Distance Education Trends

Alpers, Jessica

IL-Information Literacy and 21st Century Skills

Beldarrain, Y. (2006). Distance education trends: Integrating new technologies to foster student interaction and collaboration. Distance education, 27(2), 139-153.

Summary: The beginning of this article discusses technologies that are used in distance education, such a blogs and podcasts. Seven principles are given to describe how technology should be used in distance education. It should “encourage contact between students and faculty, develop reciprocity and cooperation among students, use active learning techniques, give prompt feedback, emphasize time on task, communicate high expectations, [and] respect diverse talents and ways of learning.” After discussing these seven principles, the article discusses how distance learning is changing.

Evaluation: I found this article very appropriate as we are all distance learners. We are very involved in technology as part of this class. The article was interesting to read to evaluate how this class and others use technology. For those who may run online classes as educators, this article would be a very valuable resource.

Modeling information literacy for classrooms of the future

DiZazzo, Cynthia

IL

McNicol, S. (2014). Modeling information literacy for classrooms of the future. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, 47, 303-313. doi: 10.1177/0961000614526612

Summary:
McNicol (2015) discusses the importance of students as creators of knowledge, a key standard for modern literacy which has often been overlooked in information literacy (IL) models. McNicol maintains that in many IL models, “the focus is on the learner as a consumer, evaluator and organiser of information which has previously been produced, rather than as a creator and originator of knowledge” (2015, p. 305). In her research, she determined that students were motivated through their participation in the design phase of an activity, creativity was enhanced and links to real world skills were reinforced.

Evaluation:
This article is helpful in directing teacher librarians and classroom teachers to capitalize upon students’ strengths, interests and ingenuity when designing collaborative projects to address modern literacy skills. In addition to promoting collaboration among students and teachers, McNicol’s findings encourage educators to allow and value flexibility in content, structure, and sequence when using information literacy models with students. The information presented also inspires teachers and teacher librarians to acknowledge students as content creators, rather than just consumers of information.

Digital Citizenship: A Holistic Primer

Coulterpark, Rebecca

ET
IL

TeachThought Staff.  (2016, October 28).  Digital citizenship: A holistic primer.  Retrieved from https://www.imperosoftware.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Digital-Citizenship-A-Holistic-Primer.pdf

Summary:

This white paper discusses digital citizenship, its definition, its current role in schools, and how it should be employed in the future in schools. The team from Teach Thought discusses the history of digital citizenship, and how this new form of citizenship has developed as internet use has become more prevalent, especially as online resources have become more pertinent to education. They introduce the core themes involved with digital citizenship, proposing that they are 1) respect yourself and others; 2) educate yourself and others; 3) protect yourself and others. The paper continues by discussing the necessity of digital citizenship at all levels of education, and how to employ it and teach students about how to be good digital citizens. They conclude the paper by discussing how digital citizenship might evolve in the future and answering potential questions about digital citizenship with continuing technologies, and how to teach digital citizenship.

Evaluation:
The Teach Thought Staff take an in depth look at digital citizenship, and discuss how it should be employed not only at the K-12 level, but also in higher education. This article does a good job of looking at, and explaining, different components of digital citizenship and what types of responsibilities we have as digital citizens and the important pieces to teach to students who are new to the digital world.
The breakdown of the sections makes it easy to navigate, and takes an easy to read approach to the topic of digital citizenship.

The SAMR Model In-depth

Romrell, D., Kidder, L. C., & Wood, E. (2014). The SAMR Model as a Framework for Evaluating mLearning. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 18(2), 79–93. 


I appreciated how this article went into some depth about each level of the SAMR model for technology integration in the classroom with emphasis on the use of mobile devices. In addition to explaining what each level was, it also presented example scenarios for what each level would look like in a classroom setting. It also explored some of the downsides of devices, such as providing distractions from instruction, or problems that arise from everyone not having the same kind. This article is a great resource for anyone looking for a comprehensive introduction to the SAMR model or planning to make use of mobile devices with their students 

IL-Teens and Tech Article

St Clair, Deb

IL

Zickuhr, K. (2014). Teens and tech: What the research says. Young Adult Library

    Services, 12(2), 33-37.

Summary:  This article covers how teens are using technology, including how they conduct research.  It then goes into the need for teaching online skills.  

