SLIS 761 Amber Eaves

 Cyberbullying This week was an important topic to cover, and I appreciated the videos and readings. I loved the tone of this video above, and I feel that it could be influential for students to see it and realize that they are able to make a difference in the life of one of their peers.  I also thought it was so interesting to see the parallels among bullying in schools, higher education, and even into the workplace, in the article "From the Sandbox to the Inbox." I did not realize the psychological components of bullying are repeated behaviors, intended harm, and using power over another person.  (Faucher, Cassidy, Jackson, 2015). Bullying goes far beyond simply being mean or rude. Most examples of bullying within the workplace include gossip, rumors, public humiliation, unwarranted criticism, threats, isolation, or intimidation. It is interesting to note that none of these behaviors are physical in any way, but that they can cause the most damage to an individual.  This gr

  Adaptive Technology: Dictation Tools Image from Understood.org      One incredible adaptive technology that I was able to learn from my fourth grade students was the use of a dictation tool. I had never before seen anyone use this until this past year. I tasked my students with creating a research project about severe weather, and they had to create a Google Slides presentation to share what they had learned. One of my students knew that he struggled with writing, typing, and spelling. He asked if he could use his speech-to-text tool, and of course I agreed! What would have taken him ten or twenty minutes to type out and spell, he was able to synthesize into a few great summary sentences and speak them into his presentation instantly!       With dictation tools, students are able to speak and the program or tool they are utilizing writes for them. This tool is beneficial for students with dyslexia, spelling issues, apraxia, or limb differences. It is often referred to as "speech

 Bee-Bots Image from Robot Advance What are Bee-Bots? They are fun robots created for young students to learn coding skills. They can be used to teach sequencing, functions, coding, and problem-solving! These robots are available for $599 for a hive set, as pictured above, from Terrapin  , individually from Lakeshore Learning , and even cheaper ($74.99) from Amazon!   Image from Terrapinlogo      Bee Bots have seven primary buttons located on the back of the bee. These each have clear images that students are easily able to recognize, identify, and use. Bee-Bots are able to learn up to 40 consecutive steps in a row! The X button is used to clear any previous codes the bot has learned. The up and down arrows move the bot forward and backwards, and the left and right arrows indicate turns. Once it has been programmed with the directions, a user simply presses GO and the Bee-Bot follows the sequential instructions.       Because these are popular among elementary schools, many teachers ha

"Today we live in a technology and media-driven environment, marked by access to an abundance of information, rapid changes in technology tools and the ability to collaborate and make individual contributions on an unprecedented scale. Effective citizens and workers must be able to exhibit a range of functional and critical thinking skills such as: information literacy, media literacy, and Information, Communications, and Technology (ICT) literacy."  -Partnership for 21st Century Learning Image from the American Psychological Association      From the readings, resources, video, and podcast this week, I was able to see just how important it is for all school librarians, teachers, and educators to truly be information literate, up to date on technological trends and ideas, and have a deep understanding of digital media. In our society, all of these things do intersect constantly for our students, and the way we consume media has continued to change and evolve, even through the

American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Standards      The AASL Standards were created to guide teacher librarians in standardized practice that benefits teachers, students, and schools alike. These standards have six shared foundations (inquire, include, collaborate, curate, explore, and engage), and four main domains (think, create, share, grow). The AASL combined learner standards with school library standards and school librarian standards to bring clarity to the outcomes we want for our students.  In the Knowledge Quest Article, Now Serving An Appealing Menu of Digital Literacy Tools and Resources, Mary Lou Caron O'Connor describes how she utilizes the AASL standards in a unique way with her students. She uses the 4 domains and integrates a variety digital components and resources to help students research, share, think, and collaborate. She gives the students choice through a menu that includes, "links, information about grade-level appropriateness, and descrip