All posts by christopherlbell

I am a Masters of Education - Teacher Librarianship student exploring information literacies and global citizenship.

INF-533 Reflection

In my first post for INF-533, I wrote that I interact with digital literature daily. Have I grown to interact with more digital literature?

Not really, no. However, over the course of the subject, my definition of digital literature has changed, and I certainly experience a broader spectrum of digital literature. Having engaged with and created my own piece of digital literature, my understanding and experience have broadened to the point at which I realise how limited my view of digital literature was. Furthermore, I have developed a deeper and more rounded understanding of how to engage with digital literature in the classroom.

Developing an understanding

My understanding of digital literature has expanded drastically. In my first blog post, my understanding was limited to eBooks and their various iterations (scanned book, enhanced eBook, application (app) based books or kindle specific books). I’ve come to see digital literature as a broad concept that is not limited to the various iterations of eBooks, but as discussed in my forum post for Module 3: Exploring Digital Forms, includes storytelling games and immersive journalism. My understanding developed even further when, for assignment 2, I chose to focus on interactive and augmented reality (AR) audio stories.

Content creation

Prior to engaging with the content of this subject, I have written short stories for pleasure. However, I have never thought to write a story for students in my school. Since most print stories are non-interactive, I thought to incorporate this element in my digital literature. I came across several issues when writing with Inklewriter. Firstly, as there were multiple options to select, and only one right answer, I wanted to loop the reader back to the scenario after selecting an unempathetic response. This way the story did not need to be overly complex and could follow the single path of empathetic responses. Furthermore, after creating these loops, I needed to ensure the same unempathetic response could not be selected over again (something I foresaw some students doing), thus creating an infinite loop opportunity. The next issue I discovered was an inability to randomise the order that responses appeared. Unfortunately, it seems this is a limitation of the program, and no amount of troubleshooting or Googling could solve it. The final issue was in making all options become available once again after looping the reader back (if selected) for a second read. Fortunately, I was able to resolve this and reset all the loop rules. In all, the creation of my digital story has been a rewarding experience; I utilised a program I’d never used before and believe I’ve done a good job. It’s far more than a short story in digital format and I feel confident I could use Inklewriter in the classroom.

Socially networked literature in the classroom

As stated earlier, my understanding of what is included in digital literature has broadened. Humans of New York, which I originally encountered on social media and never thought of as digital literature, is a form of socially networked literature I had previously overlooked. It combines photographs and text to share the story of different people living in New York.

In previous years, I have had students engage with social media to campaign and build awareness around key community issues. My experience with digital literature has allowed me to expand my view of what is possible. Reflecting on prior assignments, I now see how they can be modified, from a poetry portfolio to a piece of digital literature, that combines images, sound and text to bring their poetry to life.

Digital literacy: A necessary skill

Throughout the subject, I have developed an understanding of a new literacy necessary for students to navigate the digital world. As I discussed in my forum post for Module 1: Evaluating Digitally Reproduced Stories, often we – and I am guilty of it – assume that as students grew up interacting with digital devices, that they are, therefore ‘digital natives’ with expert digital skills. The reality is they do not have the expert skills we expect, and as educators, it is necessary for us to provide students with the skills in order to access the content. Leu et al. (2011) describe this skill set as a new literacy, digital literacy. In the discussion forum post for Module 2.1: Digital Environments, I discussed my realisation of this literacy and how I have amended how I teach since.

I know I can confidently take my new knowledge and experience of literature in digital environments into my twenty-first-century classroom.

References:

Bell, C. (2021). Digital literature to progress learning. Teacher Librarianship – An Australian in Saudi. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2021/07/17/digital-literature-to-progress-learning/

Bell, C. (2021). 1.2 Digital narratives [Online discussion comment]. Interact 2.

Bell, C. (2021). 2.1 [Online discussion comment]. Interact 2.

Bell, C. (2021). Exploring digital forms [Online discussion comment]. Interact 2.

Bell, M. (2021). I am eMpathetic. [Digital artwork]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. https://i.ibb.co/qm9WTnV/I-am-e-Mpathetic.png

Bell, M. (2021). Football?. [Digital artwork]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. https://i.ibb.co/LhJ4N3W/Football.png

Bell, M. (2021). Hurt. [Digital artwork]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. https://i.ibb.co/gDLS2Mw/Hurt.png

Bell, M. (2021). Lonely. [Digital artwork]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. https://i.ibb.co/mXPbq1Q/Lonely.png

Bell, M. (2021). Overwhelmed. [Digital artwork]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.  https://i.ibb.co/dbwgBQs/Overwhelmed.png

Bell, M. (2021). Upset. [Digital artwork]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. https://i.ibb.co/QNZgC8m/PNG-image-7-D27453-E30-BB-1.png

Felvégi, E., & Matthew, K. I. (2012). Ebooks and literacy in K-12 schools. Computers in the Schools, 29(1-2), 40-52. https://doi.org/10.1080/07380569.2012.651421

Green, M. C., & Jenkins, K. M. (2014). Interactive narratives: Processes and outcomes in user-directed stories: Interactive narratives. Journal of Communication, 64(3), 479-500. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12093

Leu, D. J., McVerry, J. G., O’Byrne, W. I., Kiili, C., Zawilinski, L., Everett-Cacopardo, H., Kennedy, C., & Forzani, E. (2011). The new literacies of online reading comprehension: Expanding the literacy and learning curriculum. Journal of Adolsecent & Adult Literacy, 55(1), 5-14. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228409747_The_New_Literacies_of_Online_Reading_Comprehension_Expanding_the_Literacy_and_Learning_Curriculum

Miller, C. H. (2009). The new frontier of web-based stories: An expert in the field offers a primer on some of the ways you can expand your storytelling horizons. The Writer (Boston), 122(8), 42.

Yokota, J. & Teale, W. H. (2014). Picture books and the digital world: Educators making informed choices. The Reading Teacher, 67(8), 577-585. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1262

Context for Digital Storytelling Project

Kingdom schools is a school for the children of the elite and wealthy of Saudi Arabia. All core subjects are taught by western teachers for whom English is their native language. Prior to the 2019-2020 academic year, staff turnover was high. Perhaps due to this lack of structure and inconsistent teacher expectations, student behaviour was poor. The school moral code was developed and implemented in 2019 to better support the instilling of appropriate behaviours. Since then, staff turnover has remained consistently low and student behaviours in and out of the classroom have improved.

