Another research report I mined from the surface level of Pew Research (because it was just published in April of this year) is "Teens, Social Media & Technology Overview 2015". Luckily for my sanity's sake, it was only 48 pages long, but just as interesting as my previous pick. This report was so eye-opening. I mean, I see teenagers on their phones all the time, but now I actually know WHAT they're doing based on their age, gender, racial/ethnic background, and socioeconomic status. That's not creepy, right?
Here's the good stuff all nice and packaged in a cute little infographic I made on Piktochart (which can also be access directly here):
Friday, June 12, 2015
How to Read a 114-page Research Report Without Dying
I don't have much experience reading research reports. I mean, REAL research reports, not the ones my sixth graders turn into me. I think I read one for my collection development class during my first semester of working towards my library science degree. But, as I explored the topics in the Teens and Youth section of Pew Research Center this one about digital writing tools really caught my eye.
You see, the district I teach in really pushed for improvement in writing this year due to lackluster performance by seventh graders on the state test. Obviously, the sixth graders aren't doing enough writing, ergo, you'll make them do more and we'll be checking in on you to make sure. So, along with splitting the responsibility with social studies (ELAR teachers are responsible for personal narratives while social studies handles expository essays) the district also voluntold grades 6-12 teachers to pilot a digital writing tool called PEG Writing.
Knowing how my own students reacted to and performed using this digital writing tool, I was curious to see how teachers and students across the nation felt about the tools they'd been using as well. I wondered if my sentiments matched theirs. Even though this report was 114 pages long, I downloaded the PDF to the Kindle app on my iPad mini and settled in to read it because, gosh darn-it, I'm a fast reader and 114 pages ain't nuthin'!
And 30 minutes later, I'm posting on Facebook:
So reading research reports is a little different, mainly because I was stopping to take notes and process everything completely before proceeding because when I read the Summary of Findings section, I knew that I needed to understand the whole process behind how they acquired their data. It was around page 15 that I got into the "zone" and finally started making some really good personal connections and developing some criticisms. Were I to share all the findings here, I'd surely develop carpal tunnel syndrome, but I really want to discuss what was significant to me.
First, let me give you the basics of the study. Pew researchers, via online survey, asked a sample of Advanced Placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) middle and high school teachers of various ages, experience levels, content areas, across the nation their opinions about the use of digital writing tools and the impact those tools have on student learning and the means by which writing is taught. Just under 2,100 teacher surveys were completed. Students in grades nine through twelve also took part in a focus group to gather their opinions about technology, writing and their writing education.
For the most part, teachers felt the digital tools are helpful but still rated their students writing as only "good" or "fair". Keep in mind these are your high-achieving students, enrolled in AP classes or being taught by teachers who have been trained in the arts of National Writing Project techniques and the majority are only being rated as average in writing skills? The actual "normal" kids' writing must be atrocious! I think the researchers were taken aback by these ratings as well because they brought it up a few times. I'd be curious to see who ranked students how, whether it was the AP teachers or the NWP teachers who tended to rank their students lower. Unfortunately these individualized results were not available in this report. On the other hand, I do feel like this is consistent even with my own students. I teach the gifted and talented students. At the end of the year, all the sixth grade ELAR teachers met and rated the last narrative that the students wrote so that we could send a writing sample for each student to the junior high campus to provide seventh grade teachers a glimpse of the students' writing abilities. I noticed that in my own classes (much to my surprise) that only a handful of students ranked in what would be the excellent category, and a few more than that in the very good area, with the majority falling into the good to fair range. Next year, I think I'd like to take down some data for the entire grade level when we do this just to see how the non-advanced kids rate.
In section of the report that defined writing, it was shared that many students don't feel that what they do on social media or via text or blogging is "writing". Rather students tend to think that writing is just "what they do for school." Teachers on the other hand consider formal writing, creative writing, and blogging to be "writing". There was some discussion of teachers capitalizing on the the "micro-blogging" that students write via social media postings as pre-writing, encouraging students to start with that seed idea posted on Twitter or Facebook and expanding on it. I felt like this was a great way to create an idea bank for students for all genres of writing. It's as if using social media is a way to trick kids into writing. When teachers become cognizant of the value of students' interactions on social media, it could so totally be used to their advantage.
An overwhelming majority of teachers ranked writing effectively and judging the quality of information among the most essential skills that students need for the future. These teachers also feel that the inclusion of formal writing assignments is necessary to offset all the informal writing that happens outside of school (texting, social media) and that they must "master all styles of writing in order to be successful across social domains and to communicate with different audiences" (p. 21). However, when you look at the data regarding how much and what type of writing they assign in their classrooms, it doesn't appear that they place an emphasis on writing to learn in their own classrooms (and this mostly applies to teachers of content areas other than English, more so science and math than social studies). I feel like this is hypocritical. "Yes, yes, writing is SO IMPORTANT, but they ain't doin' none of that in my class." My fifth and sixth grade campus is really trying to push for writing in all content areas (including electives) but we still need math and music on board. Baby steps, I guess.
