Library Learning 2.0

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Wed, 23 May 2007 05:21:00 +0000

Introduction

Library Learning 2.0 is an online learning program that fosters the expansion of one's information literacy toolbox. Participants will explore, experiment with, and discover creative ways to implement into teaching practice Web 2.0 tools - emerging technologies that that are freely available on the Internet and are changing the way students, librarians, and educators access information and communicate.

The program is self-directed. As participants are responsible for their own learning, the ten tutorials can be completed at an individual pace. However, participants are encouraged to complete the program by the end of August 2007.

Tutorial Format

Introduction: Brief explanation of a new Web 2.0 topic
Explore: Performance of understanding utilizing the new tool.
Connect: A discovery of ways each of the tools can be used to enhance learning.
Reflect: Reflections of your learning posted to your blog and feedback from Carlene and other participants. Instructions for setting up a blog is featured in the first tutorial.

Registration

If you are interested in Library Learning 2.0, please send an email to Carlene Walter. A reply will be sent with a link to the first tutorial.

Credit

Library Learning 2.0 is facilitated by Carlene Walter. The design of program is a modification of Blower's Learning 2.0 program and Stephen Abram's article, 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - February 2006).

FAQ

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Tue, 22 May 2007 21:25:00 +0000

About
This blog has been created to facilitate the Library Learning 2.0 program - tutorials that encourage teacher-librarians to experiment and learn about the new and emerging technologies that are reshaping the context of information on the Internet today. The program is a modification of the Learning 2.0 Program designed by Helene Blowers, Technology Director, Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County and Stephen Abram's article, 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - February 2006).

The Library Learning 2.0 program contains links and offers suggestions for ways to incorporate these tools into your classroom and teacher collaborations. The design of this online program was completely built on Web 2.0 technologies that are freely available on the Internet: Blogger, Flickr, Odeo, YouTube, PBWiki, and Bloglines.

Frequently Asked Questions:
1. How does this online learning program work?
This is a self-discovery program which encourages participants to take control of their own learning and to utilize their lifelong learning skills through exploration and play. PSSD teacher-librarian are encouraged to collaborate and share their discoveries, reflections, and curriculum connections through their blogs. This course is Web-based, therefore allowing one to work at school or at home.

2. Is this program open to only PSSD teacher-librarians?
This program is open to PSSD employees and SPSD teacher-librarians.

3. How long do I have to complete the program?
The program contains ten tutorials and it is expected that participants complete a tutorial each week. However, the course is self-paced and participants may work ahead or take a break during particularly hectic times. It is anticipated that the ten tutorials are completed by the end of August 2007.

4. How do I track my progress?
You will be asked to make a blog of your own to track your progress, record reactions to the tutorials, and communicate "2.0 Best Practices."

5. Is there any technical support?
If difficulties arise, contact Carlene Walter. I can assist you with the course, but not your computer or Internet connection.

6. Why should I enroll in this program?
Web 2.0 is a phrase that was coined in 2004. It refers to the fact that the Internet is now an interactive medium rather than a ‘place’ to go to get information. Since it is the young who are flocking to these Web 2.0 sites, it is important that those of us who work in school libraries should be current with the latest trends in education and technology and learn how they can be effectively utilized in or with our school libraries.

7. How much does the program cost?
It is free.

Tutorial 1: The Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Tue, 22 May 2007 18:15:00 +0000

Introduction

A blog is a personal space to record and communicate thoughts, discoveries, and understandings. A blogger observes their experience, reflects on it, and then provides a written response. As the written commentary has a global audience, others are able to read your reflections and respond from their perspectives by commenting or writing their own blog article. Learning, therefore, becomes socially negotiable, as reading the varying perspectives cause one to analyze and possible refine their viewpoints. There are several free online hosting services: Blogger, Wordpress, and Typepad. View blogs created by teacher-librarians and educators to formulate ideas for the design and purpose of your blog:

Explore

To create a blog, follow these three easy steps. You may want to print the instructions.

Create An Account
For this tutorial, Blogger will be demonstrated due to its extreme ease of use. However, if you already use a different hosting service, you are welcome to post your responses on your existing blog. Setting up a blog through Blogger, requires the creation of an account. Google asks you for an email address - this becomes your username. Remember to write down your Username and Password.
Name Your Blog
As a blog's title and address are public, you may not want to use your real name. Consider creating a blog name that’s anonymous, yet uniquely you. The URL for your blog will look like these authentic examples - http://librarywriting.blogspot.com/ or http://librarianinblack.typepad.com/. The format is name.blogspot.com when you use blogger.com software. Please note that there are no www in the address when using Blogger.com software. Also, remember your URL address and/or bookmark it.
Select Your Template
Blogger has several templates. Select one that represents your unique flair.