The MORALS, displayed as statements, are an acronym for the behaviours expected of students. The morals were designed to support student well-being. Each fortnight the moral focus changes; throughout daily morning well-being time, the moral is unpacked and the fortnightly assemblies, led by different teachers, incorporates a lesson based around the moral focus. Throughout the year teachers and the principal’s award students for demonstrating certain morals. The school morals are below.

I am empathetic

I take ownership

I am respectful & resilience

I have acceptance & adaptability

I love to learn

I am successful

Each year, returning staff members run the first term’s assemblies. This provides new staff with an opportunity to develop an understanding of the morals and the expectations of assemblies. The library, as part of the boy’s upper primary and middle school (grades four to nine), supports the academic, social and emotional development of each student. Thus, the first in a series of interactive stories have been written to determine its potential success. Furthermore, as learning still takes place at home due to Covid-19, the interactive stories will be available for students online (Felvegi & Matthew, 2012, p. 40).

As a returning staff member, the librarian has developed an ‘I am empathetic’ moral resource in the form of an entertaining and educational interactive story (Green & Jenkins, 2014, p. 280). For students to demonstrate a moral, they and their teachers must first understand it. Empathy is a difficult concept for students to grasp and is often confused with sympathy. As such, the interactive digital story has been written to guide students in better identifying empathetic behaviours and therefore demonstrating them themselves. The interactive story will be used for students from grades four to nine, therefore, the included imagery was created to be relevant and accessible to all students. The school insignia is the apostrophe mark and as we are all members of the school, sharing a vision and purpose, the apostrophe was used to represent people within the interactive story. This allows accessibility for younger students and ensures that none of the images are too confronting.

Throughout the ‘I am empathetic’ fortnight, students will utilise five minutes during the morning check-in time to interact with the digital story and as a class discuss the situations which arise in the story. The story involves the student as the main character and places them in various real-life scenarios. The story guides the students to select the empathetic choice. This is made possible through the creation of rule-based loops that remove unempathetic options once they have been selected. Each option offers an opportunity for the student to demonstrate empathy, sympathy or indifference, thus allowing students to make real-life choices as though they are the character (Miller, 2009). The scenarios encountered in the interactive story are sadness, hurt, anxiety and loneliness.

The interactive story, written on Inklewriter, is not simply the scanning of a print book. The digital elements take it to a new level (Yokota & Teale, 2014). Its creation is purely digital and utilises digital-only elements. This includes the creation of loops, where after selecting an unempathetic response, the reader is looped back to the scenario and the corresponding response is removed. If printed, these elements would cease to function and draw away from the reader’s experience.

The interactive story I am eMpathetic (Bell, 2021) can be read here.

 

References:

Bell, C. (2021). I am eMpathetic. Inklewriter. https://www.inklewriter.com/stories/79840

Felvégi, E., & Matthew, K. I. (2012). Ebooks and literacy in K-12 schools. Computers in the Schools, 29(1-2), 40-52. https://doi.org/10.1080/07380569.2012.651421

Green, M. C., & Jenkins, K. M. (2014). Interactive narratives: Processes and outcomes in user-directed stories: Interactive narratives. Journal of Communication, 64(3), 479-500. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12093

Miller, C. H. (2009). The new frontier of web-based stories: An expert in the field offers a primer on some of the ways you can expand your storytelling horizons. The Writer (Boston), 122(8), 42.

Yokota, J. & Teale, W. H. (2014). Picture books and the digital world: Educators making informed choices. The Reading Teacher, 67(8), 577-585. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1262

Digital Texts: A Reflection

Is a story still literature if it doesn’t contain any words?

I am a teacher-librarian for English language learners (ELL) across grades one to nine in Saudi Arabia. As such, the breadth of digital narratives reviewed reflects the breadth of learning that takes place in an ELL classroom throughout these grades. As such, a good text serves different purposes depending on the language development of the student. However, as a general rule, a good digital text incorporates digital affordances that do not distract or take away from the story (Combes, 2016; Yokota & Teale, 2014). Furthermore, these digital affordances must add to the narrative creating something greater than the physical book itself. I enjoyed exploring in-depth the non-linear narratives in the Earplay app although I would not consider it to be a prerequisite of a digital text.

It is important to keep in mind that digital texts should serve a purpose and support the narrative being told. An analogy would be the purpose of background music in films; the purpose being to support the story and help create powerful emotions. The scene of a grand romantic gesture at the end of a romantic comedy is not as moving without music and jarring with the wrong music. The same can be said for digital texts, the digital inclusions should support the story to create something greater than what could have been as a paper book, rather than distracting and removing the reader from the narrative (Combes, 2016).

Khan Academy Kids is an app that I have used both in school for students who have very little understanding of the English language and out of school for my three-year-old son who is learning to count, read and trace his letters. I learned to read by physical book, practising with a parent, teacher or teacher-aid cemented the skill over the years. I enjoyed listening to audiobooks as a child and would spend hours on the floor or bed, playing and listening to a story on my tape deck. As I have kids of my own now, I am only beginning to understand the time that was invested in teaching me and my six siblings to read. The thought of ‘chucking on an app’ would have been abhorrent to my mother, yet I can definitely see the benefit of a well-selected app. Khan Academy Kids represents a well-selected and appropriate app for my sons, the eldest of whom is beginning to read blended sounds, thanks to the app.

As an adult, I love reading on my Kindle; I find most other digital texts very distracting. The greatest part is my vocabulary is constantly developing thanks to the inbuilt dictionary. I’m also able to easily (although I don’t) download and read in Spanish (my second language). That said, I have fond memories (prior to having children) of winter days spent curled up on the couch, enjoying a cup of tea or Milo and nursing a Robin Hobb epic in my lap.

Earplay along with AudioJack are apps I discovered after purchasing a pair of Bose headphones in 2019. If you’d like, you can read about my experience of trying to find these apps after removing and not using them since 2020.

Even though I did not review AudioJack as it is no longer AR functional, I thoroughly enjoyed exploring it and experiencing the ‘audio-free movies’. I can see multiple in its use in a classroom. Firstly, simply as calming music or during lesson change times to reengage and focus the students on the learning. I can also foresee using it as a creative writing prompt in English lessons. Often pictures or words or phrases are used as creative writing prompts, however, this does nothing to aid the students who enjoy experiencing the world through their ears. In the library, it could be played to generate discussion around what constitutes literature and story-telling.