This report is filled with quotes from the teacher participants and I really enjoyed reading these. One quote in particular made me say aloud, "Ohmigod, that's so good" and made my husband stop what he was doing and look at me funny before asking what. Some genius teacher said:
The teachers did acknowledge that digital writing tools provide many benefits for students. These range from allowing students to share their work with a "wider and more varied audience", greater opportunities to express creativity and collaborate with peers and the ability to do so outside the classroom. Something that was alluded to in the report and something that I have witnessed in my own classroom using PEG Writing is that students tend to be more conscientious about the work they produce knowing their classmates will have the ability to view and provide feedback on their writing. You should have seen the excitement when I enabled "peer review" for the first time on PEG Writing. They were so excited to read one another's work and make suggestions. I suppose the novelty of doing it online made it better than trading their handwritten essays with a partner.
Negative aspects of using digital writing tools include the distractability factors involved with technology and that students are more likely to take shortcuts by copying and pasting (thereby committing plagiarism) and put little effort into their writing. I can see both sides of this issue. Depending on the student, technology can be either distracting or engaging. I've offered a laptop to some students to compose on and they've written more than they ever have before, others just sit and play with the cursor. I think it's all about knowing your students and giving them the tools they need to be successful. In regards to plagiarism, I agree with what many teachers stated in the report: explicit instruction about plagiarism and citing sources needs to happen. But this instruction needs to be delivered through meaningful activities that engage the student, not just a lecture of "do this, do that." One teacher asserts that he/she beats plagiarism by designing assignments or projects that make is difficult to plagiarize (p. 44). I think that's the key right there. If your students are working at the most rigorous levels of higher-order thinking skills, plagiarism won't be an option. There's no room for copy-and-paste when you are CREATING FROM SCRATCH.
A section of the report disclosed information about the ages of the teachers who were members of the sample as well as the electronic devices they possess and use both personally and in the classroom. I was surprised to see that many senior-aged teachers (55+) use a wide variety of devices. It has been my experience (at least in my district anyways) that the older teachers are not as comfortable with or willing to learn to use technology. So this is encouraging. Perhaps because technology has become so ingrained in essentially every aspect of our lives that they've decided to stop fighting it and become one with the tech.
Something else curious about age and digital writing tools use is, according to the report's data, the middle school students are using the tools more than the high school students are. I have to wonder if this has something to do with high stakes testing and the focus of prepping those younger students for the tests they'll take in high school. Another reason could be an engagement factor. Middle school kids are typically hormonal messes and maybe sticking a keyboard in their hands is the only way to get them to be productive when it comes to writing.
Another concern with writing instruction concerns digital literacy. We expect students to come to us knowing all about how to use computers (surely they know at least as much as us, right?) but the reality is, the differences in technology experience vary greatly. This, of course, directly correlates to the access students have to technology. Those who haven't grown up with technology in their hands from a very young age are at a disadvantage. They'll have to be taught explicitly how to navigate the features of writing programs because it's very possible that their only experience with technology has been limited to what they've done at school. This school year I had a set of super-smart, exceedingly creative twin girls who DID NOT KNOW HOW TO COPY AND PASTE. I was floored, but I taught them how and they finished their infographics, but not as well as some of the other more tech-savvy kids. My opinion is, if the nation truly wants its schools to produce 21st century learners, they better make sure ALL students have access. Some of the teachers in the report stated their rural locations didn't get internet. How is that a thing in this day and age?
Another access issue referred to in the report was that of district policies regarding prohibiting the possession and/or use of cell phones at school and the web filtering of social media or other sites that can be used free-of-charge (like Google Docs) to support writing instruction via digital tools. This last school year, my district rolled out Bring Your Own Device to the junior high and high schools. According to the superintendent, this was a successful endeavor and it may even trickle down to the intermediate level. I look forward to allowing students to use their devices for learning in my classroom, but I know some of my co-workers feel the complete opposite (insisting that it's just asking for trouble). My district has not yet opened the web filters to social media use for students (or teachers for that matter, in fact, if someone posts on Facebook during school, people get all crazy). I think they are afraid of giving them too much of a voice, but I don't think they realize how much of a benefit this could be for student writing.
Armed with the knowledge I've gained in this report, I feel I can start a conversation with administration about making these sorts of changes. Included at the end of the report was the survey the researchers used in the focus group with the students. I really liked the questions they asked and felt the information collected from the students would be useful in assessing the frame of mind about writing the sixth grade students at my campus possess. My plan is to modify their survey and have students take it at the beginning of the school year to collect data to improve the methods we use for teaching writing.
References:
Purcell, K. (2013). The impact of digital tools on student writing and how writing is taught in schools (Research Report). Retrieved from Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project website: http://www.pewinternet.org/files/old-media//Files/Reports/2013/PIP_NWP%20Writing%20and%20Tech.pdf
You see, the district I teach in really pushed for improvement in writing this year due to lackluster performance by seventh graders on the state test. Obviously, the sixth graders aren't doing enough writing, ergo, you'll make them do more and we'll be checking in on you to make sure. So, along with splitting the responsibility with social studies (ELAR teachers are responsible for personal narratives while social studies handles expository essays) the district also voluntold grades 6-12 teachers to pilot a digital writing tool called PEG Writing.
Knowing how my own students reacted to and performed using this digital writing tool, I was curious to see how teachers and students across the nation felt about the tools they'd been using as well. I wondered if my sentiments matched theirs. Even though this report was 114 pages long, I downloaded the PDF to the Kindle app on my iPad mini and settled in to read it because, gosh darn-it, I'm a fast reader and 114 pages ain't nuthin'!
