Weekly links (weekly)

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Library dragon!

St Michael’s Grammar School teacher librarian Sally Bray developed a very good fiction blog and has kindly agreed to share her blogging journey with readers of Bright Ideas.

I originally began this blog as part of a Professional Development course looking at e-learning tools and web 2.0 in education. After some playing and making inane posts that even I wasn’t interested in, and some leaving it alone to fester in the back of my mind, I decided to use the blog to track and share my reading of Children’s and Young adult fiction (with the occasional adult book thrown in, just to prove I could still read adult stuff)!

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Over my years as a Teacher Librarian, I found my focus moving more and more to research and inquiry skills and ICT, with my reading of Children’s Literature falling by the wayside. I originally became a TL because of my love of literature, and I wanted to recapture some of that love, passion and sheer enjoyment of reading. Hence the blog.

I have spent numerous hours trawling through other people’s blogs, not leaving comments but voraciously taking their recommendations, thoughts and ideas and following up on them. Now I am giving some of that back! Many of the books I have read I have found through other Blogs and Twitter (it all depends on who you follow)!

I have always been a fantasy buff and dragon fiend, so now I have turned to similar areas of Children’s and Young Adult Literature. Paranormal and urban fantasy and romance seem to hold sway on my blog – with lots of vampire and werewolf action! Even my adult reading has taken on a decidedly fanged appearance… it has all come in very useful now. I have even used my blog as an example when showing students how to (or how not to) write blog posts and when leading discussion about different books  and forms of literature.

I don’t post as often as I should, but I do post the majority of my reading, often in batches! Please visit and enjoy! Oh – and leave a comment or two – I sometimes feel I am blogging in a void (except for my cluster map which shows a healthy amount of activity – Thank Goodness)!

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Thanks for sharing your fantastic work Sally. Your blog is bright and visually attractive and is joining my list of must-read blogs!

Fiction on gaming

A couple of new YA fiction books about gaming have recently been published and are must reads for teacher librarians, library staff, teachers, parents and of course young adults themselves.

I recently read and reviewed For the win by Cory Doctorow. Covering a global approach to gaming, much of this book is actually based in fact. It’s quite scary to think that economies are influenced by the invisible and virtual gaming economy and that young adults can earn more money from gaming than their currently parents earn. For the win is available in paperback or ebook format and the ebook download is free. My review is here, thanks to CMIS.

Helen Boelens alerted me to another new book, this one by Salman Rushdie.  Helen explains that “Luka and the Fire of Life makes references to Super Mario and there is a strong connection between the story and the video game.” Information about this book from The Huffington Post is available here and a review by The Guardian is available here.

It seems (and it is) a long time ago that Space Demons was published. However I think that these books are an excellent way of discussion and coming to terms with gaming and how it affects our young adults. We can build on this information. Remember that the 2010 K12 Horizon Report assessed gaming as becoming mainstream in education in 2-3 years. One of those years has almost passed.

Suggest a book

I really love the way that Monarch Academy Elementary (Primary) Librarian Keisa Williams has incorporated Google forms into her already excellent library wiki.

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Students get involved in the library and get experience using web 2.0 tools such as Google Docs, while Keisa gets an organised documents with records of all student requests, along with names, date of request and so on.

Another clever idea from Keisa; one that is relatively easy to implement.

RealTime Health: the digital health network

This is an excellent site to turn to for health information for students and teachers.

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RealTime Health: the digital health network is a collaboration between The Le@rning Federation, The Chronic Illness Alliance , Aboriginal Medical Service of Western Sydney, Asthma Foundation of Victoria, Australian Hearing, Diabetes Australia – Vic, Epilepsy Foundation of Victoria, Orygen Youth Health and SANE Australia.

Only available to students and teachers, people with access to these gateways can also access extra information on RealTime Health:

  • me.edu.au
  • www.tale.edu.au
  • education.qld.gov.au/learningplace/cx/
  • education.qld.gov.au
  • learningplace.com.au/
  • elearn.eq.edu.au
  • www.education.tas.gov.au/oln/ecentre
  • www.ecentre.education.tas.gov.au/
  • www.education.tas.gov.au/school/educators/resources/ecentre
  • www.student.education.tas.gov.au/
  • dlb.sa.edu.au/
  • www.decs.sa.gov.au/
  • mace.netspot.com.au
  • portal.det.wa.edu.au/portal
  • www.det.wa.edu.au/
  • fuse.education.vic.gov.au
  • resources.education.tas.gov.au
  • thelearningfederation.edu.au
  • me.edu.au
  • scootle.edu.au

With information and video clips on a number of different illnesses, this could be an excellent reference site that is reputable and reliable.