When I began this subject, my view of digital literature was limited to eBooks and interactive eBooks, but the more I read the more I came to understand how vast digital literature really is. Stories in many tribes around the world remain a combination of song, dance and music. A series of illustrations can tell a story without a single word. A conglomeration of artistically arranged sounds can story that resonates uniquely with each listener.

Is that unique story still literature?

References:

Combes, B. (2016). Digital Literacy: A New Flavour of Literacy or Something Different? Synergy (Carlton, Vic.), 14(1).

Yokota, J., & Teale, W. H. (2014). Picture books and the digital age: Educators making informed choices. The Reading teacher, 67(8), 577-585. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1262

Khan Academy Kids: ‘Just a new way of doing stuff’ or a neatly packaged curriculum?

Khan Academy Kids is a free educational application (app) for children aged two to eight (Khan Academy Kids, 2021). The app develops its own curriculum and content with the aim to encourage children to become lifelong learners. Rather than focus on a single skill, Khan Academy Kids “contains a breadth of learning material” (Khan Academy Kids, 2021, para. 3) across various disciplines. As a teacher of English language learners (ELL), I am constantly asked by parents for apps that support their child’s language development. As such, this review will focus on the library section of the app and will specifically look at ‘Books about feelings’.

Interactivity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When opening the app for the first time, a parent is required to sign in and verify their email address. The child can then create an avatar. With an avatar created, the app introduces you to the characters: Kody the bear, Sandy the fox, Ollo the elephant, Peck the bird, and Reya the red panda.

Khan Characters
(Bell, 2021)

The home screen layout is simple and clutter-free. The user’s name and avatar appear in the top right-hand corner; in the bottom right-hand corner is the music button, by clicking on this the looped background music is muted. The characters appear across the bottom of the screen and are hot spots (interactive on-screen elements); by clicking them, you are taken to a new screen to play (interact with objects) in their room. The centre of the screen contains a house with a large play button. The library is housed in the top left-hand corner.

Khan home
(Bell, 2021)

Within the library, there are various formats: books, videos and create; and disciplines: letters, reading, math and logic+.

Khan library
(Bell, 2021)

Readability: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

For this review, I will focus on the book titled When I’m sad by Cynthia Platt. After selecting a book, its cover appears on the screen, alongside the title and author which is read to the user. There are only two buttons on the screen, ‘Read to me’ and ‘Read by myself’.

Khan cover
(Bell, 2021)

When selecting ‘Read to me’, each page is read to the user from start to finish. The words change colour, to purple and back as they are read, supporting print awareness (Yokota & Teale, 2014, p. 583). Whilst the page is being read, you are unable to turn to the next page. The user is provided a short time to turn each page by swiping or clicking on the next arrow, however, if the page is not turned by the user, it is turned automatically.

When selecting ‘Read by myself’, the user can read the book at their own pace. A play button in the centre bottom of the screen provides the opportunity to enable the ‘Read to me’ selection. Once each page is read, the user is required to swipe or click to the next page; if the user wishes to continue to have the book be read to them, they must select the play button at the bottom of each page or swipe or click back to the cover and select the ‘Read to me’ option.

At all points throughout the book, clicking on the text causes it to be read. At any point, the user can swipe or click back to reread a previous page.

Hot spots and interactive games: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Throughout the book, there are several hot spots and one interactive game. The first hot spot appears whilst the characters are reading. Reya and Ollo are holding a moveable book that contains a hot spot; clicking on it causes a recording to play, “Once upon a time”. This hot spot whilst relevant does not add to the story.

Khan Hot Spot
(Bell, 2021)

The next page reveals an interactive game of tic-tac-toe which appears on a page in which the characters are playing a game themselves. This game is relevant to the story and allows the user to gain an understanding of the game tic-tac-toe. An astute child would also notice either move from Reya or Ollo would win the game respectively.

Khan Interactive Game
(Bell, 2021)

On the next page, Reya asks Ollo if he would like to dance, on-screen the characters dance, the user can move the dancing characters, doing so elicits a giggle from them.

Khan Hot Spot
(Bell, 2021)

The final hot spot occurs on the last page where the characters discuss that they are ready to paint. Both Ollo and Reya are movable hot spots; clicking on their easel makes their painting appear.

Khan Hot Spot
(Bell, 2021)

There are few hot spots and only one interactive game within the book When I’m Sad. Overall, they do not add much to the story, however, nor are they distracting, attention-demanding elements that pulse or flash drawing the user’s attention away from the text (Combes, 2016); as such, the story and its interactive features maintain integrity to the narrative (Yokota & Teale, 2014, p. 581). Therefore, I believe children will enjoy the interactivity, without dominating the experience, that these hot spots bring to the text.

Functionality and Longevity: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Khan Academy Kids app is intuitive and very simple. It is easy for children to use to learn to read and its hot spots do not contain distracting or inappropriate elements, advertisements or content. Common Sense Media rated the app five stars with a note of its high educational value and ease of play (VanderBorght, 2021).

Limitations: 😟

Unfortunately, Khan Academy Kids does not incorporate a dictionary that would support vocabulary development (Yokota & Teale, 2014, p. 583); however, the addition of a dictionary would draw away from the simplicity of the app.

Khan Academy Kids is more than just a ‘new way of doing stuff’; it provides children with a well-rounded curriculum neatly packaged in a user-friendly interface. As such, I know what app I will be recommending to parents.

References:

Combes, B. (2016). Digital literacy: A new flavour of literacy or something different? Synergy (Carlton, Vic.), 14(1).

Khan Academy Kids. (2020). Welcome to Khan Academy Kids. https://khankids.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360004559231-Welcome-to-Khan-Academy-Kids

VanderBorght, M. (2021). Khan Academy Kids. Common Sense Media. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/khan-academy-kids

Yokota, J., & Teale, W. H. (2014). Picture books and the digital age: Educators making informed choices. The Reading teacher, 67(8), 577-585. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1262

Lightbox: An interactive eBook or a waste of time?

