LinkedIn: Another SNS

For about a week now I have been following the LinkedIn social networking site and noting how it applies to libraries. LinkedIn, which was briefly mentioned during class, is a social networking tool designed for librarians, and other related professions, to network themselves and to stay abreast of their colleagues work. As far as the site’s usefulness to libraries, I would say other than recruiting professionals; the site is geared more towards librarians. Although, LinkedIn can be very attractive site for a library looking for a skilled professional since the site allows the user to post their works and interests.

Linked has various features that allows a person to showcase his or hers work. The SNS asks for specific details about the persons schooling and place of work, such as the name of the school, place of the school, year of graduation, and degree. The same questions are asked about person’s current employment; the name of the company, place, title, and duties are all asked. It also allows a person to post their past employment history, any specialty’s they have, blogs, groups or websites the person follow, along with various other items. LinkedIn also includes special features that allows postings of SlideShare and Google presentations, polls, blogs, and a Reading List by Amazon just to name a few. Basically, you are posting (or advertising) your resume and interest online for potential employers.

Obviously LinkedIn was not created with privacy in mind. About the only items the site does not post about a person is their personal address. Of course, one can list false information, but as I have learned, there is no point in joining this network if you are going to list false information. The whole point of the site is for networking yourself and searching for jobs.

I admit, I had troubles accepting how public this information is until I started thinking about our profession and our overall use of the web. If we look back on our education and daily professional lives, we will see that often the information posted on LinkedIn has already been shared to the public. While attending Pratt, I have frequently been required to follow library related blogs. A few common features the blogs included were information on the bloggers background: their current employer, their title, their interest, and other blogs they follow; basically, all the information being listed on LinkedIn. The same thing is true about guest speakers and lecturers, they almost always note their background, interest, title, and at times, their educational background is also noted. I guess what I am trying to get at, is that while LinkedIn is a social network with very little protection of privacy, it just reflects the atmosphere we live in today.

Lesson Plan

I always find this first stage of choosing a topic the most difficult (other than presenting of course). I am still undecided what direction I would like to take for my final project. I have never done a lesson plan before so I should be grouped with someone who has experience. My general interest is in public libraries. I would like to do a lesson plan aimed at adults or young adults. Listed below are a few ideas I have come up with so far. I am open to ideas if anyone has any.

• I am currently interning at Brooklyn Public Library in their Education and Job information Center (EJIC). Since I have been there, I have had the opportunity of observing some of their outreach programs. One of the programs involves teaching teens how to prepare for a job. It focuses on resume preparation, presenting themselves, and how to use the resources at the library in their job search. PowerPoint is the main method of instruction. I think it would be neat to bring some sort of media into the instruction but I have no idea of how to do it.

• I have also been playing with the idea of a creating a lesson plan on evaluating websites. With how widely used the web is for research, I think it is important we teach people how to evaluate these websites.

• Another idea I had was to teach some sort of oral history. I was thinking the lesson plan could involve teens creating a YouTube video about their lives. Not sure exactly how this would work either, but thought it might be kind of fun.

This is all I got so far.

Random Thoughts

For this week's blog I thought i would discuss some random thoughts that I have been having regarding Flickr, Facebook, and other social networking websites.

I was having a conversation with some coworkers the other day about joining a particular group on Facebook. We were discussing why each of us decided not to join the group, which basically amounted to all of us deciding that it would not be in our best professional interest. During this conversation, one of my coworkers stated she did not have a Facebook profile and had no intention of setting one up. She said, she had a Friendster account when it came out, then set up a MySpace page after everyone told her she had to check it out, and is now being told she has to set up a Facebook profile. As she put it, "no way, not again." But this got me thinking about how fast technology changes and how we are always playing catch up. As we join and quit (or more appropriately discontinue using until forgotten about) these social networking websites, what happens to the information we save, transfer, and share. When we join these websites, we post pictures, blogs, videos, we share personal and professional information. Coming from an archivist and a librarian's point of view, how do we insure vital information created through blog postings, image sharing, and so on, is being preserved (or properly disposed of). Will we later discover information, that at the time of its creation was deemed either unimportant or was forgotten about, that turns out to be historically important. It may seem unimportant, but you never know when a blog posting might be the beginning of the next big invention. You just never know. So how do we properly organize, save, retrieve, and delete the vast and uncontrolled amount information being created over the web? How do we control the web while keeping it free and open?

Quoting McLuhan

"The method of our time is to use not a single but multiple models for exploration – the technique of the suspended judgment is the discovery of the twentieth century as the technique of invention was the discovery of the nineteenth" (McLuhan, 69).

As I was home today, doing work related research on my laptop, I found that this statement by McLuhan could not be any truer. During a four hour period, I referred to photocopies of an original 1873 document (print), found the full version of the document online through Google books (internet), and spoke with a coworker on my cell phone (oral communication & technology) regarding the research. And this was all done in a short, four hour period from my bedroom. As amazing and convenient this technology is, I cannot help but think about my fellow classmate, Emily, who wondered if, "people are slave to the medium or to the information that it brings them…”

Mediums. . .

