Cathy Nelson’s Professional Thoughts

Today on our SCASL-listserv, a fellow teacher-librarian asked about how schools are dealing with students who bring their own laptops to school. The posted question also inquired about how schools are using webcams, with the follow up statement “couldn’t they be used to help our homebound students.” Of course we had quite a few respond, and it was divided relatively 50/50 on good vs. bad reasons to allow the laptops. No one, however, addressed the posed supposition about the benefit of webcams in school. I sat on this all day today (though I did individually reply to a couple of people about what I knew about my former district, and the value of the concept. But I wanted to see how others would respond. The following is my posted reply after seeing everything from kneejerk reactions (almost denial) that student owned laptops have a place in our schools, to some obviously very accepting and most welcome to the idea. I shared 3 issues in my response, and they are as follows:

1) More and more districts are looking into wireless as a more feasible means of providing access in their building(s) and district offices, and removing the costs associated with wiring. It is becoming the norm for more and more wireless places, and this is no different for schools. A school or district can go wireless with secure networks, and all one has to know is the password to gain access. The IT hardware folks can lock down a wireless network and make it secure in a relatively easy manner. Even the routers and such you buy at Best Buy and other electronics stores can easily be secured. I predict that in probably 7, but more likely 5 years, there will be more wireless workstations than not. You almost cannot buy a laptop anymore that does not come equipped with wireless capability, and many laptops are also coming equipped with an internal webcam, which brings me to my 2nd thought.

2) This initial thread also asked about the use of webcams in schools. Brian Crosby (author of the blog Learning is Messy and recipient of NUMEROUS awards) out of a school district in Nevada was able to completely and efficiently serve the needs of a former student diagnosed with Leukemia who b/c of her illness had to stay at home. Brian arranged for the student to have a webcam and for his classroom to have a webcam, and through a program called skype, involved this little girl in the everyday activities that took place in his class. This gained him national attention and notoriety, and caused many educators to rethink what possibilities a webcam can bring into a school. Most shockingly, this was not recently, but I want to say 2 years ago. I personally use a webcam and skype to talk to other school librarians around the nation, and would like to explore bring guest speakers into my library program in an effort to show that our world is truly global today, and students can gain insight and perspective from folks they might never have had the opportunity to see, hear and interact with before. Carolyn Foote of Austin, Texas recently had an article in School Library Journal about hosting an author at her school using Skype and a webcam, and I have participated frequently in conferences from around the world I might never have had the opportunity to participate in, all b/c a friend (Lisa Parisi) who had a webcam found a way to include me in the session (using Skype and Ustream as the vehicle to transport me there.) These 21st century tools are here, and we must embrace them. I promise our students have.

3rd) and last, more and more students are going to be bringing their laptops into our schools. There is no denying it, and with the difficulty (especially in SC) with budgeting for Technology, why not embrace this concept and allow the students who have the capability to provide their own means to connect at school? With them bringing their own, and students without access using the schools resources, we would definitely come closer to a 1:1 program for providing computer access, and maybe join our counterparts from around the world in global projects and 21st century learning.

Yes, it does open up a can of worms, and yes, the higher ups will have to develop guidelines and policies. There are already schools in our state that allow students to bring their own laptops to school, and it is ludicrous to deny them when they have the means. Let’s not bemoan this, but rather celebrate it. We as school librarians can be a part of the solution instead of the problem by assisting our building level admin with policies and procedures to accommodate this growing trend. It is not going away.

I wish I had included one more thought. As we prepare students for college, it is
practically inconceivable that anyone would send their child to study at a post high school institution with out a computer of some kind. I read somewhere earlier this year that nearly 87% of entering college freshman bring either a personal desktop or laptop computer with them, and identify it as a critical tool for their success. In my opinion, it is inevitable that this will trickle down to our k12 schools. It is a futile battle to try and keep them out. We cannot hold back the flood of 21st Century Learning.

