Can there ever be too much technology?

Every now and then I have to stop myself and ask the question: "Why am I in school to be a library media specialist?" For the last two years, the answer has revolved around my passion for education, my affinity for children, my relationship with literature, and my belief that kids today need to learn so much more to be successful in their lives...to be 21st century learners and contributors. I've always had an interest in new media and the possibilities for its application in education...so it all seems to come together quite nicely.

But, when I remember back a few years, before I knew the term "library media specialist," back when the person in the library was known as a "librarian," and the main tools for use in the library were books, and the technology that did exist was mainly used for finding books...

I wonder if kids today will have that same fond nostalgia for their elementary library media program as I do for mine.

The two graduate courses I am taking now coexist much how I imagine technology and books coexist in a library. My course on technology (LIS 629) is rooted in the present, but always thinking about the future. My course on young adult literature (LIS 729) is rooted in the past, attempting to find the present.

While 629 has inspired me to celebrate the new web tools and technologies that are out there and being integrated into Library curriculum to revolutionize the ways educators are preparing students for the future...729 has forced me to remember why I grew fond of the library in the first place: the books.

There is absolutely no reason technology and books (and technology-loving librarians and book-loving librarians) can't partner to provide the best of both worlds. In fact, that's exactly what's going on in model school libraries across the country. But class discussions in 729 have brought to my attention that there are people out there who believe that a little piece of library heaven is being lost with the integration of so much technology, and the lack of focus on good-old-fashioned books.

(Google Docs + 21st Century Learners) X Collaboration = Yay

T'will be a shorter post than my usual marathons, so allow yourself a sigh of relief.

Recently I discussed how I agree with some forward thinkers that video games might be able to save the world. Okay, I at least believe that online games have a positive place in education. One of the gaming world's strongest assets is its supportive and collaborative environment. When gamers work together, they achieve some pretty amazing things.

Collaboration is where the 21st century is at, and some pretty amazing web tools are allowing for some pretty amazing collaborative environments.

One in particular that I have never much paid much attention to is Google Docs. I've used it for some basic functions - online word processing, saving work in the virtual cloud, etc. It's nice to have that seemingly limitless availability of storage space that can be accessed from any online connection. And, for the most part, we don't have to worry about computer crashes and lost work when it's saved on the cloud.

But Google Docs apparently allows for a lot more than word processing and peace-of-mind storage. Check out this video that a friend recently shared with me, highlighting some of the impressive products of Google Docs: Google Demo Slam: Epic Docs Animation.

Pretty freaking cool, RIGHT?

Making the future, one video-gamer at a time.

"I have seen am making the future." - Jane McGonical and the Institute for the Future.

I grew up thinking video games were bad. They were a fun way to waste time, but they ultimately caused children to go numb with stupidity and a lack of awareness for their surroundings. They could be played completely stationary, allowing a child to exert little-to-no energy, save for the twiddling of their thumbs. They could be played alone, isolating a child from friends and family. And...they seemed to be the number one way to procrastinate doing homework.

All things bad.

There was and still is a stigma tagged to video-game-playing-children (assigned mostly by the mothers of their non-video-game-playing friends) that seems to say you're not good at many things, are you? Not good at school, not good at sports, probably not very good at playing with other kids, either.

My older brother is a gamer. He has gamer friends. And, over the years, I've watched him become engrossed in one game and then another, coming down for dinner only after reaching the coveted "save point," doing homework assignments only during mandatory game breaks, and taking little interest in things like "books," unless they are filled with game strategies and cheats.

I'm not going to lie to you...I was unimpressed. I was the little sister, the one who always did well in school. The one who could be found studying or at an extra-curricular event, pulling all-nighters even in high school. The one who, save for a Super Mario game here and there, had little interest in (nor talent for) video games. So when Older Brother used to peep into my room to congratulate me for a good report card and express how he wished he could do as well as me in school, there was little sympathy on my end.

What does this nostalgic look at video games have to do with my journey into the world of library? Well...two things have recently forced me to take a different look at video games and the gamers who play them. Nay, conquer them.

Things that make librarians even cooler

I'll be the first to admit that I am a gadget fiend. I love new technology, and I love having it first. There is just something so satisfying about sharing cool new things with your friends, family, colleagues, and students. It is as if, somehow, because they are hearing it from you, you get to take responsibility for its awesomeness. It's totally ridiculous, but I digress...

When it comes to pricey toys that can be bought in stores, read: iPad, iPod, i[insertanythinghere], I am rarely, if ever, a first/early adopter. I don't have the mojo to keep up that style. But that is what is so great about Web 2.0...there's a lot of cool and nerdy stuff out there for (wait for it) ... FREE!

Having been out of the school setting (both K-12 and college) for a few years now, I've grown distant from the environment where new web tools are shared because they are useful, rather than just because they are cool. LIS 629 is all about integrating technology into the school library media program...and so it goes without saying that web tools are a main component. For a recent course task, I was charged with creating accounts on several new "Web 2.0" website accounts. This of course came with the excitement of browsing new tools and wanting to play with them right away. Since I love to share, those around me have been receiving my Web gems (virtual comic strips, glogs, animoto movies, virtual bookshelves, livebinders, etc) via e-mail as I tool around and discover how awesome they are.

But, what's even coolER (to reference the title of this entry) is that these tools can enhance education in ways that no textbooks could ever dream of. They are fun, easy to use, and adept at building 21st century skills. Kids learn how to collect information, analyze that information, and then use that information to create, produce, and discover something new. Then it's as easy as 1 2 3 to share it with their teachers, classmates, and parents.

When I show these tools to friends and colleagues, many of them are seeing them for the first time. Their reaction is always the same..."COOL!" I have always been that girl who likes to write a paper for school and then share it with her friends. If something interests me, I like to show it to others to get their feedback and open discussion. For years, my friends have been humoring me while reading my papers or looking at my projects. But now when I share my work, I get the feeling that my friends actually enjoy looking at my websites, wikis, blogs, glogs, prezis, wallwishers, etc - rather than resenting me for sharing.

A blog about a library student -- BUT WHY?

As is proper with most blogs these days (as if blogs have been around forever!), I will begin with an introduction to myself and the reason I have chosen to share my thoughts with those who share my cyberspace.

You see...it all started when I was two years old and my mom let me hold my first book. Just kidding :). My name, for the purpose of this blog and to those who know me best, is LB. I spent my childhood making up stories and sharing them through a variety of medias...the spoken word, short stories, long stories, poems, plays, movies... I was and still am fascinated by what I don't know. I spent my teenage years buried in books, mostly for school, but often for cathartic reasons, as well. During my undergraduate years at NYU I dabbled in English, Dramatic Literature, Journalism, and Psychology, graduating with such an array of interests that I was (almost) more lost than when I started.

I went into the New York City Public School system pumped to change lives. I came out with my life changed.