Author Archives

• tmi: Promoting Information Literacy and Managing Media Diets

  By Mark Dzula on 02/16/2017 • ( 0 )

  The correct way to bandy about terms like “political junkie” and “news junkie” is in a pseudo-self-deprecating way that is actually meant to evoke awe. Calling yourself a news junkie functions like calling yourself a geek or total nerd. That… Read More ›

• Pro-grow, recording, and connected learning

  By Mark Dzula on 01/20/2017 • ( 1 )

  

  My library has a hidden talent. Its acoustics make it a perfect recording and performance space. Abbey Road, Hansa Studios, and The Power Station (now Avatar Studios) boast their own legends—call it hubris, but I believe my library has similar… Read More ›

• Collaborating to redefine resources: institutions, research, and experiential learning

  By Mark Dzula on 12/19/2016 • ( 0 )

  

  A school library is not only what it holds, but how far it can reach. It would be too simplistic to define a library’s bounds only by its print collection, no matter how tempting to vaunt the sheer number of… Read More ›

• o havruta o mituta: Fellowship and feedback

  By Mark Dzula on 11/15/2016 • ( 0 )

  

  I am leaden with dismay. Who needs context? You know what I am talking about. To buoy my spirits and shake my fear, I find myself grasping for slivers of light. Even small amounts are ameliorating. Snatches of conversation with… Read More ›

• Strange Currency: Improv’s “Yes, And” as Tool for Collaboration

  By Mark Dzula on 10/20/2016 • ( 2 )

  Collaboration is the cornerstone of any successful library program. The collaborative spirit of improv can help librarians forge connections with their audiences and enlist partners in creative work. Improv, short for improvisational theatre, is a technique often associated with comedy…. Read More ›

• Karaoke, Community, and Artifactual Literacies

  By Mark Dzula on 09/21/2016 • ( 0 )

  

  You could hit all of the right notes and still come to nothing in karaoke. On the other hand, you could hit around 20% of a melody and still bluster your way to solid gold. Sometimes it’s so bad, it’s… Read More ›

• Choose Your Own Adventure: Formative Justice in the Library

  By Mark Dzula on 08/18/2016 • ( 2 )

  

  Every choice I made led to my death at the hands of the space vampire. Despite this spate of savage endings, I kept frustration in check as I read, re-read, and re-read Choose Your Own Adventure #71. I was 10…. Read More ›

• No-Bummer Summer: Framework for Inspired Study

  By Mark Dzula on 07/19/2016 • ( 2 )

  It is easy to imagine the summertime school library as a ghost town. Students and teachers are far-flung for summer break. Furniture hangs about in disarray as capital improvements are undertaken. An eerie hush hovers over the stacks. Who you gonna call? Although… Read More ›