SCILS vs. SCI

The recent proposal to take the "library" out of SCILS has set off a battery of opinions both in favor and against the change.  It is not only students and faculty within the school who have been vocal, but it appears the whole library world has an opinion to share.

While I don't have a strong bias toward either side of the equation, my general feeling is that deleting the word "library" is not going to reap any additional benefits in terms of funding or any of the other stated points by the change advocates.  In our current economy, little will be obtained by a name change. 

According to an email on the LISSA list-serve, library science students factor for a majority of the SCILS population.  If this is the case, why overlook or delete the name of the major to whom so many belong?  Those opposed to the change feel this change would validate or acknowledge society's impression of the library profession in our technological age (""why pay a librarian when we can google everything ourselves?).   Shouldn't we stand up and show pride in our profession and strive to prove to the general amateur population that professional librarian skills are always going to be needed?

The other element to be considered is that the Rutger's School of Communication, Information, and Library Sciences School has earned it's reputation among library institutions.  While degree requirements remain the same, others looking from the outside may perceive a difference in terms of the quality of the degree.

There's an element of truth in the old, grammatically incorrect saying, "If it ain't broke; don't fix it."

RSS and Information Overload

There's no clean cut answer as to whether or not RSS/RSS aggregators cause information overload.  It's all a matter of perspective.  Put in simple terms, those who initiate RSS feeds want the information, and therefore will not feel overwhelmed.  Chances are those same individuals are the ones dabbling in a variety of social softwares and electronic information tools and sources.  

It can be argued that RSS actually makes information more manageable since several different sources do not have be checked all the time.  The feeds bring the information directly to one place, and the feeds come in throughout the day.  Therefore, the information is fed to the individual in small bite size pieces.  

Individuals in the camp claiming overload are probably not looking for the depth of information RSS can provide.  It is likely these individuals do not appreciate the  full capabilities of RSS.    

Animoto

While searching on delicious, I stumbled upon a site that listed several web 2.0 applications and software appropriate for elementary schools.  There was one site that stood out, Amimoto (http://animoto.com), for which I saw a lot of potential!  

Animoto is a site which allows and individual (in my case, students) to submit pictures, lyrics, songs, or a combination of these, and a music video will be custom made by TV and film producers!  Imagine the potential for music teachers who are teaching students to write music.  The draw of having their own unique music video would be inspiring to the most reluctant learner.

In my elementary school, I work with students to conduct the research component of a project.  However, I'm a firm believer in trying to extend the learning by having students use the uncovered data in a fun and productive way.  One year, my fourth graders conducted research on notable African Americans to celebrate African American History Month.  After conducting the research process with me, these students worked with the music teacher to write lyrics to a jazz song since jazz happened to be their genre of study.  The lyrics told what they had learned through the research.  Just imagine if we were able to use Animoto to make this jazz song into a music video!  It would be a great way to get the art teacher connected with the picture-taking and uploading.

I definitely see the potential Animoto has in encouraging students to reach their potential - whether it's writing (as in lyrics),  writing music, photography, or anything else!

Passionate about Healthy Cooking/Foods

How appropriate that I am blogging about a passionate topic on Valentine's Day.  Since many are probably enjoying lavish dinners with a significant other or sitting amongst a box of chocolate bon bons, I thought I'd bring up something we all need to care about ... healthy cooking and healthy foods.

I admit that I enjoy a lavish dinner rich with creme sauces and chocolate desserts along with the rest of the human population, but those dinners are far and few!  For as long as I can remember I have been conscious of healthy eating.  Sadly this means I allow myself few restaurant meals, where I cannot control the ingredients.  In general, this means lots of home cooked meals, which isn't so easy for a working mother (about 3 different jobs - school, public libraries and tutor!) and part-time library student.  I will confess that a crock pot is a must!  However, a big part of being successful is planning.

Lately, I have been exploring "low carb" meals.  Fortunately, I have never had to go on a serious diet, but with changing metabolism in these middle-aged years, I am becoming increasingly aware of the power of gravity!  Our nation as a whole seems to overdo it on carbohydrates.  Our favorite foods are the ones that top the charts for carbs - pizza, hamburger buns, bagels, french fries, etc.).  Carbs are known to cause a rise in a person's blood sugar.  As a result, the pancreas overreacts and secretes more insulin than we really need to lower the blood sugar.  Leftover insulin causes the body to store more fat and makes the person hungry soon afterward.

