So far this session has been the most relevant, engaging and enjoyable for me. The room was full of librarians who all seemed to be huge fans of the speaker Doug Johnson and his "blue skunk" blog. Doug is the Director of Media and Technology for the Mankato (MN) Public School and he is also the author of six books on the topic of libraries and designing library environs.
Today’s reality is that readers and information seekers are having increasingly less need to visit a physical library to meet their basic information needs. Digital information sources, readily accessed from classroom, home or mobile computing devices, are the choice of many learners and teachers. The “Net Generation” student increasingly prefers the visual and the virtual rather than the printed text. Why, many educators are asking, does a school need a physical library when seemingly all resources can be obtained using an inexpensive netbook and a wireless network connection? How can these large physical spaces in our schools be re-purposed for greater educational impact? The purpose of this session is to help librarians and school administrators understand the changing roles of school libraries and provide practical suggestions for how new or current physical libraries should be redesigned to best fit the needs of today's students and schools.
Outline: This lecture/discussion included:
1. A review of "best practices" in school library design with resources. Discussion "do the fundamentals still apply?"
2. Discussion/brainstorming: What's different about library services today - resources, students, activities, school goals?
3. Presentation and discussion on four adaptations libraries should consider: - Social learning spaces/Learning Commons - Production and presentation - Teaching spaces - New expertise
All the notes from the session canbe found at: https://dougjohnson.wikispaces.com
One of the discussions that resonated with me was about the rules of libraries. Doug believes there should be only three rules: 1. be doing something productive 2. allow other people to be productive 3. respect other peoples property We also discussed the following points: -how can libraries be social and productive?....throw away the rules, no quiet, changing interiors - to bridge the digital divide libraries can provide the tech go those who don't have access at home - we need to add services to the library space.....giving students a reason to visit, consider adding the I.T dept too, tutors, gifted and talented, careers office etc - dontcall it the library classroom but call it the model classroom...a place to trial new technology and for teachers to experience it in a real setting Continue to ask the question, what's going to keep people coming to a library?
Today’s reality is that readers and information seekers are having increasingly less need to visit a physical library to meet their basic information needs. Digital information sources, readily accessed from classroom, home or mobile computing devices, are the choice of many learners and teachers. The “Net Generation” student increasingly prefers the visual and the virtual rather than the printed text. Why, many educators are asking, does a school need a physical library when seemingly all resources can be obtained using an inexpensive netbook and a wireless network connection? How can these large physical spaces in our schools be re-purposed for greater educational impact? The purpose of this session is to help librarians and school administrators understand the changing roles of school libraries and provide practical suggestions for how new or current physical libraries should be redesigned to best fit the needs of today's students and schools.
Outline: This lecture/discussion included:
1. A review of "best practices" in school library design with resources. Discussion "do the fundamentals still apply?"
2. Discussion/brainstorming: What's different about library services today - resources, students, activities, school goals?
3. Presentation and discussion on four adaptations libraries should consider: - Social learning spaces/Learning Commons - Production and presentation - Teaching spaces - New expertise
All the notes from the session canbe found at: https://dougjohnson.wikispaces.com
One of the discussions that resonated with me was about the rules of libraries. Doug believes there should be only three rules: 1. be doing something productive 2. allow other people to be productive 3. respect other peoples property We also discussed the following points: -how can libraries be social and productive?....throw away the rules, no quiet, changing interiors - to bridge the digital divide libraries can provide the tech go those who don't have access at home - we need to add services to the library space.....giving students a reason to visit, consider adding the I.T dept too, tutors, gifted and talented, careers office etc - dontcall it the library classroom but call it the model classroom...a place to trial new technology and for teachers to experience it in a real setting Continue to ask the question, what's going to keep people coming to a library?
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