Lightbox is an educational platform that publishes digitally enhanced eBooks linked to the US Common Core Curriculum. Lightbox, provided by Follett Destiny, boast their series of eBooks support distance education with blended learning and help build students’ background knowledge and vocabulary (Follett Titlewave, n.d.). Students in schools in Saudi Arabia have been learning online since March 2020, this change was forced and unexpected. As such, educational resources have been given the spotlight; if educational resources can entwine with technology for the benefit of all students, it will ensure their use in future years (Rowan, 2012, p. 217). As a teacher-librarian and English teacher in a Follett Destiny school, I am interested to see if Lightbox eBooks can help set education on the right path.

Functionality & Interactivity: ⭐️⭐️

This review will focus on the Lightbox title How Water Shapes the Earth. When opening the book from Destiny Discover, you are greeted with the front cover of the eBook, containing a looped video of water flowing through a canyon. Across the top in the centre is the title. It is difficult to read as the text colour is similar to the background. At the centre bottom of the page are the buttons ‘Open Lightbox’ and ‘Share’.
(Bell, 2021)

When clicking ‘Open Lightbox’, you are taken to a visual contents page containing thumbnail pictures of each of the pages and the ‘features’ and ‘educational resources’ in a bar along the bottom.

Lightbox Contents Page
(Bell, 2021)

By hovering your mouse over the individual ‘features’ the screen is darkened, highlighting pages that contain the selected feature.

Lightbox Contents page - Highlighted
(Bell, 2021)

Ease of Reading: ⭐️

The first page of the story is very text-heavy, with small text dominating half the page. Several keywords are underlined and bold; clicking on these words provides the user with a simple but useful definition. Clicking on the arrow on the right-hand side of the screen takes you to the next page. A highly distracting ‘play’ button pulsates from the left-hand side of the screen which prevents the reader from focussing on the text (Combes, 2016).


(Bell, 2021)

Limitations: 😟😟😟😟

The play button takes you to an embedded YouTube video. The video automatically starts after clicking the ‘play’ button, however, if the ‘pause’ button is not selected prior to exiting the video, the audio continues to play in the background. After a quick YouTube search, it was discovered that this video was not content created specifically for the book, rather it is embedded from GeoScience Videos’ YouTube channel, seemingly without attribution. Furthermore, the embedded video is downloadable, which seems to be in breach of YouTube’s Terms of Service.

Throughout the book, clicking on the ‘audio’ button has no effect. The text is not read, nor is it highlighted to support print awareness (Yokota & Teale, 2014, p. 583).

On a further page, there is an ‘activity’ button that forwards you to a downloadable and printable PDF on writing an expository essay.

Later in the book there is a ‘website’ button that forwards you to a website by Ducksters that provides an entire page of facts.

Educational Merit: ⭐️⭐️

Throughout the book, ‘key facts’ are highlighted in circles at the bottom of the page, and while relevant to the text, they demand the reader’s attention, thus drawing away from the reader from the text (Combes, 2016).

As an educator, I keep coming back to the highlighted and distracting elements, including flashing buttons and highlighted ‘facts’. What is the purpose of providing highlighted ‘key facts’? As a reader, it is what my eyes jumped to upon arrival on the page, yet when trying to remember the facts, I couldn’t.

(Bell, 2021)

Lightbox has the opportunity to develop some truly exceptional educational resources. The curriculum links and links to further reading, videos and activities is poorly sequenced and does little to enhance the reader’s experience. How Water Shapes the Earth, if not Lightbox overall, does very little to include students in what Rowan describes as authentic active learning (2012, p. 219). By providing little opportunity for students to interact with and participate in their learning, they are left to become “passive consumers of a predefined set of ‘curriculum truths’” (Rowan, 2012, p. 219). This active participation could be in the form of links to community websites that support students sharing their learning in a safe space. However, education remains the responsibility of teachers, and how this text is used may influence its value. How would you use this text to support active participation rather than passive consumption?

References:

Combes, Barbara. (2016). Digital Literacy : A New Flavour of Literacy or Something Different? Synergy (Carlton, Vic.), 14(1).

Follett Titlewave. (n.d.). Lightbox, https://www.titlewave.com/main/lightbox

Rowan, L. (2012). Imagining futures (Ch. 13). In L. Rowan, & C. Bigum (Ed.), Transformative approaches to new technologies and student diversity in futures oriented classrooms: Future proofing education (pp. 217-225). Springer Science +Business Media B.V.

Wiseman, B., (2019). How water shapes the earth. Smart Media Inc. https://openlightbox.com/lightbox/?bookCode=1030&customerID=8508818

AudioJack and Earplay: A story on finding apps I used years ago

In 2019 I bought a pair of Bose NC700 headphones. After unwrapping them, I found that they were an AR-enabled device. I downloaded the relevant apps and had a great time changing the storyline with a head movement in Earplay. Another notable was AudioJack which layered hundreds of audio elements to play a speechless film. It was non-linear and the direction of the audio film could be altered with head movement. Both apps were novel, but I stopped using them once I had explored all the stories in Earplay and all the free audio movies in AudioJack. In 2020 I decluttered my phone, removing apps I was no longer using. When looking at this assignment for the first time, my first thoughts were to review an interactive eBook, a narrative-based game and something else of which I was not sure.

Reviewing an online meeting in the late hours one night, I recalled an app that used AR to progress the story. Specifically, I recalled playing a secret agent in Earplay’s Codename Cygnus (although I couldn’t recall the title at the time). I almost gave up after over an hour of searching and finding multiple articles outlining that Bose AR had died. But I persevered and finally found AudioJack, though this wasn’t the app I was searching for and the Bose AR functionality in it no longer works. Further searching finally revealed a list of published apps that were certified by Bose AR; within this list Earplay.

I redownloaded Earplay and got to work immediately only to find my headphones wouldn’t connect. After removing the Bluetooth connection from my phone and reading it, I finally had it working. I looked at the clock, 12:45 am. As I have work the next day, it’s probably time to call it a night. A successful night.

Is the future of audio books is interaction?

Can you imagine controlling the direction of an audio story by voice? What about by movement?

(Giphy, 2019)

This is a reality for Earplay, a revolutionary interactive narrative company (Earplay, n.d., para 1.). Earplay specialises in writing and developing interactive audio story games for their iOS and Android applications (apps); these interactive narratives serve both educational and entertainment purposes (Green & Jenkins, 2014, p. 280) and have effectively bulldozed the boundaries of traditional narratives. In Earplay narratives, you are a character in the story and by utilising the microphone built into your device, you direct the narrative through verbal responses to simple questions; this interactivity through digital affordances is expanding our understanding of what narratives are (Unsworth, 2008, p. 71).