Image: ‘Scale‘
www.flickr.com/photos/81851211@N00/393169578

Image: ‘SilvestrFlickrn‘
www.flickr.com/photos/75724432@N00/339969095

	technolibrary@cathyjo Hello library school students! You’re entering a great, innovative and growing possession–web 2.0 is the library wave!31 minutes ago from web inreply to cathyjo
	njtechteacher@cathyjo Hello from New Jersey USA near New York City – enjoy your presentation!about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	dmcordell@cathyjo Hi to you and the SLIS 761 students! I spent the day at home today due to icy roads & highwinds in upstate New York.about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	pepteach@cathyjo Hello, U. of So. Carolina! from a sweltering 8 deg in Milwaukee. Still -9 wind chills. about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	fceblog @cathyjo Hi SLIS 761students from cloudy Buenos Aires, Argentina.Hope you enjoy conversation with Cathy. about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	kjarrett@cathyjo Hello SLIS 761 students from Southern New Jersey, USA! about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	kimothymack@Cathyjo Hello from Las Vegas! about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	mrmosesdotorg@cathyjo – Hello from Las Vegas, NV. about 1 hour ago from Snitter in reply to cathyjo
	Deacs84@cathyjo Hello from Hot(currently COLD)Atlanta! about 1 hour ago from Snitter in reply to cathyjo
	nzchrissy@cathyjo Hi SLIS students from Napier, New Zealand about 1 hour ago from twhirl in reply to cathyjo
	chrislehmann@cathyjo Hello from Philadelphia, PA! about 1 hour ago from twitterrific in reply to cathyjo
	LParisi@cathyjo Hello SLIS 761 students. Welcome from Long Island, NY, USA. about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	robinellis@cathyjo hello from PA about 1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo
	alicebarr@cathyjo Hello SLIS 761 students! I’m from Maine about 1 hour ago from Snitter in reply to cathyjo
	kwhobbes@cathyjo Hi SLIS 761 students from really cold Saskatchewan where it’s -38C right now. about 1 hour ago from twhirl in reply to cathyjo
	bknittle@cathyjo Hi SLIS 761 students from Cape Cod Mass about 1 hour ago from Spaz in reply to cathyjo
	Riptide_Furse@cathyjo Hello students in South Carolina from Washington, DC about1 hour ago from web in reply to cathyjo

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Thanks to all of you who answered my tweet for a warm hello this afternoon as I talked with a “School of Library and Information Science” (SLIS) class. They were a graduate class from the University of South Carolina that I was meeting virtually as guest presenter/lecturer. It was really cool to be able to have face to face interactions with my former professor/advisor from 11 years ago, and answer questions from a chatroom forum. USC exposed me to many cutting edge tools as I worked towards my degree in the mid to late 90s, and I can see that they are still cutting bloody edge today, and continue to expose future librarians to the newest tools they’ll want for their school library program. They were really impressed with my network of friends and the international flavor they have! I had a student contact me after the class to tell me she remembered me from my very first teaching job. We taught in the same little school in Bowman, South Carolina, where I taught my first five years. 1986 was such a long time ago. But this walk down memory lane brought back fond memories, so thanks Karen! And thanks Donna Shannon, for allowing me to speak to your class.

What a difference a week makes! Saturday the Edublogger awards were announced, and I was so sure I did not win, I did not even go into Second Life to hear who did, nor did I tap into the many portals made available live (like Edtech Talk, Skype, and others…) You see, as I told all my friends, it was enough to be nominated. I even went out of town on a shopping spree Saturday, and around the time the awards ceremony began, my family was sitting down for a wonderful afternoon (early supper) at Carrabba’s. It was divine, and far more enjoyable. I had a few friends and family asking on Saturday, and they were shocked and dismayed that I wouldn’t stay home long enough to at least log in and see. I assured them my Twitter Network and RSS reader would keep me well informed, so well in fact that I need not worry about it all, but instead enjoy my family. I was not let down.

Congratulations to all the winners, and especially the library blog category, I’m especially pleased it is once again a school library blog. I need not have sour grapes, you see, I know what my authority and rank were in Technorati BEFORE the nominations, and I know what it is now after the nominations, and I know how many commenters I’ve had on my blog, and these statistics (which you can find out yourself with a little work) tell me a story that stands on its own, so there is no need for a pity party about the “loss.” My assistant, another colleague at school, and my sisters were all furious that I would not campaign to win, soliciting for votes from all my networks where I am plugged in and connected. But sorry folks–that is not how I operate. I’ll say it again. It was enough to be nominated. It filled me with immense pleasure and is rewarding all on its own. Wonder how I should put that on my resume?

So I returned to work Monday, doing my thing. I worked two basketball games this week, and made two keepsake memory videos for teachers to document and reflect on school performances. I included students in the second one, having them edit for me, select some pictures to go at the beginning and end, and pick out music to add. I think they learned a lot, and I teased them unmercifully, saying I didn’t like giving out all my secrets—pretty soon they would stop thinking I was amazing!

