Thing 3: RSS Feeds

This was very informative for me. Thanks for all the great links to tutorials and video clips. Those are awesome!

I did have an iGoogle account previously, so I used the Google Reader. It was a little short on directions, but not too hard to figure out.

I used a couple of the recommended feeds and added those to my list. There were some interesting ones regarding library media and library 2.0. For me, the key will be making this a habit. I need to develop a routine of visiting my Google Reader page to check these out each day. I'm not sure where I'll find the time. I realize that if it's important enough, I'll make time, but there are a LOT of important things for me to do each day. This will be my challenge.

At home, I tend not to use my iGoogle page as my home page. For one thing, my family doesn't like looking at my links. Second, it takes a lot longer to load on our connection. I may start using it more at school, however. Currently, my school page is my home page because that's where I have all my resources, but I may need to use this one too. Maybe I'll make iGoogle my home page in firefox and my school's page the default in Explorer.

I do like how easy it is to skim the headlines. It showed me quickly topics I was unaware of--like ebooks for cell phones. Interesting.

I do want to explore how to use iTunes to syndicate podcasts of our students and teachers. I'm not sure how that works. I know a local school uses it, and I think it could be a good tool. Otherwise, I'm not sure how I'd syndicate feeds of our own. Viewing others' feeds is one thing, but I'm also curious about how to set up a feed of my own.

Thing 2: Library 2.0

I feel a little embarassed to admit that I hadn't heard of library 2.0 before. I'm well aware of web 2.0, but the library connection had escaped me. That being said, I have definitely been aware of the issues involved. More specifically, how do we bring the "interactive world of our students" to the educational setting?

I am in charge of upkeeping our school's website, so I have worked hard to make my media center page a useful place for kids to visit when conducting research. In fact, I've spent a lot of time and energy into embedding its use into many curriculum projects in our school. My goal is to get the best resources to the most kids as many times as possible, and I feel it is working pretty well. Our links to research databases are prominent on the media center page, and we encourage students to go to these places first and often. I've also added a series of other links including: class projects and resources, a virtual reference desk, teacher materials, subject area links and online books. I still have a ways to go in getting all these things utilized as much as I'd like, but I'm getting there.

The place where I feel the most need to improve is in the area of web 2.0 tools. I do not currently use blogs, wikis, etc. on my site, but I want to explore these options. Our school is currently planning to use Moodle for the first time. I'm excited about the interactive possibilities this tool presents, such as forums and chats. I'd also like to migrate to Follett Destiny, so we can make use of the review feature that I've heard is included. Students are used to being able to post their opinions about things in their social network settings. This would be a way to bring this to the OPAC stations. The cost has been a hinderance to this point, but I'm hopeful I can find a way to get there.

The part I struggle most with regarding library 2.0 is the balance between using these tools and keeping my patrons secure. In this age of information promiscuity, I worry about kids exposing too much of themselves on the web. Maybe my thinking is just outdated, but I feel we need to find a "safe" way to use these interactive tools. Moodle excites me because the interaction takes place behind a secure login. Each student would have a username and password. Some of the other free tools do not offer these measures.

I will definitely keep investigating these tools. I do want my media center to stay relevant with today's students, and I'm constantly reminded by my own teenaged children that the interactive web is where they live. The challenge is to find valid uses for these new tools, not just use for the sake of novelty.

Thing 1: Blogger

This was not too difficult to set up. I had a little trouble with knowing what would appear as my identity at the top of the blog and which would appear in the URL. That part could have been clearer. It would be cool if you could enter into a screen that actually looked like the product you'd be creating, so it would be clear where everything would end up.

The Avatar was pretty easy too once I found the tabs for the clothing. For awhile, I thought I'd be stuck with the poker player guy. I'm not sure if it adds too much to the blog for me, but kids would probably get a kick out of it. It is safer than an actual photo, I suppose. It gives a little exposure to Avatars too since they're pretty popular with the kids.

I think a blog could be a good way to get out general musings on a subject. It could also be used as a message board, but I think the biggest problem would be to actually get people to read them. If no one reads them, then they are a waste of time. No one wants to waste time. I suppose this means a person would have to promote the blog, starting with a known audience like a staff of teachers or a body of students. I could possibly make a link from my main media center page to the blog. The advantage of that over just posting news on the media page would be the potential interactivity.

Secondly, the blogger would have to post something worthwhile or nobody would ever come back. As a high school media specialist, I could see blogging a research tip of the day or a website of the week. The blog could also serve as a newsletter in blog format. Allowing for responses would make it more interactive than a traditional newsletter which could be appealing to some.

I'll have to give this some time to see if I like it or not. I've never spent too much time with blogs, but I'm willing to give it a shot. I'm also going to post a picture of my media center on here to see how that works. That's it for now, I guess.

HS Media Man