ABSTRACT NUMBER 4

CITATION:

(May 2001). Educational technology can add value to printed books. Curriculum Review, 14-15p.

SUMMARY:

This article is an interview with Sharon Porter. She is a library media specialist at La Grande Middle School in La Grande, Oregon. Sharon has been doing this job for 30 years and still has not lost her touch. Recently she began linking her library’s printed book materials with electronic media (laserdiscs, DVDs, and audio CDs) using Bar’n’Coder software from Pioneer. The library’s text and multimedia resources have been cross-pollinated. While cross-pollinating, Porter has reinvigorated her school’s library and heightened the learning experiences for her students. So what actually gave her this wild hair? There was an elementary class that was working on a research unit on the solar system. She was tired seeing the “same old story” over and over again. She wanted the students to be more creative. In order for this to happen, she suggested that the students make barcodes up linking to actual pictures of Uranus and Saturn, and tape the barcode strips onto their research. When it came time for the students to give their presentations, they would read their research, show their illustrations, and then show a short segment on Saturn and Pluto. One would be surprised on what is actually out there and on what. She found a lot of references on DVD and laserdisc that actually showed better reproductions of art on the screen that the art books in the library. What would you refer: black and white from a book or color on the wall from a DVD or a laserdisc? Porter even encountered a lot of really great science materials by the use of DVD. Since each child learns in a different way why not try this style. Here are some examples. First, you have a child that cannot stay in his/her seat, kinesthetic learner. Put a laserdisc or a DVD to them, use a barcode reader, you have to manipulate the computer, and you have to lead the disc in and out – this keeps the child more interested than more print-oriented activities. Now you have a child that could not stay still in his/her seat to a child that is really reading and not causing trouble. The other example will be the hearing-impaired. This kind of technology gives them a tool to have captioning underneath some of the images. Multilingual aspect of these titles can help with your ESL students. Students start by using HyperStudio, which is a multimedia-authoring tool for Windows and Mac. The next step is an Apple based program called Avid Cinema, which allows students to pull DVD footage into the computer and the edit it for what they need for presentations.

PERSONAL REACTION:

This was so cool. A librarian thought of a way to help students out on their research and be able to keep the teachers more enthused about what the students are doing. This technology really sounds nice. That would save the cost in papers because the students would not have to copy pages of textbooks to take home and read or highlight. Teachers just have to pull a barcode and here comes these colorful images on the wall or screen. Now that is awesome! That is a way that is guaranteed to keep the students attention from the tardy bell to when classes are let out. I have to salute her this lady for coming up with this idea. Barcodes does help the librarians that way they do not have to keep typing those index cards that go to a card catalog every time a new book comes in. Of course there are some down sides since it is technology. What happens if the power goes out? The network is acting up while a student or teacher is presenting? In scouts there is a motto that goes like so, “Be Prepared!” Both teachers and students always need to be prepared for anything goes wrong while doing a presentation. That is one thing that I definitely learned over the years. Always have a back-up plan. Presentations must go on regardless if your presentation is not as “cool” looking. “The show must go on!”