Your Library Goes Virtual: Why? When? How?

Audrey ChurchLongwood University

2005 VEMA Fall Conference

Session Description:

We live in a digital environment. Students access information differently than they once did. Will libraries survive as place, or will they become information space?Why should you provide virtual service for your patrons?

Our Goal

“Assisting students to become successful learners as well as supporting teachers in their efforts to create and craft meaningful learning experiences for their students—and to do this within the context of a contemporary information environment…”

David Warlick, Knowledge Quest, January/February, 2005.

U.S. National Center for Education Statistics

“School Library Media Centers: Selected Results from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002)”Sample of 15,525 10th graders in 752 schools“Found a significant correlation between student test scores and their use of the school library—students with higher test scores reported higher use of library resources for assignments, in-school projects and research papers, than those students whose composite test scores were in the lower range”

Welcome to uComics Web Site featuring Baldo!Retrieved February 25, 2005, from http://www.ucomics.com/baldo/2005/02/24/

Who Needs School?

OR…Who Needs Libraries?

Key Finding: The Internet has become THE youth medium of choice…time spent with the Internet now exceeds the time spent with the television for the “Millennial” generation, youths aged 13 to 24”

Born to be Wired: The Role of New Media for a Digital

Generation, Yahoo study, June 2003

Virtually all middle and high school students use the Internet heavily to do research to help them write papers or complete class work or homework assignments…as virtual textbook and reference library…For the most part, students’ educational use of the Internet occurs outside of the school day, outside of the school building, outside the direction of their teachers…

The Digital Disconnect: The Widening Gap Between Internet Savvy Students and Their Schools, Pew Internet & American Life Project, August

2002

87% of all youth between the ages of 12 and 17 use the Internet.Of these 21 million online teens,

78% say they use the Internet at school87% say they use the Internet from home75% say they use the Internet from someone else’s house

Teens, Technology, and SchoolPew Internet & American Life Project, August

2005

“Net Generation Students and Libraries,”

from Educating the Net Generation, 2005

Major Disconnect:“Students’ dependence on Google or similar search engines for discovery of information resources rather than consultation of library Web pages, catalogs, and databases…”“Net Gen students clearly perceive the open space of the World Wide Web as their information universe.”

Make the Library

Connection!

Scenario 1: Brandon realizes that his biology research project on genetics is due tomorrow. It is Sunday evening, 6:00 PM. No problem! He logs on to the Internet, opens his Web browser, does a quick Google search on genetics, prints out information from a few dotcom sites, and he is good to go.

Scenario 2: Brandon realizes that his biology research project on genetics is due tomorrow. It is Sunday evening, 6:00 PM. No problem! He logs on to the Internet, opens his Web browser, goes to his school library web site, clicks on the pathfinder created collaboratively by his library media specialist and classroom teacher. Using their suggestions, he finds basic information in an encyclopedia through Grolier Online and journal articles and newsletters from the SIRS Knowledge Source and Infotrac Student Edition. Through the library’s online catalog, he reads portions of a few Follett eBooks on genetics. To finish off his research, he visits a couple of the web sites suggested in the pathfinder. Works cited? Referring to the works cited section of the school library web site, he soon has his references listed in complete MLA format.

Make the Library Connection:

The School Library Media

Center Web Page

What to Include?

Information Access and Delivery

Online CatalogCCPS OPACHampton High OPACNorth Elementary OPAC

Subscription Databases School and/or Division

Western Albemarle HighDamascus Middle

FindItVa

Reference CollectionGale Virtual Reference LibraryGreenwood eBooks

Sample list

Internet Public LibraryLibrarian’s Internet Index

Local LinksLibraries

PublicLocal colleges and universitiesState

Local government

Information Access and Delivery

Website collectionsNettrekkerMarcoPoloWebFeet

Professional collection

Kathy SchrockEduscapesLibrary of Congress Learning PageNational Digital Science LibraryVDOE/SOL resources

Ebooks Project GutenbergBartleby.comInternational Children’s Digital LibraryFollett eBooksNetLibrary subject sets

Learning and TeachingInformation literacy skills instruction

Elementary tutorialHigh school instruction

Search tools and their effective usageResearch process guidesCitations and ethical use of information

ReadingBook listsAR listsBook reviews Online book clubs/Blogs

PathfindersManchester High

WebQuestsAsk-a-Librarian

EmailChat

Program AdministrationProgram mission and goalsInformation about upcoming eventsInformation about past library eventsStaffContact information

Hours/Policies/ ProceduresImpact studiesParents’ PageLink to school and division pagesForms

Sample PagesElementary

Mt. Erie Elementary, Anacortes, WAAgnor Hurt Elementary, Charlottesville. VA

MiddleWalter Reed Middle, Los Angeles, CAVirtual Middle School Library

High SchoolThomas Dale High, Chester, VASpringfield Township High, Erdenheim, PA

Considerations

Audience?Content?Design?

