I was having a conversation with a classmate today about how this class makes more and more sense the longer we’re immersed in it. I remember on the first few days how we were trying so hard to adjust to the unlearning process (or, in terms of the class metaphor, trying to stay between the rapids and the muddy estuaries of the Fraser), but now that we have a feel for it, there’s this sense of excitement and purpose.

Our grade level group discussions about world libraries did not go the way we expected, in part because we were taking some time to figure out some of the software available for sharing and annotating online resources. After Amy suggested the PDF Reader app for the iPad, I installed it and spent some time trying to annotate the articles that I’d discovered. It is not the easiest app to negotiate, and I was pleased when I was able to access Diigo later in the class. I’ve used this for compiling resources for an inquiry-based research project in the past and I find it to suit my needs – not just because I already know how to use it, but because it has an intuitive interface that was fairly easy to experiment with from the beginning.

Once all of our group members had sorted out the ICT aspect, we had a great discussion about some of the potential for world libraries as well as identifying what the roadblocks may be. Ideally, it would be amazing if all of the world’s resources (or, perhaps more realistically, everything that was available within the libraries of my own school district) were available online, for free, in a digital form, 24 hours a day. It would allow individual libraries to cultivate their own specialized collections while still being able to provide their clients with a breadth of resources. The concerns mainly had to do with distribution and copyright issues. Unfortunately there are still authors and publishing companies that need to make money off of their intellectual property and the more people who have access to their works online, the more they need to charge. We discussed the Creative Commons movement as an alternative to the established method of sharing information and ideas.  When I met with my inquiry group we also talked about the idea of students being able to generate their own information (picture books, textbooks, blogs, videos) and sharing it through social media as an initial step in generating a world library. Sites like Diigo allow those materials to be organized in ways that resemble (but are superior to) library catalogues.

Some very exciting and inspiring ideas, once again! My hope is that we can find a way to continue this work once the course is over.