Schools Need 21st Century Materials And Resources

For libraries to remain a place for a lively exchange of ideas, librarians should be armed with the right knowledge and strong conviction to preserve people’s rights.

The author starts off with a rhetorical question: “What kind of problem is a library?” urging the readers to think about this question as they continue to read the article. The question grabs the readers’ attention, and intrigues them to read on to find and answer. She further utilizes this technique of rhetorical questions throughout the article for the same purpose of emphasis on the vitality of the role of public libraries. Moreover, Smith extensively employs the use of metaphors and personification. For example, she describes the internet as libraries’ “universal death knell”, which portrays the internet’s negative impact on the development of

For some of us, it is difficult to comprehend why our education systems have not yet made the transition to technology-based forms of teaching especially when we are in the era of technology. To others, the reasoning is clear and they support the original, dated usage of textbooks in a “traditional classroom” setting. The changes in our society are undeniable with the innovation of technology and social media. Although some authors, such as Neil Howe and Jean Twenge, argue that technology is deteriorating the minds of Millennials, technology is also providing Millennials with a way to create connections across communities.

This paper is a personal technology plan that includes my personal philosophy on integrating technology in the classroom as well as my professional goals concerning technology in the classroom. My Mission and Vision Statement are included as well as a plan for communications, integrating technology, software to support assessment, and technology ethics for a strong guideline in the classroom. Although this plan will need to be revised as advances in technology are made this is strong ground work that I can build on as a professional educator. Using this plan I can ensure that my students are using the latest

In New on the Job: A School Library Media Specialist’s Guide to Success, Ruth Toor and Hilda Weisburg present a one-stop manual for first-year school library that details numerous aspects of what it means to be a successful school library media specialist. The authors, both of whom are veteran former school librarians, outline everything from the job interview to the last day of school, sharing years of wisdom and practical insight into the ins and outs of the profession. Special attention is paid to developing relationships between the various members of the school population and associated individuals, including students, teachers, administrators, school board members, parents, and volunteers. The authors remind school librarians to keep

Furthermore, school library media centers provide students from poverty with access to print and digital information. As a school library media specialist, I will use my expertise in children’s literature and information literacy to lessen the educational gap between high-income and low-income students through providing equitable access to information for all students. Moreover, by pursuing a career as a school library media specialist at the elementary level, I will be able to help early childhood students from diverse backgrounds develop literacy skills. I am seeking a career as a library media specialist to use my expertise as a information professional and the resources of library media centers to empower students through instilling their love of reading and increasing their information literacy to foster educated and empowered school

A critical issue facing public libraries is how to stay relevant in the community to prevent closures or budget cuts. In “Looking at the Future of Libraries,” R. Toby Greenwalt asserts that the future of libraries is as a community connector providing users with the means to enable their creativity (Greenwalt). Greenwalt, the director of Digital Strategy and Technology Integration at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, believes libraries should disrupt conventional wisdom of what it can provide for patrons. One example of disrupting conventional wisdom, Greenwalt describes the library as a “firestarter,” the beginning steps of “something big” (Greenwalt).

Founded in 1899, Northern Arizona University’s (NAU) first library opened with a dictionary and encyclopedia in its collection. Located in the central part of the NAU Flagstaff campus, it provides both physical and virtual environments that foster intellectual discovery, collaborative research, and access to technology (Library overview, 2016). As with most academic libraries, the research collections are critical to supporting the curricular and research mission of the university. As of April 2016, members of the NAU community and public have access to more than 670,000 print and e-books, 81,000 e-journals, 161,000 online audio and video recordings (J. Swann, personal communication, April 19, 2016). Successful learning requires inclusive and widespread support along with relevant resources from the library. Thus, the library offers spaces including group and individual study rooms; multi-media production studios, classrooms, and a makerspace. The library’s mission statement confirms the organization is committed to:

It is my mission to become an educator with the proficiency, knowledge and resources to encourage academic excellence and provide the opportunity for students to enhance their educational practice and to increase their intellectual productivity through technology. I will provide sufficient resources to encourage the use of technology across the curriculum.

As new technologies are rapidly introduced, people are able to find any information with the access of internet. This leads to people questioning the relevance of libraries and its true purpose. Public libraries cultivate the value of increased education and a social unity to advancing as a society.

As schools promote 21st-century learning, there has been a push for literacies which encourage students to be 21st-century learners. The two overarching literacies, new and digital, has taken over the three R’s literacy, reading, writing, and arithmetic. New Literacies continuously change due to the new technology emerging providing different ways to get information and communicate with others (Leu et al., 2015). In contrast, digital literacy is the ability to use digital tools to access information for understanding and communication (Jose, 2016). New literacies and digital literacies also differ in aspects of use in the classroom. New literacies are the building blocks for digital literacy; which are the skills students need to understand the internet (Maloy, Verock-O'Loughlin, Edwards, & Woolf, 2017). New literacies can be taught without the use of technology because students are learning to locate, evaluate, synthesize, and communicate information. Teachers can demonstrate these skills using encyclopedias and journal articles to gain a minimalistic comprehension. Once students learn the necessary understanding, teachers can transfer these skills to online which will promote digital literacy; furthermore, digital literacy can only be taught using digital tools. Teachers would teach students how to use computers and the social practices of the new literacies to gain an understanding of the digital literacy (Jose, 2016). Furthermore, digital literacies

Since their establishment, libraries have served as a gateway to knowledge and services that revolutionized the way the public attains information. Unlike many other institutions, public libraries have grown and evolved along with society by adopting new technology and offering resources tailored to the needs of their local community.

For students to be adequately informed about the value of the university library and resources such as the Internet in information retrieval there must be a careful collaboration between teaching staff and library staff (Kenney, 2007). The focus in this task, of course, is preparing students not just for the immediate research project at hand but rather to prepare them to be life long learners, to prepare them to be successful and productive once they leave the academic environment and take up their chosen careers (Lauer & Yodanis, 2012).

Being a librarian and one who has always “had a fascination with gadgets” (Hanson, 2011), and a passion for both information and technology, Hanson states he has been working for five years to find a better way to join technology and information. He notes “libraries and librarians have perceived themselves as subject to near-constant technological upheaval and information revolution, largely due to the rise of microcomputing, desktop computing and Internet connectivity.” (Hanson, 2011) He believes libraries are situated in a place to encourage libraries to provide mobile library services. With nearly all Americans owning cell phones, accessing the internet via their cell phones and tablets and major service providers focusing on mobile applications instead of applications for the PC, Hanson suggests it is time for libraries to also focus their efforts on providing mobile services.

The current service model employed by the Library includes limited technology-driven services and is primarily based around a reference desk staffed by information professionals during opening hours. However, due to the information and communications technology (ICT) revolution of the last few decades and the resulting ease with which users are able access information and services via the Internet, the Library is being confronted with swiftly changing behaviours and expectations from their users - as a result Curtin’s traditional services are no longer fulfilling the various users needs. To prove its ongoing usefulness and relevance to their users, the Library must redesign its services by embracing technology and Web 2.0 techniques, redesigning face-to-face services,