A library should be a free place where people can access and share information. Many school libraries have such strict access to Internet resources that patrons are blocked even from many educational sites. Restrictions do need to be in place to protect students from online predators and inappropriate content, but access needs to be carefully…

Many school library media specialists (LMS) would gladly pass along the responsibility of teaching online safety. Others may feel that it is the job of the computer lab personnel, the classroom teacher, or the parent. So how does the LMS fit into this scenario? While it is certainly appropriate for parents and classroom teachers to take joint…

Media specialists are never done learning technology. They can't truly learn in isolation and they are not ever settled in their roles as collaborator and teacher. Selecting literature and managing collections is an "old school" role. Just like language evolves, just like the town grange has evolved from a listserv, forum, to a wiki, media…

School media specialists hold the key to ensuring successful research projects that bring the world, and its vast amount of information, into a manageable perspective. More than ever, professionals in school libraries have the responsibility of guiding students to become information literate citizens in this new century. An important contribution…

On October 10, 2008 the "Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act" was signed. This law requires schools receiving federal E-rate discounts on Internet services to educate their students on appropriate online behavior. Many states including Virginia have mandated Internet Safety education in all grade levels as part of technology education.…

School library websites enhance and explain the services provided by the library. Most schools have a library website. Jurkowski (2004) reviewed thirty-four school library websites and ranked the most common features: website links, databases, policies, Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC), and websites by subject. These features give patrons a…

Citing the website "43 Things" (http://www.43things.com/) and derivatives Learning 2.0 (http://plcmcl2-about.blogspot.com/) and California's School Library Learning 2.0 (http://www.schoollibrarylearning2.blogspot.com/), the author suggests other activities to help librarians and teacher-librarians train themselves for leadership in new information…

Since the earliest days of the profession, school libraries have been establishing standards and guidelines to guide and shape school library programs. For the most part, the standards have shaped what programs are and what they do. Rarely has a set of standards focused on the content and process of what school libraries teach students. The…

According to a November 2004 Pew Internet and American Life Project survey, "87% of those between the ages of 12 and 17 are online...and half of them say they go online every day" ("Teens Forge" 1). They prefer the Internet to traditional libraries because they consider the Internet to be easier to use, more convenient, open 24/7, and full of more…

There are plenty of reasons why teaching students to set up their own blogs should not be taught by school librarians. But the truth is, not all students have access to that out-of-school technology world. ELL students and kids from lower-income homes are unlikely to have the Internet at home. As much as school librarians promote and encourage…

Nothing comes closer to "the truth" than a primary source, even a primary source with wart--biases, narrow-minded interpretations, and historical inaccuracies. Students who learn to apply critical thinking to the analysis of primary sources also learn to situate sources within the broader historical context, test hypotheses, form their own…

One of the most important roles for school libraries in the digital age is to provide students with a context for processing Internet information. It has been suggested that the school library should strive for a more pronounced clicks-and-mortar identity combining the best of the web and the traditional library collection.

The new AASL standards clearly spell out ethical responsibilities, which school librarians strive to instill and model as they work with staff and students. In this article, the author presents the AASL standards together with some tips and lesson ideas which she and her library partner have put into practice within their library media program.

Teaching students the difference between good and bad information has become increasingly more difficult for librarians and other educators. While tools exist to help students to understand how to determine good and bad online information (Web site evaluation forms, techniques to link back to Web site owners, etc.), the reality is that most…

Media specialists across the nation have developed innovate plans to ensure access to Online resources and safeguard them in the midst of the budget crisis, such as evaluating Online service providers involving stakeholders of elementary, middle, and high schools. This plan is aimed to produce valuable services, stronger communication, and an…