This article is very informative and provides insight on a relevant topic.  The author uses a report for Pew Research Center, an independent, nonpartisan research group that conducts extensive research on a variety of topics.  

Articles on Teaching (by M.Motley)

INFO 250 Articles on Teaching

This is my list of articles on teaching. Most of them are for novices, and most of these are about communication between teachers and librarians, but there's also some about technology that's useful in the classroom. Most of them are worth reading, though some I gave poor reviews for not being especially valuable or noteworthy, merely supporting the subject or offering background information.


Jacobson, L. (2016). When librarians teach teachers. School Library Journal. Retrieved from http://www.slj.com/2016/07/standards/early-learning/when-librarians-teach-teachers/

This article mentions several early-learning programs which librarians teach to teachers, particularly those associated with teaching children to read so they are ready for school. It will be most useful for K-3 Youth and School librarians or librarians interested in teaching these skills to the early-education teachers.

 Krebs, P. (2014). Why you should talk to the librarians. Chroniclevitae.com. Retrieved from https://chroniclevitae.com/news/673-why-you-should-talk-to-the-librarians

This article is more interesting to K-12 and academic librarians, as it reminds teachers to contact librarians before publishing their syllabus and get additional resources that the librarian knows about. Librarians can offer even more help if you give them a heads-up about what your assignments are going to be.

They can pull relevant texts from the stacks and hold them on reserve for your course. They can come to your classroom and talk about which sources are available and how to judge their quality. They can suggest assignments and let you know about resources you may not have seen yet. And they can be a great help if you have to miss a class--they can work with your students in the library that day or in your classroom to keep them on track with whatever assignment you've given while you’re away at that conference.

I thought this was a particularly useful quote.

 LaGarde, J. (2012). 5 more TED talks that all school librarians should watch. LibraryGirl.net (blog). Retrieved from http://www.librarygirl.net/2012/09/5-more-ted-talks-that-all-school.html

This list of TED Talks videos includes several interesting topics, each of which is worthy of review as individual articles/videos appropriate to our topic on librarianship and teaching in schools.

LaGarde, J. (2011). 6 TED Talks all school librarians should watch (and why!). LibraryGirl.net (blog). Retrieved from http://www.librarygirl.net/2011/05/recently-andy-woodworth-posted-series.html
The original posted list of TED talks about librarianship. These video lectures are meant to inspire viewers and provide ideas and motivation to do things.

 Leeder, K. (2011). Collaborating with faculty part 2: What our partnerships look like. InTheLibraryWithTheLeadPipe.org. Retrieved from http://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2011/collaborating-with-faculty-part-2-what-our-partnerships-look-like/

This article, second in a series, is about how to talk to teachers and collaborate with them using library resources. The first in the series is general. These are specific examples. Key points are faculty training and technology assistance (another kind of training or infrastructure help with websites or hardware).

Deringer, S. (2013). Inspire collaboration: A quick and easy guide for super busy school librarians. Inalj.com. Retrieved from http://inalj.com/?p=40373

Simple advice on collaborating, starting with offering to help and respecting teacher’s time and schedules. This also lists a number of resources on collaboration.

 Ivey, R. (2003). Information literacy: How do librarians and academics work in partnership to deliver effective learning programs? Australian Academic and Research Libraries. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00048623.2003.10755225

Good ideas despite being somewhat out of date.

Strang, T. (2015). Improving collaboration among faculty and librarians. Cengage Learning (blog). Retrieved from http://blog.cengage.com/improving-collaboration-among-faculty-and-librarians/

This is a list with additional links to websites with further refined advice.

 Editor. (2016). The best apps for teaching and learning 2016. ALA.org. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/standards/best/apps/2016 

This list assembled by librarians at American Library Association contains a lot of educational software published in the last year. There’s also utilities to help teachers stay organized, which works between their smartphone, laptop, tablet, and PC.

Editor. (2016). Best websites for teaching & learning 2016. ALA.org. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/standards/best/websites/2016

Like the list of Apps, this is a list of useful websites which both teachers and librarians would find useful in education. A big part of a librarian’s job is to find stuff, but also to remember stuff we find so that when someone says “I wish I could do X” you can actually say “Yes, you can at link Y, and it’s free. I’ll show you.”


