(Dated) Weekly Reader

A Printable Guide to Creative Commons
"Something you probably see a lot of these days as you browse the internet is Creative Commons licensing. You’ll see many graphics that say something like ‘shared under a Creative Commons license’, or you’ll see a little rectangular graphic with some signs in them. Since we live in an age where most of our information comes from the internet in some way or another, its useful to know when and how it is ok to use something that you've found." -- Kati Lepi, Edudemic, 7/4/13

Best Web Sites for Teaching & Learning 2013
"Here in Chicago, AASL’s Best Websites for Teaching & Learning Committee just released its standards-aligned 2013 list. Sites and tools are selected because they engage users through innovation, creativity, active participation, and collaboration. Honored websites, tools, and resources will provide exceptional value to inquiry-based teaching and learning." -- Joyce Valenza, Never Ending Search SLJ, 6/29/13

Tacit Knowledge and the Student Researcher
"I’m old enough that the annual Beloit Mindset List (created to help instructors avoid making what they think are contemporary cultural references that are actually historical to their students) is full of references to things that I never got around to knowing before they became passé." -- Barbara Fister, Library Babel Fish, 6/25/13

What it Takes to be a Boss Everyone Loves
"Being a successful leader means being good at what you do and possessing integrity. But more than anything, it's about your ability to build healthy relationships with others -- particularly those who work for you."-- Mark Sanborn, Entrepreneur, 6/25/13

ALAO 2013: Conference App

Have you downloaded the ALAO 2013 conference app? It's free and filled with useful - and timely - information.  Learn more about our Keynote speaker Nancy Fried Foster, submit your proposal online (posters, lightning talk, and discussion table submissions are open!), consider applying for a student or support staff ALAO presenter grant, and follow the official ALAO Twitter account ALAOorg and the conference hashtag #ALAO2013.

Interested? Here's how it works:

1. Download YappBox to your mobile device (phone or tablet), it's free from the iTunes Store and Google Play.
2. Install the ALAO Conference app by visiting this page, http://my.yapp.us/3CCFY9 via your device.
3. OR - use the "Add a Yapp" function in YappBox and enter the code: 3CCFY9
4. OR - follow this link to send the link to your mobile device.
5. OR - Scan the QR Code

Once loaded on your device, updates will be automatically offered each time the app is accessed.

Weekly Reader

Who is Driving the Online Locomotive?
"Proponents of online learning often use train metaphors to describe its growing impact on the educational landscape. Those of us who teach at two-year colleges, especially, are constantly encouraged, prodded, hectored, cajoled—and sometimes even ordered—to get on board. Otherwise, we're told, we're likely to be run over." - Rob Jenkins, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 7/26/13

Web-Hosting Project Hopes to Help Students Reclaim Digital Destinies
"Jim Groom and Tim Owens believe that college students are not being adequately prepared to be good “digital citizens” of the 21st century. Partly to blame, they say, is the prebuilt and prepackaged software that many use to create digital identities or to curate their interests online." -- Sara Grossman, Wired Campus, 7/25/13

How to Answer "so you need a degree to do that?"
"This oft encountered, teeth grinding question is something of a rite of passage for every one who joins the librarian field and was part of Tumblr post that came across my feed. I’ll even admit it makes my eye twitch as I summon up the willpower to provide a rationale and polite answer to this query." -- Andy Woodworth, Agnostic, Maybe,  7/24/13

Welcome to the Palace of Ambiguity
"Funny how sometimes you read an article and it feels like a smack on the forehead. Of course! Why didn’t I think of that before? Usually that means you had thought of it before, in vague, inchoate terms, but somebody else has put it into words. Bam." -- Barbara Fister, Library Babel Fish, 7/18/13

ALAO 2013: Posters, Lightning Talks, Discussion Tables

ALAO 39th Annual Conference 

University Center Kent State University at Stark North Canton, Ohio 

October 25, 2013

The ALAO 2013 Conference Planning Committee invites you to submit proposals for Poster Sessions, Lightning Talks, and Round Table Discussions. Applicants are encouraged to develop creative proposals that show thoughtful exploration of this year’s conference theme: The Changing Faces of Academic Libraries: Transforming, Reorganizing, Re‐imagining.

Poster Sessions, Lightning Rounds, & Round Table Discussions
Accepting Proposals July 15 - August 16, 2013

Poster: Presentations should graphically represent a topic and include text, tables, and images. Handouts are welcome and encouraged. Presenters will share their ideas with attendees during a designated time slot of the conference.

