kindles at the unquiet librarybuffy j. hamilton|| may 2011

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“embrace the potentials and challenges of this [participatory] emerging culture not as a replacement for existing print practices but as an expansion of them” ~henry jenkins~

portable

personalized

participatory

policies, procedures, paper trails

sharing and reflecting on the journey of learning

observations/discoveries

What Is Working/What Students Like• With the exception of one

student , every participant in the Kindle program has expressed extreme satisfaction with the Kindle reading experience.

• Students are thrilled that we purchase the books they want; the personalized reading experience is very important to our readers.

• Students like they can make adjustments to the page views/font size while reading.

What Is Working/What Students Like

• Students like the convenience and ease of reading on the Kindle.

• Students have been consistent and diligent in returning the Kindles on time within the one week circulation period.

• Most students have requested to use the Kindle again.

Hiccups/Challenges/Suggestions from Students

• We have discovered we need to keep the wireless turned off on the Kindles even when they are not in use because the battery drains rapidly trying to either find the 3G signal or to connect to the wireless network.

• Students all indicated they wished the Kindle was backlit and/or for us to purchase reading lights for nighttime reading.

Hiccups/Challenges/Suggestions from Students

• A few students have had difficulty remembering to return all Kindle accessories ; most return the missing item(s) within a day. Now that we have identified the source of the battery drain issue, we are now circulating the Kindles without the power supply unless the student specifically requests.

• Students would like a loan period longer than one week; as we acquire more eReader devices, we plan to extend the loan period to two weeks in 2011-12

Tips

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be familiar with district purchasing procedures and policies before committing to a device or format

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become comfortable with the devices before making a decision on a starting point for eReaders.

stay abreast of the changes and developments in the eReader/eBook landscape—it’s extremely fluid!

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Future Directions

• Overdrive may now be a more viable option with the new Kindle lending program.

• We hope to expand our offering of devices to students.

Q&A

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