library+instruction+technology

• Open Source Alternative – Find Open Source Alternatives to commercial software
  Found via Lifehacker, this site lets you find alternative open source applications.
  (tags: open_source software directory)
• Anarchy, Discontent Plague Second Life
  Via Techcrunch. Does this mean that Info Island will be forming a militia soon? Maybe a draft?
  (tags: second_life virtual_worlds muve anarchy)
• Plantfacts
  Extensive resource for information on yard and garden plants. Maintained by the Ohio State Department of Horticulture and Crop Science.
  (tags: horticulture plant flower garden reference database)
• Five crucial things the Linux community doesn’t understand about the average computer user
  Via Slashdot. Offers some reasons why Joe Q. Public has not jumped on the Linux bandwagon.
  (tags: linux articles)
• Eigenfactor: Measuring the value and prestige of scholarly journals
  Short article in College & Research Libraries News describing the Eigenfactor.
  (tags: bibliometrics scholarly_publishing articles)
• The Top 100 Alternative Search Engines
  Via Stephen Abrams. List of 100 search engines for helping you get out of your Google search rut.
  (tags: search_engine lists reviews reference)

I went with my Director to the new library groundbreaking ceremony at Marietta College on Friday. There were a number of speakers including Gov. Strickland. Everyone received a commemorative coin, which is very cool.

The name of the new building was announced by the angel donors. Instead of naming the building after someone, they wanted to name it for all past and future alum. They chose the name Legacy Library.  The first thing I thought of when I heard the name was a flashback to my days at Deloitte. All I did for a couple of years was write proposals to replace legacy systems. Let's hope that the negative connotation of legacy doesn't come back to haunt them in the future.

The Library Director was one of the speakers. I was a bit disappointed that he didn't mention OhioLINK. It was a great opportunity to strengthen the linkage the private colleges have with OhioLINK in some key minds. There were a couple state legislators in attendance, in addition to the governor.

I didn't see anyone else that I recognized in the audience. I'm not sure if every library in Ohio received the invitation or just those that are close. We're only 60 miles away from Marietta. Muskingum and Marietta are in the same athletic league and also in the East Central Colleges consortium.

 I got a chuckle the couple of times that mold and lack of space where mentioned by the speakers. Been there. Done that. Hated it! Hopefully one day we will be able to move out of our Leave it to Beaver building.

• Games for Teaching Information Literacy Skills
  Article describing the use of active learning to teach chemistry/biochem students how to find citations using a variety of resources.
  (tags: academic_library information_literacy game_based_learning active_learning article research)
• Foundation for Critical Thinking
  Clearing house for articles, books, and other information on encouraging critical thinking.
  (tags: critical_thinking teaching learning education pedagogy)

• Developing students’ information and research skills via Blackboard
  Article describing how librarians at a UK university used Blackboard to teach information literacy and research skills.
  (tags: academic_library research article information_literacy course_management_system)
• Targeting “Academic Champions”: A Short-Term Solution for Integrated Information Literacy?
  Article discussing different tactics used to integrate information literacy into the curriculum. The author argues that librarians should align IL programs to match their institutions academic goals and objectives.
  (tags: academic_library research articles information_literacy teaching)

• Trends in Scholarly Journal Prices 2000-06
  Updated report on scholarly journal prices examining price, price per page, and impact factor value.
  (tags: journals pricing research report academic_library)
• Journal Cost-Effectiveness Search
  Tool to find and rank journals by price per article or citation.
  (tags: journals pricing cost_analysis academic_library scholarly_publishing tools economics)

• “Always Connected, But Hard to Reach”
  EDUCAUSE Quarterly article. “Despite students’ connected lifestyle, colleges and universities often fail to reach them with timely and relevant information”
  (tags: college_student communication contact outreach attention attititudes)
• “Are You Ready for Mobile Learning?”
  EDUCAUSE article. “Frequent use of mobile devices does not mean that students or instructors are ready for mobile learning and teaching”
  (tags: teaching learning mobile_device PDA smartphone articles)

This was the only invited paper session that I attended. The content was useful. I wish it would have happened a bit earlier in the day. It was given during the last time slot on Saturday and I was mentally wiped out by 4:30. Tracy Mitrano is the Director of IT Policy and of Computer Policy and Law Program at Cornell University. Her talk covered many of the concepts included in information literacy competency standard 5. I found the portion of her discussion on copyright to be the most interesting.

She started by talking about how copyright has not kept pace with technology and how our users want to use and reuse content. The AAP's letter to Cornell about course reserves was discussed along with the development of Cornell Electronic Course Content Copyright Guidelines (PDF). She recommended that we read Digital Learning Challenge: Obstacles to Educational Uses of Copyright Material in the Digital Age from the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School. A recent public policy report, Intellectual Property And Free Speech In The Online World (PDF), provides an overview of P2P file sharing lawsuits brought by the RIAA and how IHEs are handling the situation.

The remainder of Tracy's talk covered social networking and electronic surveillance (Patriot Act). The social network portion included familiar ground: students putting things on their profiles they shouldn't; criminals using these tools to commit crimes (e.g. pedophiles on Myspace); and politicians over reactions to ban social networking sites. The electronic surveillance section provided a concise review of how we went from the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 to the USA Patriot Act.  

technorati tag: acrl2007