Feature blog – Bev Novak’s NovaNews

Former Head of Library at The King David School, Bev Novak has been developing an interesting blog. Bev uses her blog as a forum for writing about, processing and sharing her learning with other educators. Bev generously shares her learning journey on her blog and here, for readers of Bright Ideas. I recently read that a tweet that said that “all teachers should blog”. Bev’s blog shows what can be achieved in a short amount of time and if you have not yet started your own blog, Bev’s newly found enthusiasm for blogging may well set you on your way!

Just on six months ago, I had absolutely no idea what a blog was, had never read one and certainly had no idea how to create one.  Life changed dramatically though  when I decided to enrol in the VicPLN program being run by SLAV in conjunction with SLV.  That first evening of peeking at the program content is forever seared into my memory.  The list of tasks to be completed was daunting to say the least!  But my heart froze when I realized that the very first task involved creating a blog.   “A what?!” I thought!!  A blog, I calmly said to myself.  Skimming down the tasks posed for that first week, I realized I had no choice.  Every task listed for the week involved writing a response on my blog.   “Ugh!!!  What have I gotten myself into?!”  was the next thought that passed through my mind.

 

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Deciding that the best advice I could follow was that which I always give to nervous looking kids about to sit a test or exam, I took three deep breaths and began following the instructions set down.   It was, I recollect, a very long Saturday night!

 

But I did it! That feeling of seeing my words floating out into cyberspace really was fantastic.  An incredible sense of achievement and success, unlike any I had experienced in a long time, flooded through me!  While I admit that the early stages of creating the blog were akin to writing on a wall in Chinese without knowing if the paper was upside down or inside out, a certain familiarity soon set in.  The ‘dashboard’ and I soon became friends.   Because I was working in the warm comfy environs of the VicPLN, I often experienced the warm fuzzy feelings of others lending a hand, helping me figure out the seemingly impossible.   And of course, the warm guidance and encouragement of our wonderful mentor – Judith Way – was there, every step of the way.

 

It has only been at the completion of the VicPLN that I started to look back and consider the process I had worked through.  It was indeed a journey, a journey that had a recognizable path in which my blog moved from being a spot to record what I had read, played with and discovered over the previous week, to that of a personal storage spot for links and information I had gathered.   Along the way, as I recognized I had an audience, I accepted that I could also use my blog as a place to showcase my own achievements using a range of presentation tools to which I had been exposed through the program. The final stage of my journey has been understanding that blogging is a dynamic process, one in which readers can comment on the content of a blog or indeed on the comments posted by others, a process which, by its very nature, enables the interaction of people with similar interests to connect and share with each other.  In turn, for me, this has been a fantastic way to expland my Personal Learning Network.

 

Today, I am totally hooked on blogging.  Reading the blogs of others which incorporate thoughts, ideas and knowledge, has become an addictive occupation for me.  So too has the writing my own blog.  Feedback received in the form of comments on my blog or email or Twitter exchanges received over the week, feed my enthusiasm.   Sharing insights gleaned from various readings, experiences and knowledge acquired from a vast range of sources is currently the thrust of my blog.   Where it may head in the future however, I do not yet know.  But to know that I contribute to the growth of others in the same way that others contribute to my growth leaves me with a warm afterglow.  To those of you out there who’ve not yet discovered the blogosphere, I encourage you to spend the time exploring.  Come join the amazing journey.  While you have much to contribute you also have a great deal to learn.  And, after all, aren’t we all lifelong learners?

Thanks Bev for your unbridled enthusiasm for blogging and learning and for spreading the word via Bright Ideas!

Weekly links (weekly)

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

eT@lking: Retribalizing, Literary Style: Virtual Book Clubs and Bookcast

Thanks so much to teacher extraordinaire Anne Mirtschin for passing on the following information about this free online learning session:

Time: October 27, 2010 from 8pm to 9pm (AEDT)
Location: elluminate webinar
Event Type: online_pdelluminatenetworking
Organized By: Anne Mirtschin

McLuhan (see the video) predicted we’d have to leave the bookworld behind to be “with it” in the electronic world but with social media we can do it all. Learn about an evolving virtual book club model, online or inworld, that culminates with the screening of collaboratively produced bookcasts, multimedia aesthetic responses to books.

To preview bookcasting, check out this ncbookcast festival You can post questions and comments to the wiki discussion.

Meet our Presenter: Cris Crissman, PhD, Distance Learning Consultant, USDLC, Adjunct Assistant Professor, NC State Writer and Producer.

