CEDu 527 - November 17, 2010

1. For my library website I am using CMS4 schools.  My school district purchased the software over the summer and this is the first year that we have been using it. I really knew nothing about the program until last week when I was trained.  Since my training last week I have added four pages, most of which are not complete, but are in progress.  I have also included my online card catalog for student use, as well as hours of operation and check-out policies.  I have a vision of where I am going with my website, but the program I am using is not always friendly, so I have found that it takes a bit of playing with to actually get a page to work how I want it to.  One major problem I am finding is that our school bought a template package, so some of the things that I want to do on my website are very challenging or impossible to do.

I have explored other websites and one that I found well done was Pilgrim Park Middle School.  What I liked about this website was the ease of use, also I found it visually appealing.  When I viewed it I thought it looked nice and the links seemed to be labeled so that students, parents, and teachers navigate the site well.  While looking at websites I think I found many had good information, but some sites did a better job at laying out their website for ease of use.

2.  I was aware of Common School Funds before tonight, but besides giving me my budget folder with a paper that explained it, no one told me anything about it.  I was very glad that we had the discussion in class on CSF, I now feel much better about where I am spending and what I am spending my money on.  Finding out the history of the CSF was interesting and I realize how lucky Wisconsin is to have the funding that we do.

3.  Looking at the quote “make a difference in the lives of students and positively affect their learning”  makes me think about the power a library media specialist has.  As a LMS if I develop my collection properly,  look at the needs of the community I am in, and create helpful information I can make a huge difference in the lives of students and their ability to learn.  Another crucial part  is making the students trust you.  I don’t see every student on a daily basis, so when the students come in to the library I try to help them in any way I can.  I do this so they begin to see that I do have knowledge and am someone they should see as valuable to their learning.  Another reason for doing  this is so they know that they can come to me with their questions and showing them that they are important and come first.  

4.  After reading the first seven chapters I have a better understanding of what my job is.  I think the LMS has a unique job because every school has different expectation for the position, but there are some that are standard.  By reading the text I have learned a great deal about choosing the proper materials for the library, also the pros and cons to having a flexible versus a fixed schedule, and just finding out the general information about how an Library Media Center can run.  After being a social studies teacher for 10 years I would never have guessed all of the jobs an LMS has and I think I also see how truly valuable a good LMS can be for the school, staff, and students.

Louis Question:
Class this week has effected my professional life in the sense that I am beginning to feel  more comfortable in my role as a LMS.  I have been in my position since the beginning of November and I am finally beginning to feel “settled.”  I think part of the reason I am beginning to feel settled is because the class is giving me the sense that I am doing things right.  One thing I learned about this week that has taken a huge weight off my shoulders is the Common School Funds.  I thought I had a good idea of how it worked, but I didn’t want to be spending something that I shouldn’t be, so class made me realize all the boundaries of the CSF.  I also learned about Google forms.  I made a quick form up and sent it to myself to see how that worked.  I think the forms are something that I will be able to use with my staff and possibly students in the future.

CEDU 572 - November 10, 2010

Class this week allowed me to learn a great deal about the resources that google has to offer.  My favorite google tool was the to-do list.  I tend to have multiple lists floating around during the day, now I’m able to have the list up on my computer and modify as needed.  Blogger is another tool that I find useful and would love to incorporate that in to the classroom.  I do like the fact that with igoogle I can have the resources that are most important to me available in the same location.

Currently I am not using any Google Docs in my professional or personal life.  I will be trying and using Google Docs for the courses in the cohort, however I can also see the use of using Google Docs for collaboration.  I do collaborate in my professional life, must often with other teachers and librarians in my district, therefore we use shared drives on our network most often.  I do see Google Docs being helpful when collaborating outside of the district.  It would make it much easier than e-mailing documents back and forth.  II do ask students to collaborate, often times they are using the school shared drive in order to do this, much like our teachers.  I would definitely like to talk to other teachers who have used Google Docs with their students to see how it has worked out.

What I have learned about PLN’s is that they will give me a place to go with questions.  I also am able to find resources and find out different ways of doing things.  I plan on joining AASL, YALSA, and WEMTA.  I feel like all three of these PLN’s will give me an advantage in the library.    I thought AASL had a great deal of information on their website that will be valuable to me as I continue in this profession.  When I looked at YALSA I spent a ton of time looking at activities for youth in the library.  Lastly, WEMTA is an organization that will help me continue to develop my technology skills for use in the library.

Yes, I do think it is important to have a Library Media Center Web Page.  I think in the world today more often than not people check things out first on the Internet.  Having a good web page will allow prospective families to see what my library has to offer.  Also, I think it is helpful to have links so students can access the databases that are provided at school at home.   More parents will enter my school web page then my library, so I think it is important to give useful information for the parents, as well as the students.

Louis Question:
Class this week has effected my professional life because I now am able to use many of the Google Docs to help me achieve success in this class and I have been able to look at how I can incorporate Google Docs into the classroom.  Also, I have learned a great deal about PLN’s and have thought about which ones I may want to join.  When I was searching PLN’s it was a bit daunting, because there were so many.  After discussing some of the PLN’s in class I was able to decide which ones would be right for me to join.