Assignment #17: Letter to a future iLibrary Student

To a future iLibrary student,

Your responsibilities will include checking books in and out of the library, as well as shelving the books and keeping the library organized. A majority of the assignments that I had to do involved reading and all of them involved writing. Whether it was a book, article or magazine, reading is a huge part of this class. I would not recommend iLibrary to someone who struggles in English class, because they will have a tough time for sure and chances are that they would not enjoy the class.

My strengths in the class were probably the assignments. I believe that I did quite well on most of them. However, something that I struggled with was pacing myself with the assignments. I am prone to procrastination and when there are no due dates, it can be a little bit difficult to stay on track. Sometimes when I should have been researching for an assignment, I spent the block reading a good book instead.

The thing that I enjoyed most about the course was the reading. I went almost a year without finishing a novel, because I could not find any that I was interested in and I also just could not find the time for reading. However throughout this semester, I read several more books than the required amount. I really liked that although the reading was assigned, I was given the freedom to choose whatever books I wanted as long as they fit the criteria, (such as a non-fiction book, or a popular teen novel). It really regained my love of reading that I temporarily lost and I was happy to do all of the reading assignments.

In my opinion, the library could be improved by getting more stations for people to plug in their phones and laptops, because as the years pass us by, students will need to use technology more than ever before to do their projects and homework. Another thing that I can think of would be advertising online tools, like World Book or sites that show how to make a proper bibliography. Even though many students are taught about these resources in the younger grades, when it comes time that they would be helpful, many people might have forgotten about them. I know that I did. Perhaps there could be a poster listing all of these important online resources and it could be hung above the computers or somewhere else that's visible.

The assignment that I found the most difficult would be assignment #1, the history of libraries vocabulary and research assignment. I found it interesting at first, but as I moved down the list, it began to get difficult to find information and soon, I got bored of it. It took me several weeks to actually getting around to finishing it. Though it was my least favorite assignment, I would not say that I wish I did not have to do it, because I learned new things.

My knowledge on libraries grew significantly throughout this course. Before I only knew the basics, like the Dewey Decimal System and that the books are assorted alphabetically. Now I know a lot about everything from how books are prepped for a school library and to how books are desensitized so that the alarm will not be set off when students borrow them.

I have also learned more about censorship and other interesting topics. For example, the poverty of abundance, copyright laws and the importance of literacy within our communities. Those were some of the subjects I did not even expect to cover in iLibrary,

Magazine Study: Rolling Stone

The magazine I choose to use for this reading assignment is the December, 18th, 2014 to January, 1st, 2015 edition of Rolling Stone. It is difficult to narrow down just one target demographic for this magazine. If one judges just from the front cover, it looks more like an adult men's magazine by the way it is designed. However, inside most of the articles are just on celebrities, movies and pop culture, all of which are topics that can appeal to a wide range of people. I have read Rolling Stone a couple of times when there was an interview with a celebrity that I like, but it is not something that I regularly read. Rolling Stone can be a political magazine and this specific issue of the magazine happens to have more articles about political problems as well, such as the Taliban in Afghanistan, which is what they discuss in several pages. They once put the man who was behind the Boston Marathon bombing on the cover of their magazine and they received quite a lot of backlash for that.

The front cover has immediately hooked the audience if they have an interest in Seth Rogen. People who do not care for him probably would also not want to buy the magazine. As someone who is not a fan of him, I would not buy this edition of Rolling Stone. However, I may flip through it at the grocery store if I had time. There is so much controversy surrounding him and his new movie, titled The Interview, that even though I am not crazy about him, I want to know more about it. He was a good choice for a magazine cover, because many other people are probably just as curious too, as he has been a popular topic lately.

There are plenty of advertisements for alcohol, which makes it clear that this magazine is mostly targeted for adults. There is also a lot of advertising for television shows, books, music and Netflix, and that fits in with the general theme of the magazine very well.

