MSLIS News

Universities across the globe have been delivering courses online to off-campus students for decades, but the Syracuse University School of Information Studies (iSchool) is now trying out the possibility of teaching a course that is open to both students and the public via the online video platform, YouTube.

Throughout the month of June, iSchool Professor Scott Nicholson will teach IST 600 Gaming in Libraries in three online spaces:

· The Syracuse University YouTube channel, where video lectures and guest speakers will be posted, and where students enrolled in the class will be required to post weekly video responses.

· American Library Association (ALA) Connect , a social networking site for the ALA that will host the discussion of students, speakers, librarians, and other participants from the general public

· The iSchool’s online learning management system, a private space for enrolled students to ask questions and submit their assignments

Nicholson decided to offer the course through this open forum for several reasons, including the desire to reach public librarians who are interested in learning more about incorporating gaming into their libraries. “Many libraries are interested in gaming but don’t know where to start,” Nicholson said. “My hope is that the videos will help libraries be successful with their gaming programs from the beginning.”

He also recognizes the potential hazards of teaching a course in a public space such as YouTube. “There are a lot of people there who post negative messages and spam,” Nicholson said. “As it’s a public forum where anyone can post behind a user name, I expect the tone of the discussions may be different than what students expect in an online course. That said, this will also prepare them for what can happen when they become librarians and start to host community 2.0 spaces, so that is part of what we will be talking about in the closed portion of the course.”

Students and other participants in the class can expect to gain a solid understanding of the spectrum of types of games, know how libraries typically use games, and be able to select games for their own libraries based upon the goals of the program and the mission of the library. They will learn how to start a gaming program, how to facilitate the activity, how to assess the program, and how to tie the assessment back to the library’s mission.

Nicholson’s biggest goal for the course, however, is to bring together students, librarians, gamers, and representatives of the gaming industry. He is hoping that some of the 4,000 people who follow his “Board Games with Scott ” video series will join in the course discussions.

The course is being offered by the Syracuse iSchool to its students and students enrolled at partner schools through the Web-based Information Science Education (WISE) Consortium. The course is being funded by the Kauffman Enitiative Project at Syracuse University.

While Nicholson sees more and more social media tools being used in the classroom, he acknowledges that universities face the challenge of receiving compensation for their content. “Universities survive because people are willing to pay for education,” he said. “Social media tends to produce content that is free. If the course is then being given away, this isn’t sustainable.” Yet, he wants to explore ways in which universities can offer some content, such as continuing education courses or information that could serve the public, through these public venues.

Anyone interested in participating in “Gaming in Libraries” course can learn more at: http://gamesinlibraries.org/course. Click here for the syllabus.

Syracuse University’s Center for Digital Literacy hosts an annual event called E*LIT (Enriching Literacy Through Information Technology). The event is a competition among central New York area schools around a central literary theme. Classroom teachers and school library media specialists work collaboratively to prepare projects using digital technology, sometimes combining classrooms or even schools. This year’s event has a Harlem renaissance theme, centered around books by Andrea Davis Pinkney. The authors are chosen for their dedication to giving a voice to an underserved population.  

The projects are submitted digitally, and are judged by Syracuse MLIS students, community members, librarians, and teachers. I was privileged to be part of this year’s review team, because I got to experience the wide range of wonderful and creative projects; for example, games, movies, wikis, websites, sound recordings, and even some interactive digital posters (glogs), all highlighting one or more of Ms. Pinkney’s books 

The final E*LIT event is coming up on May 15 in Syracuse, when all the participants will come together to hear the author speak and receive prizes. I secretly have my favorite project, but so many of them were really amazing, that I can’t wait to find out who wins! Kudos to Syracuse MLIS student Jenifer Sullivan for coordinating all of us wayward graduate student evaluators. I’m sure that wasn’t easy, but what a wonderful and worthy project. Congratulations to all the winners! 

Feel free to comment here or on the Syracuse iSchool LIS facebook page.Posted by Rebecca Buerkett, Syracuse MLIS distance student, rlbuerke@syr.edu.

