[Baynet] Infopeople's online course "Adolescents and Libraries"

Mon Mar 30 14:26:24 PDT 2009

Since some people who may be interested in participating might not receive
this notice directly, we would appreciate it if you would print and post or
route this announcement to staff and colleagues. Thanks!

Title:  Adolescents and Libraries: From Understanding to Advocacy (Online
learning course)

Dates:  May 5 – June 8, 2009

To register for this workshop:  Use the online registration form at

http://infopeople.org/workshop/425 

Fee:  $75 for those in the California library community and Infopeople
Partners, $150 for all others.

It's 3:30 in the afternoon and your library is filled with teenagers, some
using computers, some doing homework at tables, some just socializing. How
do you view this adolescent activity in your library? 

If your library is close to a middle school or high school, you know that
the after-school hours can be challenging. You may have older patrons who
find groups of teens intimidating. Library staff may complain about
teenagers who test the limits with their behavior. On the other hand, you
may have teenage users who are avid and appreciative readers or loyal
volunteers at the library. How can you balance these conflicting views of
adolescents using your library? 

This online course will help you to: 

• Understand what today's teens are going through and the influences on
their behavior. 

• Identify ways to keep current with teen culture. 

• Form positive and proactive relationships with teenage library users. 

• Acquire skills to fairly and consistently correct behavior when
appropriate. 

With a better understanding of the challenges facing adolescents, you will
be able to develop some strategies for library service that meets their
needs. While building positive relationships with adolescents, you'll become
an advocate for teens in your library and in your community. 

Workshop Description: This four-week online course provides an overview of
teenagers in American society and of the biological, psychological,
sociological and other influences on adolescent behaviors. You will identify
what makes local teens unique, share ideas on how to keep your fingers on
the pulse of teen culture, and strategize how to improve library services to
teens. Through reading, exercises, and group discussion, you will be able to
discern which "annoying" teen behaviors can be overlooked, which should be
corrected, and which can be prevented through improved service to this
sometimes challenging user group. 

The instructor will provide resources, best practices, and useful tips and
techniques that can be applied immediately. 

During the course, you will be completing an exercise or taking a quiz each
week. Active participation in online discussion forums as part of the online
learning process is required. During the third week there will be an online
meeting, in which Beth Gallaway and Dr. Anthony Bernier will present
different perspectives on adolescent needs and library services. 

Preliminary Course Outline: Using your web browser and your Internet
connection, you will log in to the Infopeople online learning site and
complete the following learning modules: 

• Week One: Defining the Millennial Generation 

Benchmarks in the history of the teenager in American culture 

Take a pop culture quiz 

YALSA's competencies for library staff serving teens 

Who are the teens in your community? 

• Week Two: Influences on Adolescent Behavior 

Biological changes 

Psychological changes 

Sociological influences 

• Week Three: Building Positive Relationships 

Developing proactive and positive relationships with teen users 

Delivering excellent outreach, customer service, reference and reader's
advisory to teens 

Advocating for teens in your library and in your community 

• Week Four: Responding to Disrespectful Behavior 

Establishing and enforcing rules of conduct 

Discipline tips 

Following up, de-briefing and de-stressing 

Instructor:  Beth Gallaway.  Beth Gallaway, a Library Journal Mover & Shaker
(2006), is an independent library trainer/consultant. She is an adjunct
lecturer for Simmons College and teaches online classes for YALSA. She has
been playing video games since she was five and is currently playing
Katamari Damacy, Donkey Konga, and Dance Dance Revolution (not all at the
same time). Beth is the founder of the LibGaming listserv, an active YALSA
volunteer, and the co-author of Get Your Game On: Video Games and Libraries.
(Neal Schuman, 2007). She is a member of many social networking
applications, and you can find her using the handle "informationgoddess29."

Online Learning Details: 

This four-week course is taught online using the Web. Because the Memorial
Day holiday falls during the session, we will extend the class by one week,
through June 8, 2009. When you register, you will receive a registration
confirmation including the URL to get to the course, as well as a username
and password. We recommend that you log in sometime during the first week to
begin the course work. 

To complete this course, you can expect to spend 2 to 2½ hours per week. You
can work on each module at your own pace, at any hour of the day or night.
However, it is recommended that you complete each week's assignments within
that week to stay in synch with other students. 

After the official end date for the course, the instructor will be available
for limited consultation and support for two more weeks, and the course
material will stay up for an additional two weeks after that. These extra
weeks give those who have fallen behind time to work independently to
complete the course. To earn a certificate of completion, students must
complete assignments, take quizzes and participate in discussions. 

Who Should Take This Course: This course is for anyone from the library
community with an interest in better understanding American teenagers. It is
ideal for front line staff who interact with teens on a daily basis, and
useful for policy creators and managers who may interact indirectly with
teens. Teens are not simply the domain of the young adult librarian. Whether
you work in administration, collection services, circulation or reference,
teens are everyone's challenge and everyone's opportunity. The methods for
preventing and responding to potentially disruptive behavior can be applied
to patrons of all ages. 

Certification: Infopeople is an approved provider for the Western Council
Library Practitioner Certification Program.
http://certificate.westernco.org/ 

Prerequisites: 

This course is taught over the web. You must: 

• Be able to save Microsoft Word .doc or Adobe .pdf files to your computer
and print them out. (For .doc files, a free Word Viewer is available at
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/search.aspx?displaylang=en . Search for
"Word Viewer." For .pdf files, a free Adobe Acrobat Reader is available at
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.htm  ). 

• Be comfortable navigating on the web and navigating back and forward on a
website that uses frames. 

• To be most successful in this course you should be willing to share
information with your colleagues and be willing to spend time reading and
participating in the weekly discussion boards. 

System Requirements: The online learning product that Infopeople uses is
called Moodle. If you have taken an Infopeople online course in the past,
please note that this is a change from Angel, the previous online learning
product. The following are minimum system requirements for using Moodle. You
will need access to a computer that has at least these specifications to
participate in an online course: 

• Windows: 

Microsoft Windows XP or Microsoft Windows Vista 

Internet Explorer 7.0 and above, Mozilla Firefox 2.0 and above 

Phishing Filter disabled (IE 7) 

• Macintosh: 

OS X and above (OS 9 will NOT work with our online learning product) 

Mozilla Firefox 2.0 and above, Safari 2.0 and above 

• General 

High speed Internet connection (dial up not recommended) 

Pop-up blockers disabled 

If you are not comfortable with any of the above, please consider taking
this course with a colleague who does meet these requirements.

If you would like to subscribe via RSS and be notified whenever new
Infopeople training events are available, you can use these links:

**For new on-ground or online workshops: http://infopeople.org/workshop/rss

**For new podcasts: http://feeds.feedburner.com/InfopeoplePodcasts  

To view a complete list of Infopeople workshops and for general information
about Infopeople Training opportunities, go to the main Infopeople Workshops
page at http://infopeople.org/workshop       

If you have questions about registration or scheduling of workshops, please
contact Linda Rodenspiel, the Infopeople Project Assistant, at
assist at infopeople.org or by phone at 650-578-9685.

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