I choose to read the article on Seth Rogen, because he seems to be the focal point of the magazine. Also because, as previously mentioned, I am curious about the huge controversy his newest movie has caused. The article is not arguing anything in particular, except perhaps what a funny, laidback guy Seth Rogen apparently is. Most of the pictures that surround the text in the article are photographs of him in action: on set of his movie or doing stand up comedy. There is a general theme in the way that those few pages are laid out. They feature the North Korean flag at the topic of the page to go with The Interview. This article did not make me want to see the movie. I am all for satirical comedy, but the idea behind this movies just seems disrespectful and like it trivializes the atrocities that the citizens of North Korea face everyday.

Overall, this is a useful magazine. It has informative music and film reviews, as well as political information. It gives celebrities very honest interviews and readers get a little peak into their lives. Rather than asking a series of questions like most traditional interviews, the interviewer writes about what the celebrity is doing in their daily life.

Journal #8: Search engines

Google is a fairly general search engine and it can be used for many different purposes. It is very easy to use as long as you have some knowledge on how to research subjects. It could be a little over whelming though if you are the type of person who feels that they need to read everything, because of the huge number of results that will come up no matter what you look up.

There may be other search engines that are more efficient, but Google is one that I always seem to come back to. I prefer Google over the other well known ones, such as Yahoo! and Bing. This is most likely because it is what I am used to after many years of use and it is the most popular search engine. However, it is probably not the most sophisticated. As mentioned previously in a journal, Google does a problematic thing by tailoring the search results to what it thinks that you want to see. This may keep a person from finding what they actually need to see and it will limit the results. To be fair, I have not given many other ones a try, because I am fond of and used to Google.

An aspect of it that is helpful is that users are able to go to Google Advanced Search if they are looking for very specific types of results. It allows you to narrow down results from only certain regions or even articles with different reading levels. Despite it flaws, it works well for the average person. Maybe if someone were writing a research paper, they may want to use a more sophisticated site, but overall, Google is a fairly good search engine and I will continue to use it in the future.

Journal #10: TED Talk ~ Filter bubbles

Eli Pariser was arguing that filter bubbles are causing internet users to be less informed, because it is tailoring everything specifically to the person's interests. We will be unable to see beyond what is thought to be want we want to see, which can be problematic. This can cause ignorance about certain topics and events.

The Mark Zuckerberg quote from the beginning of the YouTube video has a lot of truth in it, whether or not we want to admit it. Sometimes people are more focused on worrying about trivial things that are more close to home for them rather than larger, more important things that are going on in the world. I understand that some people use social networking sites as a distraction, but still I do not believe that it is a wise idea for sites like Facebook to be hiding information that it thinks you do not want to see. In fact, it could be rather dangerous. Everybody needs to be informed about social issues and current events, because if we are not, we may end up going backwards as a society.

I personally have not had an account on Facebook for several years now, but a few ways that I think may ensure that you get a wide range of results on Facebook and search engines would be to read many different kinds of articles to keep things balanced. This is easier said than done, because no one wants to take the time to read something that does not interest them. It would feel like a waste of time, but reading something you normally would not every once in awhile can give one a fresh perspective and make you more of an educated person.

Journal #11: The traditional view of a librarian

The first thing that popped into my mind when I thought of the traditional view of a librarian was the librarian from the first Ghost Busters movie. She was, without doubt, a well representation of this overdone stereotype. Maybe years ago, there were more librarians who fitted this stereotype, but it is likely that there has always been lots of diversity in the field.

The modern age has vastly changed the job description of a librarian, because we are far more reliant on computers compared to how we once were. A librarian must be computer and internet literate, as this is a huge part of the job. This new aspect may now be attracting many younger people to this specific job.

According to the San Jose State University video on YouTube, promoting their Library and Information Studies program, there are several different careers one can go into with the Masters of Library and Information Studies degree. As the dependence on technology and amount of information on the internet increases, as will the jobs that are available in this field. We will need organized people to be responsible for keeping track of all this information. Although the stereotypical librarian is an elderly woman, I think that because of all the technology that is involved, many different kinds of people are being attracted to these kinds of jobs.