When opening the app for the first time, the stories appear on the home screen with a thumbnail badge above their associated title. The home screen or ‘library’ is simple, clutter-free and easy to navigate. The symbol for Bose AR (augmented reality) is in the top left-hand corner. This button directs you to a new page where you can connect and calibrate your Bose AR-enabled device. It is important to note that Bose AR was discontinued in June 2020, however, as Earplay became a registered ‘Enhanced with Bose AR’ app before this, the feature continues (for the present) to work.

Earplay's Library
(Bell, 2021)

The iOS app features ten free stories; this review will focus on the iOS app using the interactive story You and the Beanstalk. To play, the user selects a story by clicking on the thumbnail picture or title. The app prompts the user, indicating that speech recognition may be slower in noisy environments. The story begins with an explanatory tutorial that introduces you to the concept of responding to prompts at each juncture and verbally choosing the direction of the story.

Functionality & interactivity ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

On-screen, the iOS app continues with its clutter-free design. A stop button replaces the Bose AR symbol in the top left-hand corner, whilst the thumbnail badge and title of the story dominate the centre of the screen. Across the bottom of the screen are three buttons, back, play/pause and next.

Earplay's interactive story 'You and the Beanstalk'
(Bell, 2021)

As the story plays the narrator outlines a juncture in the story, prompting you to decide the direction. At this point a black screen appears with the possible choices along with repeat, stop, resume and start over. These selections can be made verbally or by clicking on the word. If the voice recognition does not register a response, the prompt is repeated. The stories, being directed orally, support vision-impaired users. While the stories are not currently appropriate for, they do support pre-reading age children.

Earplay's juncture
(Bell, 2021)

Immersion: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The stories are incredibly immersive through their design. They combine the voice recordings of several voice actors alongside multiple layers of sound elements and relevant music to add to the digital narrative. When combined with noise-cancelling headphones and closed eyes, or in a distraction-free environment, it becomes fully immersive and consuming, allowing the user to develop a picture in their head. The app, while immersive and content-rich, does have limitations.

Limitations: 😟😟

Listening to a traditional audiobook is a passive act (Geronazzo et al., 2019, p. 1) which provides a linear experience. Earplay has done well to produce something more in line with twenty-first-century education; interactive stories require the user to be an active participant in the story, not passive consumers (Lisenbee et al., 2020, p. 3). Yet it falls short of being considered an educational app. The limited stories available and lack of dictionary integration for users to search definitions affects the app’s usability in a twenty-first-century classroom.

The functionality of the back button is limited and not as user-friendly as it could be. When listening to a story, the back button allows the user to replay from the last juncture, however, after being prompted to choose a direction for the story, the back button will only replay the decision prompt for the current juncture. For example, when prompted with, “Will you climb the stalk fast or slow?”, pressing the back button only repeats this prompt. This can be particularly difficult to interact with if you have not been paying attention to the story, been distracted by the ‘real world’, or are resuming an incomplete story after several days.

Longevity: ⭐️⭐️

An exciting function of the app is the Bose AR-enhanced story, Head Games. The app tracks head movement through the inbuilt accelerometer in Bose AR devices. The story prompts the user to move their head (shake, nod, tilt, turn, etc.) at story junctures, thus progressing the story through movement. Yet, as Bose AR was discontinued in 2020 and Bose AR apps are difficult to find, it’s safe to say this function will not stand the test of time.

The app provides an interesting and viable alternative to the passive media of podcasts, radio, iOS games and audiobooks. Its interactivity is appealing and engaging; however, the iOS app has not received any updates since June 2019. As only ten stories have been developed, it seems that Earplay has already begun its slide into the obscurity of 2019 fads.

References:

Earplay. (n.d.). About Earplay. https://www.earplay.com/about/

Geronazzo, M., Rosenkvist, A., Eriksen, D. S., Markmann-Hansen, C. K., Køhlert, J., Valimaa, M., Vittrup, M. B., & Serafin, S. (2019). Creating an Audio Story with Interactive Binaural Rendering in Virtual Reality. Wireless communications and mobile computing, 2019, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/1463204

Giphy. (2019). Season 10 seriously GIF [Photograph]. Giphy. https://giphy.com/gifs/Friends-friends-episode-6-tv-VzvwjPT555R0mseZSH?utm_source=iframe&utm_medium=embed&utm_campaign=Embeds&utm_term=https%3A%2F%2Fthinkspace.csu.edu.au%2F

Green, M. C., & Jenkins, K. M. (2014). Interactive Narratives: Processes and Outcomes in User-Directed Stories: Interactive Narratives. Journal of communication, 64(3), 479-500. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12093

Lisenbee, P. S., Pilgrim, J., & Vasinda, S. (2020). Integrating technology in literacy instruction: models and frameworks for all learners. Routledge.

Unsworth, L. (2008). Multiliteracies, E-literature and English Teaching. Language and education, 22(1), 62-75. https://doi.org/10.2167/le726.0

Digital Literature to Progress Learning

I interact with digital literature and within the digital literature environment every day. I receive weekly email articles from Edutopia that I read on my phone. I study using my laptop and engage with various readings throughout the week. Each night I watch an episode on Netflix. Once I’m in bed, I pick up my Kindle and read before falling asleep.

I love digital literature, and believe it is impossible not to interact with it in the twenty-first century. Here’s what I now know after one week of study in INF533 – Literature in Digital Environments.

In its most basic form, digital literature is an eBook. Ebooks allow for a greater breadth of accessibility, both in the traditional sense of larger text size and higher contrast ratio, and in the sense that a user need not physical access to a library or bookstore. Having worked as a teacher-librarian in Saudi Arabia throughout the Covid-19 school closures, eBooks provided students access to reading material from the comfort of their own homes (Felvegi & Matthew, 2012, p. 40). Extended forms of eBooks are interactive eBooks such as Lightbox.

Lightbox by Follett Destiny is not just a digitised book. No, it provides several key features that go above and beyond digitised text. These key features include; Google Maps, where students can explore the location they’re reading about whilst remaining in Lightbox; videos, high-definition videos embedded in the text; slideshows, relevant images and video slideshows developed to support comprehension; quizzes, interactive quizzes embedded in the text; audio narration; activities; weblinks; and key words, providing definitions for key concepts (Follett School Solutions, n.d.).

