Featured Post Added - Mary Fortezzo

The gadget that I choose was to add a Featured Post.  I think that a featured post is important to help the viewer have easier access to view our Blog.  Therefore, I chose Jen's QR code as our featured post. The viewer will be able to share and access our blog with ease.

Added Links List Gadget to provide link to Cowbird - Chris Kleit

I decided to add the Links List gadget so that I could provide a link to Cowbird.com. I provided a link to Cowbird because I want to encourage our blog readers to explore the over 70,000 digital stories stored in Cowbird's Library of Human Experience.

Image Gadget Added - Laura Bisagna

I added the Palomar College logo using the image gadget.  I thought it would be a nice addition to our blog, as we should all be proud of everything we've learned here at Palomar and all the work we've done -- it's been A LOT of work! LOL!  I also like the red star in the swoosh signifying that we are all reaching for the stars here, pursuing our educational goals. Great job, everyone, on doing such excellent work this semester.  While this online course may have made it a little bit harder to connect with classmates, I feel we've come to know a lot about each other through out discussion posts, this blog, as well as through projects and discussions in other classes.  It's been a pleasure taking this course with all of you.  Can you believe it's almost over?!  Congratulations, everyone!

Blog Gadgets:
The Blog Gadget I decided to add is "Our Favorite Things" Gadget. I chose this Gadget because I think when people view our Blog, some may be interested in what we like or recommend when it comes to books, movies, food, outings... I thought this would be a fun way to voice our likes and dislikes to our viewers.

 Our own QR Code.

                                                                                                                                                        Blog for Presentation Tools LIT 130

 I decided to add a QR code to our Blog. QR codes are used for just about anything now a days. One of our last assignments for our LIT 130 class showed us how QR codes can engage children in school making their learning experience interactive. I think it is a useful gadget to attach to our Blog, because we can send the QR code to anyone to make viewing our Blog that much faster. I've included a hyperlink to take you to the site I used to generate a QR code. It was easy and quick.
https://www.qr-code-generator.com/a1/?ut_source=google_c&ut_medium=cpc&ut_campaign=en_qr_code_generisch&ut_content=qr_code_free_exact&ut_term=free%20qr%20codes_e&gclid=CjwKCAjw5dnmBRACEiwAmMYGOSIqAfwggCvHQBPZXkhQupc-hwPSquZfGPk5jb3Gu0GbVxKw5Ut3nhoCVPQQAvD_BwE 

Text Gadget Addition - Brigitte Foisy

I thought it would be a nice addition to include a text gadget in our blog. I selected the sidebar-right-1 location where many of our gadgets are located. I used this text gadget to create an "About Presentation Tools" where the reader would be able to see how this blog came to be and why☺
I think the text gadget would be very popular with bloggers, especially because you can add more that one. This is also convenient because you are not limited to what you can put in the text, the opportunities are left up to your creativity!

Contact Form Gadget - Erika Westrich

I chose to add the "Contact Form" gadget. I placed it in the righthand column at the bottom of the page. I feel that this is something every blog should contain because it allows followers to reach the writers of the blog to ask questions or raise concerns about the blog. Many times I have used a "contact us" gadget when I had a question about a post, a website that was mentioned or a product. I think it is a good way to keep readers involved and connected to the creator of the blog.

Blog Search Gadget Addition- Holly Verdugo

I added a Blog Search Gadget, titled "Search this Blog." I thought it would be a nice addition to our blog because there are so many great posts on our blog about different topics on presentation tools. If someone wanted to visit our blog and search for a certain topic, then that person can easily use the Blog Search Gadget to find that topic, instead of scrolling through the entire blog to locate the topic. I think it is a helpful tool or gadget to have.

Wikipedia Gadget added - Robyn Doi

Hello Bloggers,
I added the Wikipedia Gadget to our Blog. I thought this would be helpful to any of our readers so if they wanted to look up anything that we may be blogging about they could do so without leaving the blog directly. This is a website that is used often, and I thought it would be beneficial to anyone who visits this blog.

Gadget addition - Sarah Batok

I added the "report abuse" gadget to the bottom of our blog. I think it's important in the highly digital world we live in to monitor websites for potential abuses or inappropriate content. The "report abuse" gadget allows anyone visiting a site to report if there is someone making inappropriate posts, or using the site for ulterior purposes. This helps keep the website accountable for the information on the page, and allows people to focus on the expected content of the website rather than be bombarded by ads, solicitations, or hateful comments.