Perhaps it is time that the title of a librarian is changed, if the job has changed so much over the years. I do not think that I could think of a term that would fit any better, but something that has to do with the organization of information may be more accurate, as that is a huge part of what they do.

Assignment #6: School Library Website Review

Overall, the school library's website works very well. It is easy to access information, because the links are all placed under categories right at the top of the page. The intended audience of the library website are the grade eight to twelve students of our school, and perhaps the teachers as well. When students are viewing the website, they want quick access to whatever they are looking for. They do  not want to waste time searching the site when they likely have assignments and projects that must be completed. I think that this website offers students just that: fast, reliable information. It is visually pleasing as well, which is just as important.

The only suggestion I can come up with that would improve it would be to add onto the site more. Provide more links, more resources and more information if possible, because that will make this website even more informative for students. Building upon a website with more helpful information will always improve its usefulness.

Banned Book

There are several reasons as to why a book may be banned from a school library. Opposed to a regular library, a school library has to be more careful about what is in the collection. All of the material must be appropriate for minors to view. That means that anything with extreme sexuality, violence or even profanities may be unavailable to the students. Books may also be censored from a school if it carries a hateful, offensive message. Of course everyone is offended by different things, so this would mainly just include books that have a racist, bigoted or homophobic theme that is degrading to those being oppressed or if it promotes a negative attitude towards those people. Books that have a strong political message that is viewed as harmful to society, such as books praising Nazis, will probably be banned as well. This kind of censorship, in my opinion, is understandable, because the school could face legal troubles if a parent complains that something their child viewed was not age inappropriate.

A commonly known banned book is To Kill a Mockingbird. It has been challenged in the past because some think it is racist and it's use of profanities may be offensive. There is also mention of rape, which many think is inappropriate as well. I have not read this book  before, but I know that several English classes read it for their novel study last year. None of my friends have ever felt that it was too inappropriate for them to be reading in class and I find it interesting how it is still being challenged to this day.

The Scarlet Letter is another book that continues to be challenged. It was written in 1850, a time where people were much more strict when it came to topics of promiscuity. I personally have not read this book either, but I do know what it is about and I think that it is a little unusual that people are still offended by it, and even claim that it is sinful. Compared to what is on TV everyday, this seems minor.

Some of the banned books that are in our school library today include both To Kill a Mockingbird and The Scarlet Letter, as well as Moby Dick, The Great Gatsby, Beloved, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Catcher in the Rye. A banned book that our library does not carry is Gone With the Wind. Out of these books, I have read only The Great Gatsby and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I do not see much of a reason to ban The Great Gatsby. Perhaps it would offend people in the 1920s, but there is nothing offensive in that book compared to modern day standards. I cannot comment on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, because I read that book years ago and I do not remember it well.

I choose to read the book, Beloved. It was definitely a well written novel, but it is not something that I would recommend to my friends. At times I found it difficult to follow and there were several times throughout reading it that I did not want to continue, It goes straight into the plot without first giving much of a background on the characters. This was confusing, because it would mention a character or a place without giving much of a description as to what it was. However, as the book progressed, it began to make more sense and more of an explanation was given.

It is justifiable that this book made some people uncomfortable, but it is mildly inappropriate only to present realism. It is not obscene or disturbing and I would certainly not support a ban on it. It does touch upon darker themes, such as racism and rape, and it is not a novel that I would suggest an eleven year old read, but I think that most people above the age of fifteen would be able to read and comprehend it in a mature manner.

As previously mentioned, Beloved is already included in our school library's collection and it should stay. It is not a book that many would even bother to pick up if they were unable to handle stories for more mature readers. Just by reading the summary on the inside cover, it is obvious that more intense themes are likely to be included. I would understand if a younger person found the ideas of Beloved to be uncomfortable, but if adults feel so uncomfortable while reading it that they think it is necessary to put a ban upon it, I would find this a little questionable and I would want to hear their reasons behind it. Although racism and slavery are topics that people find uncomfortable, it is not a racist book. If it was degrading towards other people, I could understand a ban, but it certainly is not.