Firestone, M. (2014). What is collaborative learning: Benefits theory definition. (Video). Study.com. Retrieved from http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-collaborative-learning-benefits-theory-definition.html

This video provides an explanation into collaborative learning and what it really means.

Levine, M. (2016). Collaborative learning in libraries. PublicLibrariesOnline.org. Retrieved from http://publiclibrariesonline.org/2016/06/collaborative-learning-in-libraries/


This article describes the co-learning classes in first web design and coding and later in Arduino (Maker) projects taught at the Chattanooga (TN) public library system. This is pretty short and may lack sufficient depth to recommend to others.

Kruse, C. (2016). Creating collaborative learning spaces in a college library. Ideas.Demco.com (blog). Retrieved from http://ideas.demco.com/blog/creating-collaborative-learning-spaces-in-the-college-library/

This blog post provides pictures and descriptions of Maker spaces in a college library and how those were funded. The article is a bit short though the pictures are useful.

 House, K. (2014). Multnomah County Library turns to 'collaborative learning' to lure teens in, keep them engaged. (Video). OregonLive.com. Retrieved from http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2014/07/headline_multnomah_county_libr.html
This has a video and an article following it with supporting pictures and a brief quote from the instructor in charge.

Clifford, M. (2016). 20 Collaborative learning tips and strategies for teachers. TeachThought.com. Retrieved from http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/20-collaborative-learning-tips-and-strategies/

A list of techniques recommended to help students learn in a small group environment created through “collaborative learning”. These look useful and can be tested in the real world.

Editor. (2016). Empowering parents with technology. Oppl.org. Retrieved from http://oppl.org/about/library-news/empowering-parents-technology

This article is a post at Oak Park Public Library explaining their program to help parents keep better track of what their kids are learning in school. This is an example of an ongoing program which allows collaboration between librarians, teachers, students, and parents rather than merely another theoretical test using spent grant money. It is pretty interesting.


Nelson, K. (2016). 10 game-changing ways to use an interactive classroom projector. WeAreTeachers.com. Retrieved from http://www.weareteachers.com/blogs/post/2016/02/01/10-game-changing-ways-to-use-an-interactive-classroom-projector

This is an interesting one, because it uses modern digital projectors to create active learning for students. The example provided would be excellent for history, geography, and probably geology too.

Annoyed_Librarian. (2014). Closer to real censorship. [Blog] Library Journal. Retrieved from
http://lj.libraryjournal.com/blogs/annoyedlibrarian/2014/07/14/closer-to-real-censorship/

Anthony, C. (2016). Libraries are bridging the digital divide in cities. Library Vision.org.
Retrieved from http://www.libraryvision.org/libraries_are_bridging_the_digital_divide_in_cities

Barefoot, R. (2016). Week 3: Managing the roles of organizational change. SJSU SLIS 282-10
lesson. Retrieved from https://sjsu.instructure.com/courses/1209014/pages/week-3-
managing-the-roles-of-organizational-change?module_item_id=8754341

Benjamin, K. (2013). 11 book burning stories that will break your heart. Mental Floss. Retrieved
from http://mentalfloss.com/article/50038/11-book-burning-stories-will-break-your-heart

Hernon, P. and Altman, E. (2010). Assessing service quality: Satisfying the expectations of library customers, 2nd ed. [Document]. American Library Association.org. Retrieved from https://www.alastore.ala.org/pdf/9780838910214_excerpt.pdf  

Mies, G. (2016). How to make technology training fun for your library staff. TechSoupForLibraries.com. Retrieved from http://www.techsoupforlibraries.org/blog/make-library-staff-technology-training-fun

Rabina, D. (2013). The dark side of Dewey. MiniStories.Wordpress.com. Retrieved from https://minystories.wordpress.com/2013/12/10/the-dark-side-of-dewey/ 

Tennant, R. (2002). MARC must die. Library Journal, 127(17), 26.

Digital Projectors for Interactive Teaching

I finally found an article interesting enough to post here on the classroom blog.

Kids around a table using an interactive projector.

