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Learn how technology can transform your training sessions!
Sep 2nd
Using Technology in Library Training with Paul Signorelli
In these two ALA TechSource online workshops, Paul Signorelli provides hands-on, interactive instruction in using current web technology to enhance in-person training sessions or conduct remote training sessions for employees in multiple locations.
Session 1: Using Technology to Enhance In-Person Training
- Incorporating YouTube, Google Docs, and SlideShare into onsite learning
- Making PowerPoint effective and interesting
- Using technology as a tool while focusing on learners
Session 2: Using Technology for Remote Training Sessions
- Using Skype, Google Talk/Yahoo! Messenger, LinkedIn discussion groups, and other tools for learning
- Adapting your onsite skills to provide effective online learning
- Building online communities of learning
And much more!
Sign up today and engage in 90 minutes of discussion and interactive learning that you can’t get anywhere else!
About the Instructor
Paul Signorelli is a writer, trainer, and consultant who explores, uses, writes about, and helps others become familiar with Web 2.0 and smartphone technology to creatively facilitate positive change within organizations. He has participated in the ALA Learning Round Table, and written for ALA Learning blog, American Libraries magazine, and ALA Editions.
About ALA TechSource Workshops
ALA TechSource Workshops are focused, small-group online discussions that give you the opportunity to learn from experts who offer authoritative answers to your questions, as well as to interact with colleagues who have similar concerns. Workshops are recorded and, along with other materials, are made available to attendees for future reference.
Read more and register at ALA Tech Source.
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Learn more, do nothing
Aug 29th
Learning in Action (cc 2.0 http://www.flickr.com/photos/wisemandarine/2411122894/)
The New York Times reported this week that researchers at the University of California, San Francisco have found that rats don’t learn from experience until they take a break from the experience. The break gives them time to process and create persistent memories. Furthermore, the researchers believe that their findings almost certainly apply to the way humans learn. Uh oh…
Why uh oh? Because many humans are increasingly connected to our ipads, blackberrys, smartphones, and laptops, keeping our brains engaged continually throughout the day. And while all of that ubiquitous connectivity offers us the possibility of reaching heretofore unreachable levels of efficiency and productivity it seems that it might come at a price: The Times reports that “when people keep their brains busy with digital input, they are forfeiting downtime that could allow them to better learn and remember information, or come up with new ideas. ”
Having recently started a new job, I can attest to the fact that there’s nothing like a silent drive or a brief nap to process and organize a great deal of new information. My 45 minute commute home might be the most productive part of my day, as that’s where all of the sense-making is happening. Strange as it may seem, sleeping has also been incredibly productive as I awake many mornings with a number of ideas synthesized from the previous day’s conversations, observations, and readings.
So as we come to the end of another summer and start getting geared up for the busier days of Fall let’s take a moment to remember: There might be no better way to learn than by stopping, unplugging, and doing absolutely nothing.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Alternative Assessment with VoiceThread
Aug 26th
Assessment continues to weigh heavily on my mind here at the beginning of the 2010-11 academic year. While I have worked with students using VoiceThread as an alternative learning artifact, I had not considered using it as form of assessment or digital portfolio until friend and colleague Diane Cordell pointed me to this fantastic post, “VoiceThread as a Digital Portfolio”, in which Chrissy Hellyer, a teacher who was working at an international school in Bangkok at the time of the posting, used VoiceThread as part of student led conferences (you can also read a cross-post of how this teacher implemented VoiceThread here). In these posts, Hellyer thoughtfully outlines the steps she took before, during, and after the creation of the digital portfolios, including reflections on what she would do differently.
One of my goals this year in my work with our teachers and students, particularly our new cohort of Media 21 students (now called Learning 21), is to help students take a more active role in articulating what they are learning. After reading this post, I think VoiceThread is a perfect medium for this endeavor; not only could students showcase learning artifacts they feel reflect mastery of course performance standards, but they could also use this digital portfolio to share other key learnings, insights, reflections, and learning tools they feel are an essential part of their story as a learner.
As I start to lay the groundwork to pilot this form of assessment in my collaboration with teachers and students, an additional blog post by Silvia Tolisano, a Technology Integration Facilitator and 21st Century Learning Specialist, is also informing my planning for helping our students create digital learning portfolios.
Are you using VoiceThread or other tools a means of student or learner led assessment in your library environment either with staff or with students? If so, what advice would you recommend for those embarking on this endeavor, and which web-based tools have you found most effective for creating digital learning portfolios? I look forward to your sharing your experiences and examples, and I will also be blogging on our own student created portfolios later in the semester!
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Time to Say Good-Bye
Aug 25th
It’s been a good ride, but it seems I need to hop off of this bus to put my efforts into other areas. Due to my workload and priorities right now, I will no longer be able to remain as a contributing author to this blog. I feel very honored to have been asked to be a part of this wonderful effort, and I look forward to following the blog as a part of my personal learning experience. I truly admire my fellow authors and can’t wait to see what they have to say next!
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Put on Your Hard Hats!
Aug 24th
Do you have an activity that works well for a customer service class? Have you created a humorous video that learners in your classes always enjoy? Maybe you’ve done a detailed study of webinar platforms and would like to share that information with others who could use it. With the Learning Round Table’s new ALA Learning Wiki , you now have a platform to share your knowledge.
Over the course of the past several months, LearnRT has been constructing a dual-purpose wiki: a destination to serve as a comprehensive clearinghouse of tools and resources for those interested in learning and training in libraries, as well as providing an open forum for free-flowing discussion about training and learning. We’re halfway to the finish line, but we could use the help of those who follow our blog. The backbone of the ALA Learning Wiki is complete – that is, we have a structure in place to host tools and resources for learning and training, but we have very little content available thus far. We invite you to help us build the wiki by adding tools and resources to the site that you believe can be useful to your fellow colleagues. For our heartier readers, we also hope to discover a few wiki champions – people who’ll commit to posting at least five items per month through the end of December 2010.
The wiki is divided into seven broad sections:
Managing Training – Best Practices: Big picture issues of planning and managing a training program, and could include examples of curriculum plans, approaches to evaluating effectiveness, and policies and procedures for training programs.
Training Events – Best Practices: Tips and tricks for putting together effective classes and other training events. This area also will include a wealth of resources on All Staff Days developed as a special project of LearnRT’s Emerging Leaders.
Training Materials and Resources: Materials related to specific class topics, such as outlines, lesson plans, activities, video tutorials, and slideshows.
E-Learning: Links to free and affordable self-paced courses and live webinars.
Trainers’ Tools: Recommended resources, reviews, advice, and comparisons of everything from webinar platforms to flipcharts.
Connections: A directory of colleagues who are involved in staff development, consultants, and professional organizations (e.g., the American Society of Training and Development [ASTD]).
Learn More: Reviews of books and articles, recommended websites, professional journals, and certificate and degree programs all relating to the training function.
It takes a village to raise a wiki, so we’ve made submitting content relatively simple. Just sign up to become a member of the site and then follow the easy contribution guidelines to post. With your help, the Learning Round Tables hopes to reach a critical mass of resources by January 1, 2011 so that we can officially launch the wiki to the rest of library land at ALA Midwinter in San Diego. We feel confident that we can reach this goal, but we need the help of our readers, even if you only have one or two things to add.
Put on your hard hats, hop over to the wiki, and start helping us build! Feel free to contact your wiki administrators Jay Turner (jturner@gwinnettpl.org) or Richard Mott (rmott@coj.net) if you have any questions, need assistance, or have suggestions for improving the site.
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