PD Predicament

The ETCs have just completed two years of professional development for teachers and media specialists in the Title IID Teachers, Teamwork, and Technology (T3) grant. Here at the UGA ETC, we had our

final T3 meeting this week, and in the midst of sharing success stories through multimedia projects, teachers admitted they were more excited in the first year of the grant than the second year. After the

meeting, we pondered why this was the case, and we arrived at one conclusion. In the first year of the grant, the teachers get their new classroom technologies and are trained in how to use them. There is

much excitement as the teachers soak up new ideas about what they can do with the technologies in their instruction. By the second year of the grant, the teachers are comfortable with using the technologies

and are supposed to transition that knowledge and those skills to the students, but that’s where many of the teachers get stuck.

Integrating technology successfully requires a paradigm shift; it must be coupled with research based best practices such as student-centered learning and teacher facilitation in order to truly make a difference.

The temptation is to get the technology but keep it to yourself, and the result is that not much changes in terms of teaching and learning except there are fun new tools. Yet even the novelty of those tools will

wear off if a paradigm shift does not take place, and the cost of those technologies is too great to have such a short-lived impact.

Just a disclaimer, I am not faulting the teachers. It is not easy to make a paradigm shift, especially with all of the resources that are thrown at teachers with no additional time. I guess I am faulting us at the UGA

ETC. What could we have done differently in our professional development over the two years to help teachers make the transition from “I” to “They.”

Since our last T3 meeting, we have developed a little model to help us begin to think about this problem. It is a continuum of stages in which the technology user transitions from “I” to “They” with “We” and

“You” as points in the middle. The idea is that at the different stages you could start a sentence with “I,” “We,” “You,” and “They” respectively to speak about who is using the technology, with “They”

representing the greatest student-centered use.

So, in future two year grants, how can we help our teachers move from “I” to “They” in terms of technology integration and pedagogies in general? The first year of professional development is pretty much

locked in – we have to teach the teachers how to use the technology and get them comfortable with it. To move them into the “We” stage, we give examples of how the students can be pulled into the lessons

and be given opportunities to “touch” the technology. But what can we do in that second year to move them beyond into the “You” and “They” stages, where ultimately the students are producing new products

to demonstrate their learning and the teacher is facilitating and directing to lead the students to success?

I know this paradigm shift is hard enough without involving technology integration, and maybe the barriers are bigger than what we can overcome in two years of professional development, but we have to try,

right?

So, what are your ideas? I would love to hear from you! As media specialists who often are charged with delivering professional development to teachers, what PD activities do you think will help teachers

make the transition?

I look forward to hearing from you!

Emily Hodge
Instructional Technology Specialist
University of Georgia Educational Technology Center

AASL Seeks Proposals for Preconferences at the AASL 15th National Conference

For Immediate Release
Tue, 05/25/2010 – 15:36

CHICAGO – The American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), is now seeking preconference proposals for the AASL 15th National Conference. The conference will be held Oct. 27-30, 2011 in Minneapolis. The theme is “Turning the Page.” The deadline to submit a preconference proposal is Monday, June 21, 2010.

Only proposal submissions for half- to full-day preconference sessions will be accepted at this time. The call for concurrent session proposals will run from Thursday, July 1, 2010 to Monday, Nov. 1, 2010.

Submissions will be evaluated for clarity, originality and timeliness. Special attention will be given to submissions that incorporate one or more of these characteristics:

• Demonstrates innovative thinking and/or new perspectives
• Presents strategies for effectively implementing new ideas and technology
• Incorporates at least one active hands-on learning exercise
• Design includes activities that will incorporate various learning styles
• Demonstrates how learning outcomes would be achieved
• Supports the AASL strategic plan, the “AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner” and the“Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs.”

Notifications will be issued by July 2010 to all whose proposals have been selected. Applicants must submit their proposals using the online proposal submission form. Faxed, e-mailed or mailed proposal submissions will not be accepted. Individuals with questions are asked to contact Elise Fette.

The American Association of School Librarians, www.aasl.org, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), promotes the improvement and extension of library services in elementary and secondary schools as a means of strengthening the total education program. Its mission is to advocate excellence, facilitate change and develop leaders in the school library field.

Technology Integration Survey Request

While you are enjoying your summer take a few minutes to contribute to this very worthwhile research at FSU!

The Florida State University PALM Center would like to invite you to participate in a survey. We are interested in gathering information from school librarians on how they are integrating technology in their schools.  While there are no direct benefits to individual subjects, we hope the information obtained will help national organizations, policy makers, and researchers further articulate this role. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete.

Your participation in this study is completely voluntary.  There are no foreseeable risks associated with this project.  However, if you feel uncomfortable answering any questions, you can stop answering questions on the survey at any point without being penalized.

If you agree to participate in the study, you will be entered into a drawing for a $100 Amazon.com gift card. If you decide NOT to participate in this study, you will NOT be penalized. Research staff will only use your name and address (if provided by you) to send you additional information or for the drawing for a $100 Amazon gift card, if you indicate you are willing.

It is very important for us to learn your opinions so that we can better articulate the role of the school librarian in technology integration. Your survey responses will be strictly confidential to the extent provided by law.  Your name and contact information will not be shared with anyone outside the research project. All information from the study will be presented in the aggregate: no individual responses will be used.

