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Information literacy conference call for proposals

Western Balkan Information Literacy Conference:  JUNE 17th-20th 2015 Juni na Uni 2015. – Hotel “Opal” Bihać, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Conference website: http://www.wbilc2015.kbbi.ba/en/

Call for Papers

Theme: Information & media literacy for lifelong learning: digital citizenship for a digital age.   In this Information Age the rise of digital and social media tools has brought with it some amazing innovations and immense challenges. The challenge to achieve information literacy (IL) in this information rich society is vital for lifelong learning and allows us to capitalise on the diverse and often overwhelming range of information choices which we have been confronted with by the power of the Internet. This great power has forced all of us to develop strategies for confronting issues concerning accessibility, reliability, authenticity and validity as well as information overload. Information Literacy is a vital transferable skill for lifelong learning in both formal and informal learning environments throughout people’s lifetimes. Information literacy facilitates active citizenship of individuals. Information literacy prepares people for lifelong learning because it enables them to find the information they need for any task or decision at hand. In helping to provide and expand access to information, helping to facilitate full participation in Society- our role is crucial. We must prepare for a Society full of Information, prepare for Digital Citizenship for a Digital Age.

Main Themes and Topics: Western Balkan Information Literacy Conference.

  1. Information literacy in the modern world
  2. Librarians as support to the lifelong learning process
  3. Media and information literacy – theoretical approaches (standards, assessment, collaboration, etc.)
  4. New aspects of education/strategic planning, policy, and advocacy for information literacy in a digital age

Paper submission: Submissions in any of the following forms are accepted: presentation, roundtable discussion, poster, Train-the-trainers workshop, PechaKucha. Full paper will be published in conference proceedings

Important Dates

Abstracts submission deadline April 17, 2015

Notification of abstract acceptance April 24, 2015

Paper submission deadline May 15, 2015

Notification of acceptance May 30, 2015

Dissemination of final programme June 02, 2015

Deadline for authors to submit slides June 04, 2015

For further information: please see the Western Balkan Information Literacy Conference website for additional details at:http://www.wbilc2015.kbbi.ba/en/

Please note: all expenses, including registration for the conference, travel, accommodation etc., are the responsibility of the authors/presenters. No financial support can be provided by the Conference Committee, but a special invitation can be issued to authors.

Gaming in Libraries book

gaming is an increasingly interesting topic among (mainly public) librarians in Italy. While there is much on videogames collection development, organizing a gaming event etc., there is not as much on educational aspects, implications on both sides (school and library).

Martina Marsano (current M.Ed. student), discussed her final work on the topic of videogames and gaming at school and in libraries in July 2013. Her work was selected and awarded the “Giorgio De Gregori” Award(here are news and pics https://formazione.uniroma3.it/docente/lmarquardt/2013/09/26/premio-giorgio-de-gregori-2013/).
It was the first time that both an undergraduate student and, furthermore, from a LIS course at a Department of Education (and not a Dept. of LIS) was awarded.

Now her work has become a book, a new title in the “Premio Giorgio De Gregori” (i.e. Giorgio De Gregori Award) series
(http://www.aib.it/negozio-aib/premio-de-gregori/), that was presented in Rome on Nov. 25, 2014 (URL:
http://www.aib.it/attivita/2014/45938-presentazione-volume-videogioco-scuola-biblioteca/), during one of the several events that took place during the last International Gaming Day (IGD@yourlibrary).

Qatar Digital Library

‘Qatar Digital Library‘ is a free digital archive of cultural and historical heritage of the Gulf developed by Qatar Foundation, Qatar National Library and The British Library.
Below is a paragraph straight from the site about what you can find in it.

WHAT CAN I FIND IN THE QDL?

