I have been looking into Second Life and other possible gaming scenarios for ways of using them in education. I think that the format is a great way to engage students. I also listened to a speaker that pointed out how gamers use many important skills while playing such as writing, problem solving, collaboration, etc. One difficulty is finding a format that is safe and appropriate for a school setting. An issue that I came across with Second Life is that there is an age limit for use of the student site. Some of the students I work with are "super seniors" - older than 18 - so they would not be able to use the student version of Second Life.
I still believe that MMOPRGs have a place in education. I also think that it will only be a matter of time before someone comes up with a format that is better geared toward educational settings. My other barrier has been time. But I am excited about the possibility of using gaming in the classroom, and I will continue my investigation.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Thing 14 - LibraryThing
I have actually sent out information on LibraryThing to my staff. A number of teachers have classroom collections, so I thought this site would be useful for helping them track their books. I find it interesting that smaller libraries are using this site for cataloging. Once again, it is interesting how Web 2.0 tools are beginning to replace large, costly systems that are not a good fit for smaller settings. I also like the search features on LibraryThing. Using the tag clouds I have been able to find categories that are just gaining in popularity in more traditional book resource lists such as "street lit". Finally, I think that sites such as this are a great way to bring people together with similar interests.
Thing 13 - online productivity tools
I like the arrangement of PageFlakes the best. I also like that so many resources can be brought together in one space. I am hesitant to have other private accounts (email, Facebook, etc.) connected to site such as this - I think that security risks can be minimized by not having all accounts interconnected. Since I started my career in corporate world, I found the BackPack site very interesting. When I left my marketing position a number of years ago, the company was spending a great deal of money to develop an in-house customer management system. Now it appears that BackPack can provide some of the same services for a nominal fee. It's amazing the progress that has been made in Web 2.0 tools in the last few years. However, I have yet to find a productivity tool that works for me personally. But I am definitely enjoying the process of learning about all the tools that are currently out there. As for my library, I found that setting up a blog has been most helpful. It has allowed me to provide resources and tools for students and staff as well as quickly add information for lessons or whatever need I may have.
Thing 12 - social media
I think that social media sites have a place in education, but students need to understand the difference between them and other news and information resources. If students are educated on the many different sources available on the web or through other media, they can make better decisions regarding what sources to use for different purposes.
While browsing the social media sites, I felt that they tended to have more stories about interesting topics that weren't necessarily news worthy. As a librarian, I also wondered about their reliability. From this perspective, I felt that these tools could be productivity detractors - who hasn't clicked into an interesting sounding story, dug a bit further only to realize 20 minutes later that the particular story was not the reason for going online in the first place? This scenario is why I believe it is important to educate students about social media sites so that they can make informed decisions on whether or not to pursue a topic online, thereby enhancing their productivity.
For me, I am much more likely to look for news on BBC World (I think this site gives more well rounded news coverage) or one of the other major news outlets. While the social media sites are interesting, I don't feel that I have the time to spend on them.
While browsing the social media sites, I felt that they tended to have more stories about interesting topics that weren't necessarily news worthy. As a librarian, I also wondered about their reliability. From this perspective, I felt that these tools could be productivity detractors - who hasn't clicked into an interesting sounding story, dug a bit further only to realize 20 minutes later that the particular story was not the reason for going online in the first place? This scenario is why I believe it is important to educate students about social media sites so that they can make informed decisions on whether or not to pursue a topic online, thereby enhancing their productivity.
For me, I am much more likely to look for news on BBC World (I think this site gives more well rounded news coverage) or one of the other major news outlets. While the social media sites are interesting, I don't feel that I have the time to spend on them.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Thing 11 - tagging and Del.icio,us
Del.icio.us at a minimum is a great way to make favorites available anytime and anywhere. I don't know how many times I've heard, "I've lost all my favorites"... or, "all my favorites are on another computer"... This is a very frustrating situation for users. Del.icio.us certainly addresses this issue.
But what I find most interesting about sites like Del.icio.us, or Amazon for that matter, and functions such as tagging is the unique social data they generate. I know that I have specifically used this type of data as a part of my buying decision process. I find it helpful to know that many people have purchased/tried out a product (that it's popular). Combine this with a high favorable review, and one can get an understanding of top performing products rather than having to rely on just the manufacturer's information.