Nelson, K. (2016). 10 game-changing ways to use an interactive classroom projector. WeAreTeachers.com. Retrieved from http://www.weareteachers.com/blogs/post/2016/02/01/10-game-changing-ways-to-use-an-interactive-classroom-projector

This article describes modern technologies, like digital projectors, used for interactive teaching, turning any surface into a whiteboard which then detects fingers or a special pen so it moves like the touchscreen on a tablet or smartphone. Think of the possibilities in that. Maps, history, geography, all able to be interacted with and change how classrooms work.

Teaching Social Studies with Video Games

ET
IL

Maguth, B. M., List, J. S., Wunderle, M. (2015). Teaching social studies with video games. The Social Studies, 106(1), 32-36. doi: 10.1080/00377996.2014.961996

Summary:

This article highlights the use of interactive video games as instructional tools in the classroom.  Students used the game Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings to build up a civilization.  This game was chosen because it could be aligned with state standards, had an easy to use interface, and good enough graphics to keep students engaged.  The teacher assessed student learning by having students write reflections related to academic content standards such as geography, trade, economics, etc.  Students were required to make connections between class discussions and the video game.  Teacher and student found the game to be a success in allowing students to practice academic content in “real world” scenario that was engaging.  The article even attributes this teaching strategy as an example of learning through play—a theory of Vygotsky and Piaget.

Evaluation:

This article highlights the importance of information and technology literacy in our classrooms.  While this article did not highlight the role of a teacher librarian, I can only imagine how much more beneficial the outcome would have been if teacher and teacher librarian had co-taught this assignment.

Connection + Collaboration = Successful integration of technology in a large high school

Bradshaw, Trina

CO

IL

Lankau, L. 2015. Connection + Collaboration = Successful integration of technology in a large high school. Knowledge Quest, 44(2), p. 66-73. Retrieved from: http://libaccess.sjlibrary.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=llf&AN=110493163&site=ehost-live

Summary

Lankau starts her article by setting the scene; the reader is a high functioning librarian in a optimal library setting, but he or she does not feel as though all teachers are being reached.  She then gives a formula that has worked at her school of 2,500 students and 170 teachers that involves making a connection with school leaders, who in turn can assist in connecting to new teachers. The suggested leaders include administrators, instructional coaches, department chairs, and returning teachers who have already experience the value of collaborating with a librarian. She suggests that the librarian set up meetings and ask these leaders to observe some of the collaborative lessons that are already going on in the Learning Commons. Have them preview a presentation illustrating the value of the library and collaboration between teachers and the librarian. The next step is the follow up with leaders and bring your presentation out to the wider audience of teachers through staff meetings or department meetings. Get feedback during these meetings so that follow up will be easy. Make sure that a follow up resource addressing teacher needs is accessible so that teachers can begin to utilize what the librarian has to offer. Before you move to another department, reflect on what went well and what teachers liked, revise and begin creating something for the next department and keep repeating the process. She ends by giving 10 lessons that she has learned for successful collaboration and integration of technology that she has learned during her 35 years of experience:  

1. Show rather than talk about how to integrate technology.

2. In the beginning, plan to do the lion’s share of the work while prepping for collaborative lessons.

3. Remember that “new” teachers on your staff are not always teachers new to the profession. Be patient and positive.

4. Don’t always expect teachers to come to you in the library. Travel to their classrooms or school computer labs. Make yourself accessible.

5. Study benchmarks and course content. Remember that we are not expected to be a content expert in every area but should know how to locate state- and district-required benchmarks.

6. Be on the lookout for new technology tools so that you can continually present new ideas at meetings.

7. Get to know your students! They are a great source of information about what is going on in the classroom.

8. Don’t assume that all teachers understand the value of subscription databases or that students understand the importance of evaluating websites.

9. Make the library the printing capital of your school. This service is not only a source of revenue for the library, but it can provide you with an ongoing bird’s eye view of the curriculum.

10. Recognize teachers who use the library: shout-outs at faculty meetings, pictures in newsletters, fun awards given for whatever you can think of: most check-outs, most library time, most-creative projects, etc.

Review

This article presents an extremely practical approach for librarians hoping to collaborate with teachers with a goal of infusing more technology into the curriculum. Though the process of creating and presenting seems immense and somewhat daunting, the steps that she gives are definitely doable in small chunks. In addition, the resources that are mentioned are ones that have been mentioned in several of my MLIS classes, so most certified librarians will be comfortable (or at least familiar enough) to ease any fears about presenting on how to use them. I think that it is a good idea to start with the department chair so that there is an ally when approaching the rest of the teachers. If the leader is well respected, then the teachers will take their recommendation to work with the librarian seriously.    

