Be the Web "Go-To" Person for Parents!

Hauser, J. (2009). Be the web "go-to" person for parents!. School Library Media Activities Monthly, 25(6), 24-26. http://search.ebscohost.com.ts.isil.westga.edu

In this article from School Library Media Activities Monthly, Hauser relays her experience as an information media consultant for a school district in Michigan where she works with library media specialists and classroom teachers. After spending several years training those professionals in using Web 2.0 tools, she decided to implement a workshop to teach parents about Web 2.0 tools since their students are using them in school. The point of the workshop was not only to teach parents about Web 2.0, but help them see the school library media specialist as the “go-to” person when parents have questions regarding Web 2.0. Hauser’s plan for such a workshop involves several steps. First, she and the library media specialist meet and coordinate the workshop, so they can present the workshop together allowing the parents see the library media specialist as a person they can go to for help. She then suggests starting with a few commonly used Web 2.0 tools; the library media specialist should know how to use the selected tools well enough to answer questions and demonstrate their uses to parents. Hauser suggests starting with blogs, wikis, podcasts, RSS feeds, and social networking sites, and she provides information about each of those tools. Professional development opportunities are available in a variety of locations to help library media specialists become comfortable with these tools. These tools are helpful for library media specialists because they help with work in the media center, are applicable to today’s curriculum, and can be used to educate parents.