5 Misconceptions About E-Books October 26, 2006
Posted by Christopher Harris in : Community , add a commentLet me preface this with a full disclosure – I read e-books. This is, therefore, going to be a post that is unabashedly biased towards e-books. Which isn’t to say that this is a widely held view. In an entirely unscientific and completely informal “survey” of pre-service teachers at Alderson-Broadus College in West Virginia, 90% of the students (and 100% of the female students) had no desire to switch over to electronic textbooks regardless of any potential cost savings. In fact, cost had very little impact on the decisions against e-books. Instead, what surfaced where the usual statements I encounter whenever someone learns that I read e-books.
By the time I have a chance to explain what reading e-books truly involves, and especially if I can pull out my handheld and provide a demonstration of the technology, I can usually turn a hearty no into a questioning maybe. The problem is that I have been working at this e-book conversion business with a one-on-one restriction. By my carefully unscientific calculations, it will only take me about 2,984 years to reach everyone in education (slightly longer if I stop to sleep sometimes). So here goes my attempt at mass conversion. If you run into me at a conference, however, please feel free to ask for the demonstration =)
What I often hear:
1) I just can’t imagine curling up with a laptop in bed!
2) The text is so small – how can you manage to read it?
3) My book doesn’t take 10 minutes to boot up…
4) Looking at a screen for too long hurts my eyes.
5) I love books…why would I want to get rid of them?
Please understand that this is not any sort of attack on those statements. I felt the same way when I first heard about reading e-books. Actually, they are all true statements…or at least they were. You may recall the dismal failure that was the Rocket e-book reader. Short battery life, an almost unreadable screen, a dearth of books and a wealth of DRM made it quite an unpleasant experience. But oh boy have things changed!
Taking a look at the current status of each statement will help us reach a new understanding about e-books.
1) While you can certainly read e-books on your laptop or desktop, the real power of the format is in its mobility. I have been reading e-books on my Palm handheld computers for about five years. And while the initial quality wasn’t great, the new screens are very nice. New dedicated e-book machines are emerging as well. The iRex iLiad is a new e-book reader built using electronic ink on a sort of digital paper. The screen is about 6″x8.5″ – slightly wider than a half sheet of paper or about the size of a hard cover book. The difference is that it is less than a quarter of an inch thick. Compared to curling up with the latest Harry Potter (6.2″x9.3″ and almost 2 inches thick!) the iLiad is featherweight. The size of your e-book reader can drop even more if you are using a handheld computer like I do. But wait you say…wouldn’t the text be too small then?
2) The size of the e-book text displayed on a Palm T|X Handheld Computer using i-Silo and the “medium” font display is pretty much the same size (+/- 1mm) as 12pt printed computer fonts or the font used in AASL’s print version of Knowledge Quest (roughly 1/16th of an inch for a lowercase “s”). Unlike printed text, however, e-book fonts can usually be increased in size to accommodate different visual capabilities. In other words, every e-book can be a large-print book (i-Silo’s “largest” font size is about twice as large as the smallest, with a lowercase “s” measuring roughly 1/8th of an inch).
3) Reading e-books on a regular computer can include a lengthy boot-up time, as well as additional time lost to all the stuff that goes along with using computers (crashes, clicking to update virus software, clicking off the e-mail updates, etc.). Where e-books really shine is on handheld computers or specially designed readers. These devices tend to be “solid state” (a geeky way of saying that they lack moving parts like hard drives and use memory chips instead) and are designed to “sleep” instead of powering down. This means instant on access with the press of a button! And, since your e-book will come right back to where you left off, no fumbling for a lost page due to your bookmark “crashing on boot-up.”
4) Well…not much can be said here. Constant use of a screen can lead to tired eyes, headaches, etc. What I will say is that the new versions of LCD screens found in handheld computers are much better than before. If you are basing this on eye fatigue from looking at flickering CRT monitors or the old grayscale handheld screens, take another look. My Palm T|X handheld computer has a very nice screen that I can read from for hours without problems. The new readers from iRex and others are also using electronic ink which means that once the page is displayed there is no refreshing of the screen. Most monitors (including LCD screens) have to refresh the screen 60 or more times per second to maintain a changing image. This potentially distracting flicker is removed from e-ink displays.
5) This is always a difficult point to discuss, but here goes. When people speak of loving books, there are a number of points to consider. Do you love the feel of a well-bound book? The smell of fine paper and (we can dream) leather bindings? Or is it the stories that the books hold that you love? For me, it is both. I love nice books, and have been known to purchase multiple editions of the same book for purely aesthetic reasons. However…when it comes to accessing the stories held within, I find e-books more efficient.
Reader Responses needed! October 26, 2006
Posted by ayucht in : Community , add a commentMini-survey time:
What kinds of information would you — our readers — like to see on this blog?
How can this blog — as an informal and collaborative publishing venue — be of most use to you?
