teaching when technology fails
TRANSCRIPT
TeachingWhen Technology
FAILSDarcy GervasioReference & Instruction Librarian Purchase College [email protected]
Metro New York Library CouncilBibliographic Instruction SIGMarch 21, 2012
Any juicy technology DISASTER stories?
Librarian Survival Tips:1. Don’t panic!
2. Let it go, then move on.
3. Be flexible.
4. Remember, you know this
stuff!
Recipes for Recovery
1. The Substitute Resource
SUBSTITUTION:Teach same principles using worldcat.org
FAIL: Library catalog goes down!
SUBSTITUTION:Show Google Scholar and Google Advanced Searching
FAIL:EZproxy goes haywire-- No access to databases!
Recipes for Recovery
2. The Analog Switch FAIL: A class set of clickers does not work. Your entire lesson was planned around an interactive multiple-choice quiz.
RECOVERY:Low-tech pedagogy! Have students raise hands, stand up, move to corners. Or bring class set of flashcards with letters for students to hold up.
The Internet has died!You and your students can’t get online at all.
Discuss "meaty" information literacy concepts (peer review, plagiarism, paraphrasing). Help students brainstorm search terms or narrow research topics in groups. Workshop research strategies as a class.
Recipes for Recovery
FAIL: Your plans for a live demo of an online resource are ruined when you learn at the last minute there is no Internet access in the presentation room
RECOVERY:Bring a USB with PowerPoint slides, screenshots, or video screen capture of main points you wanted to show.
You planned to show a slideshow about the differences between scholarly and popular articles, but the file is corrupted.
Bring hard copies of magazines and journals to class to pass out and discuss. A great activity even when technology does NOT fail.
3. The Back-Up (Advanced Prep Required)
Recipes for Recovery
EPIC FAIL:Just as your students are starting to find articles in databases, there is a fire drill in your library.
4. Double Chocolatey Tech Melt-Down
RECOVERY?Exit to safety! Outside, show students how to access library's or Ebsco's mobile site. Or let them get coffee. Not every moment is a teachable one.
EPIC FAIL:The projector and/or presenter computer isn't working! No other classrooms are free.
EPIC RECOVERY: Turn a lecture into a scavenger hunt. Have students locate resources/ complete tasks in pairs. Guide from the side. Emergency handouts or worksheets can help.
Questions? Comments?
Darcy GervasioReference & Instruction Librarian Purchase College [email protected]
Image Credits: Franklin, David (2007). "Orange Juice Squeeez." iStockphoto. Web. 20 March 2012. Emergency Cookbook by Lois Gilbert. Bebopman.com. Web. 20 March 2012. http://www.bebopman.com/images/cookbook_cover_215.gif Five spoons with Chinese Spices. Google Docs Stock Photos. Web. 20 March 2012.
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