A Very Collaborative Virtual Learning Community

Presented ByConnie Williams & Anna Koval

CLA & CSLA 2010 Annual Conference

What we're going to talk about...

How two high school librarians teamed up to create a virtual library

for the teens and 'tweens in their town and saved their schools and district

and public library lots of money!

It all started with a question...

"Petaluma's a pretty small place..."

"...why can't we share resources?"

Then we had 2 more questions...

"Is data just info dressed up as facts?"

"Does data include the kind of helpful info we usually give kids?"

That led to our biggest question...

"How might we create a website of data that helps students find information

that applies to a variety of assignments, is comprehensive enough to be complete,

but is not overwhelming?"

We imagined a common website

with databases, ebooks, and other web links...

But that led us to wonder...

"What kind of links?"

"How many links?"

"Maybe there shouldn't be any links anywhere at all..."

"...because we've taught students how to search so effectively, right?"

The reality is...

...we need to give students assistance and instruction...

We've all watched aghast as our students for years have googled right past

our teacher project pages to do their teachers' bird

reports...

We know that there's no quality control at Google,

but as Palfrey and Gasser point out, students don't know that!

Students "use search engines as a crutch [and think]

whatever comes up first in Google must be accurate."

John Palfrey and Urs Gasser, Born Digital, 2008, p. 179.

And for us, that's where the idea for PetaData came in!

What follows are the nuts & bolts of PetaData...

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* Not too many links...

* Not too many words...

* Less is more...

* Fewer clicks to find stuff...

Our power is in our ability not only to teach

internet savvyness, but to model it, too.

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* Make it useful...

* Make it fun...

* Social networking!

With PetaData, they're using the website as a tool to teach themselves. Rather than us talking about social networking, they're using

Delicious links to learn about Delicious. Because that's what they do in real life.

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* The social sites we're using: * Delicious * Meebo * Facebook

Joyce Valenza says...

"If we are going to prepare students to be effective adult information seekers and users, then we need comprehensive understandings of how [young] learners connect with information [now]."

From "They Might Be Gurus," April 2006 (qtd. in Rosenfeld and Loertscher 226).

David Loertscher says..."The Internet ... has created a fabulous

competitor for libraries of all types. Search engines ... are so easy and

immediate that many young people, faced with a research assignment,

just "google" their way through the Internet rather than struggle [in] ... a

more traditional library environment. Teacher-librarians need to realize that

to stay relevant, they must embrace the information needs of children and

young people on their own terms, not those of well-meaning adults."

From "The Digital School Library: A Worldwide Development and a Fascinating Challenge," June 2003

(qtd. in Rosenfeld and Loertscher 108).

On social and recreational new media use as a site of learning: "Contrary to adult perceptions, while hanging out online, youth are picking up basic social and technological skills

they need to fully participate in contemporary society. Erecting barriers to participation deprives teens of access to these forms of learning. Participation in the digital age

means more than being able to access “serious” online information and culture. Youth could benefit from educators being more open

to forms of experimentation and social exploration that are generally not characteristic of educational institutions...

[because n]ew media allow for a degree of freedom and autonomy for youth that is less apparent in a [traditional] classroom setting."

From The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning, "Living and Learning with New Media: Summary of Findings from the Digital Youth Project," November 2008

(Ito et al.).

"Make the site a 1-stop shop..."

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* We wanted to make the site a one-stop shop...

* 2 libraries, 2 websites, but only 1 to memorize...

* We didn't want students to have to keep moving between sites for one assignment...

We figured,the more the merrier!

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

We wanted to include as many as possible within our reach:

* 2 comprehensive high schools

* 4 continuation high schools

* Administration, Faculty, Staff, Parents

Collaboration like this isn't easy.

It Takes Two...

Collaboration like this isn't easy... Our vendors told us some horror stories of

district endeavors like ours that went way bad... Teacher-librarians at each others' throats! We didn't let petty things get in our way...

We kept our focus on our kids... not on our selves!

We also gave each other permissionto say, "what a crappy idea!"

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* We gave each other permission to say critique and criticize without fear of hurting feelings.

* We didn't have to explain why we didn't like an idea unless we thought it would help us figure out where to go.

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

In the beginning, our approach was to...

* Decide on a name...* Create a website...* Determine the focus...* Begin search for content...* Set up a sandbox...

We used a wikifor conversation

and collaboration...

"Work with vendors.Vendors are our friends!

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

Most importantly...

* Work with your vendor reps...* Talk with them...* Be nice to them...* Be up front...* Negotiate... * Trial honestly...

Be choosey!

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* Databases are just the beginning...

* Be judicious about selecting websites...

* Bookmark general links...

* "Friend" and "follow" each other on all shared social networks...

And be accessible for users' questions

via email or IM.

Teach! Teach! And re-teach!

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* Advocacy includes direct instruction...

* Promote use via every means imaginable... * Orientations with classes * Teacher project pages * Bookmarks * Bulletin Boards * Announcements * Websites

The Nuts & Bolts of PetaData...

* Professional development opportunities are PR opportunities! * Inform and instruct the staff at your site * Train each other's teachers (be a new voice) * Faculty meetings * PD days * "Tech Time" * Newsletters

Because it's all about the numbers, baby!

That's a 12% increase over last year even with a 5% decrease in student enrollment!

And next year, when it's time for renewal, we're doing data-driven decision making!

Is PetaData perfect?

Far from it!

Our Plans for PetaData...

* Blog...

* Podcast...

* Video demos...