The topic for today is medium. What is a medium? Andrea, Laurie, Emily, Suki, and I described a medium as a mechanism of delivering content. So, what does this mean?

Is it a medium?
There are various tools or mechanisms people can use as mediums. Likely, a person uses various types of mediums every day. The internet, television programs, books (print in general), oral communication, and so on, are all types of mediums. An important factor to keep in mind when thinking about mediums is the word “delivery.” For something to be considered a medium, information or some form of content must be delivered. A television with no reception would not be a medium; yet, as soon as it receives reception or delivers some other type of content (DVD’s, etc.) it becomes a medium. Let’s look at the DVD and the computer (with no internet!) for an example. The computer itself as an object would not be a medium, neither would the DVD. But, once the DVD is played on the computer, the computer then becomes a medium. Content is being delivered and received. Another example is a person who recites a poem in their head. That person would not be considered a medium but as soon as she or he recites the poem to an audience, it becomes a form of oral communication and is a medium.

Assigning value to mediums
Another important factor discussed amongst our group was the value of each medium. Is the internet the overall best medium? The unique thing about today’s informational age is how widely different types of mediums are used. Depending upon the type of content being delivered and the audience receiving the content, different mediums are going be used. For example, in a 24 hour period, I received information through a book, am preparing to deliver information (this blog) through the internet, received and shared information when I watched Jeopardy with my roommate on the TV, and attended a class where I was instructed through oral communication. Not any one of these mediums served my interest better than the other; each had a purpose and served my specific needs at that specific time.

Although a large portion of people’s entertainment, educational, informational, etc. needs are by the internet, it’s important not to forget the human element. As humans we communicate with each other; we share information and experiences, and form relationships and bonds with one another. So, while I have the ability to watch a movie on my computer tonight, instead, I think I’ll watch it on my roommate’s 36” TV where we can share in the experience together. My point is, before we start assigning a value to mediums, we need to remember the human factor and our need to connect with others around us. Will our needs as humans change in the future, that I cannot answer? For now, all I can say is that for all the advantages the internet brings us, there are some experiences and needs that, at this time, the internet cannot meet. Do you agree or disagree?

Critical literacy

Earlier this week during a classroom discussion the topic of critical literacy was brought up. The question was how critical literacy relates to our individual setting. Before I can answer this question I thought I would describe the term literacy and how public libraries need to avoid placing “value judgments” on the term.

In the past, the traditional definition of literacy was defined as the ability to read and write. Literacy has also been described as having knowledge or skill in a specified field; having or showing knowledge of literature; or being a learned person. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, for most of its history, “literate” has meant "familiar with literature," or more generally, "well-educated, learned." It was not until the late 19th century that we began to associate the term with the ability to read and write. More recently the term has been expanded from the knowledge of reading and writing to any body of knowledge. A common example of this terminology would be “computer literate,” which basically means a knowledgeable or educated person in computers.

In James Elmborg’s, Critical Information Literacy: Implications for Instructional Practice (2006), he talks about “value judgments” being placed on who is literate and who is illiterate. The term literacy has long been under debate and value judgments have been placed. We can see these judgments being placed everyday in public libraries. To reach critical literacy, public libraries have to development critical consciousness with their users. In other words, instead of judging “literacy” public libraries need to learn how to communicate with their users.

Technology has changed the way in which people acquire, process, understand, and share information. Gaming, one of the newest outcomes of technology, has become a main pastime for library users, especially in children and young adults. While in class, we had lengthy discussion about the term “literate” and rather the term can be applied to gaming. Once again, we see “value judgments” being place on what is considered literate and what is not. Technology, and yes this means gaming too, is becoming a main tool for both adults and children to acquire and process knowledge. Therefore, can libraries reach critical literacy with their users without embracing these technology tools?



"literate." The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. 08 Feb. 2009.

Here we go...

Hello, my name is Jennifer Allen and I am in Jessica Hochman’s Instructional Technology course at Pratt Institute. As a newcomer to blogging and social networking in general, I would like to apologize in advance if this blog often appears confusing, scattered, or ever worst, meaningless. That is not my intention. My goal, as I struggle to understand and let’s even say “master” new technologies, is to provide some sort of assistance to those who have similar questions or lack of understanding with technology in libraries.

I joined this course in hopes of gaining a better understanding of the uses of technology in public libraries. As a self proclaimed “old school” person, I often wonder if public libraries have lost sight of their purpose and role in society while incorporating the latest technology trends. I wonder, “Is it all really necessary or even beneficial.” Whom does it benefit? With this thought, it is my hope to improve my understanding of the various types of technological tools available and how to apply them to public libraries.

Throughout this course, my blogs will primarily focus on the usage of technology in public libraries and how it benefits the public. Questions I will be trying to answer include: Has technology at public libraries gotten ahead of its users? What is the best way technology can benefit a library? How do/can social networking tools (Facebook, MySpace, i.e.) benefit the library? How can you teach an old dog a new trick; In other words, how can an “old school” librarian, such as myself, keep up with the next generation of users and librarians?