In "Fool's Gold: Why the Internet Is No Substitute for a Library," Mark Herring paints a fairly grim picture of the future of libraries. Basically, he posits that a confluence of events and attitudes have come together to bring about the demise (unless something is done, and soon) of the library as people know it. First, people mistakenly believe…

Most educators are familiar with instances of authentic assessment of "content" within the disciplines or of authentic assessment of "discipline-specific skills." In such authentic assessments, students apply the knowledge and skills of the discipline to situations or tasks that replicate real world challenges. The measurement of skills is…

Library media specialists are a literacy model. They hold the world of literacy at their fingertips and in their collections. Everything individuals need to know about literacy can be found in some form in the library domain, either in the stacks or in the professional repertoire that librarians posses. There are plenty of ways that library media…

Many schools have placed increased emphasis on literacy skills. Many state and federal programs require schools to demonstrate increased rates of literacy or improved tests scores based on literacy skills. And for many students, the fastest and most efficient method to achieve improved literacy skills is through Sustained Silent Reading (SSR). It…

What motivates middle school students? Hormones and success! There is not much that teachers can do about the hormones, but they sure can affect the success. "Teaching Information and Communication Technology Skills: The Big6 in Middle Schools," a new book from Linworth Publishing, offers classroom teachers and teacher librarians new strategies…

High school students working in a project-driven environment create "projects with a purpose" that give younger students technology-based activities to help them practice skills in reading, math, spelling and science. An elective semester-long course using the Macromedia suite of programs with the objective of learning the software skills of…

Literacy games are just another strategy in the ultimate goal to increase reading and overall student academic performance. Activities such as the Fall reading game, which focuses on the Fall season, which encourage reluctant readers to take the beginning steps toward developing the skills they would need to become accomplished readers are…