All posts by John

Academic, General

Video Game Textbook for Academic Research Literacy

Image by melentia2012. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by melentia2012. Retrieved from FlickR. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

In 2012, when faculty librarians at the University of West Georgia were faced with high withdrawal rates in their online sections, where did they turn? It turns out the answer might be more interesting then you might think.

Looking beyond traditional instructional materials, they decided to invest in a “video game textbook.” The game was designed to show students the whole research process, and in the end “students had an example of what a successful research project might look like and insight into the thought that went into each iterative step.” Faculty librarians were still able to cover such topics as Evaluating Sources and Plagiarism but the presentation to the students was via “a ‘Choose-Your-Own Adventure’-style game…”

Besides some initial technical issues, the new “textbook” seems to have been a success. “In a qualitative survey given to each class at the end of the semester, students almost universally reported that they preferred the video game to a traditional textbook.”

Read the full article from ACRL TechConnect.

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

MN State Library Updates & Reminders – Part 2

state_mnTO: Minnesota Libraries
FROM: State Library Services
DATE: November 4, 2014
SUBJECT: MNsure, Out-of-School Time Meals, 90-Second Newbery, MBTBL Advisory Committee Vacancies

MNsure and Open Enrollment: What You Need to Know

MNsure is hosting a second webinar designed specifically for the library community on Thursday, November 13, from 11:00 a.m. to noon.

Participants will get a preview of MNsure’s marketing, outreach, and operations for the upcoming open enrollment period that runs from November 15, 2014 through February 15, 2015. You’ll also have a chance to ask questions.

Preregistration is not required. To view the webinar, please follow this link. Depending on browser settings, you may have to click “join as a participant.” Participants will be able to join the meeting about 10 minutes before it is scheduled to begin. To hear the webinar, dial 1-888-742-5095 and enter Conference Code 9879144187 when prompted.

For more information, please contact Emily Kissane at emily.kissane@state.mn.us or 651-582-8508.

Summer and At-Risk Food Programs for Kids

Fewer than 17 percent of Minnesota kids who benefit from the free or reduced-price school lunch program have access to summer and afterschool food programs. Limited access to free food programs, particularly during the summer, leaves many children hungry. Public libraries can help make sure kids have access to nutritious food when school is not in session. Begin planning your summer 2015 participation today, there are many ways your library can get involved:

1. Learn about local free meal resources and direct patrons to them.
Find information about Minnesota meal sites on MDE’s At-Risk Afterschool Meals web page and Summer Food Service Program web page.

2. Provide information at your library for patrons to take home.
Make available take-home information for families in need. Contact Second Harvest Heartland for pads of tear-off sheets to passively promote summer food service.

3. Your library may be eligible to be an at-risk afterschool and/or summer food site or sponsor.
Sites store and distribute food, supervise meal service, provide activities, and keep a daily record of participation. To notify MDE of your desire to participate as a site, fill out an interest survey. Sponsors manage multiple sites, coordinate fund distribution and reporting. Read through this toolkit for more information about how to be a sponsor.

Contact State Library Services, Jen Nelson at jennifer.r.nelson@state.mn.us or Jen Verbrugge at jennifer.verbrugge@state.mn.us, for more information about how your library can work with summer and out-of-school time food programs.

Calling All Kid Filmmakers!
The 90-Second Newbery Film Festival is an annual video contest in which kid filmmakers make movies that creatively tell the entire stories of Newbery-winning books in ninety seconds or less. Making the film is a fun, creative and multi-faceted educational exercise. Kids write, storyboard, produce, act, frame and edit. James Kennedy, the founder and curator of the 90-Second Newbery, made his own 90-second movie about the 90-Second Newbery inviting you to take part.

Public librarians, school librarians, homeschool parents and teachers are encouraged to work with their kids to make movies. The deadline to submit films is December 20, 2014 (deadline extended to 1-16-2015 as of 12-11-2014). Inspiration and more information can be found on the 90-Second Newbery website. Want to make a 90-Second Newbery video, but are daunted by the project? Download this handy guide of tips, tricks, and strategies. At least ten Minnesota-made video submissions are currently in the works. You can start working with your kids today.