On a social level, it's just plain interesting that we now have this capability to instantly capture and continually update this type of information - and it's all public! I think that this data has significant implications for many disciplines. For example, marketing can not ignore this new avenue for buyers to find out about products. Information professionals must consider the availability of this data along with the traditional methods used for accessing information. As librarians, we must continually review our approach to assisting our patrons and take advantage of these new tools where they fit - as can be seen in the examples for this Thing. As always, it's there are a great deal of new ideas to consider. But if we don't, we will become obsolete.
But what I find most interesting about sites like Del.icio.us, or Amazon for that matter, and functions such as tagging is the unique social data they generate. I know that I have specifically used this type of data as a part of my buying decision process. I find it helpful to know that many people have purchased/tried out a product (that it's popular). Combine this with a high favorable review, and one can get an understanding of top performing products rather than having to rely on just the manufacturer's information.
On a social level, it's just plain interesting that we now have this capability to instantly capture and continually update this type of information - and it's all public! I think that this data has significant implications for many disciplines. For example, marketing can not ignore this new avenue for buyers to find out about products. Information professionals must consider the availability of this data along with the traditional methods used for accessing information. As librarians, we must continually review our approach to assisting our patrons and take advantage of these new tools where they fit - as can be seen in the examples for this Thing. As always, it's there are a great deal of new ideas to consider. But if we don't, we will become obsolete.
Thing 10 - wikis
I have used wikis for collaborating as well (see last post). I found that it was a great communication tool for discussions rather than trying to have a group all meet together. With regard to privacy, I did find some differences between the two that I tried - PB Wiki and Wikispaces (free versions). Both were fairly straight forward to use. However, it seems that PB Wiki offered a bit more security in that users could better designate searchability, etc.
I also used wikis for communicating information to staff. It was quite easy to create a wiki page with links to Web 2.0 tools that they could use. I then added my wiki page to my media center blog and used it for a training. It worked very smoothly to be able to make information readily available so quickly!
When discussing the use of wikis and blogs with staff in their classrooms, I like to let teachers know that they typically have better monitoring capabilities with a blog since they can have all posts go through them for approval, versus a wiki where the teacher usually monitors the input after the fact. However, all activity on the wiki is tracked, which does help teachers out in this regard.
As for Wikipedia, I was at first skeptical about its content. As librarians, we are always emphasizing credible sources. So how could a website where pretty much anyone can contribute be credible? But as I started looking at the entries on Wikipedia, I found them to be pretty well documented. Not to mention the fact that Wikipedia tends to come up first on searches. So I have changed my opinion somewhat. I find Wikipedia to be a good first overview on a topic. But I still like to find a few more resources to back up any Wikipedia information.
I also used wikis for communicating information to staff. It was quite easy to create a wiki page with links to Web 2.0 tools that they could use. I then added my wiki page to my media center blog and used it for a training. It worked very smoothly to be able to make information readily available so quickly!
When discussing the use of wikis and blogs with staff in their classrooms, I like to let teachers know that they typically have better monitoring capabilities with a blog since they can have all posts go through them for approval, versus a wiki where the teacher usually monitors the input after the fact. However, all activity on the wiki is tracked, which does help teachers out in this regard.
As for Wikipedia, I was at first skeptical about its content. As librarians, we are always emphasizing credible sources. So how could a website where pretty much anyone can contribute be credible? But as I started looking at the entries on Wikipedia, I found them to be pretty well documented. Not to mention the fact that Wikipedia tends to come up first on searches. So I have changed my opinion somewhat. I find Wikipedia to be a good first overview on a topic. But I still like to find a few more resources to back up any Wikipedia information.
Thing 9 - online collaboration tools
Having completed my MLIS degree not that long ago, I am reminded of the dreaded group project where members were combined randomly and then had to overcome wide spread locations in order to collaborate on a project. We had Blackboard, which helped with discussions, but we still couldn't all see and edit what each individual was working on unless we met at a central location.
More recently I have used Google docs to work on projects remotely with coworkers. Google docs made collaboration so much easier! We could all view a common document, edit it, see the history of the edits, etc. Our group used both the spreadsheet and the word processing options. While they were not quite as friendly as working with the common programs such as Microsoft Office, it was still a much better experience then what I recall from school. Google docs is just one of many great options now available. If only they had been around when I was in school...
More recently I have used Google docs to work on projects remotely with coworkers. Google docs made collaboration so much easier! We could all view a common document, edit it, see the history of the edits, etc. Our group used both the spreadsheet and the word processing options. While they were not quite as friendly as working with the common programs such as Microsoft Office, it was still a much better experience then what I recall from school. Google docs is just one of many great options now available. If only they had been around when I was in school...