It is important to note that this process comes after having already established a relationship with some of the teachers and having a well functioning library with adequate technology and other resources. In many places, libraries are still recovering after years of budget and staffing cuts. So, there is much work to do in organizing the collection, acquiring  materials and updated technology, and reinvesting the community before any collaboration can take place.

Duffy, Leah

IL-Information Literacy

Johns, S. K. (2012, March 23). "Library skills" = Information literacy skills = Common Core skills. Retrieved May 20, 2016, from http://blogs.slj.com/make-some-noise/2012/03/23/library-skills-information-literacy-skills-common-core-skills/ 

Summary and Evaluation:

This blog post highlights how the ways that Common Core States Standards incorporates information literacy.  This is specifically highlighted for the benefit of teacher librarians.  The blog post encourages teacher librarians to build on specific information literacy standards to show their worth to school administrators, and policy makers in their states as well as in Washington D.C..  The theme of looking at your school's standards and curriculum to find the way you may have not noticed that your job as a teacher librarian is central to fulfilling curriculum is a good message.

The blog post is short and sweet and it serves as an important reminder to educators to be their own advocates in their schools and beyond.  They used direct excerpts to illustrate their point and used a voice of empowerment.  It's also just a valuable lesson beyond the direct subject of the post; be your own advocate!

Through the looking glass: Examining technology integration in school librarianship

Deligencia, Nick

IL

Green, L. S. (2014). Through the looking glass: Examining technology integration in school librarianship. Knowledge Quest, 43(1), 36-43.

Summary:

Beginning with a description of the SAMR model and a review of its popularity and widespread use, the article then questions the validity of the model.  An open letter to the SAMR model’s founder is described, which critically evaluates SAMR in a manner that many teacher librarians are (or should be) teaching to their students.  The author delineates findings about the SAMR model’s creator, what it contributes to the thinking on the subject (how is it different), whether it is research-based and whether its methodology can be vetted, and whether it is a sponsored product.

A comparative evaluation of the TPCK model follows.  This section cites ways in which the model is often shared and used among educators that is, in fact, not consistent with the model’s intention and design.  The article concludes with a recommendation to “visit the Technology Integration Matrix maintained by Northern Arizona University <www.azk12.org/tim>.”

Evaluation:

Worth reading; thought-provoking.  I’m a little nervous about posting this here, given the professor’s implicit (and my own, previously explicit) endorsement of the SAMR model.  And yet, this article gets at the core of teacher librarians’ roles in information literacy.  How effective are we if we’re not applying the information credibility checks that we’re teaching our students?

This is not an indictment of the SAMR model, per se.  The article is more critical of the application of TPCK than SAMR, but it is most critical of any unquestioned and unexamined propagation of any model.

IL-Analysis and Synthesis, IL-Critical Thinking, IL-Technology Instruction

Components and Factors in Integrating Information Literacy Instruction in Elementary Education Using a Virtual Learning Environment

Posted by Karen Kotchka

IL

Kingsawat, K, Kwicien, K. & Tuamsuk, K. (2015). Components and Factors in Integrating Information Literacy Instruction in Elementary Education Using a Virtual Learning Environment. Libres: Library & Information Science Research Electronic Journal, 25 (1), 50-77.

Summary

This research article relates the results of a study in Thailand that implemented a Virtual Learning Environment to give all students access to information literacy skills.  The authors review both the standards and indicators that are important for students to learn in information literacy and the factors that influence the success of an online instructional environment.

Evaluation

The article did not give a lot of detail about how the Virtual Learning Environment worked or what the specific units of instruction were.  One point I did find valuable was that the authors said the virtual learning environment could support synchronous or asynchronous learning but the most important point was the quality of the teacher and learner reflection.

Beyond Mechanics: Reframing the Pedagogy and Development of Information Literacy Teaching Tools

Posted by Karen Kotchka

IL

Margolin, S. & Hayden, W. (2015). Beyond Mechanics: Reframing the Pedagogy and Development of Information Literacy Teaching Tools. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 41 (5), 602-612, doi: 10.10161.j.acalib.2015.07.001.