And 30 minutes later, I'm posting on Facebook:
So reading research reports is a little different, mainly because I was stopping to take notes and process everything completely before proceeding because when I read the Summary of Findings section, I knew that I needed to understand the whole process behind how they acquired their data. It was around page 15 that I got into the "zone" and finally started making some really good personal connections and developing some criticisms. Were I to share all the findings here, I'd surely develop carpal tunnel syndrome, but I really want to discuss what was significant to me.
First, let me give you the basics of the study. Pew researchers, via online survey, asked a sample of Advanced Placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) middle and high school teachers of various ages, experience levels, content areas, across the nation their opinions about the use of digital writing tools and the impact those tools have on student learning and the means by which writing is taught. Just under 2,100 teacher surveys were completed. Students in grades nine through twelve also took part in a focus group to gather their opinions about technology, writing and their writing education.
For the most part, teachers felt the digital tools are helpful but still rated their students writing as only "good" or "fair". Keep in mind these are your high-achieving students, enrolled in AP classes or being taught by teachers who have been trained in the arts of National Writing Project techniques and the majority are only being rated as average in writing skills? The actual "normal" kids' writing must be atrocious! I think the researchers were taken aback by these ratings as well because they brought it up a few times. I'd be curious to see who ranked students how, whether it was the AP teachers or the NWP teachers who tended to rank their students lower. Unfortunately these individualized results were not available in this report. On the other hand, I do feel like this is consistent even with my own students. I teach the gifted and talented students. At the end of the year, all the sixth grade ELAR teachers met and rated the last narrative that the students wrote so that we could send a writing sample for each student to the junior high campus to provide seventh grade teachers a glimpse of the students' writing abilities. I noticed that in my own classes (much to my surprise) that only a handful of students ranked in what would be the excellent category, and a few more than that in the very good area, with the majority falling into the good to fair range. Next year, I think I'd like to take down some data for the entire grade level when we do this just to see how the non-advanced kids rate.
In section of the report that defined writing, it was shared that many students don't feel that what they do on social media or via text or blogging is "writing". Rather students tend to think that writing is just "what they do for school." Teachers on the other hand consider formal writing, creative writing, and blogging to be "writing". There was some discussion of teachers capitalizing on the the "micro-blogging" that students write via social media postings as pre-writing, encouraging students to start with that seed idea posted on Twitter or Facebook and expanding on it. I felt like this was a great way to create an idea bank for students for all genres of writing. It's as if using social media is a way to trick kids into writing. When teachers become cognizant of the value of students' interactions on social media, it could so totally be used to their advantage.
An overwhelming majority of teachers ranked writing effectively and judging the quality of information among the most essential skills that students need for the future. These teachers also feel that the inclusion of formal writing assignments is necessary to offset all the informal writing that happens outside of school (texting, social media) and that they must "master all styles of writing in order to be successful across social domains and to communicate with different audiences" (p. 21). However, when you look at the data regarding how much and what type of writing they assign in their classrooms, it doesn't appear that they place an emphasis on writing to learn in their own classrooms (and this mostly applies to teachers of content areas other than English, more so science and math than social studies). I feel like this is hypocritical. "Yes, yes, writing is SO IMPORTANT, but they ain't doin' none of that in my class." My fifth and sixth grade campus is really trying to push for writing in all content areas (including electives) but we still need math and music on board. Baby steps, I guess.
This report is filled with quotes from the teacher participants and I really enjoyed reading these. One quote in particular made me say aloud, "Ohmigod, that's so good" and made my husband stop what he was doing and look at me funny before asking what. Some genius teacher said:
"Inability to write formal texts potentially robs students of voice and power." (p. 22)
Immediately I jotted this gospel down and made a personal note to put this on a giant poster to hang in my classroom. What a powerful statement and true, so true! I don't think we as teachers (and students certainly don't or they'd be begging to learn how to write better) realize the truth in those words. It doesn't occur to us. I'm so glad it occurred to the teacher that said it. Another astute teacher posited that all the many skills involved in research and writing "help students become more critical citizens, more discerning consumers, and better problem-solvers" (p. 22). I am forever encouraging my students to problem solve BECAUSE. THEY. CAN'T. And won't for that matter. "I don't have a pencil!" "Problem solve." "My part of the project is sitting on my kitchen table." "Problem solve." Most of the time they figure it out. Sometimes a classmate has to help them, but unless they are just completely helpless (::eye roll::) they can manage, some even holding up their solution and exclaiming, "Look! I problem solved!"The teachers did acknowledge that digital writing tools provide many benefits for students. These range from allowing students to share their work with a "wider and more varied audience", greater opportunities to express creativity and collaborate with peers and the ability to do so outside the classroom. Something that was alluded to in the report and something that I have witnessed in my own classroom using PEG Writing is that students tend to be more conscientious about the work they produce knowing their classmates will have the ability to view and provide feedback on their writing. You should have seen the excitement when I enabled "peer review" for the first time on PEG Writing. They were so excited to read one another's work and make suggestions. I suppose the novelty of doing it online made it better than trading their handwritten essays with a partner.