I have never been a fan of severe eating deficiencies (a.k.a. Atkins), but I believe there's an element of truth to cutting some carbohydrates out of our diet.  All the experts say we need some carbs to stay healthy, but the exact number isn't clear.  Even if there was a magic number, I'm sure it would depend on one's body structure and genetics.  In general, moderate low-carb plans suggest a daily intake of 90 to 100 grams per day.  

Alas, the challenge now is to make low carb meals that are simple enough to prepare on a busy work day!

Library 2.0

In reflecting about social software and it's many uses, I have concluded it is a shame that it is not incorporated in many more educational purposes.  I am sure the reason these tools are not maximized is because educators don't know about them or if they know, they are not comfortable with usage.   According to our very own RU professor, Dr. Todd, we must meet students at their level - meaning, we cannot ask them to leave their exciting, interactive world of ipods, video games and computers at the classroom door.

With this in mind, the solution to the problem appears to be teacher education.  Of course, there's the issue of getting the educator to buy in to this, but assuming we have open and willing participants, The School Library Learning 2.0 Website (http://schoollibrarylearning2.blogspot.com) appears to be a good place to start.

The site is a 9 week self-tutorial designed to get educators acquainted with some of the new web 2.0 softwares and capabilities.  In some ways it reminds me of our class where each week adds a different layer to our knowledge base.  Of course, the tutorial is not enough to make experts, but it is a start.  Hopefully the simple awareness will help educators to be more open minded about their approach to teaching going forward.

Google Reader vs. Bloglines

While both aggregators have a similar look with the sidebar on the left side of the screen, I have to admit I am a bit partial to google reader because it is a little more "clean cut." Bloglines offers a host of features (top 100 or 1000, image walls, recommendations, etc.), but it did not individually list my blogs, which were saved in a folder.  The only way I am able to see a blog post is to specify by post date (within xx hours).  If there was no recent posting, the right side is blank.

With google reader, even though I put all the blogs in a SCILS folder, I was still able to see the individual blog address in the left column.  The blog content was on the right - as it should be.  I also really liked the "manage subscriptions" tab on the bottom of the sidebar.  It allowed me to easily put the blogs in the folder.  The "trend" function was also interesting!  

An added benefit of google reader is that it links directly to my google email account.  

In general, bloglines and google reader appear to have similar features, but from a novice's standpoint, google reader was a bit more intuitive to navigate.

Cold Springs School Library Blog

I linked to the Cold Springs School Library Blog, because I thought this was a great model for an elementary school library.  The image is very clear and clean, and it appears easy to navigate.  I really liked the way younger students are involved in the blogging process.  In elementary schools, it is often difficult to to manage a technology like this since students are often too young to help.  

The right side book shelf  shows covers of various books and these links to a site named "Shelfari."   When clicking on the book cover more information related to the showcased book is shown.  It may be a book review or it may be someone's opinion.

Blogger vs. Live Journal

I do not consider myself an expert blogger by any means.  However here's my try at a very novice comparison of the two:

• Both were straightforward with prompts during set up.
• Both allow a certain degree of customizing with colors and/or themes.
• Live Journal has a nice "menu bar" across the top in a very visible location.  However, Blogger's menu is up in the far right corner, which is not as easy to see.
• The Live Journal main page is very busy and the advertisements are very distracting.  Blogger, on the other hand, is simple, streamlined and focus.  Even on the page where posting may occur, Live Journal has a big bar with an advertisement,
• Live Journal has options for making post public, private, or amongst friends.  Blogger does have something similar, but it is harder to find the tab to designate proper setting.
• Both seem to have a means to report violations or set restrictions (on Live Journal called "privacy," or "adult content").  Blogger has an option to report terms of service violations.
• Video tutorials are available on Blogger.
• Live Journal seems to have the option to use as private journal that can be web accessed.

In my novice opinion, I find Blogger to be more user-friendly and I prefer using it over Live Journal.

LT's Blog on Books/Authors

I don't know about you, but I've been noticing a lot or children's books have been made into movies. The movie "Inkheart" based on the book by Cornelia Funke was recently released in theaters. I always make a point of reading the book before seeing the movie.

I read Inkheart a couple of years back, and I'm not surprised to see it in movie form. The character, Meggie and her dad go through numerous adventures. After all, a man with a magical voice who can read characters in and out of books needs a little excitement in his life. I haven't seen the movie, but I have a feeling that like other books that have been made into movies, a lot of the "good stuff" will be minimized.