Anyway, to make this week so very jam up for me, yesterday I received an email invitation from Karl Fisch to participate in an exciting event he will be having at his school in January and February. I have not seen it twittered or posted on his blog, so I’m not sure I’m at liberty to say much else. But know that it is truly a reward for be connected to highly successful educators in the blogosphere. I suppose details about his project that I am joining in will be forthcoming soon, but I don’t mind saying it revolves around Dan Pink’s book A Whole New Mind. I am considering asking our 8th grade teachers to use it as a novel study to go along with Karl’s project. My brain is on OVERTIME! (Side Note: There was a cool DEN Webinar tonight w/ Daniel Pink that was AWESOME!!)

As an added bonus this week, today I get the pleasant (although somewhat embarrassing) surprise of getting mentioned in Doug Johnson’s Blue Skunk Blog where he is answering questions about a former blog post (where he had just opened his OLPC XO.) It is such a novelty, a lot of people are expressing their curiosity by asking questions via his comments. So Doug chose to answer them in another blog post, and what do you know but my DUMB comment is at the top—as I tease about his cat in the picture, and tell a gushy tale of how cute my cat is. <BLUSH> Okay, so not my best side, or even story. But Doug mentioned me none the less. W00t!

This evening I get the email from Joyce Valenza, exclaiming that our panel discussion session for NECC has been accepted! Joyce’s email began like this: “Good news, friends! We’re on for NECC.” Our session will have a panel of “experts” (I can’t believe I’m saying that!); our session title: Feed, Tag, Research: Remixing for School Library 2.5; session description: School librarians are leading learning and instructional change. Discover how we are re-visioning reading, research, and “library” for 21st century students on the Read/Write Web. And I can honestly say we collaborated for days on the topic and description alone. The group panel includes Joyce Valenza, Carolyn Foote, Diane Cordell, Kim Cofino, Anita Beaman, and me. After hearing from Twitter some of the big names who have been turned down, I feel amazed and honored to be with a session that was accepted.

Oooy, my head is getting so big. Don’t put a pin near me, or I might pop. Tomorrow is Friday, and I can’t imagine what kinds of good things it might bring. No time to be sad or depressed though, as I have so much to be thankful for in this week alone! I suddenly feel SO CONNECTED, not only on a local, state, and national level, but also a global level. Daunting, but exciting.

I don’t want to whoop too soon, so just let me end with a tee-tiny “w00t.”

I’ve seen this posted in several blogs I subscribe to today and in several list serves that I am a member of.  When I first saw it, I read it but didn’t really process it.  Then when I saw it in several different locations, I began to pay attention.  Considering my posting to support Global Lib 2.0 this week, here is an awesome opportunity to invite the teachers at my school to jump in the water.  I’m copying and pasting, though I cannot take credit for it. The first place I recall seeing it was on the Teacher Librarian Ning, posted by Karen Kliegman of Albertson, New York.  But what an awesome way to seriously think of ways to implement 2.0 tools?

MidLink Magazine Call for Participation!

You are cordially invited to explore the July-December issue of MidLink Magazine http://www.ncsu.edu/midlink the award-winning magazine for students ages 8 – 18. If you’re looking for ideas for your upcoming year, you’ve come to the right place! Please email the teacher/editors of the projects below you would like to participate in with your students! You and your students are sure to get inspired by the projects created by MidLink Magazine’s teacher-editors:

1. Periodic Table of Podcasts: Have your students add their own scientific podcast to the growing body of information found in this exciting project!

2. Find a Story… Map a Story… Tell a Story: Use emerging digital mapping tools to explore the connection between story, place and community.

3. Science Through the Camera Lens: Study the science found in pictures and then create a multimedia project

4. Tell Me a Story: Learn how to encourage children to accept and celebrate their differences, using digital storytelling

See detailed descriptions below or visit MidLink Magazine at: http://www.ncsu.edu/midlink/

1. Periodic Table of Podcasts

We invite students from any school to participate in the development of the “Periodic Table of Podcasts”. To participate, instructions are provided within this website. There are very easy ways to create audio files in the classroom even if you have only a few computers by using Internet resources such as Podomatic or Odeo. Audio files could be hosted on your school’s server, various Internet resources, or other means. Don’t let the technology get in the way- for help and advise contact the webmaster of this site. All we need is the URL (link) to your students’ audio files, and we can add them to the Periodic Table of Podcasts! If you wish to collaborate regarding your podcast project, e-mail Joselyn Todd, Ph. D.

