YOUmedia Chicago is a space within the Chicago Public Library’s Harold Washington Library Center geared toward teens. It encourages learning about technology and science through giving kids the resources to pursue their own interests. Established in 2010 and supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation (Austin 2011), YOUmedia Chicago provides the ability for its users to create music, videos, designs, photographs, and blogs, in addition to providing more traditional library services such as checking out books. The library has equipment available for teens, including still and video cameras, an in-house reading studio, keyboards, turntables, a mixing board, drawing tablets, and video and photo editing software. Their online YOUmedia social networks allow teens to collaborate with each other, as well as contact mentors, media experts, and librarians. Membership is free, and this section of the library sees an average of 75 users per day!
It is clear that when given the tools, students will enjoy applying their own ideas to learning about science and technology, and will have their own motivation to push themselves to further their knowledge. I think it’s great that these new approaches to learning are being tested, and that we’re seeing such an enthusiastic response from these young patrons! As Mimi Ito mentions in her article referencing the YOUmedia project, “if we pay attention to what young people do when they are having fun… they are both highly engaged and learning a great deal. … When young people are supported in pursuing their own choices and interests, and when they are allowed to mobilize peer activity around those interests, suddenly socializing, fun, and peer pressure drive learning rather than detracting from it” (Ito 2011). The point that Ito makes, and with which I agree, is that libraries with the ability and desire to participate in programs such as this will find that the fields of science and technology can be discovered and learned in ways the students are used to learning, and they will enjoy it without feeling like it’s just more adult-assigned learning.
References:
Austin, K., Ehrilich, S.B., Puckett, C., & Singleton, J. “YOUmedia Chicago: Reimagining learning, literacies, and libraries: A snapshot of year one.” Retrieved from http://ccsr.uchicago.edu/downloads/6899youmedia_final_2011.pdf
Chicago Public Library – http://www.chipublib.org/
Harold Washington Library Center - http://www.chipublib.org/branch/details/library/harold-washington/
Ito, M. (2011 Nov 24). “When youth own the public education agenda.” Huffington Post Education: The Blog. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mimi-ito/when-youth-own-the-public_b_787866.html
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation - http://www.macfound.org/
YOUMedia Chicago - http://youmediachicago.org/
Oh I lived in Chicago for 8 years and remember the public library with great fondness. It is an enormous structure, right in the center of downtown -- a true urban treasure.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I find quite interesting about the description of the STEM learning space here is that it clearly falls under the heading of "Discovery Based" learning. Discovery learning, as opposed to, for instance, constructivist learning, treasures the journey of students exploring and learning things without boundaries or restrictions. If you inculcate the learner with a love of learning, there's no telling where he or she will take their education. And that appears to me to be exactly what this country needs in inspiring students to pursue the science fields.
This is indicative of what we've been discussing in my Distributed Learning Librarianship class - the public library as the People's University (a role it has claimed for some time) spreading to advancing technological knowledge. YouMedia seems to focus mainly on digital content creation, but I know a lot of libraries are adding maker-spaces (3D printers, CAD program access, etc.) as well. Increased access to these tools for younger users is great, but means that librarians need to step up as instructor-guides in their use.
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I thought this was a great example of the library functioning as a community resource in a new way. Two points in the Austin et al report jumped out at me. First, some of the teens who used the YouMedia resources mentioned that the library was a safe place to be. This suggests a theme to play up when marketing the resource to schools, parents, or community organizations. Second, although some teens found the resources on their own and then spread the word, the librarians felt that participation increased when they guided users to it during library interactions. The teens were open to taking advice and trying something new. I did notice that some of the librarians had advanced degrees in various media, and so could provide true mentoring, not just "here's where you turn it on" help.
ReplyDeleteThis seems like a good model for engaging teens that many libraries could follow, if they have the space and financial resources to obtain the equipment, or are willing to go through the grant application process to get funding.
Wow, that is a very interesting article. It is nice to know that huge cities like Chicago are spending time, and money on children and most notably teenagers. Teenagers and young adults are the future of this country and it important as a society to spend resources such as time and money to insure that they are technology cultured. We live in a world ran by technology and young adults should be exposed to as many resources as they can have because our world is only going to get even more technologized. The fact that 75 new teenagers come a day come through the doors of the Chicago Public Library also shows that teens and young adults embrace this current world of Iphones, Ipads, and electronic devices. Kudos goes to the library for applying this technologies and spending resources on America's youth. I hope the Chicago Public Library serves as a model of what other libraries in cities should be doing. People young and old like to learn new ideas and technologies what better place than the library to do that and take advantage of the things it has to offer.
ReplyDeleteDon't be praising Chicago too hard: The newspapers are replete with stories of how Mayor Emmanual is trying to close down the libraries -- or at least cut their hours -- to balance the budget. It is only due to hugely massive protests and much publicity via the PLA that the wolf has been stopped at the gate.
DeleteI'm thinking that public libraries have the potential of becoming a kind of technological "rec center" where kids can experiment with new tech and be creative. The Chicago Public library has apparently embraced tthe opportunity to evolve into a user-centered space.
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