If you would like to participate in this research project, the survey can be accessed at http://palm.pnmi.com/. Please complete the survey by July 1, 2010. We are sending this to a number of lists. Please excuse the cross posting.  Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

Nancy Everhart, Director, PALM Center

Marcia Mardis, Associate Director, PALM Center

—–

Melissa P. Johnston

School Library Media Specialist

PhD Candidate
School of Library and Information Studies
College of Communication and Information, Florida State University
The PALM Center: Partnerships Advancing Library Media, Research Assistant

Hobbies and Interests for the Grown-Ups, Too – Find Them in GALILEO

Last month, we provided resources to keep students occupied on rainy days during the summer, but we know the adults might want some things to do, too. So, let’s take a look at ways to find hobbies and other personal interests in GALILEO.

The GALILEO Library view includes resources and topics for the general public. K-12 teachers, staff, and students have access to these using the GALILEO password for your school.

Magazines for Hobbies, Fitness, and More
MasterFILE Premier includes magazine articles about many hobbies and interests, such as gardening, entertainment, pets, sewing, cooking, sports, fitness, and more.

To find particular magazines, go to Magazines A-Z and search for it by title or search for a topic. Here are a few examples of magazines you can find in GALILEO: Baseball Digest, Bicycling, Consumer Reports, Country Living Dream Homes, Discover, Ebony, Entertainment Weekly, Essence, Golf Digest, Harper’s Magazine, House Beautiful, Joe Weider’s Muscle and Fitness, Outdoor Life, People, Runners World, Shape, Skiing, Sports Illustrated, This Old House, Vanity Fair, Woodworker’s Journal.

Travel
If you plan to travel in Georgia, the New Georgia Encyclopedia and GeorgiaInfo are excellent sources of information about cities and towns in Georgia, including history and some points of interest about each place. If you’re traveling outside of Georgia, Encyclopædia Britannica has information about other states and countries, including maps, historical information, quick facts, and places of interest, and MasterFILE Premier includes articles and information about different places for travelers. Also check with your public library for travel guides for an area you’d like to visit.

Ancestry
For those interested in researching their family history, the public libraries in Georgia have access to genealogy resources, such as HeritageQuest Online. Every Georgia citizen has access to GALILEO through his or her public library, so check with your public library to obtain your public library GALILEO password and for other genealogy resources the public library may offer.

History
History buffs may also be interested in Georgia history. New Georgia Encyclopedia, Digital Library of Georgia, and GeorgiaInfo are excellent sources for all things Georgia – past and present, including people, places, culture, and more.

Reading
Finally, NoveList is a great source of recommendations to find books to read on the beach – or anywhere. Just search for a topic or a favorite book and author to find books as well as recommendations for similar books and authors. There’s even an article listing great Beach Reads.

As always, if you have questions or comments or need to report any problems with GALILEO resources, please Contact Us. We would love to hear your feedback!

Courtney McGough
GALILEO Support Services
Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia

Two Sites Worth Reviewing

As you are leisurely spending your summer days with nothing at all to do (ha!), I thought I would share a couple of sites with you that you might have time to check out.

One site that provides a variety of methods for sharing pictures is Big Huge Labs at http://www.bighugelabs.com/. This is a site where you can manipulate photos and display them on quite a selection of products. It is similar to Snapfish, but has so many more options for displaying photos. Formats include photobooth, FX for special effects, pop art poster, jigsaw, map maker, magazine cover, pocket album, mosaic maker, calendar, wallpaper, trading card, captioner (this one is really cool!), badge maker, cube, and many others. Costs seem reasonable for the products. If you like to share photos in various ways, this is a site worth checking out.

A second site that is quite impressive for children’s use is Big Universe located at http://www.biguniverse.com . Most of you have probably heard about or used the tikatok site where children create their own books. (It has been quite a hit with the grandchildren around the Snipes’ household.) Now, another exciting tool where online leveled books (1,722 total) may be accessed and original books created is Big Universe.

Big Universe is an application where educators and parents can instill a love of reading for children. The site uses online picture books, leveled readers, nonfiction titles, and assessments to encourage reading and writing development. Since children can create and share their own books, access to many original books is a possibility in addition to the vast number of books published by Weekly Reader, Tanglewood Press, Saddleback Educational Publishing, Zoobooks, and Lobster Press (to name just a few). Students can easily locate books on their level, including a huge number of nonfiction books. This site is highly recommended by School Library Journal, Literacy Toolbox, and Wesley Fryer (Moving at the Speed of Creativity). The Learning Curve blog included a suggestion “This site is a perfect companion for the SMART Board since you can display the books your students are reading, scroll to any page quickly and easily, take notes, capture items into Notebook, etc. The possibilities are endless.” Big Universe boasts support for the core curriculum, differentiated instruction, and English language learners.

While tikatok is free for creating books (unless you want to purchase a print copy – from $2.95 up), biguniverse costs $8.95/month for home access, $14.95/month for a classroom and $995 for an entire school. There are 1,722 leveled books, including picture books and nonfiction, which may be accessed any time along with appropriate tests and detailed reporting features.

This is a cool site definitely worth taking the time to check out! Enjoy your summer!!

Dr. Phyllis Snipes,
University of West Georgia

Big Universe

Big Huge Labs