Project URL: http://tinyurl.com/2ornnn

Contact Teacher Editor, Dr. Joselyn J. Todd, Cary Academy, Cary, NC

2. Find a Story… Map a Story… Tell a Story

This Place-based Stortelling Project invites students to choose a story that matters to them and using an online mapping tool like Community Walk, Wayfaring or Google Maps, create a StoryMap that will place their stories within a geographical context. Using one of these digital mapping tools, students will locate a geographical map from their story location, and add images, audio and text memories to the place markers found on the mapping tool. This project will help students recover lost stories and save and share them so other can enjoy and learn from them. You are invited to browse through the project resources and projects example on this web site and plan to have your classroom participate:

Project URL: http://www.rebooting.ca/place/

Project Coordinator: Brenda Dyck, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Red Deer College (Middle Years’ Program), Red Deer, Alberta

3. Science Through the Camera Lens

Have you ever seen a view of nature or engineering and wondered about the “awesomeness” of it? Did you take a picture of it so you could capture it forever? Florida State University School Science students did just that. They took pictures with a digital camera or a camera phone. Students delivered them to their science teacher via email or on a flash drive. Students studied the science in the pictures then created their multimedia project. Here are their stories…..

Project URL: http://www.fsus.fsu.edu/mcquone/scicam/scicam.html

Teacher Editor, Cathy McQuone, Earth/Space Science Instructor, Florida State University Schools, Tallahassee, Florida

4. Tell Me a Story

Tell Me a Story is a project in which students were asked to contemplate the following essential questions:

How does culture shape the way we see ourselves, others, and the world? How does my culture shape me? Why is it important to understand culture? The purpose of this project is to encourage children to accept and celebrate their differences. We want to help all children develop a positive self-concept and feel proud of whom they are. If this positive sense of self and others is allowed to flourish, today’s children will become adults who accept and affirm differences, identify unfair situations, and strive to eliminate racism of any sort.

Grade levels: K-8

Project URL: http://tinyurl.com/2qnzgr

Teacher Editor: Karen Kliegman, Library Media/Educational Technology Specialist, Searingtown School, Albertson, Adjunct Professor, Long Island University, New York kkliegman@herricks.org

Brenda Dyck, BEd, MET

Senior Editor: MidLink Magazine: http://www.ncsu.edu/midlink/

Sessional Instructor, Faculty of Education, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Red Deer College MiddleYears’ Program, Red Deer, Alberta, Canada

E-mail: dyckba@shaw.ca

Carolyn Foote of the Blog Not So Distant Future has asked the we support Global Library 2.0 Week (which is next week) by sharing ways we will connect with fellow librarians and educators using our web 2.0 tools. My desire is to connect, collaborate, create, reflect, and learn which is similar to Mitch Resnick’s cycle of Kindergarten learning, which is imagine–>create–>play–>share–>reflect–>then start over again with share…Mitch Resnick’s model was shared at NECC07 & BLC07.

This image (thanks Ewan McIntosh for sharing it!) has really gotten in my head this week. Mitch also has another picture of what school typically winds up being, which is really scary, and everything I want to avoid as an educator. I’ll let you go look at it here. So I accept the challenge Carolyn has posted about sharing the ways we will connect to implement the learnings from the professional development opportunities I’ve had (which come from a slew of resources, including my Bloglines, my iTunes (podcasts), my attendance at NECC, and my “virtual” attendance at BLC, just to name a few.)

Here are some ideas I am working on now:

• Booktalk wiki with my friend in Marietta, Ga.
• Classes making videos for TeacherTube this year to share with the world–I hope to connect with a media specialist somewhere to get the kids working together…
• Create a blog for the library (it will be my first year in this school) and get students from across the district, state, and maybe further to participate…
• Collaborate on pathfinders, and make them a part of a wiki project–having media specialist, teachers, and even students make contributions

Lofty goals, I know. Hopefully I’ll successfully implement some of them. Thanks, Carolyn, for this challenge. Sometimes we need to be pushed a little to get some momentum going.

McIntosh, Ewan. “What Kindergarten is Like.” Edublogger’s Photostream. 19 July 2007. 20 Jul 2007 <http://www.flickr.com/photos/edublogger/851051243/>.

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