Negative aspects of using digital writing tools include the distractability factors involved with technology and that students are more likely to take shortcuts by copying and pasting (thereby committing plagiarism) and put little effort into their writing. I can see both sides of this issue. Depending on the student, technology can be either distracting or engaging. I've offered a laptop to some students to compose on and they've written more than they ever have before, others just sit and play with the cursor. I think it's all about knowing your students and giving them the tools they need to be successful. In regards to plagiarism, I agree with what many teachers stated in the report: explicit instruction about plagiarism and citing sources needs to happen. But this instruction needs to be delivered through meaningful activities that engage the student, not just a lecture of "do this, do that." One teacher asserts that he/she beats plagiarism by designing assignments or projects that make is difficult to plagiarize (p. 44). I think that's the key right there. If your students are working at the most rigorous levels of higher-order thinking skills, plagiarism won't be an option. There's no room for copy-and-paste when you are CREATING FROM SCRATCH.
A section of the report disclosed information about the ages of the teachers who were members of the sample as well as the electronic devices they possess and use both personally and in the classroom. I was surprised to see that many senior-aged teachers (55+) use a wide variety of devices. It has been my experience (at least in my district anyways) that the older teachers are not as comfortable with or willing to learn to use technology. So this is encouraging. Perhaps because technology has become so ingrained in essentially every aspect of our lives that they've decided to stop fighting it and become one with the tech.
Something else curious about age and digital writing tools use is, according to the report's data, the middle school students are using the tools more than the high school students are. I have to wonder if this has something to do with high stakes testing and the focus of prepping those younger students for the tests they'll take in high school. Another reason could be an engagement factor. Middle school kids are typically hormonal messes and maybe sticking a keyboard in their hands is the only way to get them to be productive when it comes to writing.
Another concern with writing instruction concerns digital literacy. We expect students to come to us knowing all about how to use computers (surely they know at least as much as us, right?) but the reality is, the differences in technology experience vary greatly. This, of course, directly correlates to the access students have to technology. Those who haven't grown up with technology in their hands from a very young age are at a disadvantage. They'll have to be taught explicitly how to navigate the features of writing programs because it's very possible that their only experience with technology has been limited to what they've done at school. This school year I had a set of super-smart, exceedingly creative twin girls who DID NOT KNOW HOW TO COPY AND PASTE. I was floored, but I taught them how and they finished their infographics, but not as well as some of the other more tech-savvy kids. My opinion is, if the nation truly wants its schools to produce 21st century learners, they better make sure ALL students have access. Some of the teachers in the report stated their rural locations didn't get internet. How is that a thing in this day and age?
Another access issue referred to in the report was that of district policies regarding prohibiting the possession and/or use of cell phones at school and the web filtering of social media or other sites that can be used free-of-charge (like Google Docs) to support writing instruction via digital tools. This last school year, my district rolled out Bring Your Own Device to the junior high and high schools. According to the superintendent, this was a successful endeavor and it may even trickle down to the intermediate level. I look forward to allowing students to use their devices for learning in my classroom, but I know some of my co-workers feel the complete opposite (insisting that it's just asking for trouble). My district has not yet opened the web filters to social media use for students (or teachers for that matter, in fact, if someone posts on Facebook during school, people get all crazy). I think they are afraid of giving them too much of a voice, but I don't think they realize how much of a benefit this could be for student writing.
Armed with the knowledge I've gained in this report, I feel I can start a conversation with administration about making these sorts of changes. Included at the end of the report was the survey the researchers used in the focus group with the students. I really liked the questions they asked and felt the information collected from the students would be useful in assessing the frame of mind about writing the sixth grade students at my campus possess. My plan is to modify their survey and have students take it at the beginning of the school year to collect data to improve the methods we use for teaching writing.
References:
Purcell, K. (2013). The impact of digital tools on student writing and how writing is taught in schools (Research Report). Retrieved from Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project website: http://www.pewinternet.org/files/old-media//Files/Reports/2013/PIP_NWP%20Writing%20and%20Tech.pdf
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
The Magic of the Ed Tech Twitterati
I'm going to be honest: Twitter confused me at first and I didn't want to use it. I created a personal account years ago because I wanted to ask Neil Gaiman a question that my students pondered while reading The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish. I died when he answered me. After printing off his response to show my students, I explored the Twitter phone app, even tweeted to Neil one more time (died again when he responded), followed a few people, checked my Twitter feed every other day for about a year and then just stopped using it when I had upgraded my phone and decided against re-downloading the app. Maybe it's because I'm a Facebook junkie and the hashtags and at-signs and retweets overwhelmed me. I think really it's because I didn't take the time to explore Twitter in a meaningful way. As I've checked out the profiles and tweets of these education technology leaders, I've realized that the Twitterverse isn't as scary as I thought and that these individuals share some pretty amazing stuff with the world. Here are some of my favorite tweets from leaders in the ed tech world.
This lady is an Apple product aficionado! She appears to live and breathe all things ed tech, I'm so impressed by her knowledge and passion. While she is a huge proponent of Apple products, she also tweets about tips, tricks, and reviews on a range of products, apps, and ideas. I can't wait to explore her blogs and entire social media footprint as well. I'm really in awe of how these individuals have gained all this knowledge. She's been a librarian and educator for such a long time and is truly committed to learning all there is to know about her profession. My favorite tweet of hers was actually a #tbt of a library orientation video she filmed in 1984! It was just precious and you should really take the time to watch all 12 minutes and 37 seconds of it. Two words: Eighties. Glory.