What new features (if possible) would you like us to consider, either in format or content?
Please post your responses as comments below, so we can get a sense of how we can best serve you!
“Slow Book Movement” October 25, 2006
Posted by Christopher Harris in : Community , add a commentThe National Association of Secondary School Principals included an interesting discussion of reading in their Principal’s Update this week. The update points principals to a Washington Post article – “In Quest for Speed, Books Are Lost on Children.”
The problem, the article points out, is that “[i]n many classrooms around the country, teachers are emphasizing, and periodically testing, students’ reading fluency, the current buzzword in reading instruction. The problem is that speed isn’t the only element to fluency, educators said” [Washington Post]. Fluency is a major focus within the Reading First section of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, but needs to be approached as part of a larger reading program the article suggests. A middle school in Iowa is cited as an example of a school that adopted a program with a goal of comprehension to address the problem of students’ speed-reading. Principal Davis Eidhal noted: “They read so fast, with no punctuation and no expression, that we’d go back and ask comprehension questions and they weren’t very successful answering them. They hadn’t understood what they read” [Washington Post].
What can school libraries and teacher-librarians do to help support the savoring of books in a slower-paced reading environment?
AASL NBPTS Special Interest Group October 24, 2006
Posted by mkowalsky in : Community , add a commentThe AASL Special Interest Group on National Board Certification is assisting AASL in creating a toolkit about the National Board process — and we’d like you to contribute!
The three main areas of focus for the toolkit are:
- Attracting Candidates to National Board Certification
- Supporting Candidates during the process
- Celebrating Candidates / new & accomplished NBCTs
If you have any information to include, or would like to share ideas for this toolkit, please comment here.
If you’re not sure what to contribute but would like to help in some way, please email Michelle Kowalsky, AASL NBPTS SIG Chair at michelle.kowalsky@gmail.com — You do not have to be a NBCT to help on this project, just an AASL member who’s interested in the process.
Forum Follow-ups ? October 23, 2006
Posted by ayucht in : Fall Forum 2006 , 1 comment so farYes, materials from the Fall Forum will — eventually — be available at the Teaching and Learning Professional Learning Community, but don’t hold your breath just yet…
The ALA servers are currently (Oct 21-26) having “technical difficulties” and the Learning Community site is unavailable.
Stay tuned…
Item analysis October 23, 2006
Posted by hweisburg in : Fall Forum 2006 , add a commentThe second breakout section probably had the most boring title and yet was of vital importance to the success AND CONTINUANCE of library media programs. Although organized by level (elementary, middle, and high school) everyone used the same Powerpoint and information from the Onandoga-Cortland-Madison BOCES in upstate NY. Item Analysis is what adminstrators look at in the reports from high-stakes tests to determine what needs to be improved and the best methods for doing so.
The two questions addressed were: What are the Skills needed to answer Standaradized Assessment Questions? AND What is the Connection to the School Library Porgram. In addition participants were reminded to realize that there are several purposes for the Assesment byeond analyzing errors. It’s also used for Trend Analysis, Content Coverage, Collection Development, Library/Teacher Collaboration, Curriculum Mapping, Text Books, and District Initiatives.
Analysis looks at the types of questions (Multiple choice, Constructed Respone, Document-Based, Essays, and Listening) as well as Student Performance. The questions are analyzed as to their FORMAT (language used, physical arrangement, charts/pictures/etc., multi-step),SKILLS (what do students need to be able to – draw conclusions?, determine facts vs. opinions?, interpret charts, graphs?), CONTENT (what do they need to know or understand?), CONNECTIONS (to different standards including Info Lit from AASL).
The presenters explained that a low percentage of right answers does not necessarily indicate a problem. It could be a question aimed at top students, which is why comparing data with other similar schools is important.
Some of the key ideas were that we need to stop thinking of ourselves as a Support Person. We are collaborators with a global perspective on students that is unique and highly valuable.
The presenters highlighted the fact that Reflection is a vital component to assesment and analysis.
With data-driven istruction and decision making becoming increasingly the operating mode in most districts, it is imperative that we become familiar with the high-stakes test questions, be part of the item analysis as much as possible, and demonstrate how our teaching keys in SPECIFICALLY to test questions and be sure to inform the “key players.”
Reporting to Stakeholders October 18, 2006
Posted by mkowalsky in : Fall Forum 2006 , add a commentWhat is the evidence that your LMS is the “hub of the school?” Is it just the numbers of users who walk through your door? Violet Harada at the AASL Fall Forum challenges us to assess beyond these basic measures and to assess for different reasons depending on our purposes, as you have seen in previous posts here. If we use assessments strategically, she says, we can create not only an informed community but one that will advocate for us without thinking twice.