Lightning Talk: Designed to be fast-paced, thought provoking, and energizing. Lightning Talk presenters will have 7 minutes to deliver their practical or conceptual topics. There will not be scheduled time for Q & A; however, presenters may use part of their 7 minutes for this purpose.

Round-tables Discussion: This format is structured for small, informal group discussions to facilitate networking and information exchange. Discussion leaders should identify and develop a topic that will allow participants to discuss how they are dealing with specific issues at their libraries. Please include 2-3 questions to be addressed during the discussion in the proposal.

Guidelines and the proposal submission form may be found here:
Submit your proposal to ALAO 2013 CPC

Students wishing to submit proposals should do so here:
Submit your proposal to ALAO 2013 CPC

If you are a support staff member or student, don't forget presenter grant opportunities are available.

Pinterest: Number of pins (short)

While updating IRC Pinterest boards this morning I noticed a new feature; the number of pins an individual  board contains is now available.  I initially thought it was limited to site owners (quick visual), but signed out of Pinterest and the number remained view-able.  It is interesting and made it glaringly obvious I should develop more Voki tours.

I am not so sure I like it added to my board cover real estate.

Multi-weekly reader

New Research Effort Aims to Examine Effectiveness of MOOCs
"As more and more colleges experiment with massive open online courses, or MOOCs, a new project hopes to cut through the hype and gauge the effectiveness of the courses.The MOOC Research Initiative, financed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will award grants of $10,000 to $25,000 to researchers seeking to explore issues such as student experiences in MOOCs and the free courses’ systemic impact." -- Sara Grossman, Wired Campus, 6/10/13

Reflections on Teaching: Learning from Our Stories
"Here’s a great story. A graduate student is attending a lecture being given by one of her intellectual heroes, the Brazilian educator and theorist Paulo Freire. She takes notes furiously, trying to capture as many of his words as possible. Seeing that she is keenly interested in what Freire had to say, his translator asks if she would like to meet him. Of course! She is introduced and he begins by inquiring about her work. Then he graciously agrees to respond to a set of questions she and her colleagues hoped they would get the chance to ask him. She is impressed beyond belief, but time prevents her from asking one last, difficult question."-- Maryellen Weimer, PhD, Teaching Professor Blog, 6/12/13

Pinterest, One Man's Surprising Journey
"Pinterest is one of the most popular social media networks on the planet, yet for many men it remains a profound mystery. So I decided it was time to see what was really going on over there." -- Brian S. Hall, RWW, 6/13/13

10 Ways to use IFTTT to Automate Your Social Media Branding
"IFFT is a new service that stands for If This, Then That. It’s an incredibly easy to use website that lets you set up or copy recipes for automating just about anything. I’ve written about this handy tool before, however in a nutshell it works with 60 different applications including most of the major social media channels, and necessitates filling out simple online forms." -- Ellyssa Kroski, OEDB, 5/24/13

Embedded Librarians 101: How to Get Started
"As librarians, we can’t wait for students to ask us questions. We know that! That’s why we’ve had “virtual” reference services since the early 2000′s. But it’s simply not enough to have an online presence. The key is being online where the students are. For most universities, this means the learning management system (Moodle, Blackboard, D2L, etc…). It’s where students spend their academic time. It’s where librarians need to be. It’s embedded librarianship." -- Joe Hardenbrook, Mr. Library Dude, 6/17/13

A Developmental View of Information Literacy
"How do students become information literate? That’s a question I have asked myself many times. I’m particularly interested in the relationship between cognitive development and information literacy learning." -- Amanda Hovious, Designer Librarian, 6/14/13

The Evolving Use of Badges in Education
"Today’s schools commonly use grade-based evaluations where students get rewarded for the knowledge they gain. Students are evaluated and rewarded with grades and sometimes other types of rewards, for tasks such as projects, behavior, skills, and taking tests. Evaluations are one way to reward learning. The rewards may come in the form of a grade (number, letter), words, badges, stickers, certificates, medals, trophies, money, or prizes. The rewards may be determined by peer, self, or teacher-based assessments. Rewards are a way to motivate students to learn." -- Nellie Deutsch, Emerging EdTech, 6/12/13

ALAO 2013: Deadline Extended

ALAO 39th Annual Conference | October 25, 2013 

University Center Kent State University at Stark | North Canton, Ohio 

Deadline for proposals extended to  June 14, 2013!

