Media Center Web pages
Beneficial or Nah?
As the current parent liaison for one of the most diverse high schools in world, I am always challenged to provide resources for not only the parents but sometimes the students as well. I do so but sending our monthly newsletters, postcards, calling posts and etc. One thing we don't have is a MC Web page. As I have "quickly" researched, I noticed they are actually a great resource, for those who like to use the Internet. One thing that would be important at this particular school is keeping it basic. We have over 47 languages in the school so if we were to create a web page, it would have to be easy to navigate and read. I think if we would model our MC Web page after one of an elementary school, then there should be no problem especially if it is uniformed with the rest of the schools in the district, which do not have web pages either.
Our school district webmaster or IT leader has made all of our school websites uniformed for easy navigation purposes. So, no matter which school in the entire school district you visit, all of our web pages are the same, minus the school logo and colors of course. Everything else is all in the same place. So, I am thinking we should all have MC Web pages as well. So that we could be a better resource to our community, parents, stakeholders and students. Many people are unaware of the library catalogs and databases that are available and until I began working out of the media center, so was I. I would say MC web pages are beneficial due to the fact of a web page always being available even when the Media Center itself might not be.
I think that media center websites are important. For a student that is home and just can't remember how to access GALILEO or wants to search to see if the library has a particular book, the media center website can come in handy. As a parent or community stakeholder, it is important for me to be able to search and find a school media center to see how my tax dollars are being used and to see children enjoying reading and seeing how the media center is contributing to the overall achievement at the school. As a media specialist, the webpage (or even now, Facebook page) is going to be my way of communicating with students, teachers and parents how the media center works and how important it is!
ReplyDeleteOur media center website has a list of links that vary in importance for students and parents. Children may not be concerned with Box Tops, but there is a link there for parents. Parents can follow links to book review sites and there is even a link there for parents that may be interested in starting their own library at home. For students, there are links for BookFlix, MyOn, and a Lexile finder.
I think the media center site has to be done well in order for it to be used - it needs to be updated regularly and must be relevant!
Holly,
DeleteI agree, the stakeholders should see how their tax dollars are being used and see that the media center is putting those dollars to work. It is important for media specialist to be "tech savvy" so they can keep up with the way of the world. Many students who are homebound or just absent for the day would be benefited if they could go to the media center webpage and get updated resources.
I am a media clerk in an elementary school and we do have a media center website that can be located through the homepage on our school's website. It is simple and easy to navigate and this helps all our students and parents get the most out of it. I love what you said about the web page being available even when the media center is closed. I know we use our web page as a way to stay connected with our patrons and their parents and let them see what we are currently doing and what is coming up in our media program.
ReplyDeleteCallie,
DeleteI would love to see our media center being used to the best of its potential. I think having a webpage would be great and I am actually working on us having a more updated webpage with updated resources. High school students depend heavily on technology.
Like Callie, I am a media clerk in an elementary school but our media center does not have a webpage. I do believe that a webpage would be helpful to students, teachers and parents if it provides information relating to the media program. Our school website does have links to our online catalog and also since Destiny's page can be customized a bit, links to the county public library site, Renaissance Place, GALILEO, Fact Monster, and the school district website are added. This gives parents the access they want for things related to reading, did does not however encourage the collaboration that can occur between teachers and MS or students and MS. Because of this I think it is great to have a separate Media Center page. Our MS is not the webmaster for the school website so this may be why there isn't a specific page. The article "Building Websites That Work..." included the advise to include information that parents and students may find useful, like reviews on tech products before Christmas or favorite vacation destinations before summer vacation. I however think that info doesn't belong on a school media center page. Getting traffic on your webpage should relate to reading or curricular needs not a site just for interesting info. We have enough information overload these days!
ReplyDeleteTracie, my school district also has a uniform web page for each school. However, there is a link that can be used to access the media center web page. Parents and students also have acces to Galileo, Britanica, and other databases provided by the district. After reading the article Building Web Sites That Work for Your Media Center by David Warlick, I really thought that some great tips were provided to enhance the media center webpage. Allowing students and parents to review books and share their thoughts on the site is a really cool idea! The article also touched on the importance of advertising and making sure that all stakeholders are aware that the site is functional and an additional way to access the great things that the media center has to offer. I also think that using a variety of easy to read fonts, video clips, and photos is a great way to ensure that parents, teachers, and students visit the site often.
