Self Directed Reading #1

Please read the rules about posted assignments before reading onward. 

For the Self Directed Readings, I had to 1) read an article, 2) write a paragraph summary, and 3) write a paragraph of my reactions to the article.  A short but sweet assignment.

In his article “Prove Your Case: A New Approach to Teaching Research Papers,” Stephen Broskoske, an assistant professor in the College Misericordia, explains a new technique for teaching research papers. To get his freshmen students to understand the importance of a specific thesis and sound research, Broskoske now equates a research paper to a lawyer’s preparation for a trial. Lawyers must first decide how to frame their case, as students must figure out how to “define their topic.” Then, as lawyers sift through evidence to prepare their arguments, so do students with their search for sources. The act of writing their paper became their day in court, where they could “present the evidence” they collected from a variety of sources. The “closing statement” to their “case” would be their conclusion, where they would have to summarize their argument and strongly finish their paper (Broskoske 31).

To a librarian instructor in an academic library, this approach to teaching research papers could prove very effective. Broskoske, himself, wrote, that this teaching method works because students can relate to the “high-visibility court cases in the news” (31). The "lawyer arguing a case" method relies on the students’ past experiences with popular court cases to help understand a similar process – writing. Constructivist teaching methods, a topic of last Wednesday's class, relies on the past experiences of a student to help develop new ideas, which the proposed method does. Many popular television shows, such as Law and Order and and The Good Wife, show the same process as the real court cases in the news. As a librarian instructor, I can use these shows the same way Broskoske used court cases, and create a library session framed around an episode of one of these shows and have the students "defend" cases. I would highly recommend library instructors faced with similar challenges to read this article.

Broskoske, S. (2007). "Prove Your Case: A New Approach to Teaching Research Papers." College Teaching 55(1), 31-2.

You know you've been to library school when....part 1

You know when you've been to library school when you're looking at an onstage performance and thinking about the complex digital object it would become, if someone went and tried to digitize it.

Yesterday night I went to see my cousin, Pavi Proczko, play in the new Quest Ensemble play, "Evolution/Creation."  Why this show is different from your normal show takes a few lines to explain.  The play is actually two plays running at the same time on a partitioned stage: one side shows Evolution, from the big bang to the dawn of humans, while the other shows Creation, up to the story of Noah.  during intermission, the audience switches sides to see the part they did not see.  Each side has no dialogue, and run to the same score. 

So, how would I preserve a recording of this play?  I would probably have two videos, one with Evolution and the other for Creation, just so the user can chose themselves which one they want to see first.  Since this play is not supposed to be biased, why would I show any bias and put one part of the play in front of the other?

Otherwise, the play was great and I think anyone in the area should check it out.  My cousin is Adam on the creation side, and the modern Homo sapiens on the other.  The best part- the show is FREE!! 

It's February?

((looks over shoulder))

Wait, it's February?  That's crazy....I feel like I'll have 1-2 posts like this every semester until blogging finally becomes second nature to me.  Anyone can recommend blogging classes, preferably free ones? ; )

Week 5 Analytic Essay

This assignment was for my Digital Preservation class.  I was supposed to summarize and analyze the four required readings for the week, as well as lead class discussions with questions.

Please read the rules about posted assignments before reading onward.

The readings for the fifth week primarily deal with two ways to preserve digital files, via migration or emulation.  Both have their strengths and weaknesses, but in choosing one over the other librarians, museum curators, and archivists cast a vote in the great debate in digital preservation — what exactly does it mean to preserve a digital document?  Is it enough to preserve the content, and not the appearance, of a digital document?  Should it function in the same exact way as it did when it was created, or can it be updated to contemporary standards?  The readings try to answer these questions with research and surveys.