Virtualizing the Library
As technology tools continue to be more deeply embedded in schools, librarians need to provide online environments that are useful, well-designed, and attractive. This Education Week article titled "As Information Landscape Changes, School Librarians Take on New Roles" underscores the fact that digital literacy has become a key component in the evolving job description of today's librarians.
Lots of options exist for online libraries – website platforms, wikis, Symbaloo, PearlTress, and LibGuides – but, which is best for your school’s needs? Join us this summer for "Virtualizing the Library," an online course developed by Wilson College in partnership with Eduspire, for a quick start to developing your own online library space.
First we’ll explore the current information landscape in schools and our stakeholders’ needs. Then, take a tour of some of the best school library websites, K-12, and some not-to-miss resources to include. Develop your online library plan, choose a platform, and start building! Finally, we’ll add some digital library instruction for our learners, and finish with a discussion of next steps. Need help getting started with your school’s virtual library? Then, join us July 10 – August 12! This course is also available as part of the Wilson College Master of Educational Technology degree program. Reserve your spot today!
Digital Information Fluency
Teachers have a lot on their plates these days — just ask Theresa Bartholomew, librarian at Warrior Run middle school in Turbotville, PA who writes this two-part blog post for Eduspire called "Alice in Cyberland" (Part I: A Day in the Life of a Modern Librarian and Part II: Managing Digital Resources). Between meeting standards, keeping up with new apps and digital resources, integrating technology wisely, and helping our students be ready for what their futures hold (whew!), we also have a responsibility to teach our students to navigate wisely the wealth of resources available to them. An essential element of technology integration in the classroom is information and media literacy: the ability to skillfully access, evaluate, and ethically use the information and media we find online. On top of everything else we need to accomplish, how can we also attend to this important issue?
In order to help students conduct savvy online searches for information, teachers must first be on top of their own information fluency. How should we be teaching kids to search online? What are some Google best practices and tools that we should know about? And what about fake news? What are the best news and info evaluation systems we can use with young people? In the middle of all of this, where do copyright, fair use, public domain and Creative Commons fit in, and how do I teach this to little kids or teens? What about Open Education Resources (OER)? Why and how should we go about curating our own digital classrooms? Explore these issues, develop your info lit skills and curate some awesome resources for your classroom in Wilson College's latest course (developed in partnership with Eduspire), called "Digital Information Fluency." This course is conveniently offered online, July 10 – August 12, and is also available as part of the Wilson College Master of Educational Technology degree program. Reserve your spot today!
