As part of my summer Fellowship in ETS, I'm collaborating with Digital Commons staff to present a workshop on digital storytelling and library research.  The workshop is a precursor to the Learning Design Summer Camp, and is simply a great opportunity to discuss student multimedia creation, copyright and fair use, and information / technology / media literacies in an interactive environment.

Following is the workshop info (including registration link) that Allan Gyorke sent out today.  Hope you can join us!

At our first meeting today about the TLT Faculty Fellow digital literacy acquisition project, we discussed the concept of information literacy, and how it embeds within the multimedia creation process.

As our work begins, I'm collecting general works on information literacy to provide a background for the team.  In the process, I found a recent report with some interesting findings on undergraduate students and the research process.

The University of Washington Project Information Literacy Progress Report, by Drs. Alison Head and Michael Eisenberg, looks at the challenges undergraduate students face finding information for course assignments and personal needs.

The progress report focuses on the issue of "context"---specifically, how students attain context during the research process, in the following forms:

--Big picture context---Selecting a topic, narrowing down a topic effectively, understanding the overall background and landscape of a research topic.

--Language context--Understanding the terms and vocabulary of a specific subject area.  This could also include brainstorming appropriate keywords for use in the research process, and understanding the context of specific keywords (or subject headings) in online databases.

--Situational context---Understanding how information fits within the parameters of the assignment, the research topic, the professor's expectations.

--Information gathering context---The act of finding, evaluating, using and citing research sources for course assignments.

These contexts combine to create the student experience throughout the research process.  What's not addressed in the paper (but which could also be identified) are the affective, emotional skills that students need to move successfully between contexts and successfully navigate research for course assignments.

Some interesting findings in the progress report:

The tendency to procrastinate occurred most frequently among students enrolled at research
institutions. (Color me unsurprised by this one.) This was explained as occurring because students had access to such large online collections that they could always find "something to cite."

Students from smaller institutions began their research sooner rather than later, following a more traditional process of gathering sources from ProQuest, etc... and even requesting materials via interlibrary loan.  Is this because these students were more likely exposed to course-related library instruction in their smaller setting?  This problem alone would make an interesting comparison study between University Park and other Penn State campuses.  The report also notes that students in smaller schools viewed faculty (and librarians) as more helpful and accessible.

I love this quote: "Findability was often the most intimidating part of course-related research."  Students consistently reported trouble finding what they were looking for, online or physically in the library.

In nearly three quarters of students surveyed, their research began with Wikipedia---particularly for the value in gaining an idea of the big picture surrounding a topic, and for assistance in learning the language and terms of a topic area.  One student aptly describes Wikipedia as "A great place to start, and a horrible place to end."

The contexts identified in this report could provide a structure for placing information literacy outcomes within student assignments.   To see how our work on this project and others related to digital literacy progress throughout the summer and beyond, feel free to follow the project's wiki page.

I've been thinking lots lately about the Libraries digital collections---for two reasons. 

1)  We're currently in the process of hiring (and I'm chairing the search committee for) a new Digital Collections Curator in the Libraries.

2)  I'm in the very exciting phase of actively planning for my upcoming Faculty Fellowship in ETS.  (Hooray!)

It's funny how things in life often fall into place.  When we began the search for the Digital Collections Curator, I knew the position's relevance to our current collections, to the Libraries web presence, to the Libraries' relationships with other digital and scholarly initiatives and to another newly created (and currently in the search process) position for an ITS/Libraries Digital Architect.

What I didn't think about right away was the Digital Curator's importance with regard to library instruction and information literacy.  Relevant and remarkable collections, in print, online---wherever they are, are wonderful to have.  But if the riches of the collections are not integrated into the curriculum, what is their impact and overall importance?

The Digital Bridges project at Columbia University helps faculty and librarians connect digital collections within the curriculum.  This is the embodiment of what I've been turning over in my head lately---a mechanism for connecting archival and other online library collections with student assignments, including online media creation.

One of the things I hope to work on during my time as a Fellow is integrating Libraries' held digital collections (including streaming audio, images, and archival materials) into the flow of student media creation.   The fogginess of copyright and fair use have discouraged the use of these materials in the past, and in some respects, have disconnected Libraries' digital collections from this process.  Compounding this difficulty is, in the words of the Digital Bridges project:

"Today's students enjoy, on one hand, an abundance of information--an abundance enabled by a historic convergence of technology, information architecture, and innovative efforts to disseminate the products of human inquiry in newly available ways. On the other hand, they learn in a networked environment prone to distraction, hype, and even hostility to curated or edited information, in which an increasingly dynamic 'participation' can be framed as oppositional to authoritative material."

