6960 MTSU: Fall 2011 6960 & Twitter

6960 MTSU: Fall 2011 6960 & Twitter: What is Twitter all about? What educational use did you find for Twitter? One issue in schools is access to Twitter. The social networking...

slb7h says....

As a communication device with parents, as well as students, it would work great. Teachers could easily just send a tweet out that would remind all parties of upcoming tests or assignments. I found the idea of using Twitter would be an interesting and exciting way to get students involved in your class, if for no other reason but the newness and interest that this would bring. I found a very interesting presentation by Russel Tarr entitled “34 Interesting Ways (and tips) to Use Twitter in the Classroom”. One interesting use was a website www.historicaltweets.com . Students could then put themselves in the shoes of the historical character and comment about important issues dealing with that historical person. A use that I thought of was the idea of the teacher posting the first line of the poem and students continuing the poem from there. A story could also be written in the same way.

A drawback to using this technological method of communication would be the availability to all parties. In the rural area that I live, the parents who often need the information the most are the parents who do not have access to this tool. Maybe, the capabilities are available, but the parent does not know how to use the technology.

(2011). The Ultimate guide to using twitter. Retrieved on September 21, 2011 from http://edudemic.com/2011/09/twitter-in-education/.

The End is in Sight

Wow!  This LCSH stuff is difficult.  To me, it is like the iceberg that stands in the Arctic Ocean.  It seems quite small, but upon closer examination, I discover that there is a lot of stuff hidden under the water, and the iceberg causes quite a wreck!  I worked through the homework and did okay on it.  When I  began studying for the Bonus and read the line that stated I would not need to use the LOC, I think I panicked.  Doing cataloging takes an extreme amount of practice.  No wonder KEB did a hundred cards a night as an assignment.  It would take me that long to grasp the concepts completely.  She even had a head start because she was already cataloging!             

                Bonus quiz is graded!  I am pleased with my grade.  I did much better than I initially thought.  I can almost see the finish line in sight!  One more quiz and two essay exams, and I will have two more classes under my belt!  I am enjoying the whole going back to school on-line stuff.  I have never done on-line classes before, and it’s been ten years since I finished my master’s degree.  It is stressful, but everything will be okay with the good Lord by my side and my wonderfully supportive family!

March Blog

Well, we are on to module 6 with the DDC, but first let’s reflect on Module 5.  Module 5 was more of a success than I thought.  I had only minor errors in my graded homework.  I find myself doing things correctly then making a small mistake when I do them again on another entry.  It takes a lot of practice to remember to do everything. For instance, I forgot to put “summary” in front of one of my summaries.  What a crazy thing to do!! I am nervous about taking the quiz over these topics.  It’s just a lot of information to remember and keep straight. 

            Module 6, upon first viewing actually seems fun.  My son came through and asked me how my homework was going.  I replied that I was at a stopping point for the night.  I told him I was learning to use the DDC.  I told him I could tell him where any book on any topic went on the shelf, if the shelf was arranged with the DDC.  He said, “Well, Mom what about a book on quantum physics.”  I used the relative index and found physics.  We went to that number in the classification tables.  I asked him a couple more questions about what exactly quantum physics was and found that yes the book belonged in 530.  Oh yeah!  (At our house we have a saying, “Mom, you just beasted that question!)  Language is manipulated in a house with teenagers!  What fun we have!!!

            Well, ungraded practice on Module 6 seems to have been successful.  No major mistakes noted.  I am finished and ready to turn in the graded work.  One of the most challenging elements of the graded assignment was prevention of unemployment.  I looked at if from the aspect of job creation.  We’ll see!

Success!!!

Blog for February:

                A friend of mine told me that “her brain does not work like that” when it comes to cataloging.  I can understand completely now.  After practicing and re-practicing, I obviously just don’t get parts of it.  I think a big part of my problem is because the homework assignment was marked “ungraded” I did not put enough effort into it.  I have learned several things though, I think. 

·         Movies do not have ISBN nor any other important number that needs to be included on block records.

·         If the information isn’t there, it is okay to leave something blank.

·         When the information is to be preceded by punctuation, put it at the beginning of that area of the worksheet. 

·         Microsoft Word can be an evil enemy when you are doing AACR worksheets:  Auto correct is not your friend!

·         The Devil is in the details!!!

I like the example KEB supplied that used the layers effect.  When I began to think of my records that way, I think I understood it better.  (We’ll see how I do on my graded homework.)    Examples work better for me.  I dug very deeply into AACR and looked closely at my corrected papers as examples.     

        The results are in!!!  (Drumroll…..)  49 out of 50!  I feel so much better.  Now, on to MARC!!!  MARC is simply putting all this very organized information into a form that the computer can read.  The system again uses a language all its own with tags, $’s, and subfields, to name only a few.  Tags go first, indicators are next and can be blanks, the $ or delimiter is next, and subfields come within the area…I think I can do this!!!

