For my second library tour, I visited the library media center of Bethel High School. I chose Bethel High because out of all the secondary school library websites I looked at for our district, Bethel’s stood out, incorporating tools I’m learning in LIBS 602. Due to construction on the building and the relocation of the main office staff to the library, I was unable to do a walkthrough.
Digital Access
Upon opening the homepage, you are greeted with the librarians’ bitmojis which seems really welcoming and personal. The homepage also shares contact information, an escape room activity to help students learn their way around the digital library, a virtual makerspace, and book suggestions. At the top of the screen there are tabs to help students navigate digital resources including eBooks, research databases, and other resources.
The Space & Physical Access
What I found especially interesting and inviting were the virtual maker spaces. Rubin & Rubin (2020) discuss the importance of “providing students with ample opportunities to create and experiment in ways that spur complex thinking” (p. 151), and while I was unable to tour the physical library space to see makerspaces in person, I can tell that BHS values project based learning enough to provide those opportunities to students who have not been able to attend school in person.
Services, Intellectual Access, Patrons & Staff
As stated earlier, the website links students to various resources for eReading materials; however the “more” tab elaborates mostly on student resources unique to the high school experience such as homework help, citation assistance, test prep, career readiness, etc. The librarians at BHS are also assisting teachers with instructional resources, providing professional development, digital media, and educational websites.
Collections
I can see the effort the librarians make toward promoting inclusive literature. The “Bookflix” book suggestion list includes Coming Out Alex, a young adult LGBTQ+ novel and Black Lives Matter. I attempted to click on these books to learn more about the genres and authors; however, I was not able to find them. I don’t know if that is because my access to these texts are limited since my MackinVia account is set to middle school, or if the titles of the books have been removed altogether. With limited access to the library staff because of summer break, I am unable to further investigate.
Final reflections
I encountered a few hiccups navigating the website due to broken and expired links, but I was pleased with the intentionality of the layout. The website is easy to navigate for students and teachers in search of resources. The few issues I encountered aren’t major and most likely easier to overcome during the school day with the assistance of library staff and teachers. As Rubin & Rubin (2020) make clear, technology can’t replace interactions with educators (p. 151), so I don’t believe the website was designed to be used completely independently anyway. I also wager that the website I explored today will look much different next month when librarians get a chance to update the website before students arrive for the new school year.
References:
Bethel High School. (n.d.). BHS library media center. https://sites.google.com/hampton.k12.va.us/bhslibrary/home
Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman.
I appreciate the simple green layout of their website and the Bitmojis are a nice touch to help personalize everything. It’s a shame that you found a lot of broken links. While it’s a shame you didn’t get to walk through the actual building, this assignment is all about finding ways around that, so you did an excellent job doing so. I’m glad the school is devoted to having a diverse collection; representation matters.
I love the idea of the virtual makerspace! What a fun way to get students to engage with the website above and beyond the traditional catalog.
Their website sounds so inviting and engaging. I love the escape room and virtual makerspace. What great ideas to get students utilizing the library. I hope that with all of that great tech, that there is also optimized physical space for study and for leisure for students.
Right away I noticed a connection to gamification, my future trend topic, with the escape room for students to learn their way around the virtual library. I love that interactive idea!
I love the idea of using an escape room activity to learn how to navigate the digital library, how creative and engaging. The high school library website I explored also used a bitmoji environment as a way to learn about and engage with the librarians – I thought it was super cute, and a n especially good idea during the pandemic school closings.
It is great that they have an escape room to teach students more about the library webpage. What a fun way to engage students. I would love to learn more about the digital makerspace, and if students are using that. Project based learning can be great for students, and it is great that the library is helping with that. It sounds like a great resources for students.