Feeling Overwhelmed

All this cataloging talk and discussion has me feeling overwhelmed. At my school, we have a library assistant who does the cataloging which is great. However, two years ago her job was cut and while she returned last year and is there this year, her position is once again on the cutting block.

I have my interview tomorrow for the library position at CHS so I am nervous and my mind is elsewhere. I have been practicing my responses to various interview questions all week and have been practicing out loud in the car.

Oh yeah....I'm suppose to be talking about cataloging....

Since this was a vacation week, I didn't have the chance to work in the library on this. I would really like to sit down with our assistant and have her explain it to me again. I did do this about a year and half ago, when I first started the program, but I would really like to do it again because I know things will start to "click" for me when I am actually doing it. Many of the students in class seem to have direct experience with this while I am brand spanking new.

I have to admit that I have been preoccupied with my upcoming interview and haven't had a chance to do the quizzes in the book. I did get two of the suggested books from my local library, Accidents Happen and Bard of Avon and have loved reading them both! But oh yeah, that wasn't the assignment. ...I have to learn how to properly catalog them! :)

I found K&R's logic on NOT cataloging graphic novels separately to be compelling (p.85). If we are to follow the logic of separating by graphic novels, why not have separate spaces for historical fiction and science fiction? Brings us back to the debate of getting rid of Dewey and classifying by subject like Barnes & Nobles does.

There always seems to be room for debate in cataloging which makes it interesting and challenging. However, I am of the school of thought that the intent is to get the item in the hands of the students and faculty.

Catalog Geek?

Wow! I bet the cataloging conferences are rocking places to be! :)



I have to be honest. I find this topic to be very dry and I do strongly agree with you Barb that it is something that you have to go through and do and is not something that one can learn through reading alone.



The chapter on Cataloging Theory and the MARC Record made me finally understand where the word science comes from in the term "library science." All of the codes, structure, tags, and formula for cataloging....oh my! It was a bit jarring and intimidating.



I hope I will be able to do this when the time comes! It seems like most school librarians copy other catalogs like the Library of Congress so I am relieved to know that there are resources out there to assist with this process.



I don't think I will fall in love with cataloging like some librarians but there is comfort in knowing that there is an organizational system like Dewey that makes the process easier.

Internet Safety Resources & Annotated Bibliography

I think Internet Safety "lessons" or programs should be something that all schools implement K-12. The internet is and will be a presence in all of lives and we have to teach students about it in a developmentally appropriate way. This is something that can and should be integrated across the curriculum and is worthy of our time.

I think resources and Powerpoints should be prominately shown and available to students on school library websites or wiki's.

1. Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center

www.webhost.bridgew.edu/marc

Located at Bridgewater State College, this organization and site is a wonderful resource for educators and parents. They do "Train the Trainer" workshops and will also do parent workshops. In recent years, their focus has been on cyberbullying and they offer many workshops and conferences to assist school systems in implementing anti-bullying policies.

The site has wonderful brochures to download and a more recent one was added called Avoiding and Responding to Problems on Facebook.

2. Ad Council PSA: Online Sexual Exploitation-Bulletin Board

Access on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ja8xtQNQYDQ

This a wonderful one minute PSA by the Ad Council that shows how what one posts online is never truly gone from the Internet, even if you delete it.

On the YouTube comments message board, a naive teen wrote that she didn't understand what was wrong with the picture. If I showed this to grades 6-12, I would emphasize that the picture represents any type of picture you'd be embarrassed by (nudity, under the influence etc.) but obviously, the Ad Council cannot use frontal nudity to get the message across.

3. CyberSmart Curriculum (http://www.cybersmartcurriculm.org/)

WOW! This is a great resource! packed with online lessons from K-12. Great content with more in the works. I highly recommend this site.

4. Wired Safety (http://www.wiredsafety.org/)

This site proclaims to be the "world's largest internet safety, help and resource." Its executive director. Parry Aftab, is an attorney and has been quoted and interviwed in numerous media outlets. This website is chockful with helpful links for teens, parents and educators.

5. Wired Safety YouTube Video: Cyberbullying Part 1 and 2

www.youtube.com/watch?v=T38-9OCDrP4

This is an eight minute video that describes four types of cyberbullies: the vengeful angel, the power hungery cyber bully(includes the revenge of the nerds), the mean girls and inadvertant cyberbully. It gives great advice such as Stop, Block and Tell. What makes it powerful is that the kids speak about their experiences. It seems geared towards middle schoolers but could also be used for 9th and 10th graders.

6. Stop Cyberbullying (http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/)

This is a powerful PowerPoint presentation created by Parry Aftab, the woman who started http://www.wiredsafety.org/. When you log onto the site, the Powerpoint immediately begins and moves and tansitions with type on the screen. It could be shown to both students and parents.

I think I am going to use it in my 10th grade guidance seminars.

7. Massachusetts Anti-Bullying law (http://www.boston.com/)

News article from the Globe but I would like to see the specific wording and consequences if found guilty.

8. Connect Safely
http://www.connectsafely.org/

This is another great site with helpful tips and suggestions for parents and kids. Even though there are many of these types of sites out there, each one I have gone to seems to add a bit more or has a different or additional viewpoint that was not on another site. For example, this site has a tip sheets on Virtual Reality.

9. NetFamilyNews http://www.netfamilynews.org/

This is a blog started by one of the co-directors of connectsafely.org, Anne Collier. This is dubbed the Kid Tech News for parents and is a wonderful resource so parents can be "current" with what is going on with kids and technology. I just signed up for her weekly email list!

10. NetNanny (www.netnanny.com/)

Since I am in the market for some type of filter for my PC and our home computer, this commercial site interested me. For $39.99, it can and will block pornography and will track profanity other potential online dangers.

My ten year daughter is starting to use the computer a lot now and she goes to Google Images to print out photos for school projects. My fear is that she will enter a search word with a double meaning and porn will come popping up! I have to get on this now.

This program caught my attention because it was the first on my Google return list and because it was named the *Best* filter by PC Magazine. I will ask around though before I purchase anything and consult my Tech Dept. and our School Resource Officer.