Introduction and Purpose

            The purpose of this project is to integrate some Web 2.0 social networking tools in a library. I have reviewed numerous library blogs and wikis and have begun to appreciate the versatility of the applications. Initially, for my final project, I had planned on a collaborative project between the local high school and local public libraries. I evaluated the public library web site and was I not surprised to find the lack of any Web 2.0 tools. However, I did have higher expectations from the high school library’s website.  I analyzed the  Local Public High School’s (LPHS) library’s webpage from top to bottom. Despite the large enrollment of approximately 1700 suburban students, the school library media center’s (LMC) webpage is not a stand-alone page, but it is embedded  (cramped to be more accurate) in the entire Public School System’s website.

            The LMC webpage includes some information and links but the most prominent display are the library rules. The rules, with step-by-step instructions on how to gain access to the library by means of a pass (for during school hours), are linked to the “About Library Media Center (LMC).”  The mission statement discusses the purpose and goals of a library and the webpage displays an image of the librarians who work there. The webpage lacks insight, continuity and, in my opinion, it signals to the students the lack of a willingness on the part of the librarians and/or school administrators to be creative, consistent and professional. To be fair, it may be a time management issue (although the athletic department has podcasting links on their page) as there are only four librarian staff members listed on the webpage. However, in order to achieve my original intent and link the high school and public libraries, my opinion is that some much needed revamping of the webpage be the first step before any school and public library collaboration be put into motion.

            Currently the LMC library webpage listings include the following items

• Mission Statement
• About the Library Media Center – policy
• Information on classes, media instruction and teaching, scholarship and book donor program
• Links to booklists; research databases (EBSCO, Infotrac, World Book, Connecticut Digital Library, ABC-CLIO American History), search engines and the library catalog.
• Research instruction tips and links on citation and plagiarism
• Link to the Book Club

            Students can access the webpage online; however, given the amount of restrictive access to the school library, one could assume that the public library would be a logical alternative for students. In this particular city, there is a main public library and two branches. The public libraries offer weekend and evening hours thus making it more accessible for high school students. Additionally there is a university library with more extensive operating hours. However in the current webpage there are no links to these libraries.

            There is a vast amount of information available referencing the implementation of Web 2.0 tools in the school library setting. Annette Lamb has compiled a concise guide in her “Integrating the Best of Web 2.0 in the School Library Media Program,” for school libraries (Lamb, 2007). Considering the current state of the LMC webpage and the potential applications available in the Web 2.0 social networking, I propose the following to be implemented over a period of time, in four phases:

• 1. Phase 1: Create a separate LMC website (linked from the LPHS website)
• 2. Phase 2: Create a format in which the librarians, teachers and staff can share information
• 3. Phase 3: Develop a class/subject format where teachers, librarians and students can collaborate.
• 4. Phase 4 : Provide class/subject materials to local public librarians

 Phase One

            Phase one would be to transform the LMC webpage and create a new site utilizing a weblog format. David Walbert in his article Best Practices in School Library Website Design (Walbert, N.D.), considers “audience, organization, navigation and content” as the four critical elements to a good school library webpage design. He further states that a ” blog does the hard work of building a website for you, while letting you focus on what you know – the content.”  Some high school libraries, such as the Bullard High School Library in Fresno, CA successfully captures all of the Mr. Walbert’s recommendations in its library weblog.

            The LPHS library staff would develop a proposal to present to the school’s administrators. The proposal should include an introduction, a needs assessment, goals/objectives, supporting literature, budget, action plan/timeline and evaluation. Whereas the administrators may not be familiar with weblogs, the proposal should also include a visual sampling of existing library weblogs. Given the size of the LPHS library staff, it is plausible to consider that there is not enough time allotment for the librarians to take on a new website project. One possible solution is to offer the project as a student assignment or special student project for extra credit.  Many teens are extremely well learned in the art of social networking. High school students (including the students from this H.S.) have pages on My Space and Facebook. I also saw and listened to LPHS students on another Web 2.0 application, You Tube. Alternatively, if time is the main caveat to a webpage redesign, then it might be a wonderful project for a library science student. The point is that there are options and this should be stressed in the proposal.    

            Edublogs is an inexpensive (free up to 100 MG), user friendly, education blog hosting websites and a practical tool for this project. Edublogs offers various designs and tools to create widgets and import media (images, video, and audio). Separate pages, links (to databases, catalogs, booklists and search engines) and postings can be categorized. Using Word Press word processing makes the addition of postings extremely easy for users familiar with Microsoft Word.  The library staff, teachers or others who have been approved by the blog administrator can edit the blog. All of the current LPHC LMC web listings and links can easily be incorporated into the weblog. Additional links to: local libraries; community resources; college and educational testing websites are very useful tools for the high school student and should be added as well.

            Postings added by the librarians add value to the weblog when used to notify students and staff of library announcements, new materials and classes. One way to promote the new website would be to include it in a My Space or Facebook page (with permission from the school administrators).  When students search the name of the high school, a page linked to the library website and catalog, will be revealed (along with the individual student pages).

            Edublogs allows the blog administrator to create a separate LPHS Book Club blog which can be linked to the LMC weblog. Blogs are terrific for book clubs, and book cover images (imported from Amazon) are visually preferable over a simple listing of books.