Prior to interacting with this course, I had no knowledge of hypertext fiction. Reading Rettberg‘s (2012) paper on electronic literature brought to mind Adobe Flash games from the 90s that were, choose your own adventure style, multi-optioned games.

My preferred reading option is my Kindle Paperwhite. With it, I am able to select the font, change the text size and brightness of the screen. As Lamb (2011) rightly identifies, e-devices are far lighter than the hundreds of books they can store and don’t just take a load off students’ backs; instead of dropping a 500g book on my face as I fall asleep, I receive a ‘paper-light kiss from a 180g device.
I love being able to click on an unknown word to discover its definition and often catch myself doing it to physical books and even my non-touchscreen laptop.

Currently, I engage with professional readings on my laptop even though it tires my eyes. The kindle is my preferred screen to read from, and it provides more value in highlighting, sharing and bookmarking sections in texts (Lamb, 2011, p. 13). As such, I may soon make the leap to engaging with professional readings on my Kindle.

I have a three-year-old son who engages with interactive books on the iPad application Khan Academy Kids. This app provides my son with a ‘read to me’ option that displays the text and accompanied images and video.

We live in an era of digital innovation, the question is not do you engage with digital literature, but, how do you engage with digital literature to progress learning?

References

Felvégi, E., & Matthew, K. I. (2012). eBooks and Literacy in K-12 Schools. Computers in the schools, 29(1-2), 40-52. https://doi.org/10.1080/07380569.2012.651421 

Follett School Solutions, (n.d.) Lightbox: More than just an interactive book – it’s an educational platform. https://www.titlewave.com/main/lightbox

Lamb, A. (2011). Reading redefined for a transmedia universe. Learning and Leading with Technology, 39(3), 12-17. http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=67371172&site=ehost-live

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

Professional Reflective Portfolio

Personal philosophy

An effective teacher-librarian is a leader and innovator; an expert in technology, inquiry-based teaching and learning who is passionate about reading and the quest for information. They can incorporate the school’s vision, mission and values, and state and national policy within their library and contribute to the life-long learning of all members of its community (Australian Library And Information Association [ALIA], n.d.). Furthermore, they maintain a professional network and participate in ongoing professional development to stay up to date with current educational trends.

Critical Reflection

Growth, when participating in any form of professional development, is an expectation. Here, I will critically reflect on my learning throughout the Master of Education – Teacher Librarianship course. Furthermore, I will reflect on how I have grown as a professional and implemented aspects of my learning into my practice as a teacher-librarian. The three areas of leadership, information communication technologies (ICT) use in the library and information fluency will be analysed and reflected upon. I will reflect on prior knowledge, examine current knowledge and literature and provide examples of how I have grown as a professional, including changes I have implemented in my current school due to learning that has taken place in the Masters of Education – Teacher Librarianship course.

Leadership

Before starting my studies, my understanding of leadership was exclusive to the formal school structure. For example, the deputy principal or head of department are formal leadership positions I understood. However, I have come to understand that these positions are positions of management, rather than leadership. As I did not know the difference between leadership and management, my definition of leadership was a combination of the two.

Through my studies in ETL-504, I have become aware of informal leadership positions and have come to accept that leaders do not need to be in positions of management. Here I was introduced to the concept of leading from the middle, and where there is no formal leadership role for the teacher-librarian at my school, to assume this position (Cox & Korodaj, 2019, p. 15). I assumed this self-proclaimed leadership position, which helped boost my confidence to implement school-wide initiatives and demonstrate my value as a teacher-librarian (Cox & Korodaj, 2019; Weisburg, 2017).

My studies in ETL-504 have helped demonstrate my leadership capacity. The second piece of assessment proved invaluable as it helped illuminate my goals and the direction I wished to pursue in the library. In the 2020-2021 academic year, I demonstrated my leadership capacity through the proposal and school-wide implementation of a series of initiatives titled “Readers ARE  Leaders”. The key focus of which was on developing a positive culture of reading for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Pick A Spot, Read A Lot. A “Readers ARE Leaders” initiative (Baldizone & Bell, 2020)

The “Readers ARE Leaders” initiatives were threefold and were developed after completing an environmental scan. The environmental scan illuminated the number of hours students spent studying in a digital learning environment (DLE) and statistics outlined the minimal circulation in the library. The “Readers ARE Leaders’ initiatives included the school-wide implementation of DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) time, peer recommendations by both staff and students, and reader leaders, which involved grade 7 and 8 students reading children’s books to kindergarten, grade 1 and 2 students. These initiatives required substantial planning, meetings and organisational skills and were unacknowledged financially. As a new leader trying to undertake organisational change I was required to demonstrate persistence in the face of adversity, persuasion to complete the school-wide transition and adaptability where the initial proposal was unable to be met.

I followed Kotter’s ‘8 step change management model’, a model which I learned about in ETL-504. In the first step, create urgency, I wrote a proposal for the principal where I outlined the proposed initiatives supported by relevant literature. With the strong support of the principal, I moved on to form a powerful coalition and removing obstacles. I demonstrated flexibility, persuasion and persistence when meeting with the assistant principals of the three sections of the school to find a suitable time. I communicated my vision in a staff meeting and provided clear expectations around the timing and duration of DEAR time. As the initiatives gathered speed, I provided small wins and built on the change by providing anecdotal evidence, pictures, short videos and borrowing statistics in the weekly staff newsletter. Finally, I anchored the change through developing student awareness and ownership of their DEAR time; often they were the driving force reminding their teacher of DEAR time.

Technology in the library

It is vital, in the twenty-first century, to be technology literate. The Macquarie Dictionary defines technology as “equipment of a technologically sophisticated nature, such as computers, internet connections, audiovisual equipment, etc.” (Macquarie Dictionary Publishers, n.d.-a) and literacy as “an ability to use communications technology that is digitally based” (Macquarie Dictionary Publishers, n.d.-b). In education, the purpose is teaching and learning, where it is essential students are taught the appropriate and safe use of technologies. Thus, one can reasonably define technology literacy as the ability to effectively, appropriately and safely use technology for a purpose. 

Whilst studying my Masters in Teacher Librarianship, I have been working as a teacher-librarian at an international school in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. I began my employment in 2019 as a lead teacher, hired to develop the Spanish curriculum. There was a change in leadership and strategic direction for the school. With this change, the Spanish program was scrapped. The principal and I discussed how I would fit into the school structure and a position was found for me; teacher-librarian. I inherited a disorganised collection of books. The only knowledge I had on the purpose of a library came from my childhood and as a teacher. I had no experience, no direction but the full support from my principal and vice-principal.