Here’s a short video I made talking about some of your elective choices for Fall 2009.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3eBQJy8D3w

Here are the classes I referenced in the video:

Campus

IST553 M001 25283 3 Info Architecture for Internet Services O’Neill, P
IST565 M001 25439 3 Data Mining McCracken, N
IST619 M001 25295 3 Applied Econ. For Info. Mgrs.
IST625 M001 25363 3 Risk Management Kaarst-Brown,
IST626 M001 31950 3 Business Information Resources and Strategic Intelligence Hurst-Wahl, J
IST632 M001 31869 3 Management and Organization of Special Collections Lavender, K
IST641 M001 31982 3 Behavior of Information Users Nilan, M
IST645 M001 25379 3 Managing Information Systems Projects Thomas, A
IST645 M002 25381 3 Managing Information Systems Projects Uva, T
IST659 M001 25159 3 Data Admin. Concepts and Database Mgmt. Dischiave, S
IST659 M002 25303 3 Data Admin. Concepts and Database Mgmt. Dischiave, S
IST683 M001 31977 3 Managing Info. Tech.-Enabled Change Oesterlund, C

Distance

IST552 M002 25437 3 Info. Systems Analysis: Concepts and Practice Yilmazel, O
IST558 M001 25489 3 Technologies in Web Content Management Hsiao, W
IST600 M003 25477 3 Participatory Librarianship Lankes, R
IST600 M005 31781 1 Grant Writing Shaffer-Mannion, R
Course meets: November 1 - 30, 2009
IST600 M006 31782 1 Library Budgeting Shaffer-Mannion, R
Course Meets: September 1 - September 20, 2009
IST600 M007 31783 1 Library Fundraising Shaffer-Mannion, R
Course Meets: October 1 - October 31, 2009
IST609 M001 31874 3 Biomedical Information Services and Sources Maggi, G
IST612 M001 25287 3 Youth Services in Libraries and Information Centers Wall, B
Required Residency: August 1-2, 2009
IST617 M001 25499 3 Motivational Aspects of Information Use Small, R
IST631 M001 31870 3 Theory of Classification and Subject Representation Kwasnik, B
IST645 M003 25383 3 Managing Information Systems Projects Emborski, R
IST659 M003 25391 3 Data Admin. Concepts and Database Mgmt. Wiggins, Sr., W
IST661 M001 25367 3 Info. Mgmt. In Schools Franklin, R
IST663 M001 31862 3 Motivation and Information Literacy Arnone, M
Small, R
Required Residency: September 12 - September 13th Hinds Hall 117
IST676 M001 25305 3 Digital Libraries Hurst-Wahl, J
IST677 M001 31871 3 Creating and Managing Digital Assets Hurst-Wahl, J
IST759 M001 25497 3 Planning and Designing Digital Library Services Lankes, R

I spent 10 days in the Netherlands last month teaching a class to students in game technology & game design. While there, I worked with the public libraries in Amsterdam and Delft. I was really impressed, so I made this video lesson about what I saw and what we can learn.

Thanks to one of my fellow MLIS students, Ana Canino-Fluit, for finding this blog posting by onellums: 5 Things I Didn’t Realize I’d Be Working on…When I Decided to Become a Librarian (alternate title, Thank Goodness I Went to Syracuse’s iSchool), over at the ACRL blog. As a current SU student, it is very encouraging (and not surprising) to see that others are finding the things we learn at the SU iSchool useful. We have so much excellent information piled on us as students, it can be hard to believe that we will ever get to use it all, but I try to look at each and every assignment as something I may potentially need to use in my job someday. So I’d better pay attention.  

I am not a real librarian quite yet so I know this will most likely change when I get out into the real world, but here is my list of 5 Things I Didn’t Realize I’d be Working on… (keep in mind that I am a school media student, so my list is a bit different from the aforementioned blog post). 

