Universal School Library : Free Texts : Free Download, Borrow and Streaming by Achebe, Chinua texts eye favorite 28 comment 0 [This book is] a simple story of a "strong man" whose life is dominated by fear and anger ...Uniquely ...African, at the same time it reveals [the author's] ... awareness of the human qualities common to men of all times and places. Three Myths About “Reading Levels” Source: Pexels - Creative Commons Zero (CC0) license Psychologists love to measure things, and perhaps nothing has been measured as much by psychologists as reading—both texts and readers. Multiple different instruments measuring text readability have been devised and used over the past century, as have multiple standardized tests of readers’ abilities. Though their results are often first presented as numerical scores whose interpretation is difficult without a key, most instruments also translate these into more generally understood grade-level reading scores. These are typically reported as year-and-month scores; thus a book scoring at reading level 8.1 is said to be written at the early eighth-grade level, while a student scoring at reading level 4.6 is judged to be reading at the level of the average student in the sixth month of fourth grade.
Ten ways teacher librarians improve literacy in schools Australian schools constantly strive to improve the literacy outcomes of their students. Supporting literacy achievement for struggling readers is particularly important because these readers have their disadvantage compounded: capable students develop “richer” skills through continued exposure to reading, and the gap between them and struggling readers widens. The number of Australian students deemed “low performers” in reading literacy proficiency has been rising over time. Our percentage of high performers is shrinking – nearly one in five adolescents are in the low performer category. Read more: Six things you should do when reading with your kids With school about to start for the year, we should consider how we can optimise support for struggling readers.
Evolution of the book - Julie Dreyfuss Prior to the release of the Amazon Kindle in November 2007, Stephen Levy commented in his Newsweek article, “Amazon: Reinventing the Book,” on the concept of the book as an invention. Quoting Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos directly, Levy writes that “‘books are the last bastion of analog.” This phrasing suggests the book as a set of definable qualities that can be manipulated, redefined, and commodified. But Levy also issues a warning that eventually “the surge of technology will engulf all media.” In an ever-increasing mass market of iPads, computers, and eBooks, 21st-century technology will redefine the codex of literature and the reading experience in the same way that the codex once revolutionized reading by moving away from the scroll. Watch this comic video, which comments on this anxiety.
There's So Much on the Web! Helping Students Become Internet-Research Savvy No matter how much we emphasize the importance of books and databases, the reality is our students are using the Internet for research and will continue to do so. The plethora of high-quality resources available online cannot be ignored. But teaching our students how to navigate the intricate web of invisible wires cannot be ignored, either. Seventy-four percent of college freshmen report that they struggle with keywords and searches, and once they complete searches, nearly half of freshmen are overwhelmed by the amount of irrelevant information. In fact, “I can’t find anything,” is a frequent comment I hear when students embark on their research, whether they are using the Internet, a database, or an online book. I always ask, “What are you using for a search term?”
Eleven Reasons Why Librarians Rock – EveryLibrary Whether they are doing storytime, teaching classes about social media privacy, or discovering new books to add to their collections, librarians always work overtime — and wear many different hats — to bring the magic that they do day in and day out to their communities. In short, librarians rock. Here is just a handful of reasons how and why: Librarians love books. What is information literacy? - CILIP: the library and information association What is information literacy? CILIP's Information Literacy Group has released CILIP Definition of Information Literacy 2018 at the LILAC Conference and reinforces the relevance of information literacy in the current age: “Information literacy is the ability to think critically and make balanced judgements about any information we find and use. It empowers us as citizens to develop informed views and to engage fully with society.” A lot has changed since 2004 when the first CILIP definition of information literacy was devised.
Navigating the information landscape through collaboration - SCIS Elizabeth Hutchinson, Head of Schools' Library Service in Guernsey, writes that information literacy is at the centre of student learning, making the role of library staff as important as ever. School libraries and school library professionals have a huge role to play in supporting teaching and learning within a school. I often hear visiting authors comment on being able to identify a good school by how well the library is used. Do we need library lessons? - SCIS Barbara Band looks at the many benefits of regular library lessons, and speculates what would be lost without them. A school library is (or should be) a whole-school facility, enabling the learning needs of all students, supporting staff to deliver the curriculum, and providing resources for reading and information within a unique space. That’s the theory. The reality, however, is likely to be library staff constantly juggling between the diverse needs of various groups, library lessons full of hands-on activities, busy research lessons using a multitude of resources, quiet periods of study, and times of silent personal reading.
How to Rescue a Wet, Damaged Book: A Short, Handy Visual Primer After the hurricanes in Florida and Texas, the question has surely been asked: How to save those wet, damaged books? Above, you can watch a visual primer from the Syracuse University Libraries--people who know something about taking care of books. It contains a series of tips--some intuitive, some less so--that will give you a clear action plan the next time water and paper meet. Follow Open Culture on Facebook and Twitter and share intelligent media with your friends. Or better yet, sign up for our daily email and get a daily dose of Open Culture in your inbox. If you'd like to support Open Culture and our mission, please consider making a donation to our site.
Libraries, Schools, Social Media and lots more...: 4 ways the school librarian can save teachers time and help support independent learners Independent learners What makes an Independent learner? • The ability to understand which resource is going to help you find the best quality information and being able to use research skills to locate it. ON LIBRARIES – The Highly Effective School Librarian – Hilda K. Weisburg When school librarians are recognized as a leader they are called highly effective.” Until now the best tool for evaluating this has been the Danielson Framework – Library Media Specialists, but thanks to ALA Past Presidents Sari Felman and Julie Todaro their ALA Initiative, “Libraries Transform – The Expert in the Library has given us something more precise. Now we can point to eleven competencies based on the National Policy Board for Educational Leaders’ Professional Standards for Education Leaders (PSEL). Thanks go to Susan Ballard, Dorcas Hand, and Sara Kelly Johns who have created a way we can self-assess and determine our own route forward. The website for School Librarian PSEL Competencies – Building Our Expertise has directions and the host of resources you need to act on what might be the best PD you ever had.
Home "ZEIG DICH" // Museum Night at the German Museum of Books and Writing of the German National Library in Leipzig // Saturday, 6 May 2017, 18:00-24:00 This year's theme is "Zeig dich!" ("Show yourself!") and numerous museums and collections in Halle and Leipzig will be opening their doors to present themselves and their diverse holdings. Column: Can librarians help solve the fake news problem? Students study at a library table. Image by Blend Images/ Dave and Les Jacobs/ Getty Images Imagine, for a moment, the technology of 2017 had existed on Jan. 11, 1964 – the day Luther Terry, surgeon general of the United States, released “Smoking and Health: Report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General of the United States.” What would be some likely scenarios? The social media noise machine explodes; conservative websites immediately paint the report as a nanny-government attack on personal freedom and masculinity; the report’s findings are hit with a flood of satirical memes, outraged Facebook posts, attack videos and click-bait fake news stories; Big Tobacco’s publicity machine begins pumping out disinformation via both popular social media and pseudoscientific predatory journals willing to print anything for a price; Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater characterizes “Smoking and Health” as a “communist-inspired hoax.” Maybe not.