Reflect

Create a post that provides insights into your initial thoughts, discoveries, and learnings about blogs. Label each entry with the name and number of the tutorial. For example: Tutorial #1: Blogs

Email Carlene Walter your blog address. The response will contain a link to the second tutorial.

Tutorial 2: Photos And Images

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Tue, 22 May 2007 17:23:00 +0000

Introduction
Photo sharing Web sites have been around since the 90s. The conception of Flickr, now owned by Yahoo, catapulted the idea of “sharing” into a global online community. Flickr uses "tags" or keywords to help identify and search for photos.

Explore Flickr and discover what this site has to offer. Discover how tags work, what groups are, and the contributions by educators and libraries (list also here) are creating using Flickr.

When posting identifiable photos of other people, especially minors, obtain the person's permission before posting their photo in a publicly accessible place such as Flickr. Never upload other's pictures without the photographer's consent and provide credit when including photos taken by someone else in your blog.

Explore
Choose one of the following options to complete:

Option 1: Explore Flickr and discover an interesting image to blog about. Include either:

A link to the image
If you create a Flickr account, use Flickr's blogging tool to add the image in your post.
Include images in your post using Blogger's photo upload tool.

Option 2: For an easy challenge, create a free account in Flickr use a digital camera to capture a few pictures of something in the school library.

Upload the pictures to your Flickr account. Tag at least one of the images “Library learning2.0” and mark it public.

Create a post in your blog that includes and describes your photo and experience. Once you have a Flickr account, you have two options for uploading your photo; through Flickr's blogging tool or using Blogger's photo upload feature.

Explore Further: If you are interested in looking at some photo hosting sites, check out Picasa Web Albums from Google and another service called Smugmug.

To learn about Flickr:

Flickr Learn More Tour: A six-step tutorial
Mediamazine Flickr Tutorials
Flickr: Popular tags Interesting - Last 7 days
Flickr Services: 3rd party applications and mashups
Flickr Site: Create movie posters, CD covers, magazine covers
Libraries that Flickr or 365 Days of Library Pictures in Flickr

Connect
Teacher-librarians, educators, and students must understand the social, ethical, legal, and human issues surrounding the use of technology. Promote safe and healthy use of technology resources by modeling and teaching legal and ethical practice related Internet safety and ethics, censorship, plagiarism, and copyright.

Why consider posting images to the Web? Will Richardson, author of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, provides several convincing reasons:

Field trips, speakers, visitors, special projects, etc. could be shared with the parents, community, and colleagues.
Flickr's annotation tool allows students to add notes and details to parts of an image simply by dragging a box across an area and typing text into a form.
Flickr can be a valuable tool for current events as often major photo events appear before being posed on news organizations
Photos can be used a writing prompts, journal entries, or inquiry projects.
Photos can be used to create visual stories - students add photos that verbalize their visualization of read text.

Reflect
Create a post in your blog that either includes your photo or a link to a photo that interested you. Describe your photo and experience.

Once you have a Flickr account, you have two options for uploading your photo; through Flickr's blogging tool or using Blogger's photo upload feature.

Tutorial 9: Online Applications and Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Thu, 17 May 2007 02:53:00 +0000

Introduction

One major benefit to Web-based applications is the elimination of worrying about different software versions or file types as you email documents or move from PC to PC. Another bonus is that Web-based applications easily accommodate collaboration by allowing multiple users to edit the same file (with versioning) and provide users the ability to easily save and convert documents as multiple file types (including HTML and pdf). And, you can even use many of these tools, such as Zoho Writer and Google Docs (formerly known as Writely) to author and publish posts to your blog.

It is this type of integration with other Web 2.0 tools that also makes web-based applications so appealing. With Zoho and web-based applications, the possibilities are endless.

Explore

There are three online applications to explore in this tutorial:

Zoho
Create a free account for yourself in Zoho Writer. Explore the site and create a test document or two. Try out Zoho Writer’s features and create a blog post about your discoveries. Challenge yourself to try using Zoho’s publish options to post to your blog. Here’s a Zoho-created document describing some of its beneficial features.
Google Docs
Explore Google Docs, formerly called Writely, Google's online word processing. Create and collaborate on files of every kind. See who edited which documents and when.
LibraryThing
Developed for booklovers, LibraryThing not only allows you to easily create an online catalog of your own, it also connects you to other people who have similar libraries and reading tastes. is a tool for the booklover or the cataloger.