Virtual Reality - Chris Kleit

The increasing use of Virtual Reality in school libraries is a reflection of the digital age. Virtual Reality provides an opportunity for libraries to expand from their traditional role of providing access to information and the tools necessary for understanding information, to providing guidance to access information.  Virtual Reality in schools “consists of technology, primarily phones and viewers, that simulate a 3D experience, that immerses students in an environment otherwise unavailable. For education purposes” (Foglesong, 2019). Trevor Foglesong, a Teacher Librarian and technology lead at his school district, added the Google Expeditions (Virtual Reality) app as a type of maker space activity designed to help students visualize information in a new way in order to increase their ability to retain information (Foglesong, 2019). Since investing in the Expeditions app, Folgelsong has seen the positive impact that a Virtual Reality trip can have on student learning. He states that a student who merely listened to a lecture on the circulatory system will almost always forget what he had heard by the end of the school year. However, being immersed in a Virtual Reality trip that travels the lengths of the human body, will certainly have a lasting impact (Foglesong, 2019). Click on the below instructional video on how to use Google Expeditions with students.

Works Cited: 

Foglesong, Trevor. “Virtual Reality Changing Our Library Services, Not Our Vision.” CSLA Journal, vol.

     42, no. 2, Winter 2019, pp. 9–10. EBSCOhost,

     search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=134571623&site=eds-live.

Pioneer RESA Tech. "How To Use Google Expeditions with Students." YouTube, 21 Sept. 2016, https://youtu.be/0KgYntZ35fY

Digital Storytelling - Chris Kleit

Academic libraries are centers of education and they serve the students, faculty, and staff at their institutions through the implementation of digital storytelling programs. Digital storytelling can help students develop information literacy skills, which are vital for conducting research and information gathering from a variety of different sources. Students can develop visual literacy by creating and consuming digital stories because it encourages them to combine words with images, an important skill to have in the digital age. Digital storytelling can also help students to learn how to interpret images in a more abstract manner. For example, they can “see how images may be associated with concepts or emotions as opposed to having only a literal meaning” (Czarnecki, 2009).  Digital storytelling has also encouraged faculty to connect with both students and the scholarly community in new ways. For example, the personal voice “used in digital storytelling gives many a new and creative outlet for both talking about and thinking about their work in different ways” (Czarnecki, 2009). Click on the video below to watch the digital story titled "Universal Love" from Cowbird.com. Cowbird is a public library of human experience, with over 70,000 stories.

Works Cited:

Czarnecki, Kelly. “Chapter 4: Digital Storytelling in Different Library Settings.” Library

     Technology Reports, no. 7, 2009, p. 20. EBSCOhost,

     search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgao&AN=edsgcl.211232127&site=eds-

     live.

Cowbird.com. "Universal Love." YouTube. 25 May 2014. https://youtu.be/uLcSuVGPqzw.

Libraries in the Digital Age - Chris Kleit

School library professionals are having to change the way they teach in the digital age.  For example, Chris Barnabei, a librarian at Chambersburg Area Career Magnet School took on a new role as technology integrator/librarian after his school implemented a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and project-based curriculum in which students are required to use iPads in their classes. Chris and other library staff have always taught their teachers new technology skills as a group, but now they work with them one-on-one to show them how to plan projects with the use of technology and also how to use apps and other resources in their classrooms.  In addition, besides teaching them skills in research and information literacy, Chris makes sure that he is available for tech support during class sessions. Chris found that while having to reinvent himself to stay relevant in the digital age has been a lot of work, it has also been very rewarding. Chris’ advice to anyone else who is willing to undertake a similar endeavor is to “have a willingness to take risks and learn from our failures” (Hammond and Barnabei, 2013).   Watch the short video below about the role of librarians in the digital age.

Works Cited:

Hammond, Joanne K., and Chris Barnabei. “Reinventing Ourselves in the Digital Age.” Library 

     Media Connection, no. 6, 2013, p. 14. EBSCOhost,

     search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgao&AN=edsgcl.346371567&site=eds-live.

Harvard X. "Role of Librarians in the Digital Age." YouTube. YouTubehttps://youtu.be/C-QAEIcPNII. 30 April, 

     2019.

