Demonstrate proficiency in identifying, using, and evaluating current and emerging information and communication technologies
It goes without heavy emphasis on the point that technology is becoming more and more pervasive in society in the contemporary age in which we live. I can still recall using Windows 3.1, and older generation Macs when I was in kindergarten. Cell phones (and certainly not smartphones) did not exist in the early 1990s when I was a child. It wasn’t until I reached junior high (circa 1999) that I began using the Internet occasionally at my local public library in Columbia Falls, Montana. I still remember my family subscribing to the internet in 2003 (which was my first exposure to the internet on a regular basis). Oh, the shenanigans! It was a different age with the internet at that point, and the concept of Facebook and Twitter was then still only a dream in the mind of Mark Zuckerberg. It was not until 2013 that I got my first cell phone (an older model Motorola flip phone). Who would take me seriously in this age of smartphones and tablet computing (especially when I am a young person in my late twenties)? My life resembles a hybrid between the old and the new in terms of my technology use. I use social networking regularly, but I still have a flip phone, and I regularly spend large portions of my day away from the internet and from the “modern” world of technology (when a lot of young people in my age bracket are practically glued to their smartphones). I suppose what I am getting at is that individuals (including LIS professionals) will have varying levels of experience with information and communications technologies. Some are glued to their smartphones, and yet others have not used a computer at all. As LIS professionals, we have to make efforts to make ourselves aware of new technologies, since we are going to use it in various ways. For instance, new cataloging systems will arise to help patrons locate materials in our collections, computerized circulation systems are used by our frontline staff to track materials in the library’s collection, computer labs exist for patrons to interact with computer applications and the internet, libraries will bring in new tablets for children to interact with, and libraries will use social media tools (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, among others) to promote library services, programming, and events. Grassian and Kaplowitz (2009) argued that “technophobia” is a phenomenon, and that librarians are going to have to play a front-line role in helping patrons learn technology. They encouraged librarians to “take a kind, gentle, encouraging approach to helping people feel more comfortable about using computers,” and considered that a good way to implement such an approach is to provide times for patrons to interact with technology (p. 69). Specific examples of technology tools libraries can use include blogs and social media” Decker and Tomlinson (2014) advocated the use of blogs, arguing that “[b]logs are useful because they allow for a more timely response to changing [patron] needs. Unlike printed posters or flyers, posting to a blog to update readers on rapidly developing situation becomes as easy as composing a blog post and clicking on the “publish” button.” Decker and Tomlinson also argued that blogs “have a smaller footprint and do not require the physical space that print collections do, making them appealing in ange of reduced budgets and, frequently, reduced library building space” (p. 61). Bell (2015) found that while “61 percent of libraries have been using social media for three years or more,” 75 percent of this number do not have a “social media policy” in force to deal with their social media uses. Additionally, while my generation, and 58 percent of libraries surveyed by Bell, use Facebook as their primary platform for disseminating information to those subscribed, newer generations of internet users are “switching off from this platform and looking to more visual channels, such as Instagram and Facebook” (p. 8). The point made in the last sentence proves that while certain information and communications technology tools might be in vogue now, newer platforms will emerge for creative and communicate endeavor. For my first piece of evidence, I am submitting a link to a project for INFO 265 in which I was required to read and write blog posts reviewing 50 items from various media formats, including books, video games, music and movies for a young adult audience. For my second piece of evidence, I am submitting the final project I completed for INFO 244, in which I created a guide for grandparents raising grandchildren to teach them how to use Medline and install Google Chrome, as evidence of my ability to teach library patrons how to use new communications and electronic databases.
I have completed the required course INFO 203, in which students entering the iSchool program are taught the basics of learning managements systems such as the Desire2Learn application I used when beginning the program, and self-taught myself how to use the Canvas application now in use. In INFO 210, I was required to conduct a reference interview with a library in Portland, OR using an instant messaging tool on their library website. INFO 234 had me write a paper about state laws and Internet filtering, which is going to be a technology tool that, unfortunately, we as librarians, may have to implement in our libraries because of library policy, or city/state law. In INFO 244, I learned searching methods for online databases, and how to use tools such as truncation and search operators for more efficient searches. In INFO 250, I learned about instructional sites available online, such as Khan Academy, which uses Youtube videos and online tests/quizzes to help students practice and learn new skills. In INFO 265, I wrote a paper on the digital divide issue (specifically as it related to teenagers), in addition to the 50 item blog I created. However, the version of the paper I uploaded to Canvas and Google Docs was missing key sections, and I will not include it as an evidentiary item for the purposes of satisfying this competency. I am slated to begin a 1-month course, INFO 241, on September 25, 2015, in which I will be introduced technology tools in the 21st century, including e-books and smartphone apps.
References
Bell, J. (2015). Librarians ‘prevalent’ in use of social media. Research Information, (76), 8.
Decker, E. N., & Tomlinson, M. D. (2014). Using Blogs in the Library to Reach Diverse and Non-Traditional Student Groups. Journal Of Library Innovation, 5(2), 60-70.
Grassian, E.S., & Kaplowitz, J.R. (2009). Information literacy instruction: Theory and practice (2nd edition). New York, NY: Neal-Schumann Publishers, Inc.