* Screencasts...

* Cross-Town Teen 2.0...

Our Plans for PetaData...

* More collaboration with community partners: the public library and the junior college...

* More pushing of information out to users and less pulling (or dragging, sometimes kicking and screaming) of users to the site...

* More user input regarding content and format...

* A site usability study a la George and Krug...

Afterall,it's not our job

to re-catalog the web.

The above is a paraphrase of Miranda Doyle, author of 101+ Great Ideas for Teen Library Web Sites (Neal-Schuman, 2007). She actually just said, "don't catalog the web."

We're just giving kids access points to the web that they can't get by Googling on their own so that they can figure out how and what to do with it themselves.

Dr. Loertscher says library websites seem to say to young people: ''You need to use this information space as we have designed it for you."

from In Command, Hi-Willow, 2007, p. 1.

We want to move away from that mentality and adopt an attitude of:

"If they build it, they will use it."

As we move forward,we must consider

some big questions...

The Big Questions...

* What makes PetaData more than just a parking lot?

* What does PetaData do for our libraries that our websites don't?

The Big Questions...

Is it our librarian role to give kids links/info/data?

If yes, then: * what links? * where do we start / stop? * is a website the best way to convey that info?

If no, then: * what does "data" in petadata mean?

"We are not facing an either-the-library-or-the-Internet dichotomy, a future in which the choices

either belong to the Luddites or the technonerds..."

"...The Internet is now in the library and the library is in the Internet."

Dr. Loertscher says library websites seem to say to young people: ''You need to use this information space as we have designed it for you."

from In Command, Hi-Willow, 2007, p. 1.

And, now with PetaData,that's the case more than ever!

testimonials:[ flickr photos ]

[ youtube videos ]

Bibliography...Doyle, Miranda. 101 Great Ideas for Teen Library Web Sites. New York: Neal-Schuman, 2007. Print.

George, Carole A. User-Centered Library Websites: Usability Evaluation Methods. Oxford: Chandos, 2008. Print.

Harris, Frances Jacobson. I Found It on the Internet: Coming of Age Online. Chicago: American Library Association, 2005. Print.

Ito, Mizuko, Heather Horst, Matteo Bittanti, Danah Boyd, Becky Herr-Stephenson, Patricia G. Lange, C.J. Pascoe, and Laura Robinson. Living and Learning with New Media: Summary of Findings from the Digital Youth Project. Rep. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning, Nov. 2008. Web. 12 Nov. 2010. <http://www.macfound.org>.

Krug, Steve. Don't Make Me Think!: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability. Berkeley, Calif: New Riders Pub., 2006. Print.

Palfrey, John G., and Urs Gasser. Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives. New York: Basic, 2008. Print.

Rosenfeld, Esther, and David V. Loertscher. Toward a 21st-century School Library Media Program. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow, 2007. Print.

Williams, Robin T., and David V. Loertscher. In Command!: Kids and Teens Build and Manage Their Own Information Spaces, And-- Learning to Manage Themselves in Those Spaces. Salt Lake City, UT: Hi Willow Research & Pub., 2008. Print.

Photography...

* http://officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/en-us/images/MR900443580.jpg* http://www.flickr.com/photos/petertzannes/219820548/* http://www.sulekha.com/mstore/riverine/albums/default/thinking_monkey.jpg* http://www.flickr.com/photos/neonlite/4377708788/* http://ihasahotdog.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/loldog-jokes-hahahahahaha.jpg* http://www.caninestudies.org/images/photos/assistance_dog.jpg* http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/6f/6f39fdaf-c07c-4b37-bf1f-e36870d861f5_300.jpg* http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/1e/1e6db312-9861-4f0f-9066-a9116518fff4_300.jpg* http://www.pollsb.com/photos/o/20777-highjack_someone_s_seeing_eye_dog.jpg * http://www.corbisimages.com/images/572/F041DAC8-1047-47BE-AF4A-0BB47831F353/42-19928314.jpg* http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/St._Louis_Zoo_sign.jpg* http://www.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/s/SunsetFL/4332.jpg* http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetron/4563810255/* http://www.joe-ks.com/archives_mar2009/BirdWhiteWash.jpg * http://www.flickr.com/photos/divedivajade/219364480/* http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gen/26511/original.jpg* http://images.cheezburger.com/completestore/2010/8/5/a8e4dc82-be2f-44c4-abc3-6849471904a9.jpg* http://www.insidesocal.com/pets/mr_ed3%5B1%5D.JPG* http://www.flickr.com/photos/mytripsmypics/3777132543/* http://www.impactlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/cool-buddy-070.jpg

About the Presenters...

Connie Williams is the teacher-librarian at Petaluma High School in Sonoma County, California. She is National Board Certified and has been a teacher-librarian for 22 years. She’s the co-developer of several CSLA 2.0 tutorials and the co-producer of "Circulate This! Stories from the School Library." She is past president of CSLA, an author for CSLA and AASL, and a blogger for Follett Software.

Anna Koval is the teacher-librarian at Casa Grande High School in Sonoma County, California. She is an ALA/YALSA Emerging Leader and a Walt Disney Teacher of the Year Nominee. She is the webmaster of the School Library Journal-honored website BigHouseLibrary.com and the author of articles for CSLA and AASL on technology and librarianship. She is a CSLA Northern Section Board Member (on hiatus).

About the Presenters...

Connie's Dog Lucy

Anna's Dogs Jack + Charlie

Just in case you couldn't tell,Connie and Anna are animal lovers!