One important role is assessing for advocacy, which Vi believes is key to communication in general about what we do for and with students and why. We need to remember to report out to stakeholders who make a variety of decisions. . . those who write policy, those who approve policy, and those who create and manage budgets should be recipients of our assessment information. “Be strategic and selective,” Vi cautions, “Some of the stakeholders don’t need to know the details of every students’ progress.” Instead, she suggests, LMSs should summarize what libraries do for our students as a whole — synthesize evidence that focuses on student achievement and narrowing the achievement gap.
After all, as several presenters noted, our library media center is the most naturally differentiated learning setting in the building! We need to publicize our results, since “this information is too valuable to keep to ourselves!”
Using Misconceptions to Teach October 18, 2006
Posted by mkowalsky in : Fall Forum 2006 , add a commentVi Harada made an interesting point about providing opportunities for students to see their own misconceptions and have them identified and discussed by their peers. One way we can do this is via a pretest-type activity in which misconceptions are item choices (that students might select as right answers). The class can determine the correct answer through brainstorming and research. This reminded me of the forming – storming – norming stages of group development (Bruce Truckman). Ken Haycock has also spoken on this topic specifically for librarians. This makes sense in so many ways, including helping students use a process that they will utilize in the real world.
Violet also discussed other aspects of assessment in libraries, including using a scavenger hunt as a pretest and not as a teaching activity (backward design is key), and using learner-led concept maps to work through the process of correcting misconceptions. It is our responsibility as the instructor, she says, to assess what we do for its effectiveness. In instances like these, where judging student learning through their self-corrective process, assessment may not see easy at first. But through observation, informal notes on your conferences with students, learning logs and rating scales, self and LMS checklists, and rubrics are all different ways to assess this type of learning. “You are not restricted to these measures of assessment either,” Vi Harada maintains. “Use your assessments to modify and adjust what you do, as this truly informs learning.”
Looking at the whole October 17, 2006
Posted by mirwin in : Fall Forum 2006 , add a commentJudging from the numbers attending the Fall Forum, one could easily infer that “assessment” is on the front burner for many library media specialists. Some have to constantly educate teachers and administrators as to their critical role in educating students, or , as Allison Zmuda put it, “causing students to learn.” Many others, under the pressures placed by NCLB, literally have to fight for their jobs.
So how does assessment fit in?
*Summative assessment: Assessment of learning, at the end of a project or activity, shows whether the students “get it.”
*Formative assessment: Assessment for learning happens during the process, and provides information about the nature and progress of learning, allowing for differentiated instruction.
Assessment for advocacy involves the strategic, selective approach and synthesis of evidence focusing on student achievement. It can provide the bases for requests of more help or more resources. (Violet Harada)
Each of the speakers provided illustrations of the why and how of assessment. Breakout sessions allowed us to get down and dirty, practicing tasks specific to our level. One such task was item analysis of standardized tests in which we examined sample questions to determine which skill it tested. Extrapolation of test results for a whole grade would highlight areas of concern. Follow the link below to take advantage of the materials shared at the Fall Forum and continue in the discussion.
http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aasleducation/professionallearningcommunities/tflc.htm
I can’t help thinking how closely assessment is related to the idea of Evidence Based Practice. Those interested in pursuing the concepts of assessment may want to check out ideas presented by our colleagues in Ohio at OELMA (http://www.oelma.org). Their work shows how various forms of assessment in the media center can inform our teaching and promote learning. The Ohio Research Study done with Ross Todd and Carol Kuhlthau provided evidence of how school libraries in Ohio impact student learning. Software developed by David Loertscher called IMPACT can be used to quantify collaboration with teachers. Other materials and tools are available at the OELMA website.
Clearly this is a topic that will continue to generate discussion and develoment of best practices. The online professional learning community provided at AASL allows us to share our experiments, our practices and our findings.
Where does your authority come from? October 17, 2006
Posted by dbeaman in : Fall Forum 2006 , add a commentAllison Zmuda was the perfect speaker – cheerleader – for our final general session. Have you ever noticed that school librarians are always talking about “power” or “advocacy?” And have you ever felt that the reason for this is that we feel so powerless to change our situations? Well, Allison said that, “True authority does not come from the superintendent, principal, or even the teachers worked with every day….” It comes from, “the chasm between the academic expectations for learners and the current achievement levels of students within the schools.” She encouraged us to follow the lead of other learning specialists in the building. “You don’t stand for worst practice in your space.”
We are responsible for the quality of education in our libraries and our authority comes from that responsibility. They may come for the resources or the computers but we are not just keepers of the stuff, we are learning specialists, so it is our job to pay attention to what they are doing while they are there. Whew – you go girl! I can’t wait to read other comments about this session.
Note: Thanks to Deb Levitov, here’s a link to the full text of Allison Zmuda’s article:
Where Does Your Authority Come From? Empowering the Library Media Specialist as a True Partner in Student Achievement,
from the September 2006 issue of School Library Media Activities Monthly.