Content currently available on the QDL was developed during the first phase of the partnership, reaching a total of 500,000 images by the end of 2014. More content is being added all the time, but current highlights the QDL is proud to showcase include:

  • India Office Records that span the period 1763–1951, comprising files from the Bushire PoliticalResidency Records and the Bahrain Agency Records
  • J. G. Lorimer’s Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf , Oman and Central Arabia (1908, 1915), a classic introduction to the history of the Gulf
  • 500 maps, charts and plans of the Persian Gulf and the wider region
  • The Private papers of Sir Lewis Pelly, Political Resident in the Persian Gulf between 1862 and 1872
  • Arabic Scientific Manuscripts from the British Library’s Manuscripts Collections, covering topics such as medicine, mathematics, astronomy and engineering
  • A selection of photographs, postcards and other printed objects as well as sketches, drawings and watercolours; etchings, engravings and illustrations
  • A selection of audio collection materials including 200 shellac discs recorded in Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq between 1920 and 1940

IFLA Sustainable Development Goals Efforts

LA has been working with the international library community—as well as civil society and member states—to develop its position on the creation of the new UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and help ensure that crucial elements such as access to information are included in the UN post-2015 Development Agenda. Throughout this process, it is important that libraries are seen as being part of the conversation.

Last week, an advance “Synthesis Report of the UN Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda” was released. The Report outlines the priorities and main goals of the post-2015 UN Development Agenda and has a serious goal: to transform our economies, our environment, and our societies. IFLA welcomes the Report and the inclusion of access to information, and encourages the United Nations to recognise the role of access and skills as an essential pillar in the transformational agenda for sustainable development. Unfortunately, we are disappointed that the report lacks substance on the potential of ICTs for development.

We encourage the UN and its Member States to use the Lyon Declaration during the next stage of intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda to inform the inclusion of access to information, and the skills to use it effectively by:

·         Acknowledging the public’s right to access information and data, while respecting the right to individual privacy;

·         Recognising the important role of local authorities, information intermediaries and infrastructure such as ICTs and an open Internet as a means of implementation;

·         Adopting policy, standards and legislation to ensure the continued funding, integrity, preservation and provision of information by governments, and access by people;

·         Developing targets and indicators that enable measurement of the impact of access to information and data.

IFLA has already released a Toolkit to support library institutions and associations and other civil society organisations to advocate for access to information in the context of post-2015 UN Development Agenda—thereby empowering signatories of the Lyon Declaration to make the voice of the library community heard on a national level.

What next?

Following the publication of the final synthesis report at the end of December 2014, IFLA will produce a revised version of the Toolkit with specific talking points and examples to support meetings with member state representatives that library associations and institutions will organise in early 2015.

The final synthesis report will become the baseline for the negations and meetings that will take place throughout 2015, in the lead up to the Special Summit on Sustainable Development. IFLA will be participating in some of the meetings, including:

·         High-level thematic debate on the means of implementation for the post-2015 development agenda (February 2015)

·         Millennium Development Goals Report 2015 (July 2015)

·         Millennium Development Goals Gap Task Force Report (September 2015)

·         Special Summit on Sustainable Development (September 2015)

Read the full response online.

 

Canadian School Libraries Standards win award

The Canadian Library Association’s Leading Learning Project has been selected to receive the Ontario Library Association President’s Award for Exceptional Achievement at our Super Conference in January 2015. The President’s Award for Exceptional Achievement acknowledges an outstanding action or contribution that has in a major or unique way enhanced or furthered librarianship in Ontario. The selection is at the full discretion of the President of the OLA. Awards are only given if there is something of true historic significance to recognize.

The publication of Leading Learning: Standards of Practice for School Libraries in Canada is an event of true historic significance. As the document says, “Learners have a right to expect good school libraries in every school in Canada.” Standards can indeed help measure practice, but Leading Learning does much more. By focusing on the needs of the learner, Leading Learning provides a framework for growth. Every school, no matter the status of its library program, can find itself in this framework and decide on tangible steps for improvement. The development of Leading Learning brought together input from every province and territory in the country, and successfully developed standards for growth that are meaningful within this very disparate context. This is a remarkable achievement.

The Royal Society of Canada’s recently released expert panel report on the status and future of Canada’s libraries and archives made recommendations for improving standards for school library programs across the country. It cited Leading Learning and our own guideline document, Together for Learning: School Libraries and the Emergence of the Learning Commons as models for moving forward. In the Ontario context, Leading Learning provides a sympathetic framework for achieving the vision of Together for Learning , and as such, is particularly deserving of an award for enhancing or furthering librarianship in this province. It is also my hope that this award will help to advance the implementation of Leading Learning across the country and advocate for school library programs, particularly in light of the RSC’s recommendations.

Congratulations!

Anita Brooks Kirkland
Consultant, Libraries & Learning
[email protected]

President, Ontario Library Association
www.accessola.org