Colvin’s Article Response

  • Importance of Infotech
    • Libraries act a central hub to information services and the ability to incorporate Infotech within schools will provide students, teachers and wider communities’ opportunities to both gain more knowledge and to be better equipped to act as a team player in the Infotech Era.
  • Shared values
    • The library is central within the school and should focus on aligning the goals of all users, whether educational, personal or institutional. Sharing values allows the library to become a communal and collaborative area where the services are catered to the needs of the individuals and groups.
  • Knowledge workers
    • Librarians are able to actively support ‘knowledge workers’ rather than ‘physical workers’ due to the services provided by the library. TLs focus their attention on the motivation, needs and values of ‘knowledge workers’ and best services available to support them. TLs embody creative and adaptive capabilities, being ‘knowledge workers’ themselves and are able to develop a managerial/leadership role through this understanding.
  • Flexible thinking
    • Libraries are constantly updating and changing, the very nature of information in this digital era. TLs, consequentially, are the forefront to make the changes and develop the skills (creating, judging, imagining and building relationships) with their team. Given the slow-changing ideologies still present, TLs have an advantage to adopt the new ways of thinking (organisms vs. machine) faster than other managers and companies.

Colvin, G. (2002). Managing in the info ear. Fortune, 141 (5)

INF533 Assignment Post 1

Is the printed book dead?

As an avid physical reader the thought of the demise of printed books is almost incomprehensible, however, digital literature environments have continued to expand as technological advances have been made. The increase of electronic modes of communication is a step as revolutionary as the mobile printing press (Rettberg, 2012), however, the chances of printed books ‘dying out’ are over-exaggerated by media sources (Darnton, 2009). The impact of this shift is the notion that humanity have entered into the ‘information age’ and as the library is an information service (Darnton, 2009), it is a necessity that in my profession of Teacher Librarian, the maintenance and up-kept of changes and developments is crucial to our knowledge and skills.

The influx of digital literature and technology and tools are utilised due to what they can add to literature, rather than to replace physical literature. Sadokierski (2013) discusses that the value of the electronic book (eBooks) is through what eBooks can offer that print books cannot. The one of the most appealing aspects of eBooks is the efficiency, immediacy and variety available. Librarians can incorporate digital literature to provide reluctant readers with a novel experience, create new texts that dynamically interacts with the readers and offer support within the classroom. Felvegi & Matthew (2012) address the potential that electronic texts can reduce costs in both storage and production, provide opportunities for diverse learning locations and shift teaching pedagogy to assist students in developing the 21st century skills necessary.

As a new graduate, my experience in the classroom and library environment are quite limited and my current knowledge and practices in play are reversed to using Wushka and a variety of digital uses through Google Suite. Walsh (2013) articulates the differing components of digital environments and the digital forms present currently. The digital environments are engaging readers in a unique way that teachers need to be present of and incorporate these skills into their teaching and learning.

References

Darnton, R. (2009). The information landscape, Chapter 2 in The case for books by Robert Darnton,  New York: Pubic Affairs pp. 21-41 http://csuau.eblib.com/patron/FullRecord.aspx?p=496489  

Flevegi, E. & Matthew, K.I. (2012). eBooks and literacy in K-12 schools, Computers in the schools, 29(1-2), 40-52. DOI: 10.1080/07380569.2012.651421

Rettberg, J.W. (2012). Electronic literature seen from a distance: the beginnings of a field. Retrieved from http://www.dichtung-digital.org/2012/41/walker-rettberg.htm

Sadokierski, Z. (2013, November 12). What is a book in the digital age? [Web log post]. Retrived from http://theconversation.com/what-is-a-book-in-the-digital-age-19071

Walsh, M. (2013). Literature in a digital environment (Ch. 13). In L. McDonald (Ed.), A literature companion for teachers. Marrickville, NSW: Primary English Teaching Association Australia (PETAA)

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