Proposals should be submitted via the online submission form:
ALAO 2013 Presentation Proposal

For additional information, visit the conference web site @ http://goo.gl/ryXMa

Weekly Reader

On the Academic Library as A Critical Institution
"Everyone agrees: libraries are critical institutions. Librarians certainly feel that way, but so does the general population and even (mostly) politicians—especially if asked publicly. In fact, a person of normal intelligence is no more likely to disagree publicly with the statement “libraries are critical institutions” than to answer “no” when an ALA-sponsored pollster asks “Do you love books?” (Headline: 99% of Americans Still Love Books, ALA Informs Grateful Nation.)" -- Rick Anderson, Library Journal - Peer to Peer,  6/6/13

My Advice for New Instruction Librarians
"In the last three months, I’ve been interviewed about information literacy by two students. One was working on her MLIS and taking her first instruction course. The other was working on a dissertation, and I was a participant in her study on information literacy programs. These interviews started me thinking about what I’d tell new librarians interested in information literacy instruction."-- Troy A. Swanson, Tame the Web, 6/7/13

Your Essential "How to" Guide for Using Prezi in an Academic Environment
"Prezi.com is a zooming presentation tool which offers an alternative to PowerPoint. As it grows in popularity it is being seen more and more often across campuses; presentations created not just by academics and librarians but by students too. The quality of these presentations is variable; when used well Prezi can be a fabulous communication tool, but when used badly it can leave the audience feeling bamboozled, and potentially slightly sea-sick… There’s a lot of academic interest to it, so with that in mind here’s a brief guide." - Ned Potter, Impact of Social Sciences, 6/7/13

Once a Librarian, Always a Librarian?
"Dear ALA, Library Journal, and others: I have an MLS. I paid good money for it. I earned it. I am a librarian. Forever. The fact that I do not currently (nor may ever again) work in a library does not change that fact. Please make room for me on your surveys etc. Thank you. Bobbi, MLS Forever." -- Bobbi Newman, Librarian by Day, 6/4/13

Quick Guide to Making Your Website Social Media Friendly
"I'm often asked by clients to work with their web designers/developers to ensure their new website is going to be built and presented in a way that ensures social media tech plays a part in the user's experience. Usually I'm asked to do this after jumping up and down a lot and ramming home the importance of thinking social when it comes to websites!" -- Mike McGrail, Social Media Today, 6/4/13

YouTube: Viva La Library

A video gem from Dr. James McGrath of Butler University: Viva La Library (The Information Literacy Song) ... enjoy.

ALAO 2013: Help with your proposal

"Make this the year you present at ALAO! Whether you are a first time presenter, or an ALAO presentation veteran, crafting and submitting a proposal to present is sometimes a daunting challenge." - ALAO 2013: Proposal's: Need Help?

First time and seasoned presenters are encouraged to submit their proposal for the 39th Annual ALAO Conference. If you are having trouble getting started, or would like a quick refresher on creating conference proposals, visit the conference web site. Among the resources available for presenter are abstracts from previous conferences, submission tips from ALA and ACRL, and general ALAO proposal submission FAQs.

There is still time to submit your session proposal!
Proposal Submission Form:  http://goo.gl/CgrBm

Weekly Reader

Social Media Etiquette 101: Attribution
"Today, we are in desperate need of an etiquette manual for the internet. Some believe that social media is much like the wild west of old—anything and everything goes. It creates an energy and excitement that gives birth to creativity and collaboration. Unfortunately, that also means that civil behavior and professional standards are often overlooked. In our race to be first or gain more influence, we often overlook those who helped us find that important information to begin with." -- Chris Syme, Social Media Today, 5/30/13

But What if I Can't Find it on the Internet?
"But because of cost-cutting policies and the mantra of ''digitisation at all cost'', we are in danger of decreasing rather than increasing our access to information over time. Nowhere is this trend more evident than in libraries. It is driven by an over-reliance on new technology, in turn propelled by the forces of managerialism and economic rationalism." -- Pauline Westwood, The Canberra Times, 5/27/13

10 Ways to Use IFTTT To Automate Your Social Media Branding
"IFFT is a new service that stands for If This, Then That. It’s an incredibly easy to use website that lets you set up or copy recipes for automating just about anything. I’ve written about this handy tool before, however in a nutshell it works with 60 different applications including most of the major social media channels, and necessitates filling out simple online forms." -- Ellyssa Kroski, Open Education Database, 5/24/13

5 Reasons Why Your Online Presence Will Replace Your Resume in 10 Years
"We’re seeing more and more recruiters use the web as a place to search for talent and conduct employment background searches. This trend is set to increase year over year and I’ve been predicting that an “online presence search” will become as common as a drug test since 2007."-- Dan Schwabel, Forbes Entrepreneurs, 2/21/11