Take a Library Thing tour. Create a LibraryThing account and add a least 5 books to your library. Add a book to your catalog by just entering the title. View your books on a virtual shelf, add a widget to display titles that are in your catalog (see sidebar for sample), or install a LT Search box on your blog. With over 95 000 registered users, a group forum for librarians, and 6.7 million books cataloged, discover how libraries are using LibraryThing.

To learn more about LibraryThing, view the following resources:
· MoBuzzTV Review: Third story in the five minute broadcast
· LibraryThing blog: Updates & news
· Thingology blog: LibraryThing's ideas blog

View my LibraryThing list.

Connect

“Small libraries are using LibraryThing to catalog their collections. Libraries are using the LibraryThing widget on their web pages to recommend books and list new titles.” (via http://wlaweb.blogspot.com/). Being a non-commercial site makes LibraryThing a good option for libraries. According to their Web site, LibraryThing "is exploring relationships with libraries, to offer non-commercially motivated recommendations and other social data."

Reflect

Create a post documenting your discoveries. For a challenge, publish a document through Zoho or add a link to your Library Thing list to your blog.

Tutorial 8: Wikis

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Thu, 17 May 2007 01:43:00 +0000

Introduction

A wiki is a collaborative Web site and authoring tool that allows users to easily add, remove and edit content. Wikipedia, the online open-community encyclopedia, is the largest and perhaps the most well known of these knowledge sharing tools, but with benefits that wikis provide the use and popularity of these tools is exploding.

Some of the benefits that make the use of wikis so attractive are:

Anyone (registered or unregistered, if unrestricted) can add, edit or delete content.
Tracking tools within wikis allow you to easily keep up on what been changed and by whom.
Earlier versions of a page can be rolled back and viewed when needed.
Users do not need to know HTML in order to apply styles to text or add and edit content. In most cases simple syntax structure is used.

As the use of wikis has grown over the last few years, libraries all over the country have begun to use them to collaborate and share knowledge. Among their applications are pathfinder or subject guide wikis, book review wikis, ALA conference wikis and even library best practices wikis.

Explore

Use these resources to learn more about wikis:

7 Things You Should Know About…Wikis - Educause Learning
Point/Counterpoint Are Wikis Worth the Time? - Dean Shareski and Carol Ann K. Winkler
Wikis: A Beginner’s Look – A short slide presentation that offers a short introduction and examples.
What is a Wiki? – Library Success wiki presentation.
Using Wikis to Create Online Communities – an overview of what is a wiki and how it can be used in libraries.

Explore some library and classroom wikis:

SJCPL Subject Guides – Developed by the St. Joseph County Public Library system
Book Lovers Wiki - Developed by the Princeton Public Library
Library Success: A best practices wiki
The Albany County Public Library Staff wiki – A wiki created for library staff to document procedures
Library Bloggers Wiki
Sample school wiki
Sample Literary Circle Wiki (10th Grade English)
East Side Community School - Paul Allison
Hafford School – Grade 2 and Grade 5/6
Favourite Foods Graph - Kathy Cassidy’s Grade 1/2 class
Planet Math
Sample AP World History Wiki
Teacher Librarian Wiki - Joyce Valenza
Other library wiki examples such as library instruction

Complete at least one of the following choices:

Visit the SSLA Wiki. Select one of your favorite curriculum ideas from your own blog or files. "Copy and paste" it to the SSLA Wiki
Create your own Wiki and post the URL in your blog.

Connect

Wikis can be made for any classroom!

Collaborative Note-Taking: Everyone collaboratively adds a fact or two about a topic. Teachers can encourage students to include opinions, challenges, and appropriate criticism. Students would then write essays using only these notes. Ensure that each addition includes a citation to Web site, book, or database, including page numbers so that it can be checked.
History: Students can compile a wiki of famous artists, architects, writers, and other key historical figures from a city, state, or country.
Top 10 Lists and Supporting Material: This could include scientists and their discoveries, top writers and their books, etc.
Trading Cards: Create cards (outlined in the third tutorial) and add to class wiki.

Profetic's article posts further discussion of the pedagogical potentials of wikis

Reflect

Create a post in your blog about your findings. What did you find interesting? What types of applications within libraries and schools might work well with a wiki?

