Student self-pacing occurs from the very beginning and during each part of the course. Over approximately six weeks (five weeks for some, more for others), students experience both face-to-face and video instruction and complete approximately fifteen assignments (Docs), the last of which is a short, formal research paper. Students who move quickly through the process tend to view video lessons in advance of (or in place of) face-to-face teaching; those who work more slowly tend to view video lessons for review of what was covered in class. The Docs, like most teachers’ assignments, reinforce key aspects of instruction and measure comprehension and skill attainment.

All Docs, except for the final research paper, are graded using a check system, where a check-minus represents the basic level of achievement necessary to proceed. Docs below this minimum are graded as “Incomplete” and require revision. All Docs receive commentary designed to help students improve future and current work (see image above). For example, while a check-minus is good enough to receive the next Doc in the sequence, it could be improved to a check or check-plus. It’s important to note that while students have this option, if after multiple revisions a Doc doesn’t exceed minimum achievement, it is locked and the next Doc in the process is assigned. This is done in order to keep students moving along in the process.

Locking and assigning Docs is easy and is the key to managing student progress in my self-paced library classroom. After creating a copy of each Doc assignment for each student, the Docs are then shared individually. Permissions are initially set, of course, to allow for student editing. But, when the Doc is complete, permissions are set to view-only and the next Doc in the sequence is shared (see image). This process continues until all assigned Docs have been completed.

In a future and final post on this topic, a series of screen shots will show, more completely, these and other aspects of my Google Docs management system.

I have developed a Docs management system that is making my classes paperless and my teaching more personalized. With Docs, students in my introductory course on writing the research paper now get quick online feedback within their assignments, easily make changes to show improved understanding, and then quickly receive the next lesson’s assignment (Doc). Students no longer turn in work and simply wait for a grade. They no longer all work on the same assignments at the same time.

In order to promote self-pacing and overall proficiency within the class, a series of Docs are shared individually with students and then collaboratively revised with each student. These Docs, which amount to a set of building blocks for logically developing a final research paper, are shared with students one at a time and not until previous assignments have been satisfactorily completed. For example, assignment #2 is not released until assignment #1 is judged to be okay, and #3 is shared only when #2 becomes acceptable. There are minimum performance standards, in other words, which must be met in order to move on in the process. This approach, resulting in different students receiving different assignments at different times, is made easy with Docs.

The organization of my Google Docs learning system begins by creating an original Doc for each assignment and then creating a copy for each student. Ten assignments in a class of ten students would therefore involve 100 separate Docs, not counting the originals. In order to help track individual student progress, the documents are labeled by assignment name, assignment number, and student name. They are then organized into collections (Google’s name for folders), labeled by assignment number. For example, in my research paper class the first assignment is called, “Topic Proposal (#1) Student Name” (see image above) and is filed in “Collection 1″ (see image). Later, once an assignment has been completed, a check mark is added to its title, indicating a change in status. Once this has occurred, the next assignment in the sequence is then shared.

Further details about document sharing and grading will be covered in a follow-up post, where I will also discuss student self-pacing.

