Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
As students access the Harlem Middle School Media Centers page they
will see a tab for Media Resources. Some of the resources available to them are
Destiny Quest, the online catalog, Smithsonian Tween Tribune, Galileo, World
Book Online, Whats Next, a site that lists books in a series, and a site that gives
book recommendations based off of a book that the student has read and liked.
The Columbia County Board of Education uses iboss as the filtering software.
This web security is designed to enable K-12 learning, not block it. Filtering
software plays a huge role in what students are able to access, iboss filters
classifies sites based on its content focus (i.e., dating, news, entertainment,
pornography). The iboss website provides the following description of the
softwares purpose and abilities.
Todays K-12 schools face opportunities and challenges that were never imagined by previous
generations. The Internet has opened a new world of learning resources, while the growth of
mobile technology has put these resources into the hands of students and teachers both in and
out of the classroom. Added to these challenges are increased targeting of schools by criminal
hackers bent on accessing student data. K-12 Schools face increasing security challenges:
Maintaining CIPA, HIPAA and other regulatory compliance, while ensuring network availability and
access to learning tools
Protecting increasing amounts of private student data kept on school networks from advanced threats
Securing mobile users and BYOD easily, whether on or off school grounds
There are many times when a site that should not be blocked, is blocked.
Thankfully, with iboss, the Columbia County IT Department has the ability to
customize sites according to its content.
Students at Harlem Middle School have access to the Media Centers
website from home or from a mobile device. The schools website provides a link
to the Media Centers page if students do not know or cannot remember the URL
for the page. At this time, there are no e-books or e-readers available in the
schools Media Center; however, the stakeholders are in discussion about adding
selected titles. There is a plan to add e-books into the Media Centers inventory.
A link to the Media Centers website is provided: Harlem Middle School Media
Center
Screenshot of the Harlem Middle Schools Media Center webpage Media Resources tab
The layout of the media center works really well for teachers and students.
All materials are easily accessible and the open view of the library is conducive to
the learning of all students. The library media center environment and
educational climate is remarkable. Student artwork and class projects are
displayed throughout the library making the environment more student centered.
There are two quiet areas (closed door conference rooms) for small group or
individual instruction and a larger area for whole class instruction. Considering
the age of the building, the library is very inviting to all faculty, staff, and
students. There is adequate space for individuals, small groups, and whole
classes, as long as it is one class at a time. Usually, if more than one class is in
the media center together it is very congested and space is limited.
Additional improvements would include extra seating in the social area
and door openers that are designed to assist the handicapped. Another
improvement is to update or improve the door leading from the Media Center to
an outdoor Courtyard to include an outside reading area.