Critical Reflection Post – Assessment 2: Part B

Chloe HoLeave a comment

In this unit, I have realised the importance of teaching digital citizenship to students at school. The prime time is to start at the primary level, as the earlier students are exposed to how to manage online content, the better it is to equip them for later learning in life (Öztürk, 2021). Leadership support is vital for this to happen because students need to learn what information is safe to share and how to protect their information when in an unsafe situation. The evidence shows that students will learn how to interact responsibly and safely online with people that they know or know how to protect themselves when an unknown person is trying to interact with them if they have been taught digital citizenship education (Sterrett & Richardson, 2020).

In the current climate, schools are the best place to deliver knowledge, and teachers should be the experts in this area. As Pihl et al. (2017) indicated, partnering with teacher librarians, who are the information experts in this area, is crucial to fostering the delivery of teaching and learning digital technology at schools. However, there are still many schools that do not have specific policies or suitable professional development programs to cater for individual school needs, and the department is utilising generic programs to fit all (Albion et al., 2015).

After completing the gap analysis report, I have a clearer picture of how teacher librarians can play as advocates in this space. Teacher librarians can be the voice and coordinator to support schools in providing suggestions through policymaking, professional development technology programs, and attaining quality resources (Patel & Anitha, 2022). I have also noticed that without an adequate and quality digital learning environment, it will be challenging to meet the fast-paced, ever-changing technological world. The one-to-one technology program can have a positive effect on student engagement by ensuring that each student has access to the exact same curriculum and resources to break down socioeconomic barriers in schools. In addition, the program can create an equitable learning environment for students in this 21st-century digitalised world.

The challenges are vast and, to name a few, include funding resources, teachers’ beliefs, school culture, and time allocation for implementation with the support of the whole school community (Evans, 2017). On the other hand, there are also many benefits for teachers in using technology, such as the many free educational tools and materials to select to suit lesson plans (Harris & Al-Bataineh, 2015). Undeniably, teacher librarians can offer solutions and ideas, such as getting the local community involved in funding support for schools, as they play a vital role in advocating for change. I can envision that teacher librarians will be at the forefront of information technology, leading educators to frontiers beyond any technology we could imagine.

References

Albion, P. R., Tondeur, J., Forkosh-Baruch, A., & Peeraer, J. (2015). Teachers’ professional development for ICT integration: Towards a reciprocal relationship between research and practice. Education and Information Technologies, 20, 655-673. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10639-015-9401-9

Allouche, D. (2018). Top 10 of the Most High Tech Countries in the World [Photograph]. Young Diplomats. https://www.young-diplomats.com/top-10-high-tech-countries-world/

Evans, M. L. (2017). Professional Development, Teacher Beliefs, and Self-Efficacy in Classroom Technology Integration (Order No. 10604601). Available from ProQuest One Academic. (1984646408). https://www.proquest.com/docview/1984646408

Harris, J., & Al-Bataineh, A. (2015). One to one technology and its effect on student academic achievement and motivation. In Global learn (pp. 579-584). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/150906/

Öztürk, G. (2021). Digital citizenship and its teaching: A literature review. Journal of Educational Technology and Online Learning, 4(1), 31-45. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1286737.pdf

Patel, R., & Anitha, B. (2022). Role of School Libraries in sharpening 21st century skills of students. Library Philosophy and Practice, 1-5. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2622614396

Pihl, J., van der Kooij, K. S., & Carlsten, T. C. (2017). Why Teacher and Librarian Partnerships in Literacy Education in the 21st Century? In Teacher and Librarian Partnerships in Literacy Education in the 21st Century (Vol. 6). Springer.

Sterrett, W., & Richardson, J. W. (2020). Supporting professional development through digital principal leadership. Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership, 5(2), 4. https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/joel/vol5/iss2/4

4.2 Globalisation of information & learning

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In this digital age, the world is running non-stop; accessing the net connects people from across the globe, with various cultural backgrounds, whether you are playing online games or communicating and collaborating with others. This connectivity necessitates respectful and responsible attitudes when interacting with others online, and inadvertently forms global relationships (Harris & Johns, 2021).

Fostering digital citizenship at schools contributes to a healthier, more productive online global community, and is crucial to enable students to navigate the complexities of digital platforms ethically and safely. Technology will continue to evolve, and teaching digital citizenship at schools is the first step in bracing the next generation to build a healthy community (Harris & Johns, 2021).

I am looking at teaching students digital citizenship and the concept of building their professional personal brand. I will start with primary settings and help them understand the importance of their digital footprint when they access the Internet. From that discussion, I will guide students in discovering how they want the public to view them, and make sure they are well-informed that any information they upload to the web will remain there for the rest of their lives (Ribble & Park, 2022).

