FYI - Academic Librarians have pointed me to a website called Merlot for peer reviewed material. MERLOT stands for: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching.

In looking around the library & information area, I came across an information literacy game under "learning materials". One-4 players can play the online board game. Check it out.

The California State University has an Information & Communications Technology (ICT) Literacy section. It included professional development, assessment, faculty resources, campus programs, grants & initiatives.

ADEC Webcast: Countdown to Summit XX

Alliance of Distance Education in California (ADEC) President Heidi Maston hosted a webinar on key distance education panel topics, in advance of its annual ADEC Summit, February 26-28 in Oakland. Panel topics include:

• Distance Learning in the 21st Century environment
  
• Industry speaks


• How Distance Education can revitalize your organization


• More effective and less expensive education -- Possible?


• Hard financial times: helping your organization survive and thrive.


• Web accessibility: from Ableist Biases to Social Inclusiveness.


• Does technology magically improve learning? Maximizing your instructional results by strategically implementing distance education.


• Where do we go now? As a nation, a state, a college, a school, a business.

The pre-summit conversation was made possible by Elluminate, a corporate sponsor. It was an excellent way to introduce a good number of important topics and whet appetites for a more indepth discussion and conversations in Oakland at the ADEC Summit. I've enjoyed the annual gatherings for many years, serving on the ADEC Board for two terms. Always good networking, no distractions.

Classroom Learning 2.0 - Video Promotion

EdTechLife.com president Mark Wagner has created a video promotion for the free, online professional development course Classroom Learning 2.0 that is being offered to California teachers through the California Technology Assistance Project Region I. Teachers can start through the "discovery learning" course anytime from February 9 -- June 1. There are 23 "things" for participants to complete. By the end of the course, teachers will have their own blog and avatar, explored YouTube, podcasts, image generators, wikis, mashups, and much more. See CTAP Region 1 Director Peggy Ericson's flyer for directions for how to register for the course.


Among many other roles, Mark is CUEtoYOU professional development coordinator for Computer Using Educators, Inc (CUE), educational technology coordinator for the California League of Middle Schools (CLMS) and California League of High Schools (CLHS), and director of professional development for California Vision Technologies (CVT).

This fun course is an ideal way for teachers and schools to take responsibility for learning the new web tools of the 21st century -- no need to wait for budgets or permissions to learn. Says CSLA 08/09 president Connie Williams, "Classroom Learning 2.0 gives individuals permission to have fun".

Peanut Butter WIKI for Libraries

PBwiki (aka: Peanut Butter Wiki) is hosting a webinar on April 8, 2008 at 5:30 PM California time. PBwiki is the wiki used by the CSLA 2.0 Team for its companion curriculum connections wiki to the School Library Learning 2.0 professional development course. As with all web 2.0 tools, they keep adding features. Learn more about the PBwiki webinar for Librarians. Note that the agenda is written on a wiki so participants can edit the agenda.

The PBwiki Educators page is http://pbwiki.com/redir.php?r=NLMarEDUwiki&url=http://educators.pbwiki.com/

SLL2.0 and CL2.0 Offered as Graduate Courses

Good news from Connie Williams, President-elect of the California School Library Association:

Hello everyone!
School Library Learning 2.0 is now available to be taken for Graduate credit. Fresno Pacific University has approved School Library Learning 2.0 as a graduate course. School Library Learning 2.0 is the fun way to learn how to use the tools of the open web. It is completely on-line and can be done from home, school [depending on web filters], or at the local coffeehouse. Day or night, rain or shine, you can learn what's out there for you to use at home or school. It's the best example of how we learn by doing.

If you join in now, you can sign on for $150. After March 1st the cost will go up, so now is the time to join in on learning how to use the tools of the Internet 2.0! The companion tutorial: Classroom Learning 2.0 is also available for graduate credit. To register:

Course Number is: IND 1149 OR IND 970. Course Titles: School Library Learning 2.0 OR Classroom Learning 2.0.
Cost: $150 for two units of Graduate Credit. Register by Feb. 29 (Unit cost increasing after then). To sign up for these units, participants need to:

• To register, have a credit card handy. Under the heading "Professional Development Workshops," click on the link that says "Register online" (this will open another window)
• Fill in your information and at the bottom, use the pull down menu and select "School Library Learning 2.0"
• Once registered, please send an email to Robdarrow@cusd.com with "FPU School Library Learning 2.0 units" in the subject line. (Rob will be your "online instructor" to verify work completed.)
• You will receive further instructions soon regarding what needs to be done to verify your work towards these units (all of this work will be completed online via Moodle, an online course management system.)
• I’m hopeful that you can complete these units by May 15, 2008 because the end of the school year is pretty crazy. If need be, we can extend to the end of June or July.
• To verify these units, Fresno Pacific will mail you a letter verifying that you have completed these units. If you need an official transcript to verify these units, you may request one by mailing in the form (with a fee) found at: http://www.fresno.edu/registrar/transcripts/.
• Further questions about these units should be directed to Rob Darrow or 559-327-9635.
  Questions about the online registration should be directed to Fresno Pacific Center for Professional Development - 559-453-2043 or 800-372-5505. or via email to: Peggi Kriegbaum.
  
  Connie Williams
  President-elect 07/08
  CSLA 2.0 Team
  chwms@mac.com

Winter 2.0 Fun is launched!

From Connie Hamner Williams, co-lead of School Library Learning 2.0:

Winter 2.0 Fun runs from December 1, 2007 - April 1, 2008. This is a repeat of School Library Learning 2.0 that was offered over the 2007 summer.

Join your colleagues to learn more about YouTube, podcasts, image generators, wikis, mashups and other web 2.0 tools. Now is your chance to learn, at your leisure -- in the comfort of your own home, all about these exciting new tools. This on-line tutorial will take you step by step through the use of many of the tools listed above. There are already many ideas posted on CSLA's California 2.0 Curriculum Connections wiki on how to develop library lessons and useful classroom collaborations. Join in this discussion and add to it, the many ideas you'll be getting as you work through the 23 Things of this tutorial.

With over 60 CSLA "Summer 2.0 Fun" graduates, you have lots of learning partners to call on and many of these grads will be your cheering partners. CSLA's Ed Tech Committee gives this special feature a new name: "Peer Cheers."

School Library Learning 2.0 is a free, fun, and fabulous way to learn together and strengthen our collective educational technology savvy. There is a Continuing Education option through Fresno Pacific University (Course #IND 1149.)

Start today at

http://schoollibrarylearning2.blogspot.com

Connie Hamner Williams
CSLA 2.0 Team
President-elect, CSLA
CSLA2team@yahoo.com

Classroom Learning 2.0 - Professional Development

An invitation to improve the performance of your education team.

School districts and other educational groups are invited to offer a fun, new online professional development course for classroom teachers, administrators, and other educators. This 9-week course introduces educators to web 2.0 tools and curriculum connections.

Classroom Learning 2.0 participants learn about and use social networking tools such as blogs, image generators, avatars, RSS feeds, wikis, nings, and much more. This course and its accompanying Management/Users Guide is brought to you by the California School Library Association 2.0 Team at no charge. It supports a number of legislative programs such as school technology plan requirements for E-Rate and Module III of AB430 administrator training. Continuing Education credits for the course are also available for a modest fee through Fresno Pacific University.

Designed for classroom teachers, administrators and other educators, this on-line course introduces participants to the many exciting web 2.0 tools available to us to communicate more effectively and creatively in a wide variety of activities. This tutorial introduces educators to many new opportunities for developing dynamic lessons, and shows how to work with colleagues in the school library to create exciting standards-based lessons that will reach students with the tools that they use daily.

Classroom Learning 2.0 is a specially designed course in that each participant learns about the web 2.0 tools and actively participates in a collegial conversation using the applications that they are learning about. Web 2.0 refers to the fact that the Internet is now an interactive medium rather than a ‘place’ to go to get information. Because students are flocking to these Web 2.0 sites, it is important that those of us who work in schools should be up-to-date with the latest trends in educational technology and learn how they can be utilized to support student learning.

Participants can take the course on their own, or they can lead a site group, a district group, or a group of interested teachers. An organization can offer incentives, create collegial work groups, and/or provide on-site workshops to support the course. Forming groups allow for participants to ‘cheer’ one another along, problem solve together, and begin conversations that lead to exciting collaborations.

If your library personnel are already graduates of our first professional development program, School Library Learning 2.0, you have a partner who can help you develop a 2.0 Partners group. Both online courses are available for free during the 2007-2008 school year. To learn more about these courses and to get a copy of the Management/User’s Guide, please contact Connie Williams or me at CSLA2Team@yahoo.com.