Archives: information literacy

Check out the powerful new professional materials posted by the Center for Social Media at American University. The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education is available for download in .pdf format, and there is a video introduction to understanding fair use in today’s media-rich environment that will clarify misconceptions and reassure teachers about their rights (and their students’ rights) to employ all sorts of media in classroom teaching.

http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/resources/publications/code_for_media_literacy_education/

Thanks to Gerry Solomon, Media Specialist to North Carolina, for bringing this to our attention.

This was a letter to the editor we submitted to the News & Observer a couple weeks ago in response to an article about a parent who objected to her kid using the internet in class. The letter didn’t get picked up, but I think it’s important for staff to remember that while what we do seems obviously beneficial to us, there are still a lot of people who aren’t very keen on using the interweb in schools.

The letter:

Regarding the article, “Parents, schools at odds over Internet,” I certainly respect parents’ rights to decide what’s best for their children. However, making blanket objections to Internet use in today’s classroom is equal to objecting to textbooks.

Part of a teacher’s job is finding the best means of achieving instructional goals, whether that entails using a website or a chalk board. Teachers don’t choose online tools merely because they can, but because the information and the manner of presentation offer something uniquely valuable. Online applications such as Google Docs, NC WiseOwl, and Web-based educational resources from NASA offer levels of content, collaboration, and accessibility that simply cannot be replicated offline.

Further, the ability to use online technology is a vital skill in and of itself. Yes, you can find inappropriate material on the Web. But rather than hide the Internet from children, teachers must instruct students how to use it safely. Information literacy — the ability to find the good info and discard the bad — is a critical 21st Century skill. Shielding children may protect them in the short term, but it robs them of the ability to make intelligent informational decisions in the long run.

Melissa Thibault
Executive Director
LEARN NC

As is evident to anyone reading, I have struggled with blogging. My “fits and starts” are a result of my uncertainty of purpose and lack of time to allocate to this process. Who am I writing for? What is important enough to require my chiming in to the discussions in the blogosphere? How can I find the time to actually process issues of import? For me, Blogging has been more of a thing to be observed than a thing that comes naturally.

For others, however, it is a very different story. I have enjoyed the work of avid bloggers who write to think, and the product of their effort really contributes to the conversations about teaching and learning. This inspires me to keep at it, and brings up another important point — just because I am not driven to blog doesn’t mean blogs are useful as tools for learning. (Hear Homer Simpson here… “D’oh!”)

Two interesting ideas that seem right on to me. The first, Blogging the Research Process. In a September 2007 blog entry, Joyce Valenza recommends this practice as a way to facilitate transparency and constructivism, noting that through blogging, students can reflect on the process, get organized, and involve others in the process, ultimately contributing to the larger body of knowledge. The second, also from School Library Journal, is another simple yet powerful way to use blogging tools to enhance learning… a Book Blog. Like a book club, the Guerrilla Season Book Blog provides a place for students to engage their classmates and the rest of the world a project in which the “… diverse group exchanged thoughtful impressions about the book and pondered some provocative questions, adding a whole new dimension to the reading experience.” (Langhorst, 2006)

Simple, logical, powerful tools for learning. I get it. You can too! Pick up The Guerrilla Season and join Eric Langhorst’s book blog project between MARCH 3 and APRIL 4, 2008. See you there!

Some of you have been with me when I mentioned to teachers the availability of PBS videos on NC LIVE. I believed that as NC citizens and taxpayers, anyone who was authorized as a library user could access these and, since it would be fair use to show them in a F2F classroom, teachers could include these in their teaching. I was wrong.

Apparently there is a willingness to pay in the school audience. If you are familiar with the 4 factors you must consider to determine if something is covered by fair use, you will see right away that if PBS considers the schools another potential paying customer, then we are violating fair use by showing these videos without paying for them. If you are unfamiliar with fair use, see David’s entry in the LEARN NC education reference area, http://www.learnnc.org/glossary/fair+use

Long term, the implications of segmenting the audience and charging schools as a separate customer is disturbing. We are essentially being charged twice if both NC LIVE and NC Wiseowl subscribe to the same content. Twice the tax money to the vendor for the same content. How can that be OK? Maybe if/when NC Wiseowl seeks to add the same content, PBS will give us a price break since all of the public library, community college library and university library users already are authorized as NC LIVE users. I certainly hope so.

It is all based on willingness to pay, which brings me to the most important issue… we must use our fair use exemptions or we will lose them. The more we hesitate and contact vendors to purchase an article here or there, the more we are signaling that there is another market for selling the content. It will be scary indeed when all the content and information is only available for fee.

Sorry for the rant, but you can see I feel strongly about this, and if you are still reading, thanks for listening.