See Hugh Kelly & John Harlin at the Next Library Lecture on March 9th!

LAS Libraries will host Hugh Kelly and John Harlin at the next Lecture Series event on Monday, March 9 at 7:30 p.m. in Savoy Library. The talk will be about peak oil, climate change and the economic consequences. Discussions will focus on positive and constructive responses to energy limits and climate change. There also will be snacks! Check it out @ LAS Libraries!

Carolyn Turgeon Library Lecture was a Hit!

About 40 people attended Tuesday's lecture series event with author Carolyn Turgeon. Ms. Turgeon, who talked to the group via Google Hangouts, discussed her books and influences, her interactions with publishers and trying to get her writing published, and what it is like making a living as a writer. Students also had time to ask questions about her life and work. 

Paul Magnuson Talks About Hacking at Last Night's Lecture Series Event

No, not the illegal kind of hacking, but about how people hack their own education. People broke into groups, discussed what hacking is and gave examples of personal hacks they have done in education and life. 

Come hear author Carolyn Turgeon talk about her books & movie deal!

LAS Libraries will virtually host author Carolyn Turgeon at the next Lecture Series event on Tuesday, February 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Savoy Library. Carolyn Turgeon is the author of five novels: 

• Rain Village
• Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story
• Mermaid
• The Next Full Moon (her first children's book)
• The Fairest of Them All

Her book "Mermaid" is being made into a movie by Sony Pictures. Come hear about her books and the movie-making process. Learn more about Carolyn Turgeon online at carolynturgeon.com and read her mermaid blog at iamamermaid.com. There also will be snacks! Check it out @