate and make class wikis. Students can learn from the online interaction with others and post their work to allow other individuals to see their assignments.

These websites also promote information literacy skills. The students learn about potential computer resources and improve their knowledge of the internet. The teacher can use these websites to teach students how to analyze the information on the internet and use resources that include correct content. The teacher can also use social networking websites to post assignment requirements, build curriculum activities, and interact with students.

Many teachers argue that social networking websites should be allowed in the classroom; however, there are inadequacies with these resources. Schools must promote student safety. Students can learn fundamental curriculum information on these internet tools; however, other individuals can post obscene information or text that could be inappropriate for minors. The schools' internet filters often filter these tools to reduce the probability that students see this adult information. The teacher cannot regulate what other learners write on these websites; therefore, students can quickly see inappropriate information while trying to complete curriculum assignments.

I think that the use of these websites should be impacted by the grade range and learning aptitudes of the students. A high school teacher could allow students to collaborate in groups and create a class wiki on the foreign policy of Richard Nixon. These students would have the opportunity to use the social networking websites and customize their page. These students are inclined to have more knowledge of the internet and the ability to use information literacy skills than elementary school children. An elementary school teacher could use a podcast on George Washington to teach students about this subject. The elementary school students would not have the freedom to use the internet as individuals; however, the teacher could use this social networking resource to improve the classroom activity. The teacher would regulate what the elementary school students would see and reduce the potential for inappropriate information. I imply that the teacher can build curriculum activities and customize the use of social networking websites using the grade of the students.

I also would encourage teachers, parents, and students to use the Social Networking Basics website www.ikeepsafe.org/PRC/videotutorials/myspace/index.html to learn about how to use social networking websites and protect students on the internet.

I think that social networking websites can improve the design of classroom activities and can be used to motivate students. Students can learn from the posts of other classmates, customize wikis, and use social networking websites to learn about curriculum subjects; however, I think that teachers should check the websites often and interpret if they are appropriate for the classroom.