The balance between educational and social networking for students is challenging. It is difficult to monitor whether students are actually collaborating and communicating for educational purposes, as opposed to socialising. However, I would argue that it is better for students to use educational networking, even for informal catch-ups during or outside of school, because schools have an infrastructure in place to monitor inappropriate activities. Schools could take immediate action to bring students back on track, minimising negative effects like cyberbullying and misinformation (Giannikas, 2020).

References:

Cornelius20. (2019). Digital world [Stock image]. Open Access Government. https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/connected-growth-new-digital-world/73849/

Giannikas, C. (2020). Facebook in tertiary education: The impact of social media in e-learning. Journal of university teaching & learning practice, 17(1), 3. https://doi.org/10.53761/1.17.1.3

Harris, A., & Johns, A. (2021). Youth, social cohesion and digital life: From risk and resilience to a global digital citizenship approach. Journal of Sociology, 57(2), 394-411. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1440783320919173

Ribble, M., & Park, M. (2022). The digital citizenship handbook for school leaders: Fostering positive interactions online. International Society for Technology in Education. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/CSUAU/detail.action?docID=6009895

Reflection – Assessment 1: Challenging aspects of digital citizenship – Part C

Chloe HoLeave a comment

I created a guide for students’ online behaviour in the digital learning environment. This guide promotes digital citizenship skills at my current school. I realised the guide required prior discussion with the teacher who is delivering the lesson, and differentiation for Stage 2. Having experienced a classroom setting, seeking students’ prior knowledge is important to know how extensive one should be in explaining the topic to the class.

(Tree, n.d.)

I have learnt that a teacher’s experience and understanding of the online environment are crucial to successfully delivering the topic (Hakim, 2015). For instance, if the teacher does not have in-depth experience of the online environment, then students will only touch the surface of the topic. In a low socio-economic area like my school, students will require more visual and hands-on activities to cater for individual learning needs. I know the key lies with building positive relationships with the students to successfully deliver the material (Martin & Collie, 2019).

 

When creating this guide, I found it challenging to produce a guide within the word limit for students’ online behaviour and stay on topic because digital citizenship has many parts. There are so many aspects of online behaviour that students are required to learn to be proficient as responsible and smart digital citizens. For example, students need to understand and learn the importance of online etiquette and how to contribute positively to the digital community.

To me as a practitioner, I understand students need to be made mindful that actions attract consequences. They need to learn to respect the rights and privacy of others in order to contribute positively to the digital community and become a healthy society (Lowell & Moore, 2020). I want to pose the issue that schools are increasingly monitoring students’ online activities, which sparks controversy over privacy issues.

Schools are also restricting too much content, which becomes a barrier to learning. It will be interesting to see how democracy in technology develops in future for all schools. As mobile phones are part of everyday lives, students who use devices at home need to be vigilant when communicating online. Parents do not install filters on these phones, and students can access content without any blockages. As educators cannot monitor these devices at home, the ultimate goal is to empower students to be their own guides.

References:

Hakim, A. (2015). Contribution of competence teacher (pedagogical, personality, professional competence and social) on the performance of learning. The International Journal of Engineering and Science, 4(2), 1-12. https://www.theijes.com/papers/v4-i2/Version-3/A42301012.pdf

Lowell, V. L., & Moore, R. L. (2020). Developing practical knowledge and skills of online instructional design students through authentic learning and real-world activities. TechTrends, 64(4), 581-590. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-020-00518-z

Martin, A. J., & Collie, R. J. (2019). Teacher–student relationships and students’ engagement in high school: Does the number of negative and positive relationships with teachers matter?. Journal of Educational Psychology, 111(5), 861. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000317

Tree. (n.d.). The Future Of Metaverse Digitally Immersed With Vr And Virtual Reality Technology 3d Rendering Background [Stock image]. Pngtree. https://pngtree.com/free-backgrounds-photos/digital-future-pictures

2.1 Digital rights and responsibilities – lessons

Chloe HoLeave a comment
(Drogatnev, 2018)

I am a primary teacher and would use the Stage 3 lesson ‘Don’t Feed the Phish’ (Common Sense Education, n.d.). The lesson has an expected completion time of 45 minutes. I would split the lesson into two parts to allow 30 minutes to deliver the lesson and the other 15 minutes for borrowing time. I will adapt the lesson to match it with the Australian Curriculum Version 9 (n.d.) to include learning intention and success criteria. I will seek my students’ prior knowledge of the topic so that I can provide a tailored program utilising this resource (Buehl, 2023).

 

For example, my students enjoy discussion, so I will divide the class into groups of different abilities to complete the discussion. As an introduction to assess my students’ understanding, I will stimulate their interest in the topic by asking them to give me examples of what things are Safe and Unsafe in an environment. All the words collected will be displayed as a Word Cloud. As I usually teach in low socio-economic areas, this lesson will be simplified in dot point form for students with a lower attention span to be able to follow. The dot point format makes it simple for students to pick up the important messages of the lesson. I will also incorporate a role-play activity, as my students learn better when it is practical. The guided activity will be hands-on, using the library laptops.

