The Incredibly True Blog of a Part-Time Librarian

The Okanagan Valley is a part of the traditional, unceded territory of the Okanagan (Syilx) people.  The stories of the Okanagan (Syilx) people tell of a time when Okanagan Valley was home to beings who were neither humans nor animals, and the First People had yet to arrive.  When the Creator saw that the First People would arrive into this dangerous environment, he gave Coyote (Senklip) the special task of protecting and teaching the First People how to live on the land.  The trickster Coyote often displayed both his strengths and his failings, and his antics were used in stories told by the People to teach their history, culture and beliefs.  The Okanagan (Syilx) people were still telling these stories and actively practicing their customs when the first significant group of European settlers came to the Okanagan Valley (Louis, 10). Painting of Senklip by Okanagan (Syilx) artist Sheldon Louis https://boundbyafeather.wixsite.com/boundbyafeather/gallery ...

I've been giving a lot of thought to this vision project, and feel that I need to change tracks.  Inspired by our exploration of digital libraries in developing nations and by a thoughtful blogpost at Let's Taco 'Bout Books on developing libraries in remote Indigenous Canadian reserves , I became interested in examining how socio-economic inequalities in Canada may be impacting the early literacy and digital literacy skills of Indigenous learners.  I had initially thought to research and share information on easy-to-use digital library apps such as RAZKids that could be used to bolster early literacy skills and digital skills for Indigenous communities who may lack access to print materials.  However, I've realized that as a high-school teacher, I'm feeling a little out of my depth in addressing early literacy.  Furthermore, I've since become aware that our district has a literacy specialist who is currently working toward improving the early literacy skills of...

vi·sion /ˈviZHən/ noun 1. the faculty or state of being able to see . "she had defective vision" synonyms: eyesight, sight, power of sight, faculty of sight, ability to see, power of seeing, powers of observation, observation, perception, visual perception; More 2. the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom. "the organization had lost its vision and direction" synonyms: imagination, creativity, creative power, inventiveness, innovation, inspiration, intuition, perceptiveness, perception, breadth of view, foresight, insight, far-sightedness, prescience, discernment, awareness, penetration, shrewdness, sharpness, cleverness "his conference speech was a little lacking in vision" http://thebluediamondgallery.com/tablet-dictionary/v/vision.html Vision: "The ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom." Planning for the future with wisdom seems an impossible task, as I feel ne...

A partner was cheating. A comeback to win the last period in a hockey game. Trump shockingly wins the presidency. Each situation may be unique, but we have often heard ourselves say, "I knew it all along." The tendency to feel like we knew it all along, though we actually didn't, is what psychologists refer to as hindsight bias. http://neologisms.blogs.wm.edu/2016/04/18/hindsight-bias/ As an educator, I've experienced hindsight bias in believing that I was always aware of important issues in education.  "Of course, I've alway know it's important to incorporate more technology and help students develop necessary digital skills." "Obviously, blogging encourages deeper reflection and allows for an authentic audience for writing." "Naturally, I know how to design effective and engaging professional development opportunities." I could say that I was aware of these issues all along as they seem so obvious now, but they weren't...