What a great challenge this is---to bring digital collections within the stream of instruction, much as we have done with print collections in the past.  How lucky I am to have two opportunities to participate in and effect change in this process. 

One of the tenets of the Digital Bridges program captures the lasting effect of this need beautifully.  Excellent student work is in itself 'worthy of collection' and contributes to a knowledge base for future students, faculty and the general public.  What better way to build and integrate our collections for the future?

Earlier this month, the CogDog (aka Alan Levine) came to Penn State to talk with us about 50+ Web 2.0 Ways to Tell a Story.

I know I wasn't the only person in the audience entranced with his use of Cooliris in his presentation.  It was gorgeous, slick, and just very cool.  I came away determined to find a way to make it work for myself.

Of course, because my technical skills are essentially nil (I've blown up and put back together this blog more times than I can count), I couldn't do it the way Alan recommends.  Let's just say that it involved editing an rss feed.  I really couldn't even conceive of what I was supposed to do.

But I found a workaround!  So, if you are technologically challenged like me, but love the overall look and feel of Cooliris, here's a way to show a powerpoint presentation in Cooliris.  It looks neat (you'll have to trust me---I can't embed the thing here).

Here's what you need to do:

1.  Install the piclens plugin for powerpoint (it converts your slides to a format cooliris can read)

2.  When your .ppt is complete, save it, and then convert it using the piclens plugin (it will appear under your add-ons).

3.  One of the files created as a result of your conversion will be called 'index.html'.  Right click on the file, and select 'open with...Firefox'.  Once the file is launched in Firefox, click on the Cooliris icon in the corner of your browser.

4.  Voila!  Cooliris powerpoint!  It is beautiful and slick.  I am not so sure if links to web resources will work using a file locally like this (haven't tried that yet).

5.  If you want to be really smooth, combine this with Portable Firefox, and you'll have a Cooliris presentation fully packaged and ready to go on your flash drive.

P.S.  If you can parse out Alan's original method so that it makes more sense to the tech-challenged like me--let me know.  I'd love to be able to create a file that I could simply access on the Web more seamlessly.

I've referenced before the article, "Web Services as Public Services:  Are We Supporting our Busiest Service Point?" by Deb Riley-Huff.   This article discusses the need for a focused approach to supporting web-based public services in the research library environment.  For me, the first three lines of the article say it all:

It was difficult for many libraries to see it coming. There was very little, if any, time to plan a well coordinated response. It was as though 1 day students were walking through the doors, lined up at reference desks, leaving endless scattered piles of books and journals and the next day they are peering at us, 24/7, through glowing screens in dormitories, apartments or houses miles away. (p. 65)

Of course, in retrospect, unless you lived in a cave, it really wasn't that difficult to see the change in students' use of libraries.  It was a precipitous change that quickly meant libraries must change their entire way of operating.  We're still struggling with that part---letting go of core, physically-based services, and devoting more and more resources to effective provision of online resources and services.

Since last year, I've chaired the Libraries' Web Steering Committee, which is charged with providing user-centered, public services-focused vision across the Libraries and in partnership with key campus units to continually explore, develop, enhance and assess the Libraries' Web presence.   'Web presence' doesn't just mean the Libraries' web site, but anywhere online where Libraries' resources and services are available and accessible.

This year, Web Steering began work on a new tactical plan, indicating actions for development of Libraries' web based services over the next three years (all in relation to the Libraries Strategic plan).  You can see the latest draft of the Web Steering tactical plan here. (link only accessible to Penn State users--let me know if you want me to send you a copy.)

I think the last line of Riley-Huff's article sums up the importance of this tactical plan:

Partnerships within the organization which create and prioritize online service goals will bring traditional library service excellence to life online, where it fits perfectly into the academic mission of the University. (p. 73)

Take a look, and if you have comments or ideas on the tactical plan---please share them---this is still very much a work in progress.  And if you're at University Park, (and you're really interested in this sort of thing) you're welcome to attend a Web Steering-hosted discussion of the tactical plan, on Wednesday May 20 at 3:30 pm. in the Mann Assembly Room, 1st floor, Paterno Library.