If it's education issues and ed tech ideas you're after, Linda Braun's Twitter feed is the place to be. I shared at least two links with my science partner and one with my math partner before even getting out of May's tweets! Just browsing through her posts and seeing the diversity of educational topics about which she posts leads me to believe that she is just exceedingly passionate about education and what's best for kids and I really like that because it echos my district's motto of "Every Student Is Worth My Best". The tweet I honed in on was one for the Free Summer Math Program sponsored by Amazon. My son struggles with math and after learning his STAAR Math results for the year, I worried about how to help him prepare for what's coming in sixth grade. I've signed him up for this program and hope it along with some tutoring will get him where he needs to be mathematically. I also immediately shared the link on my Facebook page. So excited about Linda Braun!
She has a TARDIS on her cover photo. SHE HAS A TARDIS ON HER COVER PHOTO! What's not to love about her already? Gwyneth Jones is a hip, hip lady. Her tweets range from pop culture happenings, to adorable Vines and pics of students, to lifted lines from books she's read and recommends. She's a nerd and seems to like pretty much everything I do, so obviously I want to be besties with her, but she doesn't know I exist so that might put a damper on things. Naturally I had trouble choosing a favorite tweet. While the "Where's Andre?" Project Runway video (which I've already watch millions of times and is a joke amongst my friends and I) and the Google Art Project link were very tempting, the tweet that most spoke to me most was the "Open Letter to Principals Before You Hire a New School Librarian". My campus librarian unexpectedly had to retire a year earlier than anticipated. My school's policy is to only hire highly qualified applicants when available. They were available. So I will be moving on to a different campus when I complete my degree, something I never really thought I'd have to do. I wish I would have been able to share this with my principal and the other administrator responsible for hiring the librarian. On the upside, I have some insight in how to sell myself in an interview.
I gotta be honest. My first impression of this guy is that he kind of comes off as car salesman to me. I think that may be due in part to the fact that a big part of his tweeting is focused on his own products and articles. He is marketing himself and trying to make a buck, I get that. This sort of blatant self-promotion wasn't present on the other Twitter accounts I reviewed and it put me off a bit. Tony Vincent seems to be an Apple guy as well, with many tweets about iPads in the classroom He also offers some pretty cool tips and tricks for both PC and Apple products. For instance, I learned how to activate voice search on Google Chrome and was dazzled! I called my 10-year-old son in to show him what I could do and he was like, "Uh.. yeah. I already knew that." Guess I'll have to try to wow my husband when he comes home from work instead. But the best tweet of all was a short and sweet plug for an Online STEAM and Arts Conference. My science partner and I are writing a grant to bring an Art Lab into our campus and have been looking for some relevant professional development for months! This is the answer! Thanks Tony Vincent!
Bottom Line: What a fool I've been putting Twitter on the backburner! So beyond excited right now to continue exploring!
Buffy Hamilton -- @buffyjhamilton
As she tweeted herself June 1, “May was hell”. It breaks my heart to see that this library
world leader (who I discovered in my first semester of MLS studies and fell IN
LOVE with) is struggling with receiving the expected degree of professionalism in health care for
her father who appears to be suffering from numerous health issues. Before his health and hospital stay escalated into the stage it is now, she retweeted from DMLCentral (a blog she frequently contributes to) regarding "Collaborative Thinking Through Writing". I was so inspired after reading this blog post because it shared a creative way to get kids to think about research by connecting it to the literature they're reading and how to get them to come up with research topics and eventually research questions. Seeing the wonderful activities she helps to implement, makes the possibility of becoming a librarian at the high school level seem not as intimidating to me.
New DMLcentral post: Collaborative Thinking Through Writing, #Libraries, Markerboards http://t.co/7mcCDZQVYU by @buffyjhamilton
— DML Research Hub (@dmlresearchhub) May 7, 2015
Jim Lerman -- @jimlerman
Never heard of Jim Lerman until I explored his Twitter profile. Only got to the last week of May's tweets before my heart started fluttering and I got really excited about all the cool stuff he posts about free stuff for teachers and great ideas for learning! I CAN'T WAIT to share him with my co-workers! I mean, it's only the first Wednesday of summer break and I want to inundate the teachers in my school with his educational delights! The first one that I came across and checked out was this free e-book with writing prompts galore! In my department, we struggle to find relevant and fun writing prompts and these are so engaging. I felt like I hit the lottery with this find! I'll be spending the majority of my free time poring through his 12,800 tweets to see what I've missed! Holy!
Free Technology for Teachers: Dozens of Story Starters in One Free eBook * by Richard Byrne http://t.co/hyJA2CkDhM pic.twitter.com/8igLlBjikR
— Jim Lerman (@jimlerman) June 1, 2015
Kathy Schrock -- @kathyschrock
This lady is an Apple product aficionado! She appears to live and breathe all things ed tech, I'm so impressed by her knowledge and passion. While she is a huge proponent of Apple products, she also tweets about tips, tricks, and reviews on a range of products, apps, and ideas. I can't wait to explore her blogs and entire social media footprint as well. I'm really in awe of how these individuals have gained all this knowledge. She's been a librarian and educator for such a long time and is truly committed to learning all there is to know about her profession. My favorite tweet of hers was actually a #tbt of a library orientation video she filmed in 1984! It was just precious and you should really take the time to watch all 12 minutes and 37 seconds of it. Two words: Eighties. Glory.
