Ask.fm for enquiry service and classroom interaction

While I was reading the tragic news on bullying on ask.fm, it occurred to me that the site might be used as a virtual enquiry desk - for healthy communication with library users. It certainly has all the necessary basic functionality:

• optional registration (questions can be posted very quickly, without a prolonged registration and login)
• immediate notification of the posted question by email (currently the notification emails from ask.fm don't reach my college email boxes; I have raised the question with my IT colleagues)
• RSS output (a widget can be created to display the questions and answers on the library webpage)
• a widget - a bit too inflexible to my mind, but very easy to use - for embedding the query box anywhere on the internet.

I imagine, this may be handy for teaching too: learners can post their questions and comments; the tutor then will respond to them or ignore as appropriate.

In students' eyes, there is nothing unusual about utilising Twitter for learning

Three years ago, I invited James Cunliffe, a photography tutor from the same college I work for, to write a guest post (http://nwhc-librarian.blogspot.co.uk/2010/03/facebook-in-fe-tutor-on-pros-and-cons.html) on his use of Facebook for teaching. That was the time of confusion: after consulting with tutors and managers, Facebook was blocked on on-campus PCs and tutors were told they could not communicate to learners on Facebook. Neither awareness campaign, nor training preceded the consultation, so the terrified voices - Facebook is evil! - were the loudest. Photography tutors’ experiment of using Facebook has survived and developed into the best example of utilising social media in our college I am aware of. Three years later, I learnt that something new and equally exciting has appeared – James and his colleagues have adopted Twitter for their practice. Here is what he told me recently:

Twitter can be time consuming. Have you heard about the fear of missing out? There is always something out there, which you want to gather and share. In the beginning I was checking Twitter every day, posting, re-tweeting… I was doing it on the train during my 20-minutes journey. Recently, I’ve deliberately stepped back a bit and take it more casually now.

My colleagues, Andy and Hazel, are helping to look after the NWHC Photography Twitter feed (@nwhcphotography). For now, we don’t have any special arrangements who is going to reply or re-tweet. Perhaps, we will develop a strategy in that respect eventually.

Traditional and emerging media for marketing library

Added on 13.03.2012: I have slightly amended/shortened the notes to the slides on SlideShare and here is my first ever slidecast (Screenr is very easy to use, but I wish it had as much functionality as the MS Power Point's voice-over presentation tool) - http://www.screenr.com/user/iharivanou. And more fun, this time with Hello Slide, an automatic voice-over online generator - http://www.helloslide.com/presentations/1891/marketing-library-ihar-ivanou-12-march-2012 Surreal!

My presentation (which did not take place due to technical problems) for a JISC's webinar on use of technology for promoting library services, 5 March 2012.  Notes to the the slides are available at http://www.slideshare.net/nieszczarda/marketing-fe-library.

Marketing FE Library

View more PowerPoint from nieszczarda

On marketing the library service

Two years ago my colleague at that time, Peter Barr, and I started a project: to develop marketing of the college library in the way which would embrace both traditional and emerging media; all should have connected and worked together. Before that, the library produced a lot of helpsheets, guides and leaflets; it also had a well developed presence on Moodle and the college website. It was first in the college to set up a Facebook page even though Facebook was banned on the college network PCs. However, our marketing activities were disjoint: content for each media was prepared separately, often – occasionally and by different people.

My thinking was broadly prompted by the Guardian which was the first major newspaper in Britain to move away from publishing online the texts that as the rule had already appeared in the paper edition. Very early the Guardian adopted a multi-platform approach: as soon as the content is ready it is pushed to all available media, edited and re-packaged respectively.

Facebook in FE: a tutor on pros and cons (guest post)

Our College has produced a brilliant example of appropriate and very active use of social networking in education. A photography tutor, James Cunliffe, who initiated the whole project shares his experience and views on benefits and pitfalls of engaging with Facebook for supporting learning.


Advantages

It is a format most students are familiar with and use frequently. Before starting the page I asked how many of my group had a Facebook account and how often they used it. All but one of the 26 of them had an account and every single one of them checked it every night.

It is a private group. Students must request to join or be invited.

All content is private and cannot be viewed by other Facebook users.

Students can add content such as links to websites, create or participate in discussions or simple ask for help on the group’s wall. All of these things create a sense of ownership with the students.

Tutors can also create or add content such as links to TV programmes they should watch, websites they should look at or news articles of specific interest.

The creator can allocate specific members of the group (staff) admin status allowing them the ability to remove any inappropriate content. (For the record I have never had to remove anything posted)

My students use it a great deal in terms of asking for help from each other which is especially important as they only attend college three days a week. A question from one can elicit a response from three or four students offering help and suggestions.

It is a joint first and second year group page and many of the students converse with each other here first despite never having met formally or being in the same year. This develops both friendships and support networks, especially with the second years are more experienced.

All of the members can be messaged quickly and simply should there be any information that needs to be sent to all (or even just one.) It also allows individual students to contact you privately should there be an issue they wish to talk confidentially to you. It appears as a message in your Facebook inbox and feels less formal than an email.