Tutorial 7: Award Winners & Ning

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Fri, 11 May 2007 20:09:00 +0000

Introduction

Throughout the course of the Library Learning 2.0 program, we have explored just a small sampling of the new Internet technologies and Web sites that are empowering users with the ability to crate and share content. With adequate time, however, there are many more tools we could explore. A recent estimate placed the number of Web 2.0 tools at somewhere between 300-500 with only a handful emerging as market dominators. And although time will only tell which of these new collaborative, social networking and information tools will remain on top, one thing is for sure, they are not going to go away (at least anytime soon).

Explore

Explore a site of your choice from the list of Web 2.0 Award Winners. With so any to choose from, it is advisable to first select a category of interest (such as Books or Personal Organization) and then select a tool/site to explore. Be careful to select a tool that is Free and that does not require a plug-in or download.

Another site that is gaining in popularity is the social networking site called Ning. With Ning, you can set up your own social network, such as an after school or book club. To learn more about Ning, check out one of the librarian or school-related groups as: Library 2.0, ALA Members, or Teacher-Librarian.

Join a Ning network.

Connect

Library 2.0 is term used to describe a new set of concepts for developing and delivering library services. The name is an extension of Web 2.0 and shares many of its same philosophies and concepts including harnessing the user in both design and implementation of services, embracing constant change as a development cycle over the traditional notion of upgrades, and reworking library services to meet the users in their space, as opposed to ours (libraries.)

Many argue that the notion of Library 2.0 is more than just a term used to describe concepts that merely revolve around the use of technology; it also a term that can be used to describe both physical and mindset changes that are occurring within libraries to make our spaces and services more user-centric and inviting. Others within the profession assert that libraries have always been 2.0: collaborative, customer friendly, and welcoming. Irregardless of which side of the debate proponents fall, both sides agree that libraries of tomorrow, even five or ten years from now, will look substantially different from libraries today.

Read two or three of the perspectives on Library 2.0 from the list below.

Reflect

Create a post that describes the explored Web 2.0 tool and the Ning network that you joined. Share the useful features and the applications for use in a library setting.

Library 2.0 is many things to many people. What does it mean to you? What does it mean for school libraries?

Tutorial 6 - Part B: Tagging, Folksonomies, & Technorati

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Thu, 03 May 2007 00:41:00 +0000

Introduction

Due to its simplicity, blogging is being taken advantage of by almost every industry, including libraries.According to San Francisco based Technorati, a leading search tool and authority for blogs, there are “over 175 000 new blogs every day. Bloggers update their blogs regularly - over 1.6 million posts per day or over 18 updates a second.” Technorati currently tracks 62.5 million blogs. If the blogging trend continues, it is estimated that Technorati will have tracked its 100 millionth blog in just 5 months.

How do you get your blog listed as part of the blogosphere and how can you tag your posts with keywords to make them more findable through a Technorati search? The answer to the first question is that your blog is probably already being captured by Technorati due to the fact that you are already using Blogger, the most popular blogging tool. But if you want to join the party and have your blog officially listed on Technorati and also take advantage of the watchlist and other features, you will need to claim your blog yourself.

Tagging posts with Technorati tags is easy too. Add a little bit of HTML code to the bottom of your post (see example below) and Technorati will pick up these tags when it spiders (or web crawls) your site.

There are many features in Technorati, including the capability to search for keywords in blog posts, search for entire blog posts that have been tagged with a certain keyword, limit a search by language, or search for blogs that have been registered and tagged as whole blogs about a certain subject (like photography or libraries).

Explore

Learn more about Technorati:

Technorati Tour – videocast of new features & new look
Technorati Discover & Popular features

Perform a keyword search for “Library Learning 2.0” in Blog posts, in tags, and in the Blog Directory. Are the results different?

Explore popular blog, searches and tags. Is anything interesting or surprising in your results?

For an optional challenge, learn how to tag your posts with Technorati tags so they can become part of Technorati tag searches. Create a post about something. It can be anything you want and add the HTML code to the bottom to tag it as “LibraryLearning2.0.” Consider claiming your blog and creating a watchlist.

Please note that when adding HTML code, ensure you are in Blogger's Edit HTML window.

Connect and Reflect

This tutorial has two sections. If you have completed the first section, Tagging and Del.icio.us, as well as this secion, return to the Tutorial 6 Web page.

