Access to digital content

Recent SCIS workshops and presentations have focused on the challenges facing school libraries in their management of digital content. As a key service provider and partner with Australian and New Zealand school libraries SCIS is committed to helping schools deal with collection management issues, and provides catalogue records for e-books, websites, apps, audio books, learning objects and digital video.

Highlights of Connections 85

You can now read the latest issue of Connections at the SCIS website.

Digital Citizenship

Judith Way discusses why she saw the need for a digital citizenship blog which reached out to all sectors of her school community.  She felt that many students and parents, even if adept at using digital technology and social media, were often unaware of the implications of their digital footprint.  She resolved to  promote the responsible use of social media and the internet.

Kew High School's cybersafety/digital citizenship blog. Printed here with permission
Kew High School’s cybersafety/digital citizenship blog. Printed here with permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using archetypes to match learning spaces with physical and digital spaces

Bianca Hewes looks at the traditional classroom and wonders why in a changing world, it remains unchanged despite the creation of virtual learning spaces.  She  examines the work of Prof. David D Thornburg who identifies four ‘archetypal learning spaces: Campfire, Watering hole, Cave and Life.

The Annual Report

Dianne McKenzie discusses how the annual report can be a record of a year’s planning and activity, allowing the Librarian to showcase the diverse roles and activities of the Library.  She emphasizes the importance of documenting and collecting data

SCIS is more: E-book and RDA updates

Meet our new Cataloging Team Leader Soula Kipos, and find out more about SCIS records for e-books and the introduction of the cataloguing standard: Resource Description and Access (RDA).

SCIS asks

SCIS is conducting a consultation workshop in Melbourne on Tuesday 4 December 2012 from 9.00-1.00pm. The consultation aims to engage SCIS and its partners in discussion about future priorities in our support of school libraries.

Spiral sculpture
Spiral, Rena Voronoff, 2007
Photo by Michael Jongen

Twitter hashtag for the day: #scisasks

9.00am Welcome, SCIS update and consultation goals

9.15am Strategic directions

9.45am Resource Description and Access

  • Introduction to RDA and its benefits for education libraries (Renate Beilharz, Box Hill TAFE)
  • Recommended changes to SCIS Standards for Cataloguing (Pam Kadow, SCIS Cataloguing Team Leader)
  • Discussion and questions
    Outcome: Resolutions on RDA implementation dates and process

11.00am Morning Tea

11.30am ScOT and subject access in SCIS

  • Subject authorities looking forward
  • Schools Online Thesaurus (ScOT) in library systems
  • Australian Curriculum alignment opportunities
  • Discussion and questions
    Outcome: Resolutions on research required and timeline

12.15pm Integrating digital collections

  • Challenges of collection building and workflows
  • Priorities for cataloguing digital content
  • Discussion and questions
    Outcome: Recommendations on priority areas for SCIS services

1.00pm SCIS Consultation closes
Participants are encouraged to stay for a light lunch and then join delegates at the keynote session and opening reception for the IDEA 2012 conference at the Sofitel, 25 Collins Street Melbourne.

2.00pm Keynote: The science and technology of learning, Professor Erik Duval, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
3.15pm Afternoon tea
3.45pm Panel: Challenges and opportunities for digital learning including Rhyan Bloor, Digital Education Branch, DEEWR; Rodney Spark, eWorks; Kerri-Lee Krause, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education), University of Western Sydney and Bevan Doyle, Chief Information Officer, Department of Education Western Australia

5.30pm IDEA2012 Reception and Networking

6.30pm IDEA 2012 Day 1 close

Contact scisinfo@esa.edu.au for further information

What about e-books?

At SCIS workshops a popular topic of discussion is e-books in school libraries. This blog post provides an update on what SCIS is doing about e-books.

What e-books will I find in SCIS?

SCIS catalogues e-books from a number of publishers and vendors. In most cases schools are unable to send e-books to their SCIS cataloguing agency (due to digital rights and access restrictions) so we are reliant on publishers and e-book system providers for the access that allows us to catalogue e-books.

Note that as titles may be available from more than one e-book supplier SCIS is in the process of changing its cataloguing standards to favour provision of provider-neutral e-book records that do not link to a specific supplier.

SCIS regularly catalogues e-books from the following  e-book providers and vendors

Screen shot from SCIS catalogue
Subject search for e-books in the SCIS catalogue

What about free e-books?