Phase Two

            Another blog should be added as a communication and collaboration tool for the staff, teachers and librarians. This would be an engaging vehicle for the discussion and planning of the second phase of the project (and other collaborative discussions), the LPHS Class Page wiki site.

Phase Three

            A wiki is a terrific venue for librarians and teachers. Two of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Standards for the 21st-Century Learner (2007), “school libraries are essential to the development of learning skills and learning has a social context,” are demonstrated with the integration of a wiki in a library. A wiki allows information, to be added, edited and deleted by librarians, teachers and students. The wiki administrator can design wiki pages that require a password, therefore limiting which group of students can access the wiki page. Teachers can post class wiki pages with lecture material; resources links; projects and assignments. Librarians can use the information to keep abreast with what students are learning and what resources they may need from the LMC. All of this information should be incorporated in the wiki proposal to the administrators as well as examples of library wiki pages.

            Wetpaint, a free wiki software-publishing website, is a fine choice for this project. It offers templates for group projects and classrooms, thus making it more user friendly for the creators. The design of the individual class wiki pages should have some uniformity and be created by a teacher (although a librarian’s page would be perfect for Information Literacy). Ideally, the creation of the wiki site would be done in baby steps, perhaps 2-3 teachers at first. For example,  an English class book reading assignment; history civil war project or perhaps an art class focus on Picasso paintings.

            As with any other project, there should be an ongoing evaluation of the process. In the wiki world, there very well may be a learning curve for staff and students. The Wetpaint design tutorials are very helpful and could be demonstrated in a teacher librarian conference. Another learning solution would have the LMC create a wiki best practices podcast, using the free Audacity software, which could be imported in the weblog and wiki home page.

            The introduction of ownership, copyright and licensure should be addressed, discussed and taught to the staff and students before launching the wiki.  A thorough understanding of copyright issues is essential for anyone sharing their ideas and information on the web. Creative Commons, a non-profit organization offers an online a solution for the social networking user to mark and annotate a “pre-clear copyrights to their creative work” (Creative Commons, no date). To date it is the most popular web solution to an individual’s online copyright credentialing. This pertinent, useful copyright information option should be linked to the LMC weblog page and LMC wiki.

           Realistically, again, the obstacles to implementing the wiki may be time constraint issues. The librarians and teachers should consider this as a project for student teachers.

            The caveats to the Web 2.0 social networking tools is the potential for misuse. Much like graffiti, where something is damaged, a wiki page can too be vandalized by a user; it is the reality of social networking. Abuse on a wiki page must edited quickly. The only two methods to avoid and control wiki vandalism is to clearly state the user policies on the home page of the wiki and have a chosen moderator/monitor (may be more than one) who manages the site daily.

Phase Four

            Finally, and the original concept for this Web 2.0 assignment, is to develop a partnership between the LMC and local public libraries. As stated earlier, access for the LPHS student students to the LMC appears to be limited at best. A perfect solution to this issue is the availability of local libraries (three as mentioned previously). The quest to enhance the education of a high school student should not fall on the responsibility of the school alone. The local libraries are rich with resources and offer the technology to assist students in their studies and assignments. Phase four would link the classroom wiki pages to the local libraries. Communication between the LMC and local public librarians could be achieved through email, instant messaging or weblog. The concept is to provide the local librarians with links to the classroom/subject wikis. This insures a better understanding by the local public librarians of the current needs and issues of the high school students.

            As with any project, one of the critical elements is to perform an evaluation of the plan. The initial proposals should have clear timelines to perform project evaluations. The initial purpose and goals must be addressed during this assessment.

Conclusion

            Five years from now the freshman in this high school will be in college. It is plausible, correct that, probable that the expectations in college will be that the student is  Web 2.0  literate and can smoothly navigate through the various social networking tools. While they may have embraced My Space, Facebook and You Tube without restrictions, introducing them to these tools, with defined polices and procedures in secondary school, will provide a solid foundation of what is, and what is not, acceptable and expected in college.

            Librarians are at the core of providing information literacy to LPHS students. While we strive to provide the necessary resources and learning tools for them to effectively research and write papers, we, as librarians must consider what will be expected of these young students in the future and prepare them for a smooth post-secondary school transition.

Footnote

            A very, rough draft of my proposed LPHS Library Media Center Weblog can be viewed by clicking on – My Project – L.P.H.S. Library Weblog – located under my “Blogroll.”

Bibliography

American Association of School Libraries (2007). Standards for the 21^st-Centruy Learner. Retrieved   June 20, 2008 from http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslproftools/learningstandards/standards.cfm

Bullard Library (2008). Bullard High School. Retrieved June 20, 2008 from http://bullardlibrary.edublogs.org/

Creative Commons (nd). Cc Creative Commons. Retrieved June 20, 2008 from http://wiki.creativecommons.org/images/6/62/Creativecommons-informational-flyer_eng.pdf

Lamb, A. (2007). Integrating the Best of Web 2.0 in the School Library Media Program. Retrieved June 21, 2008 from http://eduscapes.com/sessions/bestofweb2/index.htm

Walbert, D. (nd). Best Practices in School Library Website Design. Learn NC – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved June 20, 2008 http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/969