Worst school library orientation video ever by a librarian with really big hair! :-) https://t.co/xntADv8Kaw
— Kathy Schrock (@kathyschrock) May 2, 2015
Linda Braun -- @lbraun2000
If it's education issues and ed tech ideas you're after, Linda Braun's Twitter feed is the place to be. I shared at least two links with my science partner and one with my math partner before even getting out of May's tweets! Just browsing through her posts and seeing the diversity of educational topics about which she posts leads me to believe that she is just exceedingly passionate about education and what's best for kids and I really like that because it echos my district's motto of "Every Student Is Worth My Best". The tweet I honed in on was one for the Free Summer Math Program sponsored by Amazon. My son struggles with math and after learning his STAAR Math results for the year, I worried about how to help him prepare for what's coming in sixth grade. I've signed him up for this program and hope it along with some tutoring will get him where he needs to be mathematically. I also immediately shared the link on my Facebook page. So excited about Linda Braun!
Amazon's Free Summer Math Program Starts May 19 http://t.co/sHvdlXAFD5 cc: @TweetsByTwito
— Linda W Braun (@lbraun2000) May 14, 2015
The Daring Librarian -- @GwynethJones
She has a TARDIS on her cover photo. SHE HAS A TARDIS ON HER COVER PHOTO! What's not to love about her already? Gwyneth Jones is a hip, hip lady. Her tweets range from pop culture happenings, to adorable Vines and pics of students, to lifted lines from books she's read and recommends. She's a nerd and seems to like pretty much everything I do, so obviously I want to be besties with her, but she doesn't know I exist so that might put a damper on things. Naturally I had trouble choosing a favorite tweet. While the "Where's Andre?" Project Runway video (which I've already watch millions of times and is a joke amongst my friends and I) and the Google Art Project link were very tempting, the tweet that most spoke to me most was the "Open Letter to Principals Before You Hire a New School Librarian". My campus librarian unexpectedly had to retire a year earlier than anticipated. My school's policy is to only hire highly qualified applicants when available. They were available. So I will be moving on to a different campus when I complete my degree, something I never really thought I'd have to do. I wish I would have been able to share this with my principal and the other administrator responsible for hiring the librarian. On the upside, I have some insight in how to sell myself in an interview.
An Open Letter To Principals Before You Hire A New School Librarian by @jenniferlagarde http://t.co/7lYKePJ780 pic.twitter.com/8QEUO2JQlz
— The Daring Librarian (@GwynethJones) May 28, 2015
Tony Vincent -- @tonyvincent
I gotta be honest. My first impression of this guy is that he kind of comes off as car salesman to me. I think that may be due in part to the fact that a big part of his tweeting is focused on his own products and articles. He is marketing himself and trying to make a buck, I get that. This sort of blatant self-promotion wasn't present on the other Twitter accounts I reviewed and it put me off a bit. Tony Vincent seems to be an Apple guy as well, with many tweets about iPads in the classroom He also offers some pretty cool tips and tricks for both PC and Apple products. For instance, I learned how to activate voice search on Google Chrome and was dazzled! I called my 10-year-old son in to show him what I could do and he was like, "Uh.. yeah. I already knew that." Guess I'll have to try to wow my husband when he comes home from work instead. But the best tweet of all was a short and sweet plug for an Online STEAM and Arts Conference. My science partner and I are writing a grant to bring an Art Lab into our campus and have been looking for some relevant professional development for months! This is the answer! Thanks Tony Vincent!
💥 Save Your Seat with @kleinerin: #STEAM & Arts Online Conference (8 PD Hours 15+ Sessions): http://t.co/P4UzxUK71b
— Tony Vincent (@tonyvincent) May 28, 2015
Bottom Line: What a fool I've been putting Twitter on the backburner! So beyond excited right now to continue exploring!
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Using Facebook to Promote School Libraries
As likely the most tech-savvy faculty members on school campuses, it only makes sense that some school librarians turn to the most popular social media platform to communicate the goings on of their libraries. Over a billion people use Facebook on a monthly basis and 382,000 likes occur every minute (McCarthy, 2014). With that much traffic I wonder how could a school library NOT create a Facebook page to share all the amazing things that happen within its walls and among its shelves, events about which students, parents, teachers, or even the community in general hasn't the foggiest?
I searched Facebook and came up with a sampling of six school library pages from different regions in the United States and two each from the elementary, middle school, and high school levels. Although all six pages share some similarities in some of their posts, it's plain to see which librarians are at an expert level in their Facebook promotional measures and which are still at the fledgling phase.
All of the libraries used Facebook to spread the word and encourage interest in library-sponsored events. Book Fair was the most common event to be promoted, which is no surprise because it's a huge fundraiser for the library and one that usually already gets a good amount of participation in most schools. Most of the pages utilized Facebook to remind students that library books were due, some even used clever memes (Rayburn Middle School and Islip High School) or videos (Curry Elementary School) to get this point across to Facebookers. Surprisingly, not as many book recommendations wound up on the Facebook pages as I would have expected. Summer reading programs (or even hours of operation during the summer for the library of Pocola Elementary School) were discussed on a few pages. Some posted data regarding how many books were checked out, which were most popular, and Goldenview Middle School actually updated users with stats for a campus reading competition. A couple of the school libraries including Moreau Catholic High School and Islip High School are very much into the "maker movement" and have "maker faires" in which students can show off the products they make and the results of these faires and solicitation for participation was communicated on the libraries' Facebook pages.
