Weekly Reader: Holiday Break

Here are a few items "fed" to my overflowing Google Reader during the holiday break (December 15 - January 8, 2013).

The Education Revolution Opens Up the Path Less Taken
"The Chronicle this week published a news analysis questioning whether the current nonstop talk over innovation in higher ed is creating a system for those who can least afford a traditional education but need it the most." -- Jeff Selingo, Next, 12/19/12

Mobile Connections to Libraries
"Some 13% of those ages 16 and older have visited library websites or otherwise accessed library services by mobile device. This is the first reading in a national survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project on this subject" -- Lee Rainie, Kathryn Zickuhr and Maeve Duggan, Pew Internet, 12/31/12

10 Hottest Ed Tech Stories of 2012
"Articles about how free online courses, or MOOCs, could disrupt higher education dominated the headlines last year here at the Wired Campus blog, and they were the most popular with readers as well. Several articles about e-textbooks also topped our list of most-read articles of 2012, highlighting what has been a time of change, and anxiety, for colleges and universities." - Jeffrey R. Young, The Wired Campus, 1/3/13

Thoughts on Weeding
"As much as I enjoy the technology-focused projects I work on as an emerging technologies librarian, I also don’t spend as much time as I might like with our print collection. Since I am also a our psychology liaison, I do have collection development responsibilities which require a better familiarity with relevant areas of the collection. I see the books quite a bit while roaming around the library or helping students locate materials during reference and instruction interactions, but I don’t always have regular occasions to just browse our stacks. This means it was a rare treat for me to spend about an hour of quality time in my liaison area’s reference section this morning." - Kim (no last name posted), ACRLog, 12/20/12

The Simple Power of Finding Stuff Out
"Like many academic librarians, a major piece of my job is helping students find their way around information they might use for course assignments. This fall I met a few times with a class full of smart, curious first year students who were quick to grasp their course content, quick to pick up on ways of finding out more, quick to follow leads into odd corners of the library, and wonderfully articulate when asked to reflect on what they observed. But when asked to write a modest paper using at least one primary and one secondary source, they seemed suddenly insecure and anxious. All of their common sense, inquisitiveness, and confidence fled when asked to practice things they’d learned already. Something failed to connect, and I’ve been wondering about it ever since."-- Barbara Fister, Library Babel Fish, 12/17/12

Tech Trends to Watch Out for in 2013
"With the New Year comes a fresh set of technology imperatives, challenges and opportunities for organizations to consider. The increased innovation in the technology sector means that companies are finally in a position to be smart about the IT decisions they make and truly leverage next-generation tools and strategies to mitigate risk and shape strategies for the future." -- Jeremy Sherwood, IT Leadership, 1/8/13

Pinterest: New Home Page

I noticed a new Pinterest start page this morning while updating boards on the IRC Pinterest site. Selecting "or preview the site" links to the previous Pinterest start page providing users, or potential users, opportunity to peruse resources before signing up for an account.  Choosing "Join Pinterest" leads to the account registration page that now features a link specifically for businesses. I generally login directly via the page I'm working with, so this may not be new, per say. Regardless, I like the new look. It's very clean and inviting.



As the IRC Pinterest page gains popularity and followers, there has been an increase in requests to join boards and work collaboratively with other Pinterest accounts. Unfortunately, I have also had to use the option to block followers more frequently as well. There are pages that should not be associated with a library and Instructional Resource Center page created for education students. It is becoming rather Twitter-spam-esque with quick creation of strange pages seemingly with the simple goal of increasing followers. As Pinterest continues to gain popularity, maintenance of followers for the IRC may need to be monitored with more regularity.

ACRL 2013: Workshop

I'm thrilled to be presenting a workshop at ACRL 2013 this spring titled, A Picture is Worth ... Innovative Uses for Pinterest, on Thursday, April 23rd, 8:30 am to 11:30 am. While the IRC @ Ashland University Library Pinterest site will be featured, I have been preparing my personal Pinterest site with resources to support the session.  The first two boards highlight Academic and Public Libraries using Pinterest. Here's a sneak peak at the work in progress. 

ACRL 2013: Academic

 

Source: Uploaded by user via Diane on Pinterest

 

ACRL 2013: Public

 

Source: Uploaded by user via Diane on Pinterest

If I included your library Pinterest site and you would like to have me remove it, please feel free to contact me via library.cloud at gmail.com. If you have suggestions for inclusion, I would be happy to hear them as well. Add your library Pinterest site to blog comments.