Of course, I will need to ensure the Wi-Fi is working smoothly as I demonstrate how to access the material online and guide the class through the online activities. I will search for a suitable video for this lesson as my students are visual learners, and this plan does not have a video attached. At the end of the lesson, I will ask each group to present their understanding of the topic and seek feedback to check what they would like to be improved so that they can gain more understanding if they would like to learn any topics related to digital citizenship in the future.

References:

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (n.d.). Australian curriculum: Digital literacy (Version 9). https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/general-capabilities/digital-literacy?element=0&sub-element=0

Buehl, D. (2023). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. Routledge. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781032680842/classroom-strategies-interactive-learning-doug-buehl

Common Sense Education. (n.d.). Don’t Feed the Phish. https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship/lesson/dont-feed-the-phish

Drogatnev. (2018). Phishing scam, hacker attack stock illustration [Stock image]. iStock. https://www.istockphoto.com/vector/phishing-scam-hacker-attack-gm956400244-261133477

 

1.2 Is digital citizenship still the best terminology to use?

Chloe HoLeave a comment
(Barks, n.d.)

I believe digital citizenship is still the best terminology to use in the 21st century. Citizenship implies adherence to a set of rules or guidelines as a citizen of a given country. It is like any discipline with a standard code of conduct to guide one’s behaviour, which one ought to follow if they decide to engage in that profession. Digital has varying meanings depending on the context. The Cambridge and Merriam online dictionaries both indicate that when the term is used in conjunction with other nouns, it means the technological or electronic version of that noun, such as digital media or digital clocks, as opposed to traditional media and analogue clocks. However, what ‘digital’ encompasses will shift over time according to the changing digital environment. When people hear the words digital citizenship as a single term, they have a basic understanding it implies behaving responsibly or in a certain way when participating online. Common Sense Education supports this idea and defines skills in digital citizenship as displaying appropriate behaviour, contributing constructively to online communities, and creating a positive outcome for the future. After reading the first chapter of ‘A Brief History of Digital Citizenship’ by Ribble (2015), I believe my fundamental understanding of the term still stands and is supported by Öztürk’s (2021) article, which demonstrates a similar definition of the term. They both concur that the term regards ethical and behavioural standards one should uphold in the digital realm. I believe the term ‘digital citizenship’ will remain until digital landscapes evolve and experts coin more fitting terms for new circumstances. At this point in time, the term digital citizenship still has its place.

References:

Barks. (n.d.). Flat banner illustration for knowledge, technology, business and education etc [Stock image]. Shutterstock. https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/flat-banner-illustration-knowledge-technology-business-1403518733

Cambridge Dictionary. (n.d.). Digital. In Cambridge.org. Retrieved March 5, 2024, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/digital

Common Sense Education. (n.d.). Everything You Need to Teach Digital Citizenship. https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Digital. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved March 5, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/digital

Öztürk, G. (2021). Digital citizenship and its teaching: A literature review. Journal of Educational Technology and Online Learning, 4(1), 31-45. https://primo.csu.edu.au/permalink/61CSU_INST/15aovd3/cdi_proquest_journals_2844067431

Ribble, M. (2015). A brief history of Digital Citizenship. In Digital citizenship in schools : nine elements all students should know (3rd ed., pp9-17). International Society for Technology in Education. https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1072357&site=ehost-live&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_17

Part 3: Personal reflection – development and understanding as a social networker

Chloe HoLeave a comment

The Social Networking for Information Professionals unit has broadened my perspective as a future library professional in understanding the positive uses and harms that technology can serve in the society. For me, the most meaningful aspect of this unit is that it identifies the importance of online and offline etiquette for what it takes to be a social networking information professional in the 21st century, through an array of multilayered learning.

In module one, I reviewed Han and Yang’s (2023) article, concurring with their survey on relational closeness for social media use and self-esteem on individuals. Individuals will have high self-esteem if they have a supportive friends’ network and adverse effect if not. Equally, several other students agreed with the concluded findings. Later, I noticed the article did not deduce a protective measure for this issue. Having completed the module, I learned the way to conquer this issue is to educate students on how to navigate social media, equip them with the necessary tools to manage their personal data and know where to seek assistance when encountering attacks either in the form of cyberbullying or cybersecurity threats (Etuh & Bakpo, 2022). Additionally, I concurred with Brenna Guiney’s (Guiney, 2023, November 25) evaluation on Mulvey and Keller’s (2023) article on social media platforms governed by algorithms and restricting what content can be shown on platforms. I realised since representation of the information could be biased opinion, it is difficult for viewers to notice from selected information, unless posts are very one-sided opinions. This understanding of how algorithms alter information showed me that it can be harmful to students and how crucial it is to promote information literacy in education for learning in the 21st century.