Presentation Tools - Chris Kleit

Prezi, a non-linear presentation of text and visuals that you can zoom in and out of on a 3-dimensional canvas, is a true alternative to PowerPoint and becoming an increasingly popular tool for library instruction. Prezi’s bracket and linking tools seem especially designed for building hierarchies, making the presentation software ideal for creating decision trees. Library staff are now creating decision trees to help English Literature students understand when a citation is necessary.  The decision tree walks “students through a number of citation scenarios, providing a solution for each situation” (Kiscaden, 2014). Decision trees are also being created to guide students through a process for downloading e-books onto their mobile devices. The decision tree functionality “allows students to walk through instructions and select what type of device they have (Android or iOS), ‘zooming’ into instructions for that particular device” (Kiscaden, 2014). Prezi offers some powerful tools for today’s library professionals. Click on the link to watch a Prezi tutorial for beginners.

Works Cited:

Kiscaden, Elizabeth. “Promoting Information Literacy with Prezi.” Computers in Libraries, 
no. 2, 2014. EBSCOhost,  

   search.ebscohost.com/login.aspxdirect=true&db=edsbig&AN=edsbig.A363191449&site=eds-live.

Prezi. "Prezi Tutorial for Beginners."

   https://prezi.com/t3juzxgelbl0/do-it-yourself-prezi-tutorial-beginner/

Digital Storytelling - Mary Fortezzo

     Digital storytelling, is a great tool to use to bring actual viewpoints of the participants. Seeing people and hearing them give an account of an event enhances the education of the student.  For example, this young man wanted to interview soldiers from WWII.  This type of storytelling preserves not only the stories but the actual history of an event.  Here is a clip that shows this Boy Scout interview a war hero.

http://highered.nbclearn.com.ezproxy.palomar.edu/portal/site/HigherEd/browse?cuecard=61641

Ellis, Rehema. "Boy Scout’s Mission: Sharing WWII Stories". NBC Learn, NBC Nightly News, 22 Oct. 2012, http://highered.nbclearn.com.ezproxy.palomar.edu/portal/site/HigherEd/browse?cuecard=61641

Digital Storytelling by Robyn Doi

Digital Storytelling was given as the Blog post topic. So my first question was What is Digital Storytelling? So the search began. First, Wikipedia states that "Digital storytelling" is a relatively new term which describes the new practice of everyday people who use digital tools to tell their 'story'. Digital stories often present in compelling and emotionally engaging formats, and can be interactive."

 To my surprise, Digital Storytelling is what my kids do all the time. My life is about photos not videos of any kind. My kids make videos about themselves or things happening around them almost daily. This is something I have not had any interest in doing. I love my photos in my scrapbooks. As the search and learning began I quickly realized that Digital Storytelling is just an extension of scrapbooking. How does this translate to libraries? Digital storytelling is a great way to show off a library or a collection in a library. It is also a great way to keep track of history by sharing stories (kind of like scrapbooking).

 I found a couple of videos that explain Digital storytelling and how to make one in PowerPoint.

Digital Storytelling with PowerPoint by Megan Grady

https://youtu.be/N2MbBSc6930

What is Digital Storytelling by Center for Arts-Inspired Learning

https://youtu.be/e5usc00wa40

Sources

“Digital Storytelling.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Apr. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_storytelling.

“What Is Digital Storytelling?” YouTube, 17 Jan. 2018, youtu.be/e5usc00wa40.

“Digital Storytelling with PowerPoint.” YouTube, 4 Mar. 2016, youtu.be/N2MbBSc6930.

Virtual Reality and Libraries – Erika Westrich

When you think of virtual reality, you think gaming - shooting zombies, crashing cars and fighting bad guys; but what if you could do more? What if you could walk through a book; see images played out all around you as an audio version of the book creates words and surround-sound in your ears? How about taking a trip, to a faraway land without ever leaving the comfort of an armchair in an air-conditioned library?

These things and many more could be in our futures as virtual technology advances. Companies such as Google and Facebook are creating or acquiring apps, programs and virtual technology devises to expand their portfolios’ and our lives. Websites/Apps like With.in (and their new, kid-friendly “Wonderscope”) are paving the way for content that will support and evolve the way we use a library. Every month With.in is adding new content to their site. Currently, the content is all new and original but it is just a matter of time before books, new and old, evolve into the virtual reality world; which book would you like to step into?

Works Cited:

Lambert, Troy. “Virtual Reality in the Library: Creating a New Experience.” Public Libraries Online. Public Library Association. 2019. www.publiclibrariesonline.org. Accessed 19 April 2019.

Roettgers, Janko. “A sense of Wonder: How Within Is Evolving Storytelling in Augmented Reality.” Variety. Variety Media, LLC. https://variety.com/2018/digital/features/within-wonderland-ar-storytelling-1203020435/. Accessed 19 April 2019.

Within. 2019. www.with.in. Accessed 19 April 2019.