Don’t forget to mark your calendar for the first-ever Minnesota screening of the year’s best entries on Saturday, February 28, 2015, from 3:00-4:30 pm at Hennepin County Library – Minneapolis Central. Co-hosts of the event will be James Kennedy and Kelly Barnhill, Minneapolis author of The Witch’s Boy. For more details, please contact Jennifer Verbrugge at jennifer.verbrugge@state.mn.us or 651-582-8356.

Minnesota Braille and Talking Book Library Advisory Committee Vacancies
The Minnesota Braille and Talking Book Library (MBTBL) is currently accepting applications for positions on its advisory committee. The committee advises the staff of the MBTBL on long-range plans and library services, and is comprised of people who use the MBTBL. Application forms are available online and must be submitted by November 25, 2014, to be assured of full consideration. Visit the Secretary of State website for complete descriptions.

General, School Media Specialist

The Ghost of Edgar Allan Poe event at SCSU

poe_event_scsuBack in May, and again in September, CMLE sent an email to our K-12 members advertising an opportunity to attend free events on the St. Cloud State campus. Last week one of those events took place. The “Ghost of Edgar Allan Poe” visited the campus and 250 high school students were able to enjoy stories about Poe’s life. The actor, Brian Ellis, also recited a few of Poe’s most famous works like The Tell-Tale Heart and The Raven. The students even jumped in their seats when Fortunato screamed during the re-telling of The Cask of Amontillado.

A special “Thank You” to Dean Mark Vargas and the St. Cloud State Library for providing this free event and collaborating with CMLE to make it available to the schools in our region.

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Why you should attend CMLE's Copyright Event

iStock_000014864782LargeOn Tuesday, November 18th from 1-4pm, CMLE will be hosting a training workshop focused on the topic of copyright. This workshop will give you an excellent opportunity to understand the issues around eContent Copyright/Fair Use especially as they relate to your school 1:1 initiatives, media center, or library users.

REGISTER NOW!

(Deadline for registration is November 12, 2014)

If you are a CMLE member, check your email for an important promo code for free admission!

Are you uncomfortable or unclear when confronted with the following copyright questions?

  • No one monitors our photocopier or printers. Should we establish rules to ensure that copyright is not abused?
  • Internally, I am often asked questions about copyright, but administration or faculty often do not like my answer to their question. What is my liability and responsibility for their actions after they have consulted with me?
  • Our school no longer buys textbooks, yet we are scrambling to replace the content. Can any portions of the discarded textbooks be scanned and used as digital content on a Moodle site?
  • If we make a replacement copy of a published work in a digital format, can we loan the new copy?
  • Students are creating e-portfolios and often want to share their works to competitions or distribute their work more broadly. What are the copyright implications if they have included other copyright-protected works as a matter of fair use?
  • Our library plays portions of songs over the sound system, including popular music. Fair use?
  • Can we lend our DVD with public performance rights to another school or library?

If questions like these keep you up at night, join us on November 18th! Do you have copyright questions of your own? Put them in the comments!

Are you convinced? REGISTER NOW!

Questions about the promo code or registration?

Image credit: ©iStockphoto.com/porcorex
Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Getting book recommendations: Librarians vs. Algorithms

< - InformationWhat book should I read next?

This is a question that many of us ask ourselves everyday. In the end, who do you turn to for an answer to that question? A Librarian? Or the computer algorithms of Amazon or Goodreads? This debate is the crux of the discussion in a recent article by Jessica Leber. In it she talks about Library book recommendation services that are springing up across the country. “[L]ibraians believe that human tastes and discretion are still relevant, even as automated algorithms are influencing an increasing portion of the media we consume…” Leber puts a book recommendation service, offered at the Brooklyn Public Library, to the test against Goodreads. In the end she suggests that the debate “… may be less about the method and more about the motive. One is commercial, the other is not.”

Where is your next book recommendation coming from?

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/luxaknz, licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0