Further into module 2, the influence of social networking and technology on society were explored. I have learned that technology evolved from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 and will continue to transform. Now I know that Web 2.0 allows users to contribute to web content and social media which facilitates collaboration and makes it possible for networking through mobile technologies, to interact with each other seamlessly. Nevertheless, the information environment that we are now living in is inevitably changing, upgrading, and it is a challenging task for information organisations to keep up with the fast-paced, ever-changing digital online platforms. This means that information organisations need to update their policies and guidelines regularly, and documents need to be fluid. Hence, I found that this method will allow accessing and conducting everyday business in internal and external websites to be kept secure. I have realised from this unit that the amount of data that travels and is stored in the cloud poses privacy and security issues. I have come to understand that to keep data safe and secure for patrons has become an expectation and is a strenuous task (Martínez-Caro et al., 2020). Keeping the infrastructure and online resources current is an enormous cost for information organisations. In the near future, information organisation might need to join ventures and pull their funds together to reach a common goal.

After watching Laura Cole’s TED Talk video (2016) in module 3, I discovered the history of the changing role of library professionals from preserver to cultivator, and from a custodian of books to having the active role of a navigator. Cole (2016) discussed the library 2.0 ethos in relational to information organisations and explored how there are a vast majority of roles that library professionals are required to perform. I agreed there are different expectations, and new roles and responsibilities seem to be emerging in an upward trend. According to Margaret K. Merga (2022), there are more than thirty-six aspects of role requirements and characteristics of the Australian teacher librarian. Margaret’s research (Merga, 2022) indicated that in South Australia schools have 94% of unqualified staff managing the library, due to cheaper remuneration packages. This demonstrated to me that the perception of library professionals remains static and is still considered a ‘breezy’ career, with a traditional lady sitting behind the front desk serving patrons (Rubin & Rubin, 2020).  Hence, I think the need to promote the important role of librarians is immediate. I believe librarians act as a bridge between patrons and online platforms. I feel that constant training and upgrading library professionals’ knowledge and skills to support the community is vital to ensure a safe and protected environment for users.

I have explored various social networking websites in this unit for assessments and successfully learnt to create an artificial library website using Instagram. It was a great experience to learn a new application, where I can transfer the knowledge to my students in future to support them to navigate or create their own webpages using Instagram. I used the trial-and-error method for this assessment task, and reading and commenting on other students’ blogs inspired my learning for this unit. When I compared two twitter feeds (X), Digital Education Research Network (Australia) (DERN) (DERN [@derntwits], n.d.) and the American Library Association (ALA) (ALA [@ALALibrary], n.d.), I learnt that content appearance, type and the variety of posts do matter for attracting an audience. If posting is infrequent, that will create less market exposure, and mainly text content will drive users away. In addition, this unit taught me that algorithms are a useful tool to sort out the most relevant information and acknowledge images by reference to the code of Creative Commons to abide by the law, before downloading and sharing with others (Maurer et al., 2016).

Social networking is the norm, no matter what application you use, it is a part of our everyday life. I am a qualified teacher and have curriculum knowledge and a pedagogy. However, I found teacher librarians are uniquely qualified information professionals and require a different skillset, and it would be valuable for me to improve my information management knowledge and skills to support and implement programs that will benefit the school community. This unit revealed to me that libraries are increasing toward online resources and security protection, requiring multi-dimensional approaches with management and technical solutions. This unit supported me to advance my technological and management skills. I have no regrets in choosing “Social Networking for Information Professionals” and will utilise all the skills that I have learnt in my future career.

References:

American Library Association [@ALALibrary]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/ALALibrary

Cole, L. (2016). BiblioTech as the re-imagined public library: Where will it find you? [Video file]. YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnYDl66YfQ0

Coolarts223. (2023). Shiny sphere floating on water. With reflection [Art work]. Devianart. https://www.deviantart.com/coolarts223/art/Shiny-sphere-floating-on-water-With-reflection-985754054

Digital Education Research Network [@derntwits]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/derntwits

Etuh, E., & Bakpo, F. S. (2022). Social Media Networks Attacks and their Preventive Mechanisms: A Review. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2201.03330

Han, Y., & Yang, F. (2023). Will Using Social Media Benefit or Harm Users’ Self-Esteem? It Depends on Perceived Relational-Closeness. Social Media + Society, 9(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051231203680

Martínez-Caro, E., Cegarra-Navarro, J. G., & Alfonso-Ruiz, F. J. (2020). Digital technologies and firm performance: The role of digital organisational culture. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 154, 119962. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.119962

Maurer, M., Gerdes, J. C., Lenz, B., & Winner, H. (2016). Autonomous driving: technical, legal and social aspects. Springer Nature.

