Reference Materials - Discussing Wikipedia

While filling in the gaps and learning about different reference materials, I was reminded of an anecdote that happened fairly recently in my school library. Students were working on a short activity involving Morse code. They were practicing writing their name in written “dot” and “dash” format, followed by a secret message they could write for a friend if they had extra time.

At one point during their work a small group of students asked for another copy of the “code sheet”, which indicated what each letter and number was coded as in Morse code (eg. the letter E = one dot). As I went back to my document to print off a few more copies, a few of the grade 4 students noticed my “from Wikipedia” citation at the bottom of the page. They asked, incredulously, “This came from Wikipedia? They could be lying on there you know!”. Clearly they had been given the “Wikipedia” talk before!

James Kanjo at the English language Wikipedia [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], from Wikimedia Commons

What followed was a short class discussion about the use of Wikipedia, which I indicated that it’s a good starting place for researching a topic. What was interesting to me is that this student’s reaction to my use of Wikipedia lines up with co-founder’s Larry Sangers comments in Berinstein’s articles: that Wikipedia suffers from not merely a lack a credibility (which it arguably does), but more specifically a “lack of public perception of credibility” (2006). Is this unwarranted? Maybe, maybe not - I think taking a critical view of Wikipedia is important, but that doesn’t mean we need to avoid it at all costs.

Despite being a nearly 10 year old article, I do still like Harris’s Rules of Wikipedia:

“1) At least three sources are required to verify research.
2) General encyclopedias like Wikipedia are a great place to get started, however …
3) Serious research projects cannot cite general knowledge encyclopedias.” (2007)

These rules strongly convey the need for a critical eye when viewing information on Wikipedia, but don’t outright prevent it’s usage, which I believe is a great use for this resource.



Works Cited

Berinstein, P. (2006). Wikipedia and Britannica: The Kid's All Right (And So's the Old Man) (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Searcher 14(3), 16-26.

Harris, C. (2007). Can we make peace with Wikipedia? (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. School Library Journal, 53(6), 26.

James Kanjo at the English language Wikipedia [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], from Wikimedia Commons

Moving Forward: An evaluation plan to improve reference services

Please find my assignment #3 below (either link)!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRc3EtxYuXuJCuP-jHtCkRC-Twm3lSB40cOdIFsixnRUuP2ut6NzuAVWD0vrQKCXvB35yOX6ahNGYEl/pub

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sWazs5ufcJROQTZ6sz99QkwHLhTfCj5CCScxIZFsuhw/edit?usp=sharing

Working Together: Collaborating with a teacher and evolving their practice

Please find my assignment #2 below (either link)!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oHEnugTxfFnJFYjB761ensE0yHqmvFgb_wrye99FIUM/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTfoFatBTffWI9iVYNZq8H8hzmWLQ5wFeVekNJwqkB7AxhAjMO60x58P4ZKPBNFQ9qIFoiJJb6gWwXy/pub

Discussing Collaboration - What should it look like?

Photo by UNDP photo stream. Retrieved from https://flic.kr/p/8z1MfS

I’d like to start today’s post with a short clip:

“The New York Public Library Has a Human Google”




In summary, It’s a video talking about a team of librarians at NYPL that will help users answer any researchable question they might have. They even discuss some of the more outlandish requests they have gotten and kept a record of them.

While it’s a meant to be a fun video, I think this is sometimes of the Teacher-librarian can be viewed by both staff and students - ask a question, get an answer - but there is definitely a lot more to the role. For students, building capacity and the knowledge of how to find an answer is equally, if not more important than assisting with an answer directly! For teachers, this could mean more in-depth collaboration discussions and longer “working relationships” in regards to a co-planned unit or assignment.

Collaboration has been an ongoing exploration for me in my library. While I have been doing some work in exploring our digital reference resources (as discussed in the Theme One post), currently, there are lots of requests for collaboration using some of the new technology we received as part of a district initiative (including robotics and other ADST materials).

These have been run multitude of different ways, but Callison’s definition of collaboration from Shayne Russell’s ERIC digest article has me rethinking how some of these learning opportunities should perhaps be formatted: collaboration is defined as “Each partner fulfills a carefully defined role; comprehensive planning is required; leadership, resources, risk, and control are shared; and the working relationship extends over a relatively long period of time” (Callison, 1999). I think perhaps because I am often the one initiating the collaboration, often it has fallen to me to construct what the core of the lesson looks like. While there are teacher to teacher discussions, it is often a short meeting; as discussed in the article - TLs with less overall flexible schedules tend to plan collaboratively for less time (Callison, 1999) - which I have been seeing in my own practice for better or for worse. However, I believe many teachers would absolutely be interested in going even further in-depth into a project or unit in the future. This is definitely something to think about! A carefully, collaboratively planned longer-term unit is perhaps a future goal for my library program.

Works Cited

Callison, D. (1999, January). Keywords in instruction: Collaboration. "School Library Media Activities Monthly," 15(5), 38-40. 

