Critical reflection ETL505

This post is my final reflective thoughts on the subject ETL 505. Although the subject has been thought-provoking I have learnt to define bibliographic description and describe its importance and relevance in providing access to information and importance in a digital environment. Prior to studying ETL 505 my understanding of the principles and processes of describing resources was limited and whilst my new knowledge does not place me in a professional category of describing information resources, I believe that it does provide a great insight to the importance of effective resource description. I have developed the notion that information resource description is multifaceted and varied. I now understand the necessity of IFLA’s development of the conceptual models Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) (IFLA, 1998) and Functional Requirements for Authority Data (FRAD) (IFLA, 2009) as they focus on what the user needs to find, identify, select and obtain, contextualise and justify resources.

ETL 505 has increased my understanding of metadata as the structured information that describes, locates and provides ease of retrieval, use or management of information resources (Adamich, 2007). Metadata standards must be compatible with the emerging technologies of the digital environment.

The greatest understanding that I developed during the study of ETL505 is that information resource description and the vast aspects it entails, is an essential key to the success of the school library. I previously viewed the library as a source of information, it is now viewed as an evolving being where knowledge of how resources are described, the use of vocabularies and an understanding of information retrieval systems is vital. As research suggests school libraries are fundamental in the success of students’ academic achievement (Lonsdale & Australian Council for Educational Research, 2003). Knowledge of information resource description allows for an understanding of principles and processes resulting in the systematic organisation of resources in a school library. This contributes to student achievement through effectively and efficiently progressing through the FRBR user tasks of find, identify, select and obtain for all formats of information resources.

This unit challenged and extended me while also allowing me to appreciate that quality resource description, the application of standards and consideration of the end user is central to information resource description and ultimately, effective information access and retrieval. It also highlighted that to maintain relevance, school libraries must consider their information setting and modify the systems and tools they utilise to best serve the needs of their users in providing effective access to information.

References:

Adamich, T. (2007). Curriculum based cataloguing and the new metadata: Cataloguing beyond the world of MARC. Knowledge Quest, 35(5), 66-71.

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (1998) Functional Requirement for Bibliographic Records: final report, K. G. Saur. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ifla.org/publications/functional-requirements-for-bibliographic-records

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (2009) Functional Requirements for Authority Data: a conceptual model, K. G. Saur. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ifla.org/publications/ifla-series-on-bibliographic-control-34

Lonsdale, M., & Australian Council for Educational Research, V. a. (2003). Impact of School Libraries on Student Achievement: A Review of the Research.

ETL 523 Critical Reflection post

What I have learnt throughout my studies of digital citizenship is that the Digital Learning Environment is an environment where technology is used as part of everyday life. It is incorporated into many facets of our lives and we utilise it to enrich our lives. An environment where technology is accessible and we have the skills to use it. The whole way we educate children has now changed. With the increase in the use of technology children now have access to information that they never previously had. As Educators we no longer need to focus on teaching content as the students can access this all online. We are now teaching children how to access information and develop skills in the doing so. Dorothy Burt stated that “Using a digital learning environment means the learner is no longer dependant on the physical presence of the teacher. Their learning is accessible 24/7 and is rewindable; if you don’t get it the first time you can go back and have another look at it because it’s online. Valuable time spent face-to-face with the teacher is focused on learning conversations rather than instructions and directions.” (Patterson, 2013). Children are now learning from more sources of information and need help to come to process all this information. Digital citizenship is about using technology in an appropriate manner and knowing what this is. It is important that children are using the internet in a positive way and that they are aware of the dangers of misuse and what the consequences can be. With the growing use of social media I feel there needs to be more of a focus on the safety and use of these sites. In the article Digital Citizenship in K-12: It Takes a Village, the authors, question who will guide learners to a safe and productive technological society. “So, the inevitable question must be asked: Who represents the village for our youth, as it relates to digital citizenship? Will it be parents, teachers, administrators, academics, technology professionals, media specialists, or students? The obvious that for a successful cultural shift, it will require all of us. The implementation of this type of program will require an established and shared curriculum, an establishment of middle ground between reactionary and proactive actions in the K-12 environment.” (Hollandsworth, Dowdy, & Donovan, 2011, p. 2). This article really made me aware of some of the issues of who is actually responsible for preparing students for a digital learning environment.  I feel that as teachers we need to bear a lot of this responsibility as we have the knowledge that is needed to prepare students to be good digital citizens. I feel some parents are almost in the same position as their children, using these technologies without knowing how to be safe and how to leave a positive digital footprint. The information on digital footprints really made me think about my own digital footprint. As a teacher I have always had an awareness of my digital footprint as I see that as part of your professional role to be an example. I like the analogy that a digital footprint is like tattoo, once it is there it is very hard to get rid of is. This analogy may help students in their thinking as it makes them think of it as more concrete. As I teacher I feel that the following statement sums up what I need to do to prepare myself to teach in a digital learning environment.  “Digital citizenship is about transforming yourself into a professional who can effectively research technology trends, monitor the uses of technology, avoid the fear factor and model legal wisdom, in order to make vibrant learning opportunities for all” (CSU Interact material, 2014). I think it is important to keep your knowledge and skills up to date by continuing your own personal learning journey through professional development and by being up to date with new developments in digital learning. There has been a lot of changes in the way we teach and I feel a lot of changes are still needed to be an effective teacher, a networked teacher (see image) in today’s digital learning environment.