ReplyDeleteRunning a library is no stress-free chore. This being said, this should not be used as a pretext to take short cuts as it relates to providing an online presence as a media center. With the Media center website, it’s vital to position it online with a strong, professional destination that gives students and community stakeholders the impression that we mean business. It also provides the students with a true beneficial and engaging Media Center experience. With this in mind, remember our students are digital natives, therefore they not only love technology and websites, but have grown to expect them. A first impression goes a long way with children and adults.
ReplyDeleteI am surprised that your library media center does not have a web page specifically for the media center in this day and age where technology makes the world go round. I think that, in order to keep up with the ever increasing technologies that students have available to them, their school library media center should have a website with all the relevant information to help them be productive students not only while at school, but also while at home too. I guess that if the students in your school speak 47 different languages, then, yes, I think it would be very advantageous for the media center's web page to be laid out on an elementary level in order to allow for more students (and their parents) to be able to successfully use the website. This doesn't mean that the website needs to be "dumbed down", but maybe use pictures along with words to convey to the students what each section of the website is about. A library media center's website can be a powerful tool to allow the media specialist to have a larger presence both inside and outside of the school and to act as an advocate for the library media center itself.
ReplyDeleteI believe it is important for a media center to have a webpage. A media center is more than just an area for students to check out books, it's a hub of information at a student's disposal. I believe a webpage for a media center has endless opportunities to post different sorts of media to get students interested in new and exciting literary finds as well as providing information on where to find information. Also, a media center website is a great place to allow students/parents to search for books a student/child might be interested in checking out at school to know if the school has it inside of the library or not. Aside from books, a media center website also can provide a resource center listing websites where students can begin research at home. The opportunities a website can provide are endless!
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree that your school system should have a media center website especially since you have such a diverse population. I also agree that having uniformity in the design of the website will assist users in navigating successfully. The great thing about an online resource like that is the ability for the computer to be able to translate it. Having access to information about library cataloging and databases available to the community is valuable. I really hope that you are successful in helping to implement a media center webpage model in your school system.
ReplyDeleteIn my school the main webpage is maintained by the media specialist. Teachers are required to maintain their own pages on their teacher sites. I do believe the media center need to have it's own page to display the events planned for the month and maybe include tips for student and parents to increase Lexile scores. Many parents struggle with ways to et their students to read at home and have no idea to check for reading comprehension at home. The media center's webpage would be a perfect place.
ReplyDeleteYes, school media center webpages are very important because they can be such an informative common place, but I do believe that your school is not the only one who doesn't have a functioning page. So, don't feel alone. I've even seen some schools have pages that have not been updated in so long that Media Specialists who have been gone for years are still pictured there. So that brings me to my point that not only is a webpage itself important, but making certain that it is constantly updated is also just as critical. People get easily turned-off once they access something and learn that it is not up-to-date, and that fact, I believe, is even more true when it comes to our students, especially if they have the attention span of a gnat like I do! First impression are everything when it comes to a webpage because sometimes you only get that one chance to capture readers. If a school is fortunate enough to have an up-to-date webpage then it is also just important for it to be visually appealing to keep the attention of the reader and easy to access and navigate. Next, valuable information is a must! Those are the things that keep readers coming back and keep webpages relevant. Even with your school being a melting pot for cultures and different languages, the more information we can offer our students and their parents and the staff, the better. Hopefully, someday soon your school is able to create a webpage and have that be made available to the students and staff, but until then newsletters are a wonderful resource for information and I can greatly appreciate the value of that.
ReplyDeleteI really think media center websites are important in today's world of technology. Parents and other stakeholders are more likely to access a webpage than they are to read a newsletter published on paper. Unfortunately. media specialists have to continually justify the importance of their program. I think a media center webpage is one way to "sell" the program. Also, it can be a good resource for students to learn more about what the media center has to offer. getting students interested in the media center can only reap positive benefits. I think a media specialist has the responsibility to create a useful, up-to-date, attractive website.
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