SCIS catalogues Project Gutenberg and public domain e-book material on request from schools if they are seen to be relevant to curriculum or literature programs across a range of schools.
Search the SCIS Catalogue for Project Gutenberg e-books [login required].

What if I can’t find an e-book record in SCIS?

We are keen to ensure that the e-book resources schools are acquiring are catalogued promptly.
Contact your SCIS cataloguing agency with details of the resource you have purchased and we will investigate how to access this in order to catalogue it.

Cataloguing e-books

A new version of the SCIS Standards for Cataloguing and Data Entry, including guidelines for cataloguing e-books, was published on the SCIS website in December 2010. The SCIS Information Services Standards Committee (ISSC) spent some time grappling with the issue of multiple e-book formats and providers before making a number of policy decisions.

The following presentation outlines issues related to cataloguing of e-books and is based on a SCIS ISSC discussion paper.

View more presentations from SCIS

Connections 76

You can now read the latest issue of Connections online. Copies have been mailed to all Australian schools. There are articles of interest for everyone involved in school library activities.

An introduction to the Australian Curriculum

Dr Grette Toner outlines the structure, implications and opportunities for teacher librarians of the Australian Curriculum. As well as new content, the curriculum will involve new skills and new tools.

Harnessing the e-book juggernaut

Kerrie Smith traces the rise in interest and use of e-readers in Australia during 2010 and discusses the issues facing school libraries considering adoption of e-book technology. She explains what is currently available and lists criteria for consideration before purchasing a device.

The KnowledgeBank: Next Generation Project

Katrina Reynen describes a Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development digital teaching and learning resources project. FUSE (Find Use Share Education) is a portal of 30,000 pieces of content from a number of partners. She outlines policy challenges addressed, as well as research undertaken into patterns of student use of FUSE.

School library blog value

Emily Pyers points out how a blog can be used as an effective tool to communicate the library’s activities and the value of its resources to staff, students and parents.

From little things big things grow

The fourth instalment of Nigel Paull’s account of a new BER library looks at the challenges for users during operations from a temporary library.

Print complete issue of Connections 76, term 1 2011

Connections 75 ready to read

You can read the latest issue of Connections online. Copies have been mailed to all Australian schools.
There are articles of interest for everyone involved in school library activities. Let us know what you think of this issue.

Thinking about ebooks

75. Thinking about ebooks image 3
Ebook demonstration at Web 2.0 expo, San Francisco 2010, courtesy of Flickr

Stephen Abram describes and discusses the ebook, looking at what it is, and what it is not. He discusses fiction versus non-fiction, reference material and textbooks, and how the ebook can enhance usability. Read more …

Your school library collection: a catalyst for creating writers
Maxine Ramsay discusses the use of text types in the teaching of writing to young students. She explains how teachers and library staff can identify and assist in the effective discovery of good text examples within their library collection. Read more …

The highs and lows of establishing an online community
Kerry Franta describes EnhanceTV’s experience of creating an online community. It is important for members to share a common interest and to be passionate enough about it to contribute online. Read more …

Digital participation, digital literacy and schools
Through developing digital literacy in their students, educators are enhancing young people’s ability to use digital media, strengthening their knowledge and learning skills, as well as providing them with the capacity to participate and interact in wider social and cultural settings. Read more …

From little things big things grow
The third instalment of Nigel Paull’s account of a new BER library focuses on library design essentials. Read more …

Digital media and libraries of the future?

ebook reader

A few recently published articles about the role of digital media in the library that you might find interesting…

Welcome to the library. Say goodbye to the books

Boston Globe, by David Abel.

A private preparatory school in New England  has done away with it’s collection of  more than 200,000 printed books in one of its campus libraries, in order to implement a digital learning centre (ie. library) that contains no printed material whatsoever.  Scary? Just a little.  The way of the future? Maybe not yet..

This Could Be the Year of E-Textbooks, if Students Accept Them

The Chronicle of Higher Education, By Jeffrey R. Young

Discusses the pros and cons of e-textbooks, and whether they’re really set to replace the printed text.  The Arizona State University is participating in a  e-textbook experiment supported by Amazon, using the Kindle e-book reader, and the results to date have been mixed.

The future of libraries, with or without books

CNN, by John D. Sutter.

A  fairly general  article about different initiatives being undertaken by public libraries in the U.S.,  and how the role of the library (and the librarian!) is changing in the face of new technologies.  Hardly exhaustive, but it’s an interesting starting point for discussions about digital medias in the library.

The image of the ebook reader above is from Flickr creative commons.
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