Everything posted can be commented on by any member, often starting impromptu discussions which can be continued in class.

Photographs and videos can be posted. For us, as a creative course this is invaluable but we also post photographs from events such as visiting lecturers and trips.

Educational trips can be posted as an event with the students receiving an invite by email which also promotes a sense of belonging. Links to relevant websites can also be attached.

All member information remains private, i.e. whilst we are all in the same group the students cannot view any of the staff’s Facebook pages nor can we access theirs.

By embracing this social networking it has had the effect of “decriminalising” Facebook and whilst a year ago students’ sneakily looking on Facebook during a class was a problem, this seems to have diminished considerably.

I check the groups’ page most nights however when I have not done so for a few days the notification icon at the top of the page will direct me to any new posts or comments.

Disadvantages

Word documents and PowerPoint’s cannot be posted and only go on Moodle. It is more interactive than Moodle however it has not replaced it. Indeed all of the links posted on the Facebook page are put on to the group’s Moodle page.

Some students initially used it as a place to notify me of their absence however this has now been addressed.

Not all students have a Facebook account due to having no access to the internet or the possible disapproval of their parents.

Tutors may not have an account and may be unfamiliar with the layout and process of managing a page. They may also not have the time to manage the site. (In my experience however it does not take a huge amount of time or effort, especially as it is so democratic with other tutors and students contributing)

Conclusion

Whilst there are a few disadvantages associated with creating and managing a course Facebook page I am without doubt that the benefits far outweigh them. Since creating the page in October 2009 it has provided invaluable support to the majority of my students and has become a forum that they trust, respect and use to a potential I did not expect or even realise was possible.

Cyberbullying on YouTube - an American case

An interesting discussion about a case involving cyberbullying on YouTube is available on Slate podcast for 18 December 2009 (the best way to listen is to download it to an mp3 player; the discussion begins after 25:19 minutes). Journalists are talking about a recent American court case not directly applicable in the UK, however the podcast presents a couple of good discussion points, e.g. how far a school may be responsible for pupils' online behaviour outside its premises. The story was publicised by The Los Angeles Times. This discussion on podcast is followed by a story about another American court case dealing with sexually explicit text messages in the workplace.

Legal issues of using Web 2.0 + E-safety

Two sessions orginised by WM RSC took placce on 17 December 2009 which I attended. Both sessions were led by Jackie Milne from JISC Legal.

JISC Legal provides guidance for use of ICT in education and research.

The morning session was on LEGAL ISSUES OF USING WEB 2.0.

One of the most obvious issues in that area is IPR (Intellectual Property Rights). A good video on that is available at http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/stories/2008/12/web2rights.aspx. The video refers to the IPR flowchart (PDF). More useful information about IPR on the web is available at Web2Rights website.

The intellectual property law sees a creator as the primary owner of the copyright. However, this may not be the case if the creator is an employee and created a work as part of his contract (e.g. a web designer creating a website layout, style etc.). Also the College may be liable for the copyright infringement if it happened using the College network, especially if not precautions were taken, e.g. to make users aware of the Acceptable Use Policy (AUP).

The duty of care is another important issue to consider when one uses social networking in education. It's higher if the use of social networking tools and solutions is a requirement; lower if it's optional for a particular programme. If it's a requirement for the course, the necessary precautions have to be made, starting from a risk assessment.

With new technologies and information sources issue of accessibility comes too: all learners have to have a comparable experience. A long discussion about advantages/disadvantages of using mobile technology for learning from the point of view of SEN took place. Here, I was reminded about my own experience of a student with a visual impairment attending my information skills session. The session was heavily based on demonstrations - of using Heritage Online, e-resources etc. Clearly, that student did not get a "comparable experience". Perhaps a special podcast should be prepared which would guide a person with visual impairments step by step through the examples understandable by / accessible to such a person. Accessibility side of teaching must be anticipatory and proactive to enable access to the core materials in different ways. (Which means, e.g., that Power Point presentations must be backed up with something else).

Web 2.0 tools can be hosted or external. If hosted by the institution itself, there will be an issue of data protection and legitimate access to information.

Liability can take different forms: breach of contract (in terms of adequate provision of learning), negligence, copyright...

An example of YouTube videos use in classroom was looked at. The College may be liable for a secondary infringement of the author's right if a video shown in a classroom (or advised to be watched by students at home) was in fact illegally uploaded to YouTube. The content used in education must always be legal. Obviously, it would be illegal to download YouTube videos and store - either on storage devices or the network. YouTube videos can be imbedded only as a player without modifications.

On the other hand, the copyright law gives special exceptions for educational institutions and for research purposes (even more - to teachers and students on media programmes); they should be used.

It was advised that all Colleges have a Web 2.0 policy which would include procedures for staff, notices, content removal procedures, resolving external website difficulties (like fake identities, derogatory comments?), allocated responsibilities.