Tutorial 10: Podcasting

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:07:00 +0000

Introduction

Within the past year online video hosting sites have exploded allowing users to easily upload and share videos on the web. Among all the Web 2.0 players in this area, YouTube is currently serving up over one million video views a day and allowing users not only to upload their own video content easily, but also embed clips into their own sites easily.

In 2005, "podcast" was named the "word of the year" by New Oxford American Dictionary and with the growth of podcasting over the last year and a half; it’s easy to see why.

Explore

There are three sections of this tutorial to complete:

Section 1: YouTube
Explore YouTube to see what the site has to offer. You will find everything from 1970s TV commercials and 60s music videos to library dominos and a video made by library school students for National Library Week. There's also the cult classic Conan the Librarian.

Tutorial 3: Flickr Fun, Mashups, & Third Party Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 01:00:00 +0000

Introduction

Like many Web 2.0 sites, Flickr has encouraged people to build their own online applications using images on the site. Through the use of APIs (application programming interfaces), many people have created third party tools and mashups that use Flickr images.

Wikipedia offers articles that explain mashups. Simply stated, mashups are hybrid web applications that take features from one application (like Flickr) and mash it up with another (like a map).

There are many nteresting APIs to explore:

Mappr: A mashup that takes Flickr images and allows you to paste them on a map
Flickr Colour Pickr: Find public Flickr photos that match a specific colour
Montagr: Create a photo mosaics from photos found on Flickr
Discover more mashups, Web apps, and Flickr tools

Explore
Explore some of the fun Flickr mashups and available third party tools:

FD Toys’ Trading Card Maker
Librarian Trading Card: Many librarians have created their own card

Challenge yourself to create your own trading card or perhaps a movie poster or magazine cover from this Flickr site.

Connect

Magazine Cover: Using Flickr toys, students could create a magazine cover and headlines for a famous person, historical event, or story character. Example for covers: "Crusade Times," "Heading West," or "Genetics Today."
Trading Cards: Liven up projects, reports, or other topics. Each students could create a card or student groups could design their own trading card pack. Trading the cards to share recommended books, interesting illustrators, favourite authors, and studied historical figures or dates. The cards could be also used for vocabulary, the periodical table, or foreign language study.

Reflect
Create a blog post about one of the Flickr mashups and available third party tools that intrigues you.

Tutorial 4: RSS

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 00:18:00 +0000

Introduction

According to a survey, the majority of people have not heard of RSS or understand the relevance of the small orange tags on Web sites, but this is changing rapidly. In the information world, RSS is not only revolutionizing the way news, media, and content creators share information, but it also is swiftly changing the way users are consuming information.

RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” and is a file format for delivering regularly updated information over the Web. Just think about the Web sites and news information sources you visit everyday. It takes time to visit those sites and scour the ad-filled and image-heavy pages for just the text you want to read.

A newsreader and RSS allows you to visit all those information sources and Web pages in one place and all at the same time:
· Without being bombarded with advertising
· Without having to search for new information on an already visited page
· Without having to consume vast amounts of time visiting each site individually.

Learn about RSS newsfeeds and the free tools you can use by reading more about RSS or view this video at BlipTV. Read the blog posting that discusses the difference between RSS feed readers, Bloglines, and Google Reader.

Explore
Set up your own, personalized RSS feed reader. Create a free "RSS aggregator" account from either Bloglines or Google Reader and subscribe to at least 5 newsfeeds to your reader.

Step One: Choose one of the following options to complete.

Option 1: Bloglines
To create an account in Bloglines, follow steps 1-3 of the Bloglines Tutorial. Also, view a short video on YouTube on how to add feeds.

Option 2: Google Reader
To set up an RSS aggregator in Google Reader, view the tutorials at Google Reader Tour, video tutorial#1 or #2, and/or step-by-step process.

Step Two: Now that you have an RSS Reader (your Bloglines or Google Reader account), begin adding other feeds that interest you. There are several ways to locate RSS feeds:

When visiting your favourite Web sites, look for RSS feed icons. Often a feed icon will be displayed somewhere in the navigation of the site.

Newsfeeds You May Want To Add to Your Reader:

CNET Video: RSS – Feel the Need for Feeds: An overview of RSS and its benefits
Feed Me: A gentle introduction to Internet feeds: A tutorial from Palinet, a library cooperative
What is RSS?
How to Make your RSS Feeds Pop! Check your local newspaper and discover if they have an RSS feed you can subscribe to
Use Blogline's Search Tool: Bloglines recently expanded search tool lets you search for news feeds in addition to posts, citations, and the Web. Use the Search for Feeds option to locate RSS feeds you might be interested in.
Check out the top "Edublog" award-winning blogs and school library blogs.