Michael Wesch details an assignment he gave his undergraduate class to read 94 articles before the next class session. Sound impossible?

The students used ZohoCreator to enter their citations and self-written abstracts.  Wesch noted that the students who got their readings in first (each student was assigned to find five articles on 'anonymity') had an easier job than the students who put off the assignment (and had to try to find articles that weren't yet listed in the database.)

The final outcome is here (I'd love to know what they used to put together this database.)

I had a few thoughts on this assignment.  Of course, I wondered, first and foremost, if Wesch worked with a librarian on this. (I'm paid to wonder that.) 

Did the students receive instruction (from Wesch or anyone else) on searching scholarly databases?  That part of the process isn't apparent.  The quality of the articles is very scattered.  White papers, conference proceedings (some back to 1997), law journal articles, web pages, Google Books...   It looks like some students used Google Scholar, some used ProQuest and other library databases, others just searched the Web. The quality of student-contributed abstracts is also very inconsistent.

While this is a noble assignment---a community-created reading list for the class---I think the outcome could have had more utility for the class.  These are not the best, most accessible and readily understood articles on anonymity for the undergraduate reader.  What would the students gain from this reading list?

Criticism aside, I can see how this assignment was powerful in the context of Wesch's class, and how it could be refined further to provide more useful readings for students. 

Here's how I would do this assignment:

1)  Teach the students how to search for articles on anonymity in specific library databases that are undergraduate friendly, discussing and brainstorming good keywords for a more focused search on the specific aspects of anonymity being explored in class.

2)  Help the students learn how to use Refworks and create a Shared folder for the class in the Penn State Shared area.  Create an rss feed for the Shared folder. (Admittedly, this is a solution only applicable for Refworks-subscribing institutions)

3)  Give students time, in class, to search for five articles and add them to the Refworks Shared area.

4)  Discuss what makes an effective abstract, and ask students to review their contributed articles and author the accompanying abstracts prior to the next class.

5)  Encourage students to continue keyword tagging and adding articles to the Refworks Shared area throughout the semester.  No need to republish the selected articles in another database---the Shared folder and feed are all that is needed.

There's no doubt that this is a cool assignment.  It's also a ripe opportunity to help students learn effective, focused techniques for finding, selecting and annotating articles that are relevant to the class.

Last month, I mentioned that I have Google Voice, Google's new phone service (previously known as GrandCentral). In the past, I used GrandCentral only for those really important calls--the ones you never want to miss--i.e., school, the doctor's office, etc...

Now that I have Google Voice, I wanted to integrate it into the entirety of my phone usage. (Particularly since I am not often in my office, and there is no web-based service for accessing Penn State voicemail online.) Verizon already offers a nice web-based voicemail access package (they''ll even forward notification of calls/voicemails received to your email), so my home phone calls were covered.

In essence, my goal was to have all of my calls, whether they occur at home, work or on my cell, show up in my email inbox. I forwarded my work phone to my Google Voice number, and life has been much simpler since.  Below is a picture of the Google Voice interface (note the transcribed voicemails). 

Google Voice's voicemail to transcribed text email option is a huge leap forward.  The transcripts aren't perfect, but now I have a searchable record, in my Gmail, of all the work-related voicemails I receive.  You can also email voicemails to others, or embed them as files elsewhere.  Think about how this opens up the possibilities or archiving and searching voicemail, not to mention increasing the general accessibility of voicemail messages.

One of the nicest features of Google Voice, particularly when you're forwarding work calls, is that all callers are announced before you pick up, and you have the option, with one click, to send them directly to voicemail (and listen in, if you so choose).  How terrific is that?

I attended Alan Levine's talk on digital storytelling today, and came away with some fun, new tools that I can hopefully use in the future in my own instruction. (Blabberize, anyone?)

I had never explored the idea of using an online comic generator, like Pixton.  Below is my rather clumsy attempt to recreate a pretty shabby comic I drew for the Back to Basics (ten panels about ten years ago) comic meme last summer.  (You can see that I cheated, and only created eight panels.)  Thanks to Alan for sharing great ideas and giving exposure to some very cool tools!