TODAY'S EFFECTIVE TEACHER

The image above is courtesy of Alec Couros licensed under a Creative Commons license. Photos from courosa Flickr photostream.

References

Charles Sturt University Interact material for ETL523, 2014.

Hollandsworth, R., Dowdy, L., Donovan, J. (2011). Digital citizenship in K-12: It takes a village. TechTrends 55(4) 37-47.

Patterson, A. (2013, December 7). Switched on to learning. The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved from http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11168355

 

ETL523 4.1

Why is it important to foster a global approach to digital citizenship?
What do you see as typical challenges within a school when balancing ‘educational networking’ with ‘social networking’?
When we go on the internet we immediately connect to the world. Students need to be aware of this as well as being aware that whatever they post can be accessed by many people not just their immediate circle of friends. I like the idea of challenging students thinking by asking questions that challenge their thinking such as ''Would you be happy for your parents to see everything you put on social media, your grand parents, etc". I think the challenge with balancing networking is that children might not be aware where the line is between the two. Keeping them focused on educational outcomes may be hard when the opportunity for social networking is available. If it can be balanced then it would be a great way to engage students.

ETL 523 3.2

What is responsible learning within a DLE?
How do you instill the need for regular, reliable and responsible behaviour for learning while using digital tools?
I liked the idea of the  'Stop, Screenshot, Block, Tell, and Share' strategy by Lindsay and Davis(Flattening classrooms, engaging minds, Ch.5, p. 112). This strategy works within a single class setting or in a global collaboration. If something unpleasant is found or posted (image, text etc), then the user who finds it first is required to follow the pattern: Stop viewing the item, make sure you get a screenshot as evidence (if appropriate), if possible block the offending material from further viewing, tell someone (teacher, IT Manager, other teacher in global project, global project manager etc) so that further action can be taken, and then share the incident so that others can learn from it as well. I think this is an excellent idea for setting up for  responsible behaviour while using digital tools. It ensures that the students are responsible for not only their own content but the content of others as well.

ETL 523 2.5

What curation tools and methods do you use now? How do these compare with new ideas explored through this module?
I think that using curation services such as Scoop.it and LibGuides is certainly an interesting way to go about searching. With the myriad of information out there today, Google just isn’t sufficient to efficiently research a topic in depth.  Before I studied this topic I was not using any curation tools and now I have a wealth of information about curation tools. When I watched a clip on Scoop.it I was amazed at how easy it was to use. Next step, find time to try out them all. Curate the curation tools! This new idea is fantastic. One of the best resources I have found throughout this course. As a mother I constantly am helping my children with assignments and these tools will be a fantastic help.

ETL 523 2.3

Based on your reading of the digital divide, how does this translate in terms of a school’s responsibilities?
How can information specialists/leaders and school administrators adequately address the breadth of Internet regulation issues faced by their school community?

I think the school has a responsibility to provide equal access to technology to all students in a fair and monitored manner. I have seen at schools certain classes being given resources such as laptops whilst others didn't even have access to a computer in their classroom. I think that students bringing in their own devices could make internet regulation harder to manage as they may already have unsuitable content on their device and it would be hard to manage other devices on the school network. The availability of access may vary from device to device and this would disadvantage some students. I also feel that the children who don't have the availability of a device would also be disadvantaged. This may cause a digital divide among students. The school should be responsible for providing the technology needs for students that way it can be fair and equitable across the board and internet regulation can be monitored.

ETL 523 2.2

How do you see yourself developing the knowledge and skills to address current and future information literacy and digital fluency needs?
What is the relevance and purpose of transliteracy in this overall discussion of digital citizenship and 21st Century teaching and learning
I think its important to keep your knowledge and skills up to date by continuing your own personal learning journey through professional development and by being up to date with new developments in digital learning. You need to be using technology on a regular basis so you can maintain and improve your skills to then help students with their digital skills. You cant help students if you are not confident yourself. We need to be aware as educators that information now comes from many different sources not just books and for some students this can be overwhelming especially the volume of information they are sometimes faced with. This is when we need to be teaching students skills in information literacy so they can extract the information they need.