Merga, M. K. (2022). School libraries supporting literacy and wellbeing. Facet Publishing.

Mulvey, A. P., & Keller, J. M. (2023). Brooms and ballots: #WitchTheVote, the nostalgic internet, and intersectional feminist politics on Instagram. Social Media + Society, 9(4), 1-13, https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051231205

Rubin, R., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (Fifth edition.). American Library Association. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/CSUAU/detail.action?docID=6386141.

Part 2: Extended Post – explores, explains, and analyses in relation to social media and privacy use in information organisations

Chloe HoLeave a comment

There are two main challenges surrounding social media and privacy use in information organisations. These concerns are, firstly, that the protection of information and the flow of data within social media leaves individuals and companies vulnerable, and secondly, the ethical issues around enforcing such protections.

The extraordinary growth of social media and users’ activities made privacy-protective measures necessary in the 21st century for the responsible GLAMR sector and everyone. The GLAMR sector contains information organisations such as galleries, libraries, archives, museums, and records that utilise social media platforms to reach out to their target audience for connecting, communicating, broadcasting news, seeking information, and promoting events (Auxier & Anderson, 2021). The user’s personal information, interests, political views, purchasing habits, and online behavioural activities are stored on the website when accessing media and unintentionally leave digital footprints. The International Association of Privacy Professionals (n.d.) defined governing privacy as “user personal data and information being protected from malicious attack and exploitation of data used in inappropriate ways”. Social networking companies could manipulate individuals’ data activities to drive user engagement geared towards their goals (Saura et al., 2021). The data from users is vulnerable and will be subject to exploitation by third parties or be unlawfully accessed by criminals. Hence, protection is an important challenge in this space, and it is vital to understand how to adequately combat online vulnerability and engage with protective measures.

The GLAMR sector implemented strategies and created policies and guidelines to counter these privacy protection challenges, and these documents reference various legislation, such as the Privacy Act 1988 in Australian legislation (Privacy Act 1988, 1988), American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights (EDIAZ, 2016), and the Australian Library and Information Association’s libraries and privacy guidelines (Slingsby, 2021). These documents serve to protect the treatment and use of personal information shared, including on online social networks. The protection of information on infrastructure that stores digital resources and user information is subject to damage and online attacks from various forms like viruses or malware. In the digital space, information leakages can easily occur, unbidden by the organisation and risking users’ safety. Regular hardware and software updates and data backups are crucial to protect the privacy of users (Fire et al.,2014).

In the case of libraries, they have various policies governing social media and privacy regarding the access and use of online information, like the Code of Ethics and Conduct, which monitors staff conduct, the Information Security Policy that secures and protects the confidentiality, integrity and information within its infrastructure, the Privacy Management Plan for how an organisation is managing personal information and the Social Media Policy, which governs the library staff communication with patrons through social media platforms (Australian Catholic University, 2023; International Association of School Librarianship, n.d.; State Library of New South Wales, 2023). A well-protected culture that does not erode the fine line between the public and private spheres needs library professionals to uphold and adhere to ethical and transparent policies.

While there are policies and guidelines governing the protection of privacy of social media use in the GLAMR sector, there are still vast, ethical challenges that need to be overcome (Rathore et al., 2017). The online databases and print resources need to be reviewed periodically to ensure that transferring from print to an online resource is secured, to prevent unauthorised access when linked with the latest technology. Hence, an adequate budget for this ethical risk is unavoidable and is a huge issue for all organisations (Lee, 2021). The Softlink Australian School Library Survey 2017 reports that more than 62% of school libraries were inadequately funded (Softlink, 2017). It is crucial for the principal, management, and the board to support the allocation of budget for an ethical cause. Social media have become the main platforms for social networking tools for individuals. Social media networks like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and dating apps such as Tinder are used by billions of users and continue to grow (Datareportal, 2023; Napoleoncat, 2023; Statista, 2023). Cloud-based and Web 2.0 technologies make it possible for organisations to track user activity using tools like Mixpanel and Adobe Analytics on mobile applications and single-page applications on websites such as Google Analytics and Hotjar (Singh et al., 2010). These business organisations have blurred lines with personal privacies and leave many ethical standards to be desired.