1.     Tech geekery – I was never a technophobe by any means, but since entering library school, I have learned more than I ever thought possible about technology programs, websites, training modules, and online tools. For example, as onellums mentioned, creating video tutorial screencasts using free programs like Jing. Any kind of librarian, academic, public, or school, will find this useful for teaching patrons about library services. Not only am I becoming more techno-savvy, I find that I am equipped to solve glitches, use technical tools to enhance learning, and teach others about useful websites. I suspect that my constant sharing is starting to irritate my friends. 

2.     Second Life  - virtual worlds are not just for gamers anymore. Educators are using Second Life for hosting conference workshops as well as classroom teaching. We’re having our IST611 class discussion in Second Life next week, so we all had to create avatars. Which was an experience in and of itself. Who knew there were so many different miniscule ways to adjust a body? Long or short nose? High or low hair? Perky or droopy boobs? Long or short waist? Love handles or no? It was existential. But I digress. 

3.     Lesson plans – I think many people think of librarians as resource and support personnel, but we do so much more. All librarians, not just school librarians, are teachers, and we are trained to provide instruction to our patrons on a variety of topics. School librarians in particular receive instruction on developing lesson plans, incorporating learning standards, educational and motivational theories, and literacy development. 

4.     Planning, marketing, and assessment – people associate marketing with business, but librarians need to not only market their services to users, but also assess the adequacy of our services. Knowing how to create effective project, marketing, and assessment plans is a critical skill, so thank you IST613.  

5.     Advocacy – before entering library school, I didn’t realize how much advocacy librarians are involved with, and how much support we have available to us from our peers and professional organizations. Library programs are usually supported with public funds and as such, our services can be very vulnerable in difficult financial times. Advocacy takes place on so many levels: with administrators, governing boards, teachers, parents, and patrons. It’s pretty much a constant task in any given day. Fortunately we have a huge support network of other librarians. Librarians not only like to help patrons find information, we like to help each other! For example, when I needed help with my Second Life avatar, I put out an SOS call to the LM_NET listserv and sure enough, an expert librarian contacted me within hours. Now THAT’s service. 

There are many, many more cool things that I will get to do once I have a real library job, but these are the first five that came to mind. What about you? What are your five (or more) things? Don’t forget to read the viewer comments on the ACRL blog posting to see what others came up with! 

Feel free to comment here or on the Syracuse iSchool LIS facebook page. 

Posted by Rebecca Buerkett, Syracuse MLIS distance student, rlbuerke@syr.edu

I am thoroughly enjoying Pam Berger’s online course this semester at SU, IST611, Information Technologies in Educational Organizations. This course is one of those required for school media students at SU. The focus of the course is to explore the use of Web 2.0 technologies in educational settings, and to investigate collaboration opportunities between library media specialists and other members of the school community. The best part of the class so far has been learning about all the Web 2.0 technologies available for use in a classroom or school library setting. Finally, an alternative to boring PowerPoints! How about a Voicethread or Animoto project? Podcast? Vodcast? Class wiki? Mind Map? The possibilities are endless, and new programs are coming along every day. The two sections of IST611 (Pam Berger’s and Steve Nabinger’s) are putting together a wiki highlighting these technologies, which will be an excellent reference when it is completed.  

The course instructors have been creative in designing assignments and delivery methods. We were required to set up facebook and twitter accounts, if we hadn’t already, and are developing collaborative on-site technology projects at libraries where we live. Some weeks our class discussions are conducted using Web 2.0 communication  tools such as blogs, Skype, and (coming soon) Second Life. For an example, visit the blog I set up for this course: http://rbuerkett.edublogs.org/. Most of the posts are related to IST611, but I intend to continue using the blog even after the course is complete.  

One of the most important takeaways from this course is probably an awareness of not only the technology tools, but also the ongoing professional development opportunities afforded by the various social media tools. I know these skills will serve me very well when I’m a Real Librarian! This course would be useful for MLIS students even if they aren’t on the school media track. Related course for non-schmedia students (those types who get to fit electives into their schedules!) are IST 667 Information Technology for Libraries and Information Centers and IST500 Social Media.  

