Monthly Archives: November 2013

13 posts

#ylibrary: Making the Case for the Library to be a Space for Infinite Learning

I was honored to be asked to contribute an essay to the State Library of Queensland #ylibrary project: http://blogs.slq.qld.gov.au/slq-today/2013/11/26/ylibrary-making-the-case-for-the-library-as-space-for-infinite-learning-by-michael-stephens/ A snippet: This isn’t a new idea. The Melvil Dewey quote that I used to open this essay resonates with me. “The time is when the library is a school and the librarian is in the highest sense a teacher…” He wrote that in 1876, and as librarians, we are evolving, and it is still true. Librarians should seek every opportunity to be teachers in their communities. Library users should look to the library for opportunities to experience new things, new […]

Building a Sustainable 2.0 Community for Lifelong Learning and Professional Development by Elaine Hall

Don’t miss this article about “23 Things for SLIS Students & Alumni” that Elaine Hall wrote for Alki, Washington Library Association Journal. Elaine Hall is a Washington Library Association (WLA) member and a MLIS graduate student at San Jose State University. She lives in Arlington, Washington and is pursuing interests in academic libraries, emerging technologies, information literacy, and research. Hall, E. (2013, November). Building a sustainable 2.0 community for lifelong learning and professional development. Alki. Washington Library Association Journal, 29(3), 22-23. Retrieved from http://www.wla.org/assets/Alki/alki%20november%2013%20-%20final.pdf The students and alumni of San Jose State University’s School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) have developed a Learning […]

Office Hours: Mobile at the Library

http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/11/opinion/michael-stephens/mobile-at-the-library-office-hours/ Sharing images of library signs—especially those related to mobile devices and their use within library buildings—was part of my early focus on how libraries interact with their users via signage. Aaron Schmidt, writing LJ’s User Experience column, has also explored these ideas, most recently in “Signs of Good Design.” Language usually attached to an image of a mobile phone with the red circle and line through it was of this variety: “Violators will be asked to leave,” “Conversations not allowed,” and one signed ominously by “the Library Director.” Other ­signage you may have seen passed around Buzzfeed and LIS blogs warn that […]

Office Hours: Infinite Learning

http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/10/opinion/michael-stephens/infinite-learning-office-hours/ Public libraries are the best platforms for success with community-focused online learning of all sizes. It’s easy to create successful MOOCs in an academic environment. It’s something else to make them successful in a nonacademic environment. Jeff Jarvis, on This Week in Google (9/11/13), discussed the idea of unbundling education from universities, unbundling lessons from courses, and looking at new ways to view/score outcomes. Public libraries, with limited resources of staff and time, could still create unbundled MOOCs—smaller, shorter lessons that, when combined, total a full course. Busy patrons plus busy librarians still can equal quality learning opportunities. The above may seem daunting […]

DeLaMare: Making Fun Spaces Work – A TTW Guest Post by Zemirah Lee

A few weeks ago, I wrote about attending a seminar in San Diego put on by the Special Libraries Association. The theme was connecting the dots of creativity and innovation and since we’re on the topic of maker spaces this week, I found my mind repeatedly flashing back to one speaker in particular. Her name was Kathlin L. Ray and she’s the Dean at the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center at the University of Nevada and she represented a really cool space. Mentioned by the American Libraries Magazine in an article earlier in the year to be one of the top 3 makerspace models […]

Oops I broke the 3D printer! by TTW Contributor Justin Hoenke

Oops!  I broke the 3D printer!  And you know what?  It’s OK. One night on The 2nd Floor of the Chattanooga Public Library I attempted to make 3 Stretchlet bracelets on our 3D printer at one time. We’re taking our 3D printer to the local children’s museum later this month and wanted to built up our arsenal of 3D printed giveaways.  My idea was to attempt to speed up that process and boy oh boy did it not work. I came back to see the mess you see below.  Something went wrong and our whole extruder was covered in plastic. […]

Video: LIANZA Keynote ’13

More keynotes from some great folks here: http://www.youtube.com/user/lianzaNZ Previously posted: Thanks to everyone who made this trip to New Zealand for the Library and Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa Conference so wonderful and magical. From the Powhiri that opened the conference at the  Turangawaewae Marae to the beautiful M?ori songs that filled the ballroom after the keynotes, this experience touched my heart. The fact I got to meet so many #hyperlibMOOC students as well made these past few days all the better! My talk was sponsored by the Victoria University of Wellington’s School of Information Management – Thanks! Slide Download: For slides please Contact Michael Presentation Resources: […]