Summary

This article focused on the debate around whether the internet has made research papers an obsolete assignment as information is so readily available that students just look it up, gather it ad post it without doing any deep thinking about it.  The authors proposed writing from sources as a replacement for the research paper.  They advocate the process of research rather than the mechanics being taught to learners.  They have created an online Research Toolkit at Hunter College where they work that takes learners through various skills and processes of conducting research.

Evaluation

I thought the article was useful to proposing a new idea to repace the tired research paper but I wish they had included a link to their Research Toolkit.  I was able to do a search and find it through Hunter College and it was a good example of online tutorials

Beyond Mechanics: Reframing the Pedagogy and Development of Information Literacy Teaching Tools

posted by Karen Kotchka

IL

Margolin, S. & Hayden, W. (2015).  Beyond Mechanics: Re-framing the Pedagogy and Development of Information Literacy Teaching Tools. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 41 (5), 602-612.

Summary
     This article focuses on the debate around whether the internet has made research papers obsolete and how students should be trained to do research and retrieve and analyze information in light of the fact that so much information is so readily available in an instant on the internet.The authors argue that the process of research rather than the mechanics should be scaffolded for the learner and that students should be led to discover that research is a process of inquiry and discovery, not just collecting facts to prove a thesis.  The subjects the authors were dealing with were first-year college students and although they do not seem well-prepared in information literacy skills, the faculty does not seem to be integrating those skills into their courses of instruction.

Evaluation
     I thought this article gave some new and fresh insights into a new instructional approach to information literacy and would be useful for middle to high school and early college teachers and librarians.  I wanted to see the Reading Toolkit the authors had created but there wasn't a direct link or screenshot so I did a search myself and was able to find the website since they said they were from Hunter College.  here is the link to their website: http://library.hunter.cuny.edu/research-toolkit

It’s Your Duty to Keep Up With Technology

 

The article, It's Your Duty to Keep Up With Technology, by Shannon Gilchrist, reviews the way librarians are reinventing the roles they play in educational environments through several components which include lesson plans that invite students to use the library space and resources in different ways and incorporate a partnership between the teacher and the librarian.

One point stressed in this article is the personal accountability librarians take on to learn and teach new technologies. The ability to navigate tech-based resources and use different hardware is now implied. Librarians may not do perform their job to their best of their ability without understanding tech devices and how these tools facilitate learning based processes.  

The challenge that is discussed in the article points out the decline of school librarians during a time of economical hardship. Not only in this article, but in others I've screened, I've noticed a trend in the reduction of school librarians in educational institutions. With more technology flooding the classroom and less media specialists available to students it appears to be a recipe for failure. Now that the economy is beginning to stabilize, I hope to see a shift towards supporting your young K-12 students.

 

 This is a review of the article:

It’s your duty to keep up with technology, librarians told.

By Shannon Gilchrist The Columbus Dispatch  •  Monday November 9, 2015 5:55 AM

Found here:  http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/11/09/its-your-duty-to-keep-up-with-technology-librarians-told.html

The information-seeking behavior of grade-three elementary school

Kari Nelson

IL

REFERENCE

Nesset, V. (2009). The information‐seeking behavior of grade‐three elementary school students. Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 46(1), 1-3.

SUMMARY

Nesset discuss the importance of introducing and experiencing print and electronic sources from a young age. From this study, information seeking in the elementary school is represented in a three phase model: preparing, searching and using.  The preparing stage being the direct instruction of needed vocabulary and steps to complete the process.  The searching stage being the physical action of searching and the using stage is applying what the students learned.  Information seekers in elementary schools need exposure to the three phases early so they can build upon them in upper grades.

EVALUATION

I liked how this article shows that young students are ready to be educated in information seeking. As an educator, I see that children such as kindergarten and 1^st grade don’t complete research because it is “too difficult”. This article shows that we are in a time where they have been prepared for technology and just need the opportunity to have experience with it.