Further, adopting appropriate policies to govern digital information access and control is becoming a mammoth task because technology is changing at a fast pace and moving faster than organisations can update their policies. It is forcing organisations to shift conditions even quicker than before (Ichihashi, 2020). For example, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and ChatGPT are the most recent technologies; organisations are currently reviewing how they will affect users’ security and privacy and the type of measures that are required to be in place to counter unlawful access and misuse of information. This is a real concern; however, it is also inevitable that new technologies will evolve, and proactive action is key, but the type of proactive action, software patches and updates to support this action requires expertise, which is another ethical challenge for digital library professionals to keep up with current trends while applying appropriate privacy protective measures (Wu et al., 2023). Information ethics is a concern because the confidentiality of patrons is the responsibility of library professionals and staff, and safeguarding the privacy of information to avoid misuse of resources is crucial to respecting users (Rubin & Rubin, 2020). There are guiding principles to keep the information confidential, especially in AI technologies, to respect and protect intellectual property with fair representation, non-maleficence, and privacy. All employees are required to sign a code of conduct. If a person does not uphold the standard, this will be the grounds for dismissal (Floridi et al., 2018).

In conclusion, information overload is commonplace on social media platforms, and prospects for privacy and security in digital libraries are challenging. A well-defined policy document aligned with actions from the government and support from management is critical to prevent data breaches, uphold the library’s professional standards and provide a trusting relationship with patrons, therefore reaching the goal of protecting users (Rubin & Rubin, 2020). It is not a singular, definition of privacy that library professionals are adhering to; it is how they perceive privacy and abide by the code of conduct and the ethical duty that one needs to perform.

References:

Al-Suqri, M. N., & Akomolafe-Fatuyi, E. (2012). Security and Privacy in Digital Libraries: Challenges, Opportunities and Prospects. International Journal of Digital Library Systems, 3(4), 54–61. https://doi.org/10.4018/ijdls.2012100103

Australian Catholic University. (2023). Library policies and guidelines. https://library.acu.edu.au/our-library/policies-and-guidelines

Auxier, B., & Anderson, M. (2021). Social media use in 2021. Pew Research Center, 1, 1-4. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/04/PI_2021.04.07_Social-Media-Use_FINAL.pdf

Datareportal. (2023). Instagram: Global advertising audience. https://datareportal.com/essential-instagram-stats

EDIAZ. (2016, November 16). Library Bill of Rights and Freedom to Read Statement Pamphlet. About ALA. https://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/oif/LBOR-FTR-statement-pamphlet

Fire, M., Goldschmidt, R., & Elovici, Y. (2014). Online social networks: threats and solutions. IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials, 16(4), 2019-2036. https://doi.org/10.1109/COMST.2014.2321628

Floridi, L., Cowls, J., Beltrametti, M., Chatila, R., Chazerand, P., Dignum, V., Luetge, C., Madelin, R., Pagallo, U., Rossi, F., Schafer, B., Valcke, P., & Vayena, E. (2018). AI4People—An Ethical Framework for a Good AI Society: Opportunities, Risks, Principles, and Recommendations. Minds and Machines (Dordrecht), 28(4), 689–707. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11023-018-9482-5

Ichihashi, S. (2020). Online privacy and information disclosure by consumers. American Economic Review, 110(2), 569-595.https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.20181052

International Association of Privacy Professionals. (n.d.). What is privacy. https://iapp.org/about/what-is-privacy/#:~:text=Data%20privacy%20is%20focused%20on,of%20stolen%20data%20for%20profit.

International Association of School Librarianship. (n.d.). Sample policies for small school library. https://www.iasl-online.org/resources/Documents/PD%20Library/PDLIB_SAMPLE_POLICIES_FOR_SMALL_SCHOOL_LIBRARY_PROGRAMS_NEW.pdf

Lee, I. (2021). Cybersecurity: Risk management framework and investment cost analysis. Business Horizons, 64(5), 659-671. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2021.02.022

Napoleoncat. (2023). Instagram users in Australia. https://napoleoncat.com/stats/instagram-users-in-australia/2023/11/

Privacy Act 1988 No 97 (Cth). (1988). https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2018C00292

Rathore, S., Sharma, P. K., Loia, V., Jeong, Y. S., & Park, J. H. (2017). Social network security: Issues, challenges, threats, and solutions. Information sciences, 421, 43-69. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ins.2017.08.063

Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). American Library Association. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/CSUAU/detail.action?docID=6386141&pq-origsite=primo

Saura, J. R., Palacios-Marqués, D., & Iturricha-Fernández, A. (2021). Ethical design in social media: Assessing the main performance measurements of user online behavior modification. Journal of Business Research, 129, 271-281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.03.001

Shutterstock. (n.d.). Hacker Industry Illustrations [Stock image]. https://www.shutterstock.com/search/hacker-industry?image_type=illustration

Singh, M., Davison, C., & Wickramasinghe, N. (2010). Organisational use of web 2.0 technologies: An Australian perspective. AMCIS 2010 Proceedings. 198. https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2010/198

Slingsby, L. (2021, June 28). Libraries and privacy guidelines. ALIA Library. https://read.alia.org.au/libraries-and-privacy-guidelines