Bio: Cris teaches the “Learning Through Literature with Young Adults” graduate class at North Carolina State University. After ten years of exploring online book clubs, she took the class and the book clubs inworld to Second Life. The students self-select genre book clubs and work collaboratively to produce bookcasts to share with the whole class and the world. Inservice teachers have applied the model in their classrooms. Every year the class leads a virtual author study for teen readers in the state and this year the featured virtual author is Australian Melina Marchetta whose award-winning Finnikin of the Rock is drawing rave reviews from American teens.
Link to join this session

Sounds like a fabulous opportunity to learn much more about a topic close to our hearts. And as Cris is presenting at 5am her time, a large audience would be welcome!

The recording of this session is available for anyone to listen to. Thanks to Anne Mirtschin for forwarding this link.

Futurelab free handbooks: digital literacy and innovation

Futurelab are offering free access to digital editions of some of their digital literacy and innovation handbooks. This offer includes:

  • Futures Thinking Teachers PackFutures Thinking Teachers Pack

    Increasingly, collaboration is seen as important in creative learning. This handbook sets out some recommendations for ways in which digital technologies could be designed and used to support creative collaboration in the classroom.

    This free resource supports teachers and learners to develop approaches to exploring the future that are not about making predictions, but about considering possible, probable and preferable futures in order to support action and decision making in the present.

    pdf version (pdf, 2.9MB)

    • () (pdf, 1MB)

    May 2010

  • digital literacyDigital literacy across the curriculum

    March 2010

    This handbook introduces educational practitioners to the concepts and contexts of digital literacy and supports them in developing their own practice aimed at fostering the components of digital literacy in classroom subject teaching and in real school settings.

  • Home-school relationships handbookDeveloping the home-school relationship using digital technologies

    March 2010

    This handbook introduces key issues around home-school relationships to provide schools with a framework in which to consider how to support these relationships, and how to navigate the challenges afforded by the use of digital technologies in this field.

  • Thinking SpaceThinking Space

    January 2010

    This workshop resource aims to support people who are thinking about, or currently undertaking, redesign and rebuild projects. It provides a set of activities, tools and techniques that can be used to facilitate workshop sessions.

    pdf version

  • Digital inclusion handbookUsing digital technologies to promote inclusive practices in education

    April 2009

    This handbook provides educators with guidance on using digital technologies to promote inclusive practices, case studies of current practice, and a directory of resources.

  • Curriculum and teaching innovationCurriculum and teaching innovation

    April 2009

    Aimed at educational leaders involved in curriculum and teaching innovation, this handbook provides guidance for exploring the potential of personalisation to transform curriculum design and teaching practices.

  • Reimagining outdoor learning spaces handbookReimagining outdoor learning spaces

    January 2009

    This handbook focuses on the use and utility of outdoor space for play and learning, and aims to support those thinking about redesigning their outdoor spaces as part of the Primary Capital Programme or other initiatives.

  • Promoting transformative innovation in schoolsPromoting transformative innovation in schools

    November 2008

    This handbook aims to offer evidence, insights, ideas and recommendations that can be built upon to support and nurture a culture of transformative innovation within education.

  • Designing educational technologies for social justiceDesigning educational technologies for social justice

    April 2008

    This handbook explores the role that digital technologies can play in reducing inequality in education, and offers guidance on designing resources or projects to promote social justice.

  • Learning with handheld technologiesLearning with handheld technologies

    December 2006

    A guide for those considering handheld technologies for teaching and learning purposes, with case studies illustrating the potential of handheld technology for learning, and a wide survey of projects in this area.

  • Learner voiceLearner voice

    August 2006

    Despite the vast number of changes in education in recent years, learners are seldom consulted and remain largely unheard in the change process. If education is to become more personalised, then learners must be heard.

  • Games and learning (Myst image courtesy of Cyan Inc)Games and learning

    October 2005

    There’s an increasing interest in the potential role of computer and video games to support young people’s learning, and recent studies have begun to ask how games might be used or adapted for use in schools. This handbook reports on some of the latest developments.

  • Building collaboration between designers and researchersBuilding collaboration between designers and researchers

    April 2005

    How can research on teaching and learning be used to improve the design of e-content? This report uses case studies to illustrate a range of collaborations; a directory of educational researchers is also available.

  • Designing with usersDesigning educational technologies with users

    September 2004

    There is concern about the separation between developers of digital educational resources and those who use them – teachers and learners. This handbook suggests ways in which the communities might work together to create more effective and relevant resources.

  • Creativity and collaboration handbookDesigning technologies to support creativity and collaboration

August 2004


Certainly worth a look. Just beware that the print versions do cost, so look for the free digital downloads.

Thank you

This is a rather embarrassing post to write, but it needs to be done as I need to publicly thank some people for their support.