Great Big Story (2016, October 17). The New York Public Library Has a Human Google. Retrieved February 19, 2018, from https://youtu.be/PfqgDG1qrKg

Russell, S. (n.d.). Teachers and Librarians: Collaborative Relationships. ERIC Digest. Retrieved February 19, 2018, from https://www.ericdigests.org/2001-2/librarians.html

Does it make the cut? Evaluation of a Reference Work

Photo by Jason. Retrieved from https://flic.kr/p/4Zoxzx

Please find my latest Assignment below!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZI-sO6AMrHJeVgMDinAv6ZLAIXkMce7ZTkxutzxFPnc/edit?usp=sharing

To Dream the Impossible Dream

Photo by az. Retrieved from https://flic.kr/p/8KCCKW

We all want to do the best job that we can, especially when tackling a new challenge in our careers or personal lives. Going through the Theme One readings for LIBE 467 has reminded me that the position of the Teacher-Librarian is truly complex and multifaceted. I am currently six months into my position as a new TL, and there is lots to do. At the risk of feeling overwhelmed, I think it is beneficial to take a long range view and consider the implications of a five year plan; what will my library look like in the future?

First, view through the lens and applying the context of Assignment 1, my non-fiction and reference section need a careful look. As I mentioned in some of the discussions, I have done some essential weeding of more aged material that has outlived its usefulness, such as a small collection of older print encyclopedias, but there is still much more to evaluate. And even then, does that resource require a replacement despite the availability of digital encyclopedic resources? This is a process that will take time to properly assess and execute on.

Second, there is the discussion surrounding the web and online reference materials, as outlined in Chapter 10 of Reference Skills for the School Librarian: Tools and Tips (Riedling, 2013). Does every teacher and student at my school know what is available to them in terms of digital resources, both through their school library as well as across the board as a school district? Simply knowing what is out there can be a solid step in the direction of making the library a more valuable resource.

As a few examples:

• There is Webpath Express, a curated collection of web links that support curriculum and can provide a solid foundation for student research. (Note: to access, find “Newton Elementary” → Catalogue → Webpath express in the sidebar)
• Other curated resource lists outside the district, such as infotopia.info and other associated Student-friendly custom searches. These can drastically cut down on the information overload from a internet-wide google search as well as give students a leg up in evaluation because of the list curation.
• A new resource in our district for this year is the Discovery Education Science Techbook, a fantastic science “online textbook” integrated with ample multimedia resources and student activities. Here is one that doubles as a very solid teacher resource as well as another potential avenue for student research.

This is a short list of what is available to our teachers and students, and part of the role includes building capacity and making use of the resources we have available to us.

Thirds, also outlined by Riedling throughout Chapter 10, there is the topic of web source evaluation. While the curated lists shown above can help in this regard, it is still invaluable for students to obtain the information literacy skills needed to properly evaluate a resource. I think lessons from education resources such as Common Sense Media can assist me in this area and help students brush up on (or perhaps newly acquire) their research skills.

Retrieved from http://bctf.ca/bctla/pub/

Lastly, I think the BCTLA's information literacy model the “Points of Inquiry” bears mentioning. This is a hugely important model for tackling concepts of inquiry and research, and one of my goals is to introduce this to teachers and students as part of our collaboration. Given that much of the redesigned curriculum is focused on essential questions, and promotes the inquiry learning model itself, exploring info lit models such as this one with other teachers could do a lot to move us forward.

It seems like a lot to handle all at once. However, Reidling has a great quote from William A. Katz that really resonated with me in Chapter 1 (2016) “In time the beginner becomes a veteran. And veteran [school librarians] never quit; or are fired, or die, They simply gain fame as being among the wisest people in the world. One could do worse”. As I gain experience, I strive to be able to make my way towards the path of a veteran teacher librarian.

Works Cited

BCTLA Resources. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2018, from http://bctf.ca/bctla/pub/

D-221 books. (2018, January 28). Retrieved January 28, 2018, from https://flic.kr/p/8KCCKW

Dr. Michael Bell and Carole Bell. (n.d.). Infotopia--A Google Alternative Safe Search Engine for Students. Retrieved January 28, 2018, from http://www.infotopia.info/

Website Evaluation. (2016, August 05). Retrieved January 28, 2018, from https://www.commonsense.org/education/lesson-plans/website-evaluation

Welcome to SD No. 36 (Surrey) Catalogue. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2018, from https://library.sd36.bc.ca/district/servlet/presentlistsitesform.do;jsessionid=3F9364BE22C2C0B8573C3372B646A6C0?districtMode=true

Riedling, A. M., Shake, L., & Houston, C. (2013). Reference skills for the school librarian: tools and tips. Santa Barbara: California.

Techbook™ Digital Textbooks. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2018, from http://www.discoveryeducation.ca/what-we-offer/techbook-digital-textbooks/index.cfm

What is the EXIF data stored with the photos we take?

A teacher recently asked me about location data that is stored on pictures taken with a smartphone. This information is stored alongside the photo as EXIF data (which stands for Exchangeable Image File Format), in addition to other things such as when the photo was taken, and information about the device that took it.

There is a great article on How-to geek about what EXIF data is and how to remove it if you don't want that information to be embedded in your photos.

This is another aspect of photo sharing that students may not be immediately aware of; students might not know that information such as time and place is often bundled along with the actual photo that is shared online, and could be worth discussing!