Softlink. (2017). 2017 Australian and New Zealand school library survey.  https://www.softlinkint.com/downloads/2017_Softlink_Australian_and_New_Zealand_School_Library_Survey_Report.pdf

State Library of New South Wales. (2023). Legislation and policies. https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/about-library/legislation-and-policies

Statista. (2023). Most popular social networks worldwide as of October 2023, ranked by number of monthly active users. https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/

Wu, X., Duan, R., & Ni, J. (2023). Unveiling security, privacy, and ethical concerns of ChatGPT. Journal of Information and Intelligence. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiixd.2023.10.007

Task 10: Twitter feeds

Chloe Ho1 Comment

Two Twitter feeds were explored: American Library Association [@ALALibrary]. https://twitter.com/ALALibrary and the Digital Education Research Network [@derntwits]. https://twitter.com/derntwits

Digital Education Research Network (Australia) (DERN) (DERN [@derntwits], n.d.) caters to researchers and educators who are interested in the use of digital technology in media, ICT, theological approaches, and current and future trends in learning. In comparison, the American Library Association (ALA) (ALA [@ALALibrary], n.d.), which is the oldest and largest library association in the world, caters to audiences that are interested in the development of, promotion, and improvement of library and information services. Their mission is to ensure access to information for all, through the librarianship profession, to advocate equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Due to their audiences, the content for the Twitter feeds of DERN and ALA are different in their own ways. DERN has newsletters for the latest ICT research reports, conference information and recent news stories, including research reviews, briefs and archives. It is a very research-based platform and attracts a targeted audience (DERN, n.d.). On the other hand, ALA has a broad range of focuses and the eight key focus areas are advocacy for libraries and the profession, diversity, education, lifelong learning, equitable access to information and library services, intellectual freedom, literacy, organizational excellence, and transforming libraries (ALA, n.d.).

ALA appears to be more successful than DERN, not only because ALA caters to a wider audience, but also because of the number of global viewers compared to the Australian population. The population of the U.S. in 2023 was estimated to be 339,996,563 (Chasan, 2023) and Australia’s population was approximately 26,638,544 people on 30 June 2023 (Australian Bureau of Statistics, n.d.). Looking closely at the 2,049 Following 1,746 Followers for DERN (DERN [@derntwits], n.d.) compared with the 4,061 Following 231.8K Followers for ALA (ALA [@ALALibrary], n.d.), it is clear that the popularity is incomparable from DERN to ALA. This can partially be attributed to the number of posts, 31.3K in ALA compared to the 542 posts by DERN, which shows ALA’s active engagement to reach its audience and maintain strong connections amongst its networks.

Furthermore, ALA posts were short and sharp, with a variety of short articles and competitions to discussion forums, including their annual conference posters, free membership deals, library events, book reviews to encourage discussion, advocacy topics, digital book launches, library dispute court proceedings, book clubs, short messages with images, videos, journal articles and various discount deals (ALA [@ALALibrary], n.d.), whereas DERN mainly posted research articles. The content appearance also did not seem as interesting or appealing as the ALA website. DERN’s images were not as attractive, the sentences were not catchy, not original, and they had mainly text (DERN [@derntwits], n.d.). The posts on ALA are very eye-catching with selected texts with images and videos, whereas DERN seems very plain. For the above analysis, ALA is more successful than DERN.

References:

American Library Association. (n.d.). About ALA. https://www.ala.org/aboutala/

American Library Association [@ALALibrary]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/ALALibrary

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (n.d.). National, state and territory population. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/national-state-and-territory-population/latest-release

Chasan, A. (2023). U.S. population grew to more than 335 million in 2023. Here’s the prediction for 2024. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-population-expected-to-top-335-million-by-new-years-day-2024/

Digital Education Research Network. (n.d.). About DERN. https://dern.acer.org/dern/about

Digital Education Research Network [@derntwits]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/derntwits

Shutterstock. (n.d.). Technology Vector royalty-free images [Stock image]. https://www.shutterstock.com/search/technology-vector

 

 

Task 6: Embracing a Library 2.0 ethos

Chloe Ho3 Comments

Public libraries are constantly looking for ways to improve and upgrade their environment to attract patrons locally or those who live out of the area. Following Laura Cole in the TED video (2016), there are four points that I would like to explore: the accessibility of the library, the perception of changing from a static to a fluid and dynamic library, the role of librarians from preserver to cultivator, and not just being a custodian of books but instead having the active role of a navigator.

The accessibility of libraries largely depends on the geographic location and the general population mix. For example, if the general population is older and mainly retirees, then the environment should incorporate multipurpose spaces with a balance of physical and digital resources. This is to ensure that the library can cater for all patrons (Shoham & Klain-Gabbay, 2019). However, there are budget constraints, and the allocation of funding requires careful consideration.