Today, we hosted the 5th annual K-16 Librarians workshop at the Schlow Library.  The workshop is just one piece of the Central Pennsylvania K-16 Information Literacy Network (which I've written about before).  Essentially, the annual workshop is a fun opportunity to get together with area school, public and academic library colleagues to discuss shared issues.  It is always one of my favorite events of the year.

At past workshops, we've focused on more pedagogical or information literacy-related topics.  This year (at the request of the librarians) we devoted the entire workshop to exploring the use of 2.0 technologies in libraries.

Emily Rimland presented on the use of blogs and wikis in libraries, using clickers in her presentation.  A number of librarians were using blogs for a variety of purposes, including reading recommendations (with student reviews).  Karla Schmit brought a display of award-winning children's books (including the Baker's Dozen books) and highlighted the Pennsylvania Center for the Book initiatives.  Anne Behler shared her Kindle 2 and Sony Reader devices with the group, comparing the tools and detailing the Libraries' Sony Reader project.  Chris Stubbs led a great discussion on gaming in education (more public librarians are featuring year-round gaming programs than you'd think!). 

At lunch, I sat with two public librarians who shared some of the new tech initiatives they've started in their respective libraries.  One library had a Ning network for area parents.  What a terrific idea this is---such an easy way for local parents to connect and exchange ideas and information.  She also wanted to talk about the benefits of Twitter.  A patron who she helped with an information need offered to set up some new social web tools for the library.  He created a Twitter account for the library, and made a flyer for a library haiku contest (using  hashtags, even!) for the library's new Twitter account.  So cool!

I don't have any pictures from the event available yet, but they'll be up soon.  Today was
everything that I hoped our Network could be ---a positive environment for local librarians to share new ideas that impact all levels of education.  Thanks to our presenters, and to everyone who participated!

Frank was a Government Documents librarian at the University of Iowa, and one of the first academic librarians I ever met.  We worked side by side in a large room filled with about eight other staff, including two other librarians, along with lots of indexes, reference books and a few computers.  This was seventeen years ago---email was hardly an element, and computers on desks were a rarity.

My job in Gov Docs (my first real library job) was checking in document shipments.  All day, every day.  I sat in front of a wall-sized card catalog and checked off received documents on index cards.  It's apparent why I became a librarian, isn't it?  Believe me, from that job, it could only be onward and upward.  It was so mind-blowingly boring that I sometimes put my head down on my beige work table and slept, just for a minute or two.  Or I sneaked off to somewhere else in the library and slept for more than a minute or two.

When I wasn't involved in the fascinating process of checking in documents, I sat next to Frank, right by the front door, and assisted patrons as they came in.  Which meant that I got to watch Frank answer lots of reference questions.  Because everyone was all together in one room, librarians, staff, and patrons, I was privy to an amazing fishbowl, watching how librarians tackled tough reference questions daily.  And Frank was the very best.

Frank had been a Gov Docs librarian for almost 40 years.  He was a former CIA man and still looked, acted and dressed like it.  I just re-watched Apollo 13 the other night, and Frank looked like the guys in the NASA control room.  His whole look was Federal government, circa 1964.  Buzz-cut hair, black, thick rimmed glasses, and every day, a white short sleeved shirt, black pants, black shoes, and skinny black tie with a tie clip.  Every single day.  He also ate the same lunch at the same time every day (a sandwich at precisely noon), and every April Fool's Day, the library held an event where everyone dressed up in Frank's 'uniform.'  He was a library legend.

Fascinating idiosyncrasies aside, Frank made the most lasting impression on me. 

Frank taught me that:

--There is nothing more important than helping a patron, no matter what else you're working on.

--Every reference question has an answer.  Perhaps not immediately, but eventually.  A patron should never leave without an answer, a lead or a promised follow-up on what they're looking for.  It may take days, but the answer will come.

--A good librarian commits to memory every inch of their collection, physical or online and can mentally pull up information from that collection readily at any given moment.  (This one was Frank's forte, and is completely unachievable today.)

Frank's customer service ethic and commitment to patrons was legendary.  A patron came in one day, having visited twenty years prior when he was a student, and he immediately remembered Frank and the help he had given him years before. 

Librarianship has changed, but the lasting lesson of Frank's thoughtful, exhaustive commitment to good reference librarianship remains with me.  I'm thankful to him for everything that he taught me, in the short time that we worked side by side in Gov Docs.