The afternoon session was on E-SAFETY. It's a big topic now since Ofsted made it a limiting grade, e.i. the overal inspection mark cannot be above the one for e-safety (as well as equality and diversity).

A few useful links:

Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP)

Be Safe e-Safe video from Kenttv.com - free for personal educational use (i.e. it's fine to show it in a classroom as part of teaching).

Duty of care is a statutory duty for educators. Under this umbrella, safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults (and in a broader sense, everyone, I presume) comes. It means that we obliged to provide for others the right to be and feel safe, free from victimisation and discrimination.

Some issues were given as those to consider in relation to e-safety:

• Data protection and privacy
• IPR and Copyright
• Defamation
• Harrassment
• Sexual Offences
• Cyberbullying

E-safety measures should include (I presume it's not an exhaustive list):

• Security (technology side)
• Management of data
• Acceptable Use Policy (JANET and NEN have their specific requirements for the associated institutions which may have implications for AUP)
• Linked policies and procedures
• Ways of reporting incidents.

E-safety material should have a tone and language appropriate for learners.

A special point was made that proper e-safety policy and practice will always include educational elements, not just access measures. How far in restricting access or allowing it while paying more attention to promoting appropriate knowledge, skills and good practice a particular institution may go depends on the culture of this institution - how much risk it's happy to take, how safe it wants to play. Ultimately, there is no one model suitable for everyone, therefore a discussion and thinking should take place.

A wiki page has already been created for this event by West Midlands Regional Support Centre. It's available at http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Staying_legal_with_Web_2.0;_A_legal_view_of_e-safety,_17th_December,_2009

Image: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/498072

Participatory media

Yesterday I went to Blogs, Wikis and Social Networking session organised by a local JISC (the governmental agency promoting use of technologies in education).

Already the first conversation brought a surprise - one of the participants was a HR person from one of FE colleges (I did not expect to meet there anyone but librarians and a handful of teachers). She was after ideas for developing internal communication in the College as the traditional ways like newsletters and emails are not sufficient enough any more. It was refreshing to see that not only librarians are taking the reality of fragmented information landscapes seriously.

There was a lot of discussion around threats (to safety, traditional literacy), barriers (to information as experienced by less digitally savvy people), difficulties (bandwidth, waste of time) etc.

I was left with the question whether damage to an institution from not having a blog (or not being present on, let us say, Facebook; or discouraging employees from creative use of "participatory media") is greater than from having it and dealing with a number of serious chllenges and/or unwanted consequences. It's not even the matter of allowing or blocking access. It's rather a question of institutional culture: are creativity and responsibility encouraged or anything that is "un-official" is discouraged? are staff provided with help and advice on positive engagement with the web? is learners' voice - freely expressed, not pre-selected and beautifully pre-packaged - is present in the whole picture of what the institution (College) is like?

If such participation, responsibility and trust are encouraged, the whole discourse about the institution will be quite different - not as polished as we are used to see it in glossy prospectuses, but much livelier, first-hand accounts of people's experiences. It sounds challenging and even scary, but isn't it what we actually enjoy reading and trust the most? That's why the old school editorial control on the web seems to be of limited value.

Perth College's blogging experience is very interesting from a librarians' point of view. They have two blogs, for users and for their own staff. The first one is used for sharing news. I like the idea of emphasising the new resources purchased. Pity, Heritage does not allow current awareness output in RSS feeds at the moment, otherwise it'd be easy to embed such updates into Moodle pages and Facebook. Another blog is for staff development within the team. The weak point for developing a SD blog is Outlook which - in its current incarnation - does not allow RSS feeds import along with emails. It's not clear to me how to create just one space where all the content and messages intended for the library staff could come and sit together. Will we remember to visit a blog regularly if it's been created?!

An interesting discussion took place during the lunch break. What happens to all the profiles and pages if their owner dies, especially if dies unexpectedly? There was a lot of fun discussing wills which should now include something about Facebook profile management.

One memorable quote from the day? - It's from the Tame The Web blog: "a core value of librarianship - community building". People want to communicate, create and share, learn from each other... where other ways fail - teachers do not have time, insufficient funding, digital divide - librarians (in FE) create physical and virtual spaces for self-guided study and connecting.

One blog post that I made a note of to look at later on more carefully was Should You Friend Your Students? The Short Answer Is No by Josie Fraser from JISC in Leicester. I am pleased that some comments were critical - I do not believe in complete separation of personal and professional life. I mean, it's possible, but rather unhelpful, in my opinion.

Wikis... we used them with Early Years learners last year and it was not as successful as I hoped. Potentially, it can be a great way for keeping library procedures up-to-date and easily editable.

A fantastic characteristic of wikis which I will constantly use when talking to students about Wikipedia: it has a fluid content. It's its strength and weakness at the same time.

Another example of people's desire and need to speak, contribute, being heard - Write To Reply. We do need editors who would inspire learners and staff to write to bulletins, websites, Facebook pages...

A similar session will take place in Nottingham in February.

Image: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1108254