ED 566E - March 22, 2008, No. 9

Once again an interesting class. While we were looking at Google Earth someone asked how we would use this in the library and neither of us could come up with a good answer, but on further reflection I think that many of the new Web 2.0 tools aren't things that we necessarily need to use in the library at this point, but the idea is that we could use them. They are just extras at the moment and kids like always like the newest hippest thing. No one needs Google Earth, but a student doing a presentation on the Eifell Tower could put it into Google Earth to give the people watching the presentation another way to look at the Eifell Tower. Its an enhancement and I think that is how we need to view these new tools for now. 15 years ago people thought Power Point was completely unnecessary and now students wouldn't do a presentation without it. Some of these web 2.0 tools may be become integral like power point, while other will not last and for that reason we should have an awareness of them. So we can be part of that process. This thought has really changed my perspective on what we are learning in this course.

ED 566E - March 9, 2008, No. 8

I really enjoyed this week's class. I did not understand widgets at all (i.e. how they worked, why I would use one). The hands on practical use of widgets was really helpful. I put 3 different widgets in this blog and it is interesting to see how they are all different. I especially liked the library thing search widget although some people were having trouble getting accurate results. I've done some experimenting since then with putting widgets in our group website. I've used very basic widgets that are available through freewebs.com. Turns out I've been seeing widgets for a quite a while on other websites. The one I've used in our website seems to be a popular one. It allows a user to create an RSS feed from a website or page.

Working on our website was good too. We divided up the tasks so we each have something specific to work on for the next 2 weeks. I'm creating links to age-appropriate author web sites, podcasts, and book reviews. Finding the information and creating the links has been interesting. I've experimented with some free clip art too.

Finally, I think I'm addicted to ProQuest. I know I'm addicted to information. As you could see from my search strategy I like to include as many specific key words as possible and I'm amazed at all the relevant information that comes back.

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

library thing search

library thing

ED 566E - March 2, 2008, No. 6

I liked seeing del.ici.ous on Thursday night. I had previously dismissed it as something I wasn't interested in. I'm still not sure that I was used it a lot, but I can now see the use for it. I do collect lots of bookmarks and it would be nice to share them with family and friends.

What I really enjoyed was getting a chance to work with my group and discuss our project. It was already becoming apparent that we have different strengths and weaknesses. Ellen came up with a great name and I think it will work well to focus our project. We've already had some preliminary discussions since class about what we can include.

Also, it was great to learn how to do a screen capture. That is something that has elluded me for years. I can see using that a lot in my personal and professional life.

ED 566E - Feburary 23, 2008, No. 6

What a fun class this week. I've heard of and seen SmartBoards before, but was never given such a great demo of the multiple capabilities. My mother actually won a grant to have a SmartBoard permanently mounted in her classroom. She uses it for everything.

What I enjoyed even more was the opportunity to see the subscription websites Doris has for elementary kids. I'm familiar with what the public can access through the public library, but I don't have a way to access the educational subscription websites. Demoing these sites right before doing this week's reading (on educational sofware) really gave me a lot to think about. The sites have all sorts of cool graphics and the videos are fun, but I think as teachers we have to use these resources cautiously. They should enhance the learning experience, not replace it. Doris is obviously using it to enhance what she is teaching, but I can see some lazier teachers relying too heavily on websites and software. The other problem is sometimes it seems like you click through lots of layers to get to something interesting that doesn't last very long.

Of course it always good to get into an actual library to see how each librarian organizes the library and makes use of the space they have. Doris has done a lot with a very small space.