You are now connected to Amit from Amazon.com.
Me: I work in a library. I have six kindles regsitered with my account and I have a corporate credit card associated with the account. I would like to be able to prevent purchases on the kindles or I would like to be able to remove the credit card and strictly use gift card balances for purchases. Can you help? 10:24:16 AM
Amit: Hello, my name is Amit. I will be happy to help you. 10:24:33 AM
Amit: I need to transfer you to kindle team. 10:24:52 AM
Me: ok 10:25:12 AM
A Customer Service Associate will be with you in a moment.You are now connected to Amazon from Amazon.com.
Amazon: Hello, my name is Swathi. I’ll be happy to help you today. 10:27:29 AM
Me: I work in a library. I have six kindles regsitered with my account and I have a corporate credit card associated with the account. I would like to be able to prevent purchases on the kindles or I would like to be able to remove the credit card and strictly use gift card balances for purchases. Can you help? 10:28:11 AM
Amazon: Thanks for the information provided. I will be glad to assist you. 10:29:43 AM
Amazon: I have checked your account and see that the current gift card balance is $25. 10:30:29 AM
Amazon: I understand that you want to use the gift certificate balance to your Kindle purchases. 10:31:19 AM
Me: Yes, but I also want to prevent buying on the credit card in the event the gift card balance were to be depleted. I want to minimize the potential loss from unauthorized purchases. 10:32:25 AM
Amazon: To ensure that no one else can use 1-Click purchasing on your account, you’ll just need to sign out of your account when you’re done using it. Click the “Sign out” link above the Self Service Tools box in the right-hand column of our Help pages at any time to exit your Amazon.com account. 10:34:09 AM
Me: I am worried about purchasing made from the kindle itself, not from within my amazon.com account. Can you help with that issue? 10:35:45 AM
Amazon: Thanks for the confirmation. I will help you out with this. 10:36:42 AM
Amazon: Can I have 2 minutes while I do a research on this matter. 10:37:16 AM
Me: Yes, of course. Thank you. 10:37:30 AM
Amazon: Sorry to have kept you on wait. 10:38:47 AM
Amazon: I am sorry currently we do not have an option to avoid unauthorized purchases from your Kindle Devices. 10:39:37 AM
Amazon: However, as an alternative you can set a password on the Settings screen. 10:40:26 AM
Me: Could you please explain that option? 10:41:04 AM
Amazon: Sure. 10:41:15 AM
Amazon: I will guide you through the steps to do so? 10:41:57 AM
Me: ok 10:42:06 AM
Amazon:Thank you. 10:42:17 AM
Amazon: Firstly, I request you to Navigate the Kindle’s Home screen and press the Menu button. 10:42:54 AM
Amazon: Then, Select “Settings” from the Home screen menu. 10:43:28 AM
Me: ok 10:43:32 AM
Amazon: Once you’re done with that, Select the “turn on” option next to Device Password on the Settings page.10:44:03 AM
Me: I don’t see that. 10:45:09 AM
Amazon: Is it clear till here? Can I proceed further? 10:45:09 AM
Me: I see Registration and Device Info. 10:45:30 AM
Amazon: Are you trying this on your 2G kindle? 10:45:53 AM
Me: Yes, but I can get a newer kindle. Please hold on. 10:46:36 AM
Amazon: Sure. 10:46:45 AM
Me: On the Settings screen I now see Registration, Device Name, Wi-Fi Settings, and Device Info. 10:48:13 AM
Amazon: Do you see a device password? 10:48:54 AM
Amazon: You can see this on the second page 10:50:01 AM
Me: No, I do not. In order to get to the Settings screen, I have to go through the Menu button, correct? 10:50:14 AM
Amazon: Yes, Correct. 10:50:34 AM
Me: Oh yes, my mistake. I do see it on the second page. 10:50:44 AM
Amazon: Okay. Now can you please select the “turn on” option next to Device Password on the Settings page. 10:51:27 AM
Me: Wouldn’t this prevent a library patron from reading as well as purchasing? 10:51:52 AM
Amazon: Yes, It prevents from reading as well as purchasing. 10:53:00 AM
Amazon: Can we proceed for the further steps? 10:53:18 AM
Me: I’m not sure how this begins to solve the problem that I have. I’m wondering why amazon couldn’t simply password-protect accounts, like the iTunes Store does. 10:54:21 AM
Me: Is there another way that I could handle the issue? 10:54:37 AM
You are now reconnected with Amazon.
Amazon: Are you there? 10:55:25 AM
Me: Yes. 10:55:32 AM
Amazon: Thanks for confirmation 10:55:40 AM
Amazon: Can we proceed with the steps? 10:55:57 AM
Me: Sure, if you think that they’re going to address my problem. Thank you. 10:56:29 AM
Amazon: Yes, surly it will be of help. 10:57:21 AM
Amazon: Enter your new password twice and also enter a hint to help you remember the password. 10:57:39 AM
Me: Ok, but will this option prevent the patron from reading? Will I have to share the password in order for the patron to read? And, if so, wouldn’t the patron then be able to navigate to the kindle store and make purchases on my account? 10:59:06 AM
Amazon: Yes, if you share your password with the patron, then they will get an option to read and purchase. However, we do no have any specific security option to restrict from Kindle purchases. 11:01:38 AM
Me: Ok. Thank you for your assistance. 11:02:13 AM
Amazon: So, you do not prefer to create a security password on your Kindle screen? 11:02:43 AM
Me: No. That does not help in this situation. Thank you. 11:03:19 AM
Amazon: Okay, I will take this as a feedback and forward to our improvement team. 11:03:54 AM
Amazon: However, just for you to know gift certificates will be directly credited from your account for any kind of Kindle content purchases upto you Gift certificate balance in your account. 11:05:10 AM
Me: Ok, but will purchases then be made on the credit card? In other words, If there’s $25 on my gift balance, could someone be able to make $500 worth of purchases? 11:07:16 AM
Amazon: As an alternative to restrict anyone else purchase from your Kindle you can remove the Payment method associated with “1 Click settings in your account. 11:11:30 AM
Amazon: Whenever you would want to purchase content, you can add the payment method again to 1-Click settings. 11:12:46 AM
Me: That seems impractical, unless I can replace the credit card as the primary payment and make a gift card the primary method. That doesn’t seem to be possible, however. The only change that I can make is to add a different credit card or debit card. 11:13:22 AM
Amazon: I am sorry as of now this is the only alternative option we have to restrict the purchases. 11:15:06 AM
Me: Ok. Thank you. I will sign off now. 11:15:27 AM
Amazon: Is there anything else that I can help you with?11:16:16 AM
Me: No. Thank you. 11:16:26 AM
Amazon: We hope to see you again soon! Please click the “End Chat” link to close this window. 11:16:51 AM
Me: Ok. 11:17:09 AM