I have seen a pop-up library in many suburbs. This is the initiative of the local council to attract patrons from the local community, and it is one of the perceptions of changing from static to fluid and dynamic libraries. There are also other ideas that, in the digital space, a fluid library encourages memory efficiency with shared libraries in RAM instead of a single storage point (Audunson et al., 2019).

The last two points are the perceived role of librarians within the 21st century, from a preserver to a cultivator, and from a custodian of books to the active role of a navigator. There are many roles that librarians are required to play as experts; however, the perception of librarians is required to change in order to embrace the ever-changing platform and environments (Chigwada, 2021).

I believe librarians are mediators of information. Therefore, the need to improve and update knowledge with the current trends of technology is inevitable.

References:

Audunson, R., Aabø, S., Blomgren, R., Evjen, S., Jochumsen, H., Larsen, H., … & Koizumi, M. (2019). Public libraries as an infrastructure for a sustainable public sphere: A comprehensive review of research. Journal of Documentation, 75(4), 773-790 https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-10-2018-0157

Chigwada, J. P. (2021). Librarian skillsets in the 21st century: The changing role of librarians in the digital era. In Research Anthology on Collaboration, Digital Services, and Resource Management for the Sustainability of Libraries (pp. 60-73). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-8051-6.ch004

Cole, L. (2016). BiblioTech as the re-imagined public library: Where will it find you? [Video file]. YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnYDl66YfQ0

Shoham, S., & Klain-Gabbay, L. (2019). The academic library: Structure, space, physical and virtual use. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 45(5), 102053. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2019.102053

Shutterstock. (n.d.). Bibliothéque royalty-free images [Stock image]. https://www.shutterstock.com/search/biblioth%C3%A9que

Task 2: The influence of technology on society.

Chloe HoLeave a comment

The information environment that we are now living in is inevitably changing, upgrading, and creating new applications. It is a complicated task for organisations like the government, libraries, education, and corporations to keep up with the fast-paced, ever-changing digital platforms (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016).

With the continuously changing technology that we live with, which we cannot avoid, security in organisations are required to factor in extra budget for many areas, such as ongoing training and upgrading infrastructure and equipment. For organisations to seek to employ appropriate and qualified professionals to train their staff in the use and etiquette to meet the company’s technological needs, closing the gap between the younger and older generation’s skills and perception of using technologies are part of the cost (Eason, 2001).

There are always constant version updates and requirements to migrate to new systems. The upgrades and application migrations are an endless investment. Seeking new ways to provide and conduct business is also another trend. The current working-from-home model also poses another issue for organisations to manage staff for security issues when they are using their own internet and inadequate infrastructure. The logistical issue is that companies require someone to ensure staff are motivated and working as per company guidelines, arrange measurements and new policies required to be set up, and receive staff consent. On top of these extra challenges, the claims for overwork and monitoring well-being makes it harder to build trust with staff (Al-Shammari et al., 2023).

Due to changes in technologies and platforms in an organisation, setting up new policies and rules on how to access and conduct everyday business on internal and external websites could add another constraint to the organisation. The data that travels and is stored in the cloud poses another security issue and keeping it safe and secure within the organisation becomes another challenging and exigent task. The cost of keeping the firewall secure is rendered useless if the user lacks the knowledge to protect against hackers, who can find new ways to get information from organisations and sell it to other criminals on the dark web (Martínez-Caro et al., 2020).

The future of academic librarian roles will be evolving, not only to incorporate even more digital services and online resources, but also because the general community expects them to be experts in the field. Hence, continuing to upskill by following close to technology trends and keeping up with the digital world is a necessity (Evans & Baker, 2011).

References:

Al-Shammari, M., Aziz, W. A., & Jasimuddin, S. M. (2023). Emerging trends in innovation management and entrepreneurship development in the 21st century: issues, challenges, and opportunities. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1145727. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1145727

Cascio, W. F., & Montealegre, R. (2016). How technology is changing work and organizations. Annual review of organizational psychology and organizational behavior, 3, 349-375. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-041015-062352

Eason, K. (2001). Changing perspectives on the organizational consequences of information technology. Behaviour & information technology, 20(5), 323-328. https://doi.org/10.1080/01449290110083585

Evans, W., & Baker, D. (Eds.). (2011). Libraries and society: role, responsibility and future in an age of change. Elsevier. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/CSUAU/detail.action?docID=1584455

Martínez-Caro, E., Cegarra-Navarro, J. G., & Alfonso-Ruiz, F. J. (2020). Digital technologies and firm performance: The role of digital organisational culture. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 154, 119962. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.119962

Shutterstock. (n.d.). Technology Vector royalty-free images [Stock image]. https://www.shutterstock.com/search/technology-vector