Blog for January

I think based on the information that I have read for Module 2 and 3, I would rather
blog with the completion of each module. Right now, I have a lot to digest.

Module 2: 

     I truly did feel like I was learning a foreign language but only worse; at least with a foreign language, I have English as prior knowledge.  I don’t think I have any prior knowledge with this information.  Oh well, I become excited when I am learning new things…

     Some of the information in Module 2 made no sense until I did reading for Module 3.  I think that was because I began tying all the information together.  The history of cataloging was interesting. Libraries have been valued literally for thousands of years.  Libraries represented knowledge but more importantly wealth to early people.  The job of trying to organize that information would not be as difficult as trying to allow someone else into the library to find something on his or her own.  Each library had its own librarian; thus, each librarian had his own system.  More interesting is the fact that library organization as a standard did not begin until the 1800’s.  Boy did Panizzi have a lot of catching up to do!  More importantly, Lubetzky gave us all a headache when he changed things again.  Again, this is pretty amazing stuff when you think about the fact that he did not come forth with these thoughts until around 1949.  Next, the AACR is written based on Lubetzky’s unpublished work.  This pretty much established the process that we use today.  If I am understanding things correctly, AACR is like the APA style guide.  It tells us how to write entries for the card catalog.  ISBD represents international rules for card catalogs and the AACR included those in a revision
in 1974.

     This set of rules is still in use today.  Revisions and versions continue to be written and released even as I type.  A system of writing card catalog entries that uses different terminology is FRBR.  FRBR uses words like “work”, “expression”, “manifestation” and “item” to refer to the materials found in the library.  (This one I am a little fuzzy on; I think practice will bring at least a clearer understanding.)

     Another important term gained from chapter 1 was the bibliographic record.  This is a description of the book that gives the patron where to find the book and some information about the book.  Bibliographic records are known The Book List, The Card Catalog, and The Electronic Catalog.  These are in order from the oldest to most current.

     The next important idea is sharing bibliographic information.  No need to reinvent the wheel, right?  Sharing allows a library to create a new record in a quicker way.  The Library of Congress (LoC) played an important role in this by publishing the NUC (National Union Catalog).  No, this catalog does NOT contain only the list of books in the LoC. (I knew that on test but didn’t mark that!!)  This printed version soon went electronic as early as 1969 in the form of magnetic tapes.  From this electronic era comes MARC. MARC was not meant to become a standard, but since it came from the library of all libraries, it has had major influence.  The problem with that is the punctuation.  MARC does not follow all the AARC rules.  (Yes!  I think I used an acronym correctly!)  As current times approach, another problem develops!  What do we do with all this electronic stuff that is available? Dublin Core comes to save the day!!!

      Through all this progress, evolution has and is still happening!!!  OPAC arrives.  What a tangled web we weave with OPAC.  OPAC gives anyone doing research the ability to find practically any
information that is needed.  No longer are we limited by the traditional title, author, and subject searches of earlier days. 

Module 3            

     Module 3 seems to add clarity to some of this information that was presented in Module 2.  I am guessing that was because I had something to assimilate the information to. I was not even sure I had anything yet!

     In this module I learned about copy cataloging and original cataloging.  Right now, copy cataloging could be a librarian’s best friend.  I do realize that there are differences between my cataloging and copy cataloging, but there are serious benefits for busy librarians. Chapter 2 discussed places to get cataloging information—both free and payment required facilities.  The most obvious resource is the library of congress. One thing to realize is that there are discrepancies between the LC entry and the final published work.  The entries for the LC are created pre-publication of books, if I understand the information correctly.

     Other free databases include Amicus (for Canada), Access Pennsylvania, Genesse Valley BOCES, and Link+.  All of these databases have information that can be downloaded. Other good sources that are not downloadable include Clevnet, CowlNet, and Sunlink.  One noteworthy database is OCLC.  The text says that this is one of the best places to search for records.  OCLC is fee-based but created by a non-profit organization.

     One program that I felt that is noteworthy is MARC Wizard.  MARC Wizard is a program that cleans up catalog records and can print various bar code labels.

     I can see that as a librarian there is much work to be done in cataloging.  I am really excited about eventually getting to work in a library.  I love the idea of collaborating with teachers and having information that I can put in their hands to make life better and easier.  Cataloging is what will allow my library to run smoothly.  WOW!!! I have a lot of work to do someday!!!  I can’t wait to start…  

Beginnings

First of all, this is just a test.  I wanted to see if I have this blog set up correctly and what it would look like.  Hope everyone is off to a great start with the semester.  I have barely scratched the surface of reading for module 2, but I feel like I am learning a foreign language, especially with the FRBR article by Barbara Tillett.  She discusses a book as being referred to as a "work, an expression, a manifestation, and or an item..." I am sure it will become clearer as the semester progresses.