Friday, September 30, 2011

Happy Banned Websites Awareness Day...missed it by 2 days

 Doug Johnson wrote on The Blue Skunk Blog in his post, Happy Banned Web Sites Awareness Day and 7 Myths that without the profession of school librarianship “the great tragedy would be that there would be nothing standing between children and censors”. I responded to two challenges to books on the OLA Red Maple reading list when I served as the Chair. I hadn’t thought of my role in quite this way before.
 He goes on to list 7 myths about Internet Filters.
Myth 4. The processes for reconsideration of print materials don’t apply to online resources. Digital resources are as legitimate as print resources and the same criteria for removing online resources apply to them as apply to library books, textbooks, magazines and videos.
I wonder who believes this myth. I wonder why we don’t have a process in place that reflects the legitimacy of digital resources and our role as professionals.


Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Bringing our schools into the 21st Century

Thomas Klassen a professor of political science at York University in Toronto wrote in Bringing our Schools into the 21st Century that teachers unions insisting parent contact be face to face or telephone isn’t moving in the way of our digital society and that in order to best serve the students the option or necessity of email contact should be considered.

I know our union has helped (saved) teachers in the past and is still doing so now but…we are being held back by these "firewalls".

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/1056416--bringing-our-schools-into-the-21st-century