Prior to studying my Masters in Teacher Librarianship, my focus within the library was on checking in and out books, labelling and supporting teachers’ units of inquiry. In my first blog post, I discussed my thoughts on libraries and teacher librarians. I thought “libraries were repositories of knowledge” (Bell, 2020). While this is not incorrect, it does leave out several areas in which I have grown as an educator and professional. Most notably, I did not see the library as a safe space, even though it was for me as a student. Nor did I mention its capacity to help students explore concepts and creativity in a safe space.

Within the first twelve months of being in the teacher-librarian position, I had transformed the library. This is entirely due to my studies at Charles Sturt University (CSU). In ETL 504 I was introduced to readings on the ‘third space’; a safe space for students to reflect, create and try new skills (Korodaj, 2019). Equipped with this knowledge, I transformed my library into a maker space, advertised as the Creative Learning Centre (CLC).

The CLC was available before and after school and at lunchtimes four days a week. Students could use the space how they wished, however, I purchased a 3D printer, puzzles, lego sets, coding kits, basket weaving supplies and other universal products for students and staff to tinker with.

Throughout the subjects, I have developed strong technology literacy. I have developed the knowledge to create, edit and share professional videos. This is not something that was taught, however, I used my Personal Learning Network (PLN) from ETL 523 to learn the desired skills. Furthermore, I was able to develop an understanding of Creative Commons and embed it within work by using Creative Commons licensed content.

Within the school, I have been a driving force for the use of innovative technologies in the classroom. Specifically pushing for technologies that improve practice. This has resulted in students and teachers developing their technology literacies and becoming fluent in several platforms; leading them to be more than just digital consumers, but to be ethical digital creators.

Information fluency

There is no doubt that technology literacy is important in the twenty-first century, however, information fluency, described as a combination of information literacy, critical thinking and technology literacy (Zhang, 2002, as cited in Lombard, 2016) is a far more useful skill for twenty-first-century living and learning. 

Before studying my Masters of Teacher Librarianship I had limited knowledge of information fluency. In my position as teacher-librarian, I taught students about the ethical use of information and how to evaluate and reference sources. I saw this knowledge as the key elements needed for success in the twenty-first century.

In an early reading from ETL-503, I discovered Kimmell’s thoughts on effective libraries. Kimmell believes a library should create effective users, consumers and creators of information (2014, p.46).  Kimmell’s understanding of libraries, however, is flawed. Yet even my reflection on effective libraries failed to look beyond information evaluation and creation. On the surface, this definition suits the purpose of the library, however, does it meet the needs of all its users? Kimmell, like I, had overseen the need for preparing students to be collaborators in the twenty-first-century library. Quite critically, this includes becoming global digital citizens.

My understanding of the role of the teacher-librarian has and continues to expand. My growth is evident in my practice; previously, I focussed on teaching referencing and resource evaluation, now I take a more holistic approach. I aim to ensure students develop a solid foundation of digital citizenship skills. In practice, this has included learning how to appropriately collaborate in one document, a skill that many of my grade 7 students lacked. Furthermore, the students have expanded the tools they use in their digital learning environment (DLE). I have exposed them to video and audio recording applications, drawing, note-taking, documenting and web-page creating tools.

Most recently my students used social media to campaign locals to litter less. This project, conceived when reflecting on how I like to learn, was a success with the piles of rubbish from Wadi Hanifa (pictured) being cleared away within a week. You can read about my reflection here.

Students proposed several solutions to combat the dumped waste at Wadi Hanifa, a local picnic and leisure site. Students were given opportunities to persuade others to their solution by way of public speaking. The final step involved students voting for their favourite solution, and working as a class to ensure the rubbish was cleared.

Student solutions to dumped waste at Wadi Hanifa, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Bell, 2021)
Student solutions to dumped waste at Wadi Hanifa, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Bell, 2021)

The success was not only in the removal of the rubbish, but it was also in how the students actively engaged with social media for the positive benefit of their community. Thus achieving part of the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCCETYA) goal for all young Australians to “become successful learners, confident and creative individuals and active and informed citizens” (MCEETYA, 2008, pp. 7-8)

Dumped waste at Wadi Hanifa, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Bell, 2021)

Final thoughts

It is fair to say my growth as a leader and professional in the library has been vast. I have come from a place of little knowledge to one of a little more, yet how do I stack up against an experienced teacher librarian?

Evaluation of Skills and Attitudes

The ALIA standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians illuminates three interwoven strands of the profession. These three strands are professional knowledge, professional practice and professional commitment. It is clear, through my experience as a teacher-librarian, that I have grown as a professional. In this section, I will look at where I have grown and I can continue to develop. Since I will be comparing myself to an excellent teacher-librarian, I am sure to find many areas for further development.

Professional knowledge

Knowledge of the principles of lifelong learning

Through my studies, I have developed a foundational knowledge of information literacy theory and practice. This has built upon my prior knowledge from International Baccalaureate (IB) training on inquiry-based learning. This knowledge is still at the foundation level; it is an area I seek to develop in my next school role.

I have not studied how children and young adults become independent readers. While I believe I have a fair understanding of this, it is an area I have been seeking professional development in, particularly due to the ‘Readers ARE Leaders’ initiatives that I proposed and led in the last academic year. These initiatives also demonstrated my ability to develop specific programs in schools to promote and foster reading.

Knowledge of learning and teaching

It would be remiss of me to suggest I will always have a detailed knowledge of current educational pedagogy; education and pedagogy are in a perpetual state of growth and improvement, thus, all teacher-librarians should seek to stay up to date with current educational theories and practices.

Knowledge of library and information management

Through my studies, I have developed an understanding of the national standards for library and information management. The Schools Catalogue Information Service (SCIS) standards have played an integral role in helping me develop rich data entries that save users time and help connect users with the information they seek. This is an area I seek to continue to develop as better records help connect users with information.

Professional practice

Learning and teaching

An area I have demonstrated growth is in ensuring the programs are responsive to the needs of learners in the school community. I believe it is essential to understand the needs of the learners prior to implementing change. In practice, this included me completing an environmental scan.  As such, I will continue to assess the needs of learners.