Digital Storytelling – Erika Westrich

Digital storytelling is a way to use video, audio, photographs, graphic art, animation, and other forms of communication and media to tell a story. From Book trailers, and videoed book readings, to recording a journal entry digitally, even Instagram, Facebook and Twitter could all be considered forms of digital storytelling.

Librarians can use fun presentation tools to create stories about their library and their community. They could even offer such tools, in a hands-on program, as a fun way for kids (and adults) to learn about digital storytelling. One such digital presentation tool is Vyond.com. This program is a fun way to use characters and settings to create fun digital stories. The website has many examples listed under “showcase” that demonstrate how to use Vyond.

In a world that has gone digital, finding ways to create new and exciting stories is just a mouse click away.

Works Cited:

Schein, Christine. “Digital Presentation Tools.” Colorado Virtual Library. Colorado State Library. https://www.coloradovirtuallibrary.org/technology/digital-presentation-tools/. Accessed 22 April 2019.

Vyond. 2019. https://www.vyond.com/. Accessed 22 April 2019.

Presentation Tools in Libraries – Erika Westrich

Presentation tools are developing into the standard for amercing an audience in the digital age. Libraries need to find new and exciting ways to entice the public to want to use their services. The use of presentation tools gives any library website enhanced experiences that patrons will surely enjoy. Libraries can even offer the use of these tools through their website or even offer classes to teach how to use presentation tools.

In, Christine Schein’s, Digital Presentation Tools, she has accumulated a large selection of presentation tools that libraries and/or their patrons can utilize. Some require subscriptions (that the library can provide) others are free. These tools range from simple slide show presentations (like PowerPoint) to more detailed, animated presentations. Each tool in her list can create a fun and informative presentation that will keep the viewer engaged and wanting to learn more about the topic being presented.

Works Cited:

Schein, Christine. “Digital Presentation Tools.” Colorado Virtual Library. Colorado State Library. https://www.coloradovirtuallibrary.org/technology/digital-presentation-tools/. Accessed 22 April 2019.

Libraries in the Digital Age – Erika Westrich

With the evolution of the digital age, libraries will die or evolve. “The internet has already had a major impact on how people find and access information, and now the rising popularity of e-books is helping transform Americans’ reading habits. In this changing landscape, public libraries are trying to adjust their services to these new realities while still serving the needs of patrons who rely on more traditional resources” (Library Services).

The Pew Research Center conducted a nationwide survey of Americans 16-years and older, about the importance of libraries and what services they would benefit from when using a library.

“Moreover, a notable share of Americans say they would embrace even wider uses of technology at libraries such as:

§  Online research services allowing patrons to pose questions and get answers from librarians: 37% of Americans ages 16 and older would “very likely” use an “ask a librarian” type of service, and another 36% say they would be “somewhat likely” to do so.

§  Apps-based access to library materials and programs: 35% of Americans ages 16 and older would “very likely” use that service and another 28% say they would be “somewhat likely” to do so.

§  Access to technology “petting zoos” to try out new devices: 35% of Americans ages 16 and older would “very likely” use that service and another 34% say they would be “somewhat likely” to do so.

§  GPS-navigation apps to help patrons locate material inside library buildings: 34% of Americans ages 16 and older would “very likely” use that service and another 28% say they would be “somewhat likely” to do so.

§  “Redbox”-style lending machines or kiosks located throughout the community where people can check out books, movies or music without having to go to the library itself: 33% of Americans ages 16 and older would “very likely” use that service and another 30% say they would be “somewhat likely” to do so.

§  “Amazon”-style customized book/audio/video recommendation schemes that are based on patrons’ prior library behavior: 29% of Americans ages 16 and older would “very likely” use that service and another 35% say they would be “somewhat likely” to do so” (Library Services).

When it comes to libraries in the digital age and presentation tools the idea of, “Ask A Librarian”, could be a great tool to create for libraries. A device, similar to Siri or Alexa, could be developed into an app using a program similar to VOKI. Patrons could ask about books, directions, library hours, programs the library offers, as well as many more categories. This would be beneficial to busy patrons who do not have time to search the libraries website, as well as people with vision or reading deficiencies.

With the technological developments of today, everyone wants information quick. If libraries can be innovative and stay ahead of the demand, their existence will not go the way of the dinosaurs.

Works Cited:

“Library Services in the Digital Age – Summary of Findings.” Pew Internet. Pew Research Center. 2019. https://www.pewinternet.org/2013/01/22/library-services/. Accessed 22 April 2019.

Oddcast Inc. 2019. https://www.voki.com/. Accessed 22 April 2019.