Feel free to comment here or on the Syracuse iSchool LIS facebook page.

Posted by Rebecca Buerkett, Syracuse MLIS distance student, rlbuerke@syr.edu.

If you are interested in being involved with the Gaming in Libraries course that will be running in June 2009, then keep an eye on this blog:

http://www.gamesinlibraries.org/course/

That will be the primary hub for the public view of the course, and you will be able to easily find all of the videos through that course.

If you enroll in the class, then you’ll also have access to the backchannel on the LMS, where we will be discussing what is going on in the public view, having in-depth discussions, doing assignments, and all of the normal “course stuff.”

I’ve created a short video talking about some of the Summer 2009 courses.

Here are the courses I discussed:

Maymester
IST681 Metadata

Summer Institute (Campus)
IST600 Knowledge Management
IST600 Being an Information Consultant: Practical Strategies for Success
IST600 Preservation
IST600 Library Budgeting and Fundraising
IST600 Adult Services in the Public Library
IST612 Youth Services in Libraries and Information Centers
IST645 Managing Information Systems Projects
IST759 Planning and Designing Digital Library Services

Online
IST 614 and IST 618
IST500 Social Media
IST552 Info. Systems Analysis: Concepts and Practice
IST553 Info Architecture for Internet Services
IST668 Literacy Through School Libraries
IST600 Gaming in Libraries

Just as I tend toward the I-don’t-care-what-they-are-reading-as-long-as-they-are-reading camp, I also tend toward the I-don’t-care-what-they-are-doing-in-the-library-as-long-as-they-are-in-the-library camp. And this applies not only to students, but also teachers and parents as well. So how do we do it? I have some ideas and examples of what is working for some teacher-librarians:

Students
I went to a wonderful talk at last fall’s NYLA conference by Sue Kowalski, from East Syracuse-Minoa Pine Grove Middle School (if you ever have a chance to see her speak, I highly recommend it). She had lots of ideas as to how to get students interested in spending time at her library, including giveaways and contests, but my two favorites were puzzles and clubs. Sue always keeps a jigsaw puzzle going on a table in the library. Many students stop to put in a piece here or a piece there, and some get very engrossed and purposely go to the library to work on the puzzle. I was very intrigued by Sue’s comment that all sorts of kids end up at the puzzle table beside kids they wouldn’t normally hang out with. Apparently the conversations are worthy of a sociology dissertation. Another way Sue is drawing kids into her library, and bringing together kids who wouldn’t necessarily be friends otherwise, is by allowing them to form their own clubs and hold meetings in the library during the after school activity period. The students can design any club they want; examples include a Star Wars club, gaming clubs, fan clubs, or a cat club. She provides tools and materials if needed but does little to facilitate. The students have to sign up and plan ahead for their meetings, which is all in all a great learning experience for the students and a great way to encourage non-traditional library use. 

Teachers
As school library media specialists-to-be, we hear it constantly: collaborate, collaborate, collaborate. The first step in the process is to get teachers to recognize librarians as co-teachers and to acknowledge that we can help to enhance the learning experience for their students. At the Lake Placid Middle/High School where I am currently doing fieldwork, LMS Sara Johns keeps a coffee pot going all day in her office for teacher use (25 cents a cup to cover costs). This is brilliant. Not only does she have fresh coffee an arm’s reach away at any given moment, she is also providing the opportunity to chat with the teachers. And while in casual conversation, she can mention a new book they just got in, a website she thinks might interest them, or initiate the next project collaboration. Another outreach activity that Sara has tried is something she calls “collaborative weeding.” She invites teachers to have a weeding party in the section of the stacks corresponding to their discipline. She provides food (free food is a big teacher-motivator) and good conversation and the teachers see it as a social experience. Sara doesn’t necessarily discard all the books that the teachers recommend for weeding, but it gets the teachers more familiar with the collection, it provides Sara with information about teacher’s needs, and it gets the teachers into the library. 