My studies have helped me develop an understanding of how to teach the appropriate and relevant use of ICTs and information resources with a specific focus on digital citizenship. As we live in an age of rapid digital advancement, it is essential for all educators – teacher-librarians included – to continue to develop professional and stay up to date with current ICT trends.

Library and information services management

Throughout my studies, I have had to develop strategic plans that align with the school vision. This is an area I seek further improvement, along with developing and maintaining a budget.

Evaluation

I pride myself on using evidence to evaluate the efficacy of programs, resources and services. An area I seek to continue to improve is on evaluating student learning through evidence of progress. At my current school, library is a timetabled subject that does not report on learning, as such, I have lapsed in evidencing learning in the library lessons.

Professional commitment

Lifelong learning

A significant area for personal growth is in the area of debate. I have never felt confident enough in my role to have engaged in debate on educational issues within the school community. As such, this is an area I wish to feel more confident in and will be focussing on this in the coming years.

My studies have helped me develop the skills and confidence to create professional library-related documents and user resources. The next step as I continue to develop as a professional is to provide library-related development opportunities for all staff.

Leadership

I am new to the idea of considering myself as a leader within the school, however, I have demonstrated capacity in the past two years. My studies have helped me grow as a leader and I am aware of and look forward to the challenge of building my leadership capacity so I can effectively build and foster collaborative teams within school and professional communities.

Community responsibilities

An area for development is active participation as a member of a professional community. My studies have helped me develop my PLN and become more active and vocal in my self-advertisement. A personal goal is to contribute to the library community by publishing in a library journal such as Synergy by the School Libraries Association of Victoria.

References

Australian Library and Information Association. (n.d.). Standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians. https://www.alia.org.au/about-alia/policies-standards-and-guidelines/standards-professional-excellence-teacher-librarians

Bell, C. (2020). An intro and reflection. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2020/03/03/what-is-a-teacher-librarian/

Bell, C. (2020). Information literacy overload. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2020/04/30/information-literacy-overload/

Bell, C. (2020). Leadership reflections. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2020/09/29/leadership-reflections/

Bell, C. (2021). Reflection on Digital Citizenship. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2021/04/13/reflection-on-digital-citizenship/

Bell, C. (2021). Static to electric active teaching and learning. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2021/04/26/static-to-electric-active-teaching-and-learning/

Bell, C. (2020). Teacher librarian as a leader. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2020/07/12/teacher-librarian-as-a-leader/

Bell, C. (2020). “Write a ‘library policy’,” he said. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/thelibrarykingdom/2020/05/12/write-a-library-policy-he-said/

Cox, E., & Korodaj, L. (2019). Leading from the sweet spot: Embedding the library and the teacher librarian in your school community. Access (Caulfield East), 33(4), 14-25.

Kimmel, S. C. (2014) Developing collections to empower learners, American Association of School Librarians.

Korodaj, L. (2019). The library as ‘third space’ in your school. Scan, 38. https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/professional-learning/scan/past-issues/vol-38–2019/the-library-as-third-space-in-your-school

Lombard, E. (2016) Information fluency: Not information literacy 2.0. The journal of academic librarianship, 42(3), 281-283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2016.04.006

Macquarie Dictionary Publishers. (n.d.-a). Technology. In Macquarie Dictionary Online. Retrieved June 5, 2021, from https://www-macquariedictionary-com-au.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/features/word/search/?search_word_type=Dictionary&word=technology

Macquarie Dictionary Publishers. (n.d.-b). Literacy. In Macquarie Dictionary Online. Retrieved June 5, 2021, from https://www-macquariedictionary-com-au.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/features/word/search/?search_word_type=Dictionary&word=literacy

Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs. (2008). Melbourne declaration on educational goals for young Australians. http://www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/National_Declaration_on_the_Educational_Goals_for_Young_Australians.pdf

Weisburg, H. (2017). Leadership is not optional — it’s a job requirement. Connections, 101, 1–2. https://www.scisdata.com/media/1484/connections101.pdf

Digital Citizenship

A Critical Reflection

The role of the teacher-librarian mammoth. In one capacity the teacher-librarian must teach information literacy skills, in another digital citizenship, ethical, responsible and safe behaviours online. At the end of the day, however, it is the role of all in education to prepare students for life outside school.

Technology is everywhere, and we often get caught up in what we are doing, that we don’t realise we are misusing our devices and instilling poor technology behaviours in our children and students. As I posted in module 5.4, I realise I often do not model the best technology behaviours to my three-year-old son. Yet it is this realisation that has led me to change my morning routine and improve my technology habits. I no longer read my emails in bed every day (although sometimes I slip), and this subtle change has led to my son no longer wanting to use a phone in the morning, but instead to get up and help me make coffee.

To say my learning in relation to the concept of digital citizenship has been vast would be a severe understatement. I have developed a personal learning network (PLN) through Twitter and LinkedIn to better advertise myself. My understanding of digital citizenship has broadened to include global digital leadership, the next step for which I strive. Furthermore, I have developed a deeper understanding of how to incorporate digital citizenship in a digital learning environment (DLE).

Prior to my enrollment, I was on the verge of removing myself from social networking. I found I was surrounded by fake, self-absorbed people who only cared about the likes. I’d stopped actively using social networking and posting. The shock came when I googled myself and nothing, not positive nor negative resulted. With the shock came the realisation that social networking has many purposes, both the mundane, with which I was overly familiar and the professional self-advertisement. I had never thought about using social networking as a form of self-advertisement, so I set about building a PLN on LinkedIn and Twitter. The sole purpose of using these social networks was to develop a professional digital footprint of who I was as an educator.

In the development of my PLN, I have realised the powerful potential that social networking provides. I am now able to exhibit my global digital leadership skills, something that twenty-first-century principals should be looking for in their employees. My first LinkedIn post received 213 views and 11 likes or comments. Considering I have a network of 72 connections, this number was staggering and has helped me understand better the potential positive implications of any post I make.

My understanding of digital citizenship and how to incorporate it in a DLE has expanded. As I mentioned in a forum post from module 5.1, digital citizenship has to be modelled appropriately for the age group it is being taught to. It is unreasonable for teachers to expect students to understand and practice digital citizenship if it is not modelled for them on a daily basis.

I feel confident that, no matter the direction I choose, I will be able to continue learning, developing and leading myself, my students and colleagues into a better digital world.