Explore other search tools that can help you find feeds:

Technorati - Technorati is a popular blog finding tool that lets you search for blogs. Since RSS feeds are inherent to all blogging tools, Technorati Blog Search can help you find RSS feeds for topic specific blogs you may be interested in.
Feedster - One of the largest collections of RSS feeds, Feedster lets you search for feeds in three categories: news, blogs & podcasts

Step 3: Let others subscribe to your site. If you publish a blog, you publish a feed. A feed is the format that allows your content to be delivered (and subscribed to) on the Web. Feedburner makes this a simple process.

Cut and paste your blog's Web address (URL) in the "Ready to Burn?" form. If you plan to publish a podcast with your Blogger feed, check the "I am a podcaster" box. Click "Next". Follow the rest of the steps.

Connect
RSS allows requested items to come to you. How might you use this technology professionally and personally?

Reflect
Create a blog post about your experience. The following questions can be used to guide your response:

What do you like about RSS and newsreaders?
How might you use this technology professionally and personally?
How can libraries use RSS or take advantage of this new technology?

Provide the URL address to your public bloglines account. Click on the Share tab within your Bloglines account. Scroll down the right screen pane and locate the public URL. A public account allows the sharing of blog rolls with others. This is how Library Learning 2.0 participants are tracked.

Tutorial 5: Image Generators

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 15:05:00 +0000

Introduction

Generators? No, not those gas powered back-up things. Rather, the generators you will be exploring are Web sites that allow the easy manipulation of images and/or text.

Adding an image that has been manipulated or mocked up to a blog is often a simple process. Usually, the Web site page provides a code to be copied and pasted. If a code is not provided, right click on the image and then save it to your hard drive before using Blogger’s image button to add it to your post.

Explore

Explore different image generators:

Joyce Valenza, in her SLJ blog NeverEndingSearch, illustrates a few of her personal favourite image generators.

Connect

In addition to creating images for Web sites, newsletters, or bulletin boards, generators can be used to enhance teaching and learning.

Image Generators:
Use an interesting image as a story starter. For example: Using the star image on Hollywood Boulevard, a teacher or student could add the name of a character, a famous person, or any name. The students could create a story about how that person got his/her very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Media study students could explore the persuasion of advertising and create an image to "sell" a new product or sway the audience to their point of view.

Comic Strip Generator:
Create a cartoon or a comic strip to summarize read text, highlight a significant excerpt from a story, or to examine text types and/or graphic novels. For example, students could compare the elements of the narrative text form of Sobol's Encyclopedia Brown stories with the comic strip form.

Reflect

Post the result of your discovery process in your blog.
Include a link to the image generator, so other participants can discover it too.

Tutorial 6: Tagging

noreply@blogger.com (Eclectech Educator) — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 15:29:00 +0000

Introduction

Tagging is an open and informal method of categorizing that allows users to associate keywords with online content (Web pages, pictures, and posts). Unlike traditional library subject cataloging, which follows a strict set of guidelines, such as the Library of Congress subject headings, tagging is completely unstructured and freeform, allowing users to create connections between data in any way they want.

In the past Flickr tutorial. Library Learning 2.0 participants explored tagging and many even used a common tag to create an association between photos that were individually uploaded.

This week, in addition to exploring Technorati and LibraryThing tagging, we will be exploring at the social bookmarking site Del.icio.us.

Why social bookmarking? Well, have you checked your list of favourites or bookmarks on your Internet browser lately? If you are like me, your favourites list may need require editing or organization. Or, if you do not happen to be on your regular computer, how do you even remember all the sites you have bookmarked?

Explore

There are two exploration sections in this tutorial.

First Exploration: Del.icio.us and Tagging
Second Exploration: Technorati

Connect

Use these tools to locate blogs and other sites relating to election or other issues.

Reflect

Create a blog post about your experience and thoughts about this tool. The following questions may be used to guide your response:

Now that we have worked with tags in Flickr, Del.icio.us, and Technorati, what are your thoughts about tagging? What are its advantages? What are its disadvantages?
Can you see the potential of this tool for research assistance or just as an easy way to create bookmarks that can be accessed from anywhere?
How could school libraries take advantage of social bookmarking sites?