Thing Twenty-Three: One Last Thing

In a word- learning. 23 Things on a Stick was all about learning new online tools. I would participate in programs like this in the future. I had many favorite things. I enjoyed starting my own blog, and linking pictures, videos, and other bloggers to my blog. I enjoyed learning about RSS feeds, NetLibrary, tagging, collaborative tools, and many other online resources too numerous to mention. 23 Things on a Stick was much more than 23 Things. It was a learning experience that deepened my knowledge of online resources that I can use for the rest of my career.

Thing Twenty-Two: Staying Current

There is so much information online, and the Internet is constantly changing. It is impossible to keep up with everything, but I will try to keep up by continuing to use the tools that I learned through 23 Things on a Stick. For instance, I now have a gmail account and plan on using some of the various tools available through Google. I also have a blog. I now am more aware of Web 2.0, Library 2.0, RSS feeds, aggregators, webinars, etc. This program has helped me become more knowledgeable about the online world, and will benefit my career.

Thing Twenty-one: Other Social Networks

Online social networks can be good if they focus on a group with similar interests. The social network can be a great place for the exchanging of ideas and information. That said, I think the 23 Things on a Stick Ning would have been better served to ask about favorite books than to ask about marital status.

I think WebJunction is a great social network for library media workers in Minnesota. I attended a WebJunction session at the MEMO conference in Brainerd and was intrigued by the webinars they offer free to members. I think as the online technology improves, WebJunction will be an invaluable site for librarians to learn and discuss new technology and trends.

Thing Twenty B: MySpace

I chose part B because I am not ready to start up a social network account. I thought the MySpace pages of the Denver and Minneapolis public libraries contained a lot of images and little text. The pages seemed to have a lot of flash with little substance. I did like that the Denver page contained links to websites that can help teens with homework, but I did not like that music played automatically on the page. The schools where I work do not allow access to MySpace. Some argue that students care about MySpace, and we should allow them access to what they are interested in. Based on what I have seen and heard about MySpace pages created by teens, I disagree.

Addendum: Now that I have learned more about Facebook, and now that my wife has joined the social network to keep in contact with her friends, I have changed my mind about student access to online social networks. As teachers, we should allow students to have access to social networks in schools so that we can teach them what is acceptible to post, and what is unacceptable (i.e. personal information, bullying, illegal activities).

Thing 19: Podcasts

I like how easy it is to link a podcast into my Google Reader account. I linked a half dozen podcasts that focus on books to my account. My favorite podcast is The Writer's Almanac. There are a great variety of podcasts that cover a great variety of subject matter; the podcast directories were very useful.

I have some experience creating podcasts through Audacity, and look forward to using it as a teaching tool. I look forward to teaching students how to create their own podcasts.

Thing 18: YouTube

I happened across this video on YouTube, titled "Angry Librarian," and had to check it out. I chose to post this video because it made me laugh. It's pretty good library humor.

I can see using videos to help students see what the library has to offer, and to help explain library procedures.

Thing 17: ELM Productivity Tools

The search alert is a great way to follow an issue you are researching. It is also a great way to teach about the differences between magazines, academic journals, newspapers, and books. We can also teach that the information being sought helps determine what type of sources should be used.

I was not a big fan of the EBSCO page composer. I did not find it user friendly, and could not see the changes I made until previewing the webpage. There are definitely better sites to help compose a webpage.

Proquest is a great research tool. It is useful for teaching students how to refine a search. I think it is wonderful that Proquest is available to the public for free.

NetLibrary, like Google Books, represents the future of reading. I think it is fantastic to be able to type in a word and to search for it in an entire book in a matter of seconds. It is a great research tool, and it allows you to write notes online. Imagine having access at home to every book and every periodical article that was ever published (and still exists). With the Internet, we now have this capability.

Thing 16: Assignment Calculator & Research Project Calculator

I can see how the Assignment Calculator and Research Project Calculator can be a great benefit to middle school students and older. The calculators do a good job of breaking the research process down into steps, and provides many useful links to websites that can aid the research process. I thought the supporting materials in the teacher guide were useful, and could easily be reproduced for students. However, I work with elementary students, and think the Assignment Calculator and Research Project Calculator are too advanced for them. It would be good to have a research calulator more geared toward younger students that could help show them how to break down the research process into simple steps.