• If libraries check-out to students the very device they ban, then library policy makers seem to be making a choice to be inconsistent.  After all, even though library iPods most likely contain only audio books and educational movies and podcasts, so could a personal iPod. Would it be unacceptable for a student to listen to a podcast like CNN Student News or an Overdrive audio book during a study hall visit to the library?  It’s hard to imagine a librarian not allowing a student to read a book checked-out from another library during such a visit.  Yet, for digital content, that’s essentially what a ban on personal iPods could accomplish.
• Of course students using personal iPods will most likely be listening to music and not a news podcast. And it is for this reason, perhaps, that some libraries have banned the devices. It could be debated whether music listening interferes with homework completion and academic productivity.  But this point about music is less debatable:  In at least some libraries that currently ban iPods, students are still listening to music.  While working on school computers, many students access music stored on their network drive or on a portable flash drive. And since it is nearly impossible to determine if computer headphone use is for music listening or for project purposes, allowing computer listening but not iPod listening also seems to lack consistency.

By no means do these two bullets address all angles of the debate. They do nonetheless list some inconsistencies that might be present within some school library policies. And while every community is different and every school library serves different stakeholders, in their organization most libraries try to be the same thing: logical and consistent.  Books, for example, are consistently shelved according to the logical Dewey numbering system; OPACs and databases allow for using boolean logic and return consistent search results; and library websites provide a logical path of links to consistently reliable information resources. Because policies are designed in different schools with different constituencies and different concerns, it might not be easy (or even possible) for library iPod policies to be logical and consistent.  But if it is possible, then reexamining policy seems warranted.

While noted blogger and speaker David Lee King has recently talked about “quite a few uses for an iPad in a library setting,” I’m wondering if its multiple uses completely undermines its usefulness as a serious reading tool.  After all, unlike Amazon’s Kindle, which in its simplicity provides a more traditional and intimate reading experience, the iPad is loaded with distractions: Safari, YouTube, iTunes, and of course the App Store.  In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, an author laments the Internet’s constant distractions and interruptions and asks, “Does the Internet Make You Dumber?”  Perhaps the same could be asked of the iPad.  Is the App Store just one more thing promoting a wide-spread turn toward shallow thinking?