In September, I was awarded the 2010 IASL/Softlink International Excellence Award for the work I have done on this blog. This would not have occurred without lots of kind library staff for sharing their trials and tribulations when using technology for learning; without being nominated by the award by Helen Boelens and without supporting documentation from Kelly Tenkely, Camilla Elliott, Mary Manning and Sandy Phillips. A generous and supportive readership also made this possible. So thank you all.

A huge thank you to Softlink for generously sponsoring the award and to Softlink’s Chief Operating Officer Nathan Godfrey and  Marketing Coordinator Karen Gear for making the presentation a wonderful experience. Thanks also to all of the IASL committee involved in the application process.

Now on to another embarrassing episode in my life. Bright Ideas has regularly featured the brilliant work of Whitefriars College teacher librarian Tania Sheko. Since my first contact with Tania, she has become a real supporter and a firm friend. Tania recently featured a post about me in her fantastic blog, Brave New World. She has requested that a parallel post be posted here and so as to agree to her wishes, the post has been reproduced below.

If you think about people who are a constant and inspirational support in your professional life, you know that you are indebted to these people on a daily basis.

I’ve decided to feature an interview with Judith Way, a Victorian teacher librarian who has made a significant difference in the professional lives of teacher librarians and others, and whose unassuming, friendly nature has endeared many, both in Victoria and globally.

Judith’s blog, Bright Ideas, which she writes for the School Library Association of Victoria, is one of the first things I check daily because I know that she is on top of what’s happening in the world of education. Although she may not need an introduction since so many are connected to her through the blog, Twitter andOZTL-NET, to mention only a few platforms, I’ve included a short biography as an introduction to a recent interview I conducted with Judith.

Judith Way is a teacher-librarian with a Graduate Diploma of Children’s Literature and a Master of Arts. Recently she was recognised for her work with the Bright Ideas blog through the  2010 IASL/Softlink International Excellence Award .She has also been the recipient of the School Library Association of Victoria’s John Ward Award for outstanding contribution to teacher librarianship in 2007 and the SLAV Innovators Grant in 2009. She was awarded the Children’s Book Council of Australia Eleanor E. Robertson prize in 2003. She has presented at conferences locally and internationally. Judith writes the Bright Ideas blogfor the School Library Association of Victoria.
How did you come to create and write the Bright Ideas blog?

Due to the success of the School Library Association of Victoria’s Web2.0 online program in 2008, there was a real momentum for more online resources for school libraries, and the idea that schools would showcase what they had developed to encourage others was a big part of that. I was honoured to be asked by SLAV to write the blog on their behalf. I had undertaken the ’23 things’ course through Yarra Plenty Regional Library in 2006.

What were your initial thoughts/feelings about the blog?

Excitement! What a fantastic opportunity to delve into the web 2.0 world and see what we could all make of it in school libraries.

Was it difficult to take the first steps in creating a blog identity and developing a readership?

The first thing was getting a body of work up on the blog. No-one is really going to read a blog with one or two posts on it, so building it up was vital. I then promoted it via the OZTL-NET listserv and down the track joined Twitter. That really developed the readership. Then I joined the ILearnTechnology blog alliance in January this year and that furthered readership again.

What were some of the difficulties you experienced along the way?

School library staff tend to be a modest bunch, so encouraging people that their web 2.0 efforts should be highlighted and shared with others was a challenge.

What were some of the highlights?

Getting lots of positive feedback from readers, especially in relation tothe school library examples that were shared.
Last year Bright Ideas also had the honour of being voted the “FirstRunner Up” in the Edublogs Awards for the ‘Best Library blog”. What a fantastic vote of confidence that was.
Notching up 200,000 hits earlier this year was also a terrific milestone and it was an unbelievable recognition to be awarded the 2010 IASL/Softlink International Excellence Award in September.

How is the role of the teacher librarian changing, if at all?

In one way it is changing dramatically. In another way, it isn’t changing at all. What do I mean by that? We are facing enormous changes in the way we present learning opportunities to students. Social media and eBooks have changed the landscape for many school libraries. But we still want to teach our students how to research well and to love reading- whatever the medium.

What would you say are the most important goals of the teacher librarian/ of educators in general in these times?

To remember the power you have to make a difference to the lives of your students. You have the ability to be a positive role model in terms of using information well, both content and morally. To teach students how to make a positive digital footprint and how to be cybersafe and cybersavvy. To pass on the love of reading. These are lessons they will carry throughout their lives.

Thanks, Judith, for your thoughts, and also for the untiring support you provide for teacher librarians and educators everywhere.

Thanks Tania for your support and kind words. It is nice to know that one is appreciated!