Caskey Catalog

Well, I think that since this blog has been about education and technology that it is time to address the elephant in the room: Artificial Intelligence (AI). While AI is not new, it has become almost impossible to ignore. It is beginning to be used everywhere even in businesses and yes, in education. My own district this summer began creating an AI policy, offered an AI book study (which I participated in) and provided the staff with access and training to MagicSchool.  Before My Exploration         I won't lie, before beginning my exploration, I did not know a lot about AI. I felt that I had a very basic understanding of AI. Also I knew that I was nervous about it because it isn't a perfect tool and it cannot be used without fact checking. I had heard about hallucinations and that depending on the information given to the AI, it can be very biased. Of course, I also knew about the impacts on the environment. Normally, this would be something I would be th...

As this integrating technology course is wrapping up I want to think back to my first blog post . I discussed the positive and negative feelings I have toward technology and I still feel that way! While technology is such an important part of my work life, I don't know if the same can be said about my personal life! Social media is something that I struggle with and I have gotten better. I think that my original GIF is still very much the same now as it was 8 weeks ago! (Image Source: tenor) Educational Technology         I do think that there are a few educational technology tools that I did learn about or use during this course that I could see myself using in my future library classroom and even professionally on my own. I quite enjoyed writing this blog for example and would love to continue doing so. I also did enjoy creating a portfolio website for this class, so I will be mindful to have any potential professional blog be with a site that will easily int...

Accessibility and libraries go hand in hand. You cannot have a properly functioning library without having accessibility. The American Library Association (ALA) and Melina Sherman created a report on accessibility: "Accessibility in Libraries: A Landscape Review" , within the report they explore the history of libraries and the attempt to continue making libraries accessible and equitable to all to those with disabilities. Libraries began providing blind print materials in the mid-1800s (Sherman, 8). Many services and materials were being provided for low vision and blind patrons. Then libraries began getting talking machines and talking books (Sherman, 9). The ALA were groundbreakers in 1961; "ALA also developed the first standards for ensuring equal access to patrons with disabilities" (Sherman, 9). This was followed by the Americans with Disabilities Act and then the Library Services for People with Disabilities Policy. Particularly with the internet, libraries a...

Technology integration is extremely important in modern education. Students need to learn technology literacy to be able to be well rounded students and as future adults in the job market. Technology is not going anywhere, in fact, if anything it will just continue to grow and become larger parts of future jobs and lifestyles. Project Tomorrow          Project Tomorrow is an organization that has a research project, Speak Up , that provides an annual report of the data from all stakeholders about technology use in education. Project Tomorrow is a free national research project that can be used by school and districts. The report advocates for student voices while also providing educators with helpful information about technology integration in schools. Here is the first page from the 2023-2024 Speak Up findings. Image Source: Project Tomorrow Speak Up          Something that stands out to me, but doesn't necessarily surprise me, is the a...