BYOD Is Shaping Education in the 21st Century

Chansamone O’Meara

ET

References

Miller, B. BYOD Is Shaping Education in the 21st Century. (2015, April 19). Retrieved April 27, 2015, from http://tech.co/byod-education-21st-century-2015-04

It is important to integrate technology into the classroom and schools must accept that is is the new expectation.  Schools must provide the hardware and software tools to properly build 21st century skills.  Bring your own device (BYOD) is being adopted across schools.  There are several benefits of BYOD in education.  1) It increases access to technology for students.  Some schools do not have the budget to provide every student with their own device to use.  And devices that students or their family own are usually newer and powerful devices as well. Students that have better devices can use their own and those that don’t own a device, can use the school’s. 2) Schools can save money because students are responsible for their device.  If it breaks or is lost or stolen, students are responsible for replacing it. 3) BYOD allows for different communication between the teacher and the student.  It focuses on a student-centered approach.  Teachers and students can share information with each other. 4) Assignments presented or completed online do not require teachers to repeat information presented on a powerpoint.  Students can access the information on their own and type out their own notes at their own pace. “Technology now enables students to listen to the teacher and absorb the information, rather than tuning out the teacher and hurredly scribbling down the notes without proper analytical thinking and contemplation.” 5) BYOD gives students the opportunity to collaborate with each other on assignments and projects.  They can access the assignments at home and work in their own setting. 6) Students can access their textbooks without having to carry around their heavy books.  Students also don’t have to worry about forgetting their books. 7) Assessments can be completed online. Grading for teachers can speed up the process as well.  It saves time and is more efficient.

Evaluation

I think that schools that do not have the budget for 1:1 program should consider adopting the BYOD policy.  The school that I am working at currently will budget for and rollout the 1:1 initiative in the next 2-3 years.  While that is happening, there are some students that bring their own devices and work on their assignment.  Students are not currently able to access the internet with their own device.  The school district forbids personal devices on their network.  I think it should be something to reconsider.  While BYOD is a great idea, there are a lot of logistical problems that need to considered and planned out.  Schools need to consider their wifi access points and network capabilities. I completely agree with the author of the article however that all schools must integrate technology into their curriculum.  If BYOD is the only viable solution, then school districts should examine whether they can safely allow personal devices onto their internet network.

Free Technology for Teachers: 100 Practical Ed Tech Tips Videos

Beverly Rupe
IL

Byrne, R. (2015, April 21). Free technology for teachers: 100 practical Ed Tech tips videos [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2015/04/100-practical-ed-tech-tips-videos.html?m=1

Free Technology for Teachers: 100 Practical Ed Tech Tips Videos

Richard Byrne's blog (http://www.freetech4teachers.com/) is a great resource for teachers and librarians. I seem to always find something personally useful, or useful to someone else at work. This is a link to just one very practical example, but every visit to this blog is always worthwhile. A must-add to any PLN.

ISTE Standards for Students

ISTE

http://www.iste.org/standards/standards-for-students

IL

ISTE stands for International Society for Technology in Education.  From its webpage, ISTE states, “Simply being able to use technology is no longer enough. Today's students need to be able to use technology to analyze, learn and explore. Digital age skills are vital for preparing students to work, live and contribute to the social and civic fabric of their communities.”

Their webpage has standards for students, teachers, administrators, coaches, and technology teachers.  ISTE awards a seal of alignment for those meeting their standards.

Students have six standards they should meet or exceed in the following areas:

            Creativity and innovation

            Communication and collaboration

            Research and information fluency

            Critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making

            Digital citizenship

            Technology operations and concepts

Teachers have five standards:

            Facilitate and inspire creativity and innovation

            Design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments

            Model digital age work and learning

            Promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility

            Engage in professional growth and leadership

Visual and Media Literacy: Essential Components In A 21st Century Education

Bullard, Sherrie

IL

Baker, F. W. (2009). Visual and Media Literacy: Essential Components in a 21st Century Education. Florida Media Quarterly, 35(1), 18-19.

Summary:

The article focuses on the significance of media and visual literacy as vital components of education in the 21st century in the U.S. It notes that the annual curriculum skills maps of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills focus on geometry and science. The maps offer recommendations for media and information literacy. It points out that many educators point out that their teaching standards have not reached rapid changes in technology and media.

Evaluation:

I agree with the author, that the standards cannot keep up with the rapid changes in technology and media. The author created the Media Literacy Clearinghouse web site (www.frankwbaker.com) because he wanted to provide educators clear and relevant examples of how media literacy could be incorporated into instruction. The web site includes readings, recommended texts, links to streaming videos, lesson plans and much more.