Of the six samples I viewed, the Facebook pages that I felt were consistently updated with relevant information most frequently were Rayburn and Islip. I learned so much about what these libraries value and the experiences their users enjoy from their Facebook posts (not to mention a slew of ideas)! A library account I found still in the early stages was Pocola. After viewing the posts on this page, I got the impression that the librarian was struggling with separating the use of the page to promote the library and herself. The majority of the posts related to the library in some way, but she also posted some things that I thought would be better suited for a personal page. For instance, she posted gifts and the names of the students that gave them to her, I thought that was a little tacky. I know she was probably just trying to show her gratitude by acknowledging them publicly on social media. My school district is very strict about sharing photos of students on Facebook, perhaps her district is more lax about this. She also discussed books she was rereading that were not appropriate to her library's grade level (PK-5). The books she pictured and discussed are young adult pieces. I wish I could tell her to do this assignment without being tacky myself.
I believe Facebook is an excellent method of marketing a school library. The grade level you serve determines the potential of the audience size you reach. Obviously in an elementary setting your primary audience will be parents, staff members, and interested community members, maybe perhaps the exceptional (yet underage) student who has either a) had a parent create a Facebook account for him/herself or b) secretly created an account on his/her own. Student participation on a library Facebook page is likely to increase at the middle and high school levels as the ownership of Facebook accounts increase. The key to using Facebook for library promotion is to get the word out about it. Let people know it exists in newsletters, morning announcements, posters, bookmarks, etc. Entice them with giveaways for sharing posts, checking in, or using unique hashtags. I saw very little interactions in the form of likes, comments, or shares on these school library pages. I know it bums me out when no one likes or comments on a post on my personal Facebook page, I can only imagine how fruitless a librarian's efforts must feel when no one likes or comments on a post she carefully considered and crafted for her school library page. That's the only disadvantage I can see with library promotion via Facebook: working hard to upkeep and update with little to no interaction from Facebookland.
References:
McCarthy, N. (2014, October). Facebook versus Twitter in numbers [Infographic]. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2014/10/14/facebook-versus-twitter-infographic/
I searched Facebook and came up with a sampling of six school library pages from different regions in the United States and two each from the elementary, middle school, and high school levels. Although all six pages share some similarities in some of their posts, it's plain to see which librarians are at an expert level in their Facebook promotional measures and which are still at the fledgling phase.
All of the libraries used Facebook to spread the word and encourage interest in library-sponsored events. Book Fair was the most common event to be promoted, which is no surprise because it's a huge fundraiser for the library and one that usually already gets a good amount of participation in most schools. Most of the pages utilized Facebook to remind students that library books were due, some even used clever memes (Rayburn Middle School and Islip High School) or videos (Curry Elementary School) to get this point across to Facebookers. Surprisingly, not as many book recommendations wound up on the Facebook pages as I would have expected. Summer reading programs (or even hours of operation during the summer for the library of Pocola Elementary School) were discussed on a few pages. Some posted data regarding how many books were checked out, which were most popular, and Goldenview Middle School actually updated users with stats for a campus reading competition. A couple of the school libraries including Moreau Catholic High School and Islip High School are very much into the "maker movement" and have "maker faires" in which students can show off the products they make and the results of these faires and solicitation for participation was communicated on the libraries' Facebook pages.
Of the six samples I viewed, the Facebook pages that I felt were consistently updated with relevant information most frequently were Rayburn and Islip. I learned so much about what these libraries value and the experiences their users enjoy from their Facebook posts (not to mention a slew of ideas)! A library account I found still in the early stages was Pocola. After viewing the posts on this page, I got the impression that the librarian was struggling with separating the use of the page to promote the library and herself. The majority of the posts related to the library in some way, but she also posted some things that I thought would be better suited for a personal page. For instance, she posted gifts and the names of the students that gave them to her, I thought that was a little tacky. I know she was probably just trying to show her gratitude by acknowledging them publicly on social media. My school district is very strict about sharing photos of students on Facebook, perhaps her district is more lax about this. She also discussed books she was rereading that were not appropriate to her library's grade level (PK-5). The books she pictured and discussed are young adult pieces. I wish I could tell her to do this assignment without being tacky myself.
I believe Facebook is an excellent method of marketing a school library. The grade level you serve determines the potential of the audience size you reach. Obviously in an elementary setting your primary audience will be parents, staff members, and interested community members, maybe perhaps the exceptional (yet underage) student who has either a) had a parent create a Facebook account for him/herself or b) secretly created an account on his/her own. Student participation on a library Facebook page is likely to increase at the middle and high school levels as the ownership of Facebook accounts increase. The key to using Facebook for library promotion is to get the word out about it. Let people know it exists in newsletters, morning announcements, posters, bookmarks, etc. Entice them with giveaways for sharing posts, checking in, or using unique hashtags. I saw very little interactions in the form of likes, comments, or shares on these school library pages. I know it bums me out when no one likes or comments on a post on my personal Facebook page, I can only imagine how fruitless a librarian's efforts must feel when no one likes or comments on a post she carefully considered and crafted for her school library page. That's the only disadvantage I can see with library promotion via Facebook: working hard to upkeep and update with little to no interaction from Facebookland.
References:
McCarthy, N. (2014, October). Facebook versus Twitter in numbers [Infographic]. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2014/10/14/facebook-versus-twitter-infographic/
Thursday, April 30, 2015
Fifty Books, Five Lists
In addition to the required reading, I read ten books from each of the following lists or categories for a total of fifty:
- Coretta Scott King Award
- Pura Belpre Award
- Geisel Award
- The Best Graphic Novels for Your Children
- Poetry Books
After reading each book, I created one master list of citations and annotations before sorting them into five separate lists to have available at various reading night events throughout a school year.
My lists are as follows:
- Books about real people who have contributed to the world
- Halloween books
- Books for early readers (grades K-2)
- Books for tweens (grades 3-6)
- Books in which the characters face adversity
You are invited to check out the flyers I made for these lists at the link below:
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Assignment 6
The link below will take you to a document in which I discuss how two books would appeal to readers in my library.
Assignment Six
Summaries of the two books used for this assignment:
Creech, S. (2001). Love that dog. New York: Joanna Cotler Books.
At the beginning of the book, Jack is very resistant to the idea of writing poetry. As he receives praise from his teacher for his poems however, his attitude starts to change. He writes a poem called "Love That Dog" about the death of his dog and inspired by Walter Dean Myers' poem "Love that Boy". Jack continues to write poetry and Walter Dean Myers gets invited to the school for an author visit. The author actually comes to his school and Jack is over the moon.
Selznick, B. (2011). Wonderstruck. New York: Scholastic.
Assignment Six
Summaries of the two books used for this assignment:
Creech, S. (2001). Love that dog. New York: Joanna Cotler Books.At the beginning of the book, Jack is very resistant to the idea of writing poetry. As he receives praise from his teacher for his poems however, his attitude starts to change. He writes a poem called "Love That Dog" about the death of his dog and inspired by Walter Dean Myers' poem "Love that Boy". Jack continues to write poetry and Walter Dean Myers gets invited to the school for an author visit. The author actually comes to his school and Jack is over the moon.
Selznick, B. (2011). Wonderstruck. New York: Scholastic.
Ben
recently lost his mother and is staying with family. One night he is struck by lightning and goes
deaf in both ears. After recovering in a
hospital, he decides to run away to New York to locate the father he never
knew. When his plan fizzles, he visits a
museum, makes a friend, and discovers some connections to his father. The clues add up and he winds up meeting his
paternal grandmother by accident who shares with him the story of his long-lost
father.
Friday, April 10, 2015
Fantasy Books!
The infographic below shows how I evaluated five fantasy books for the criteria of character, setting, plot, theme, and style.
Summaries for each of the books in the fantasy collection:
Collins, S. (2003) Gregor the Overlander. New York: Scholastic.
Gaiman, N. (2008). The graveyard book. New York: HarperCollins.
Holm, J. and M. (2014). Comics Squad: Recess. New York: Random House.
Landy, D. (2007). Skulduggery Pleasant: Scepter of the Ancients. New York: Bowen Press.
Summaries for each of the books in the fantasy collection:
Collins, S. (2003) Gregor the Overlander. New York: Scholastic.
After falling down a laundry chute, Gregor finds himself
(and baby sister Boots) in the strange Underland, a place inhabited by giant
cockroaches, an evolved race of humans who fly atop huge bats, and big, deadly
rats. He soon learns that he is the
chosen one in a prophecy and that his father, who disappeared more than two
years ago is being held captive by the rats.
Gregor agrees to endure a treacherous quest that simultaneously fulfills
the prophecy and rescues his father.
When the quest is successfully achieved, balance is restored to the realm
and the family returns home.
Gaiman, N. (2008). The graveyard book. New York: HarperCollins.
Bod's family was murdered by The Man Jack was he was just a toddling babe. He managed to escape the carnage by wandering out of the house and into a nearby graveyard. The ghosts of the graveyard took him in and raised him as their own child. As he grows up in the graveyard, he learns many of the spirits' skills. He even befriends a human girl named Scarlett. Even though many years have passed, The Man Jack is still looking for him. Bod defeats The Man Jack and his other Jack counterparts.
Hale, S. and D. (2008). Rapunzel's Revenge. New York: Bloomsbury.
Rapunzel was given to Mother Goethel as a very young child because her birth parents stole from her garden. The child is being groomed to take over Mother Goethel's empire once she dies. Rapunzel discovers her birth mother is a slave for Mother Goethel. Determined to free her mother, Rapunzel escape the prisons Mother Goethel creates for her. After one escape, she meets Jack and the two team up to take down Mother Goethel having many adventures along the way. They learn what controls Mother Goethel's power and create a plan to take her down.
Holm, J. and M. (2014). Comics Squad: Recess. New York: Random House.
A collection of short, mostly fantastical stories fills the pages of this book. A kid takes his admittance to a super-secret ninja club too far. A cat tries to make the world a dumber place by zapping all the words out of books. A couple of squirrels debate the authenticity of a magic acorn. Baby Mouse tries to earn recess but the odds are not in her favor. A cupcake and peanut take on school yard bullies in a game of freeze tag. Rained out recess means a class of fifth graders must find an alternative activity to cure their boredom.
Landy, D. (2007). Skulduggery Pleasant: Scepter of the Ancients. New York: Bowen Press.
At her uncle's funeral, Stephanie meets a stranger who shows her the very world that led to her uncle's death. Skulduggery Pleasant is a walking, talking magical skeleton that solves mysteries in the magical realm from which he hails. Together, Stephanie and Skulduggery vow to find out why her uncle was targeted. While on this adventure, Stephanie finds out she has the ability to perform magic and more courage than she knew she could fathom. She stands up to the heavies in this realm, thwarting a hostile takeover and uncovering the secret of her uncle's demise.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)