Modern libraries are, of course, about much more than books.  I’ve argued, in fact, that libraries should have widespread computers and technology.  Yet, there is definitely a difference between technology for productivity purposes and technology for content consumption purposes.   The Tech Guy Leo Laporte talks about iPads as replacements for entertainment tools, but not computers.  I think he’s right.  My iPad does a lot, but it’s a far cry from my laptop.  That means that the iPad is not a computer but is much more than an ebook reader.  And this, in my view, makes it an awkward fit for a library.

As an educational tool, the iPad’s potential is enormous.  The number of apps in the App Store is growing at an amazing rate.  But, I have to wonder if the educational tool can be justified as a library tool.  Several questions need answering:  Do libraries want to provide this type of entertainment tool, even if it has educational use?  If so, will it be loaned or used strictly in-house?  Would patrons be permitted to add content and apps?  If so, what types?  If not, how could that be prevented?  What content will the library provide? Fiction books?  If so, the iPad would amount to a really costly ereader.  Could the iPad contain reference sources and act as a portable reference collection?  The answer to this is, perhaps in the future, but not presently, as neither the iBooks Store nor the Kindle Store offer many reference titles.  And one final question (from the Library Law Blog): Do prohibitions against lending the Apple software even allow for library usage?

Library mission statements often talk about meeting patron “recreational needs,” “promoting life-long learning,” and providing “access to modern technology.”  Maybe in this language librarians can find support for iPad use.  And maybe I’m just looking at this subject way too narrowly.  As of right now, I’m really not sure.  Besides, I’m on my iPad and I’m now distracted.

The session will look at the concept of the library learning commons, and through the use of before-and-after photos and sample websites, will highlight changes made to two school libraries in an effort to make them more flexible and more relevant and appealing to today’s 21st-century students.  Notes: Viewing the Prezi (below) requires the latest version of Adobe’s Flash Player.  This Prezi provides an overview of the original presentation.  Contact me if you’re interested in a link to the complete Prezi.

With the help of several custodians, I began dismantling my school’s library in July 2008. In my opinion, the library looked like a warehouse, with lots of shelves, little room, less comfort, and no defined learning spaces. It was basically “a box of books,” I had told the committee that interviewed me a couple months earlier. And if a complete library program were to be developed, the box would have to be replaced.

I was fortunate to get the support of my school board when I proposed a complete room redesign. In short, several shelving units were removed, a few were replaced, reference and browsing sections were created in the middle of the room, and new furniture allowed for the creation of defined spaces (e.g. presentation area, large-group and small-group work areas, a space for reading). The most controversial addition to the room was a large, flat-screen TV mounted on the wall. “You weeded books for this?” more than one parent asked. I responded by saying that I had weeded because de-selection is part of good library management. But, in truth, the summer-time weeding project did open up space, which allowed for the floor space redesign and the beginning of a new library program.

With old and under-used (and never-used) volumes removed from the room, I do recognize that some books have perhaps been missed. Yet, I know that a lot more has been gained. In new learning spaces within the library, collaboration among students happens all day long, large-group instruction in information skills happens regularly, and at the same time reading and individual work takes place in adjacent spaces. Further, with the addition of eBooks to the reference collection, book sources are now retrievable seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Kindles? We have two.

The transformation of my small library doesn’t compare, of course, to that of Cushing Academy. It nonetheless is similar, I think, because it’s the result of believing that libraries are meant to connect people with information and that information takes many forms. While there are now fewer books in my library, I argue that there’s now more information. As students search print or electronic sources, discuss an event seen on a TV news program, use a library laptop to jointly build a multimedia project, or show one another an interesting magazine article, information is being rapidly gathered and widely shared. In other words, within the library there has developed a dynamic information exchange.

My commitment to this type of library leads me to this judgment about Cushing: On a ten scale ($12,000 coffee machine aside), where zero is total disagreement and ten is fully agree, I say the Academy’s bold library transformation is a seven. If you believe what students and staff said about the old place, then unless you’re trying to build a warehouse, the change must be viewed positively. Although I would argue for a more balanced blend of print and digital sources, I’d choose their busy library over the quiet warehouse any day. Are some old books being missed? Most likely. Is accessing and taking notes on information sometimes now more challenging? No doubt. But is the library merely a box? No way.