In attendance:
Daniels
Downs
Kilgore
Mabry
Sigmon
Sigmon
Stalter
Suttles
Turner
Magazine order for next year:
- We have been informed by "downtown" that MTAC should provide input for media orders like Magazine subscriptions
- Ms Turner described the different magazine orders and asked for input and or questions
- Here's a list of the current order list for next year linked here
About 28 magazines in all
Some magazine include online versions
Consumer reports for example, teachers use all the time
We have cat/dog/horse magazines that really do a great job of satisfying the large need we have for animal books. At any given moment there can be as many as 100 magazines checked out! Students check magazines out for 3 days and can renew them once. After we finish the magazines, we collect them and give them to art classes to use in projects We try and balance titles between girl and boy interests
Wish some teachers would use them more (maybe a better job promoting it?) Trace—everything sounds wonderful for to committee, everyone was in favor of this order going forward
Turner does self-sensor the magazines for inappropriate content
Learn-360 (video service) going away next year?
- It was mentioned at a tech meeting that the school system is considering suspending the service
- Will there be a replacement?
- If service is removed, Learn 360 can not be downloaded and used--breaks copyright laws
- We have many lessons tied to videos on there--things like live binders, etc.
- Might be that some schools who will subscribe to Discovery Streaming—would we recommend?
- What would the cost be now? If we find out Learn 360 is indeed going away, then we will pursue pricing. Turner and Downs to find out what the status is
- **Update** Ms Turner found out the following: "Nothing has been definitely decided until budgets are manipulated and they know what alternatives are available (if any)" Jackie Pierson, MLIS
World Book—terminated the subscription
- Reasons:
- Less research is being being done
- 8th grade teachers dispensed with research--they are using some BIG 6 techniques, but not doing the big research paper as in the past
- Also, teachers are doing research individually instead.
- Because of all those factors , Turner terminated world book.
- Should we survey the staff on it? maybe
- Price for World book was about 800$ based on enrollment—maybe negotiate a better deal? They might
- Any thing else to add to the survey? Perhaps the research process?
Suttles: novels in bad shape? Will some of them be rebound?
- Turner: They have spent a tremendous amount of time this year in the book rooms doing inventory and accessing where the books are and the needs.
- Have found a number of copies missing--in some cases upwards of 100 are missing! The Watsons, Outsiders were both missing a lot!
- Brian Griffin has some novels?
- AG monies to be spent on new books? Teachers make their own decisions on that, but could be a possibility
Downs and the changing Role of the Tech Facilitator
- The WSFCS district has eliminated the tech facilitator role in Middle and High Schools
- In house personnel will be replaced with technicians/hardware repair personnel (district is hiring five additional classified technicians) who will roam between the schools and spend four hours every other day at each school
- This stems from the hiring a .5 classified person at each school who will be in charge of testing-- "Theme monies" that were previously used by the schools are being used for this testing position.
- The district has also offered Middle (.4 certified position) and High Schools (.5 certified) the flexibility to hire a certified instructional support person. This person would have to be certified in instruction. Some school may hire an instructional technologist
- Luckily Downs has a Master's Degree in instructional technology so Gentry is hoping to use that .4 position and perhaps some creative scheduling to keep him in his role but possibly doing more instructional and less technical
- MTAC members expressed the need to have a point person on campus who is availabe everyday not just four hours every other day
- Teachers and students need instructional and technical support at the time a problem arises
- Mr Downs sighted the example of the panther scanners in the media center just yesterday and without a person on site, that may have resulted in the devices being deemed unfix-able without the troubleshooting of an on-site person
- MTAC will want to be thinking about work flow for these new technitions who will be on campus every other day. Things like maintaining the laptop carts and labs and other technology.
Mabry: interactive projector
- People may want to come and see his set-up
- Perhaps and after-school session with Mabry next year? or on an early release day?
- Maybe something we want to consider as TV's break (no longer under warantee)
- The district has assured us that these projector bulbs last much longer than projectors in the past and that bulbs are much cheaper. Run about $2000 vs new TV setup is around $1500 with installation.
Miscellaneous items:
- Yahoo should be unblocked soon. Will happen when yahoo addresses the loophole in their filtering which allows unlimited access to inappropriate sites. This violates our CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act) laws.
- Security system in the media center no longer works (not advertising to students) but it highlights the need for a good inventory
