What is the role of a citizen, and how does a citizen’s behavior shape a community, and then how does a community shape a nation? I have continued to be curious about the idea of the public library’s role in community building, as it is one of three strategic themes. Who has a voice in …
Community Building: The Da Vinci Code helped me see the light I spent last Thursday night listening to Dan Brown the author of “The Da Vinci Code” and many other best sellers talk about his new book “Origins” at the Unity Temple in Kansas City. He did comment on the irony of the location, which …
Community Building: Awkward Thoughts about Groups and Teams I finished reading “The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell”. It was totally awesome and I recommend it. He narrates the audiobook, where his timing and delivery are perfect. Why am I riffing on the title of his book when I am writing about groups and teams? …
For or Against Art It was mid-week and if my memory serves me, early afternoon, and we are all sitting around a Formica table waiting for a few stragglers to drift in so the meeting could start. The content of the meeting is now a fuzzy memory As with most meetings, there was the ritualistic …
I have always cringed at the term “Digital Native.” I am not sure why, but I don’t know what the term really means. Definition: A digital native is a person born or brought up during the age of digital technology and therefore is familiar with computers and the Internet from an early age. For me, …
Digital Literacy: Advanced Skills Understanding Behavior What are the rules, norms, and behaviors Digital literacy is a hot topic for many libraries but its definition remains ambiguous and evolving even as many try to pin down a working definition. At Johnson County Library, we’ve chosen to define digital literacy as a wide range of digital …
Digital Literacy for the Intermediate. Moving away from consuming to producing digital content This post investigates the skills that an intermediate digital learner needs. Understanding and defining the needs of an intermediate digital leaner is problematic because each individual comes with their own set of personal goals and needs. The intermediate digital learner is a …
Starting a conversation about what Digital Literacy means at Johnson County Library Skills needed for a novice “Technology is nothing. What’s important is that you have faith in people, that they’re basically good and smart, and if you give them tools, they’ll do wonderful things with them.” – Steve Jobs This quote underscores my personal …
A continued conversation with myself about Digital Literacy A quarrelsome mind can become vexing when the dialogue is internal. I have always had an aversion to the term digital literacy. It has always struck me as a defensive term that justified certain library activities. I do not want to appear schizophrenic in my thinking. I …
The next series of blog posts are going to focus on digital literacy, digital readiness, and the digital divide. I am then going to look at the intersection between Digital and Financial Literacy. ALA defines digital literacy as “Digital Literacy is the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, …