Media and format?Layout?

Invite returns?Link from school page!Put URL on everything!

Multilingual?Gunston Middle School, Arlington, VA

Good Web DesignDesign consistent with school page?User-friendly? Easy to navigate?User-centered wording?Font readability? Effective use of graphics?Important information in upper left hand corner, across, left, and across?Scrolling required? Continue text “below fold”?Universally accessible

Run through Bobby/Watchfire

What NOT to Include!Login and password information for databasesOutdated or soon-to-be outdated informationPictures that are extremely slow to loadDepending on division policy, photos of students?

Think Before You Include…

Long Flash animations at the opening of the site?Music or sound not easily controlled?Frames?Distracting animated gifs?Links that don’t work?Poor grammar, punctuation, or spelling?Unpleasant/unreadable colors and fonts?

Alternatives?

Much of this through the OPAC?Link to eBook, following title searchLink to Web site, following subject search

Federated searching software (common user interfaces to facilitate metasearching) such as TLC’s WebFeat

Some statistics…

Linked from school’s home page!Midway Elementary, Church Road, VAWilliamsburg Middle, Arlington, VAKing’s Fork High School, Suffolk, VA

Baumbach study, Spring 2004School library media center web sites (FL, NC, SC, GA, AL, MS)

State No link from school home page

Link to SLMC from school home page

Total

Florida 12 8 20

North Carolina 14 6 20

South Carolina

13 7 20

Georgia 12 8 20

Alabama 19 1 20

Mississippi 18 2 20

Six States 88 (73%) 32 (27%) 120 (100%)

School Library Web Page Links

Virginia Department of Education Library Media sectionSchool-Libraries.NetInternational Association of School Librarians Award winners

HOW?

Write in html? Use FrontPage, DreamWeaver, Netscape Composer, Microsoft Publisher?Load it (have it loaded) to the school/division server.Follow division policies and procedures

Page contentPage layout

WHY?Library Web page is library’s presence outside of school…Page provides opportunity for teachers and parents to see you as information specialistPage is public relations/advocacy tool with administrators, teachers, students, and parentsPage connects you to curriculum and instruction of school, at point of need!

“Create a Web site to serve the community and to provide that

community with essential content…”

Carolyn Karis, Knowledge Quest,

January/February 2005

Herring’s Internet and Information Skills: A Guide for Teachers and

School Librarians, 2004

Plan the Web site to serve users’ needsLocate resources and designs to serve needsUse design resources to effectively convey information and resources to usersSelf-evaluate to maintain quality and effectiveness of Web site

“The goal of a Web site should be to make the school library

media center and its Web page the first choice of information by

students and teachers. Do whatever it takes to make it

happen.”

Donna Baumbach, Knowledge Quest, January/February 2005

Resources

Abilock, D. (2005, January/February). “Focus on the user,” Knowledge Quest 33(3), 6-7.Baumbach, D. (2005, January/February). “The school library media center web page: An opportunity too good to miss,” Knowledge Quest 33(3), 8-12.

Born to be wired: The role of new media for a digital generation. (2003). Retrieved February 17, 2005, from http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/promo/btbw_2003/btbw_execsum.pdf Blowers, H., & Bryan, R. (2004). Weaving a library web: A guide to developing children’s websites. Chicago: ALA.

Davidsen, S., & Yankee, E. (2004). Web site design with the patron in mind: A step-by-step guide for libraries. Chicago: ALA.The digital disconnect: The widening gap between Internet-savvy students and their schools. (2002). Retrieved February 25, 2005, from http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/67/report_display.asp

Herring, J.E. (2004). Internet and information skills: A guide for teachers and school librarians. New York: Neal-Schuman.Karis, C. (2005, January/February). “Booking library web site redesign,” Knowledge Quest 33(3), 58-61.

Lippincott, J.K. (2005). “Net generation students and libraries” in Educating the Net Generation. Retrieved October 31, 2005, from http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/pub7101m.pdf School library media centers: Selected results from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002. (2002). Retrieved March 3, 2005, from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2005302

Tapscott, D. (1998). Growing up digital: The rise of the net generation. New York: McGraw-Hill.Teens, technology, and school. Retrieved October 31, 2005, from http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Internet_and_schools_05.pdf

Warlick, D. (2005, January/February). “Building web sites that work for your media center,” Knowledge Quest 33(3), 13-15.Wilson, A. P. (2004). Library web sites: Creating online collections and services. Chicago: ALA.

Contact Information:

Audrey ChurchCoordinator, School Library Media Program, Longwood University, Farmville, VAEmail: churchap@longwood.eduPhone: 434-395-2682Web page: http://www.longwood.edu/staff/churchap