Parents
Bringing parents into the school library can be trickier. Teacher-librarians should never miss an opportunity to have the library open during open house, parent night, or family night. Because parents may not think of going to the library after their child’s classroom, it may be necessary to hold a contest or advertise a scavenger hunt to bring them in. Another idea I had was to offer classes in information technology tools or the all-important “how to keep your child safe online” for parents during school dances. In my daughter’s school, school dances are often held on Fridays from 7-9 pm. For those of us who live a ways outside of town, this can be a big pain – do you go home in between pickup and dropoff? Do you hang out in town? Few businesses are open at that time of night and parents are looking for something to do. Why not capitalize on their frustration and get them into the library? I haven’t tried this out, mind you, but it seems like an interesting idea. 

Of course, each of the above suggestions has logistical and staffing issues and they won’t work in every library. But getting students, teachers, and parents in the library door is a first step, and maybe while they are there, they might find something that piques their curiosity and want to stay. And then they might just learn something! What about you? What types of outreach do you do at your library? Feel free to comment here or on the Syracuse iSchool LIS facebook page. 

Posted by Rebecca Buerkett, Syracuse MLIS distance student, rlbuerke@syr.edu.

I’ve heard it said that even though graduate students come into the Syracuse MLIS program with widely varying degrees of experience in libraries and with technology, by the time they enter their second or third semester they are all on a level playing field. I am finding that to be fairly accurate. I considered myself relatively computer-savvy prior to starting my program last summer, but I had absolutely no library or teaching experience. My first two semesters were mind-blowing. So much exciting new stuff to learn! I just couldn’t get enough of it all. At first, I felt embarrassed to post to the class message boards for fear of saying something foolish. Many of my classmates are either working in libraries already or teaching in schools. I certainly wasn’t the only one who was making a complete career change and starting from scratch, but for a while it seemed like I couldn’t possibly learn it all. However, despite the information overload and techno-stress, my classes were very stimulating, my professors were patient, and my classmates informative and helpful.   

Now, entering my third semester as a full time MLIS student, I am starting to see the light. Between my classes and my fieldwork, I have gained more confidence in my future as a librarian. I’m noticing some overlap in my classes. I now recognize the names of researchers in the library literature. I was surprised to find myself rated an “omnivore” in the Pew Internet Project Internet Typology test. But this didn’t happen overnight and it took effort to immerse myself as much as possible in not only my coursework, but also in other online resources. Here are my recommendations for other students who might be feeling overwhelmed in the early stages of your MLIS program: 

• Read library blogs and follow library movers/shakers on Twitter. Find out what’s going on out there in the real world of librarianism.
• Communicate with fellow classmates not only on the class message boards, but also via Twitter and Facebook, etc. This is especially useful if you are a distance student. It helps you feel more connected and reduces the sense of floundering when you realize others are feeling the same way.
• Spend as much time in libraries as you can. If you are a school media student, start your fieldwork as early as possible. Discussing your assignments with practicing librarians lends a greater relevancy to what you are learning. I am finding it helpful to spread out my fieldwork over the course of a whole semester rather than doing it in one short spurt. It allows me to follow up on things I am learning in class and get a different perspective.
• When you have assignments that require hands-on library projects, don’t do them all at the same library. Seeing how various different librarians run their libraries is a great learning tool. Plus, it expands your contact base of future colleagues.
• Ask questions. All the time. Of anyone you can. It really isn’t as annoying to them as you think. Most people kind of like talking about themselves. 

Most of all, enjoy this time. The best part of becoming a librarian is that the field requires constant learning, so the intellectual stimulation of the graduate school experience doesn’t have to end! At least that’s what I’m hoping. 

Posted by Rebecca Buerkett, Syracuse MLIS distance student, rlbuerke@syr.edu. Feel free to comment on this post on the Syracuse iSchool LIS facebook page.