Pages

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Kaplan Introduces SAT Prep for iPod,

From Gizmodo, That's right, kids! Now your iPod (5th Gen) can do more than just play the videos and music you probably stole off of the internet, you no-contributin'-to-society bum. Now Kaplan is selling SAT test prep programs on iTunes, so you can sit in the corner with your fancy iPod—and learn some vocab, Mister!

It's not just text or audio: the $4.99 modules you download on iTunes are interactive, and focus on Critical Reading (sentence completion, reading comprehension), Mathematics (algebra, geometry, arithmetic, etc.) and Writing (how to improve sentences and paragraph, sentence error identification).

The programs give you quizzes, which you can take timed or untimed, with or without music. Supporting features include explanation of the tests, Kaplan test-taking strategies, and analysis and feedback of the quiz you just took, whether you like it or not.

Press Release:

Kaplan Introduces Test Prep on iTunes Store‎

Students Can Download Hundreds of SAT* Questions to Prep Via the Fifth Generation iPod®**

NEW YORK, June 21, 2007 -- Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions today announced the availability of three interactive SAT* prep programs that students can purchase and download from iTunes®, enabling them to practice for the college entrance exam on a fifth generation iPod**. Among the key features of the programs: students receive detailed analyses of each completed quiz they take, as well as feedback and an option for tracking quiz score progress. The $4.99 programs focus on the exam's three graded sections: Critical Reading, Mathematics and Writing.

"Students don't go anywhere without their iPods and Kaplan has always sought to make test prep as convenient as possible for our students so it's a natural fit to offer test prep on iTunes. As students have embraced new trends over the years, from new learning and entertainment channels to new technology, we've adapted our materials in ways that are relevant to their lifestyles," said Mark Ward, president, Pre-College Programs, Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions.

Kaplan's SAT test prep being offered reflects the three graded sections of the SAT (Critical Reading, Mathematics, Writing):

Kaplan SAT Prep Reading: Students consistently cite the critical reading section as the section they find the most challenging. Using this download, students can take quizzes in the following categories: sentence completion, short reading comprehension and long reading comprehension.

Kaplan SAT Prep Mathematics: On this download, students are quizzed on algebra, geometry, arithmetic, word problems and other types of math questions.

Kaplan SAT Prep Writing: First administered in March 2005, this is the newest section of the SAT; perhaps unsurprisingly, students scored lowest on this section in 2006. To help students build up their writing skills for the exam and beyond, this download features activities in improving paragraphs, improving sentences and identifying sentence errors.

Each download includes explanations on the exam structure, expert Kaplan strategies for the SAT, plus tips and information about the increasingly competitive college admissions process. Students also have the option to take the quizzes timed or untimed, with or without music, and can see their quiz score progress through graphically dynamic charts and graphs which identify their key areas of success and weakness.

The Kaplan SAT prep downloads are available on iTunes® beginning June 21.

Over 2 million students take the SAT every year; Kaplan prepares tens of thousands of students annually for the test. These latest supplemental SAT prep offerings come on the heels of Kaplan's recent debut of SAT/ACT Vocabulary-Building Manga, a series of graphic novels with hundreds of frequently tested words on the exams, as well as its launch on MySpace.com/kaplan.

*SAT is a registered trademark of the College Entrance Examination Board, which neither sponsors nor endorses this product

** iPod® is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc. All rights reserved

About Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions

Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions (www.kaptest.com), a division of Kaplan, Inc., is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With 4,000 classroom locations worldwide, a comprehensive menu of online offerings and a complete array of books and software, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 80 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as English language and professional licensing exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and college and graduate admissions consulting services.

Flickr Magazine Mashup!


Just think of the possibilities.

July All Staff Meeting

At the July 9 all staff meeting we can review the status of the teams and their goals and expectations. There will also be time to discuss the budget if there is interest.
Again, we are re-working the teams so that most of the work can be done at your desk ands the need to meet is less pressing. The training team has also worked to make as much training as possible available from your branch and desk so you spend less time on the road.

Busting through to the new year

It seems like June has been very busy . All those ideas we have been talking about and discussing come into being on July 1 so June was full of actually putting the things in place that will make them happen. We are closing out a very successful year, don't forget that the Survey released in October revealed that 92% of Allegany County would give us a grade of "A" or "B." I look forward to another exciting year.

Flickr-ings

When I run out of silly/longshot ideas on how to make Libraries more relevant and useful to the public I go to Flickrleech for a screen full of nudges to new ideas and avenues.

Flickr also would be useful to preview a city or town or country you were going to visit and check out the sights prior to landing.

I guess you can't post someone else's photo on your blog? They end up as spaceball.gif and are empty boxes.

Today is Recess at Work Day

link

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Unfortunate rumor



The Scales and Tales program at Washington Street yesterday lead to a unsubstantiated rumor that I was unable to tell the difference between an owl and a turtle. Here is an Owl :


Below it is a turtle:

I hope this puts an end to this silliness, as I have cake to eat!

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Green and Local @ your library


When you think about the burgeoning growth of going "green" and the next step of going "local" the library works wonderfully in both cases. How much more green can you be than buying one item and loaning it out and having it used by 5-10 end users? In the field of books, movies, and information, we are a shining example of recycling.

In the arena of going local, we also shine in 2 manners. First, as local production holds the promise of less pollution due to less transport, we shine since because of our recycling model mentioned above (get one, 10 end users). Second, we back our local communities by providing access to services, products, education that allow us to reach to the outside world while still retaining our sense of place.

See the Briefing (Still) Made Here from trendwatching.com

Can People Leave a Class Early?

Here is an interesting question posed by Elliot Masie of the Masie Center. (they are a training and learning consulting firm).

Can People Leave a Class Early? While I was in Israel, a colleague posed a challenging question for me and several other learning
professionals:

"If you are teaching a class and some of the people in the course "get it"
after a few hours, can they leave? In other words, if they are quick and contextual learners and master the content rapidly, can they leave or do they need to stay until the end of the course?"

This got a heated conversation going at our table in Tel Aviv. It challenged the idea that we all stay until the last lesson. This person related it to training in the Army, where people move on as soon as they can show mastery. In that model, the class gets smaller and smaller, until a few people are left with personalized instruction from the instructor to help they achieve the objective.

It is a different metaphor .. but interesting if you consider the use of technology to allow a learner to "test out" in mid-stream. Does it more effectively focus the energy of the instructor on those needing coaching?


Think about it in terms of how we offer lots of software and technology to the public so they can learn it on their own and then move on. We don't even have to limit it to software or tech, think about how we offer books and knowledge and the public picks it up and then moves on to their next challenge. Think about it in terms of how we offer training to library staff? I would be interested in your thoughts.

Monday, June 11, 2007

Transpose is the word of the day.

I have been bugged for along time about how to change the orientation of my data in Excel. Today, I fell across the word "Transpose." I use this when I want to take a table such as average user time on public computers and make it fit on one sheet of paper without making the font so small that only ants can read it. The branch names are the rows and the months are the columns. What happens is that for the 20 or so months we have been running sam, the data runs onto a several page wide print out. Transpose allows me to create a tall table rather than a wide table without having to re-type all those numbers.

Howto: Select the text to transpose, select copy, go to the destination cell, right click and check the transpose box at the bottom. Voila! Freedom Fries for everyone!

Thursday, June 7, 2007

Fish Philosophy on Ice

While in Seattle, I attended PLA in Seattle in January Murphy came along as an early Birthday present We were up early Saturday morning and headed down to Pikes Place Fish Market to soak up some Fish Philosophy by icing down the dungenous crabs. Here is Murphy in action.














LaVale Friends


Had a great meeting this morning with the steering committee of the Friends of the LaVale Library. Lots of ideas and enthusiasm.

George's Creek Improvement #2


The town of Lonaconing used their open space money to create a new handicap accessible parking lot for George's Creek Library. The spaces are restricted to those vehicles with handicap stickers and will make the library much easier to enter than the one spot down the hill in the main parking lot.

George's Creek Improvement #1


Take a look at the new playground behind the George's Creek Library. It still needs some mulch and then you can fall down without hurting yourself.

23 things up and running

I can't wait to see all the cool post that you all make.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Green Picks for Library Furniture

Want to reduce your library's carbon footprint? Join the Cradle-to-Cradle revolution, where there is no “away,” just a next life designed into smart stuff. Here Helen Milling shares the green products and materials her firm is using. From the Spring 2007 Library by Design supplement to Library Journal.

Small Step to "where can I go from here?'

One of the things we will do in FY08 is begin using a new wage scale. We have stretched out the grades on the wage scale to create an incentive for staff to achieve and maintain the status of “Library Associate” Library Associate is a state wide and certified training program for library staff without the terminal Library degree.

So for example, a circulation assistant was a grade 2, in the new scale a circulation assistant is still a grade 2, but if that circ assistant completes their LATI training, they automatically jump to a grade 3.

The higher grade has a higher median wage, so your earnings potential has increased.
We keep pushing more education for our staff so we can be more helpful, but we wanted a way to recognize and reward staff who take the initiative to get that training.

The new scale will be sent to everyone after the Board has approved it on June 13.

Friday, June 1, 2007

Are we Ready? Are we paying attention?

Are we ready? are we paying attention? is a great video that talks about reaching our patrons where they are.

talk about another great inspiring video on what we can do as educators and the public university.
see link.