Agenda
- Announcements:
- AASL - Action Brief: Implementing the CCSS/The Role of the Library Media Specialist
- Update on BCPS/BCPL Partnership Initiatives
- Collection Development Funds
- January 21st PD
- Library Schedules - check out Library Tracks
- Follett Shelf
- Concerns
- Improving Our Professional Practice: Virtual School Libraries
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OBJECTIVE
BCPS school library media specialists will provide members of their school communities with 24/7 access to teaching and learning resources, opportunities, and environments by creating and maintaining vibrant virtual school libraries.
ARTICLES for Discussion
- Can This Website Save Your Library? (THE Journal, November 2013)
How can school libraries—and librarians—stay relevant in a digital era? By building a compelling virtual learning commons that becomes an online destination for students.
- Recommended for further reading:
- 5 Things Every School Library Website Should Have (post from The Adventures of Library Girl Blog)
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Leveraging emerging technologies to create virtual libraries (eSchool News, July 2013)
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Things I Think Teacher Librarians Should Unlearn (NeverEndingSearch, SLJ 201)
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The Virtual Learning Commons - Book by Dr. David Loertscher
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
Why is it VITAL that your school library has a VIBRANT and VISIBLE VIRTUAL PRESENCE?
- The Virtual School Library is an important tool for making visible to all stakeholders the essential roles that YOU and YOUR SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA PROGRAM are serving on a DAILY BASIS in support of district/school goals for teaching/learning and student achievement. It is a way to:
- Extend your effectiveness as a teacher, instructional partner, information specialist, and library program administrator.
- Reach and teach all learners, beyond the four walls of the library media center and in spite of space and time constraints.
- Demonstrate leadership in digital learning in conjunction with the BCPS digital instructional conversion.
- Advocate for your school library program and position in a meaningful way, by providing evidence of their value.
REFLECT on your current practice
Does my school library have a VIBRANT and VISIBLE VIRTUAL PRESENCE?
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A recent review of current BCPS secondary school library websites/wikis shows:
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MOST secondary schools have only a bare-bones Edline/SharpSchool Library page, with a couple of links (Destiny, Databases).
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MANY school library websites/wikis have not been updated this year (Summer Reading stuff, last year's Black-eyed Susans, etc.)
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SOME school library websites/wikis have been updated, but are not rich in content or not well-organized.
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A FEW school websites display NO link to school library information of any kind, or school library Wikis are not public.
- Is your school library Website/wiki ...
- Responsive to the needs of students, teachers, and parents?
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Relevant to students' lives and interests and reflective of school culture and community?
- Engaging in its design and rich in media and digital content?
- Interactive and participatory, with opportunities for user participation?
- Organized for easy navigation and accessibility?
- Dynamic and current, not static or stagnant?
- Connected to/from the school website, Destiny, district resources, social media?
EXPLORE exemplary sites for ideas and inspiration
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Middle School Libraries:
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BCPS:
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Franklin MS (Jeff Flynn) - Edline Library page/ Virtual Library Wiki
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General John Stricker MS (Anna Conner) - Edline Library page/ Virtual Library Wiki
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Sparrows Point MS (Aimee Farrell) - Edline Library page/ Virtual Library Wiki
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Award-winning example: Murray Hill MS Library Media Center (Gwyneth Jones) - See also linked Library Blog and Wiki.
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High School Libraries:
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BCPS:
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Loch Raven HS (Eric Manko) - Edline Library page/ Learning Commons Wiki
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Pikesville HS (Joquetta Johnson) - Virtual Learning Commons/ Direct link on Edline School Homepage
- Woodlawn HS (Rebecca Frager) - Edline Library page/ Virtual Library Wiki
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Award-winning examples: Springfield Township HS Library (Joyce Valenza) | Creekview HS Library (Buffy Hamilton)
GUIDELINES
- Make your Virtual School Library a PUBLIC site. In PBWorks Campus Edition, specific pages/folders can be set for invited users with customized permissions.
- Ensure that a link to your Virtual School Library is PROMINENTLY FEATURED on your school's Website; see school Webmaster/Edline Superuser.
- Contact Bill Groth to have a link to your Virtual School Library site placed on your school's DESTINY Homepage sidebar.
- Model digital citizenship by complying with copyright and citing sources. Use copyright-friendly images and media.
- Check Parental Privacy Preferences before posting student photos/videos or intellectual property. These may be published on your schools' Shared drive. If not, ask your guidance secretary or an administrator.
- DO NOT post Databases home access passwords on a public Website/Wiki. If you have already posted the handout, TAKE IT DOWN.
- DO NOT display URL's; link URL's to article/resource title or keyword.
- Post this disclaimer at the bottom of your wiki's front page:
Disclaimer: The BCPS does not guarantee the accuracy or quality of information located on the telecommunications networks. We have made every reasonable attempt to ensure that our school system’s Web sites are educationally sound and do not contain links to anything that can be deemed in violation of the BCPS telecommunications policy. The linked sites are not under the control of the Baltimore County Public Schools; therefore, BCPS is not responsible for the contents of any linked site, links within the site, or any revisions to such sites. Links from BCPS’ Web sites are provided as a convenience and do not imply an endorsement of the linked Web site.
WEB-PUBLISHING TOOLS
- PBWorks Campus Edition Wiki
- BCPS School Library Wikis were created with the following format (some exceptions; see Kelly if you can't find yours):
schoolnamemslibrary.pbworks.com OR schoolnamehslibrary.pbworks.com. These wikis are in the BCPS Campus Edition License for enhanced folder/page security options. - Please see Fran/Kelly if you need access to your school's library wiki.
- Send Kelly the URL if you have created a different school library Wiki and did NOT upgrade this new Wiki to Campus Edition.
- PBWorks Online Training Wiki (currently under revision)
- Upcoming Training Webinars- PBWorks for Education 101: Your Guide to the Basics
- Thursday, December 19 (7 PM Eastern) | Thursday, January 9 (7 PM Eastern)
- PBWorks HELP | Wiki Etiquette for Students
- Google Site
- Google Sites | Templates - Requires Google account
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Virtual Learning Commons template (Loertscher & Koechlin model) | How to use the template (from the Help Center tab on the template) *See RESOURCES below for more information about the Virtual Learning Commons model.
RESOURCES
- Virtual Learning Commons model (Loertscher & Koechlin)
- Virtual Learning Commons resource wiki | Virtual Learning Commons Workshop
- See also the Virtual Learning Commons assignment page previously used for Cohort/Library Administration course.
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Widgets & Gadgets
- Copyright-friendly Images and Media
- Icons
- Gale databases | Proquest: SIRS Discoverer SKS CultureGrams
- Icons for other databases can be found through Google Image Search; we can use these icons as a licensed subscriber.
- BCPS Digital Content Support Resources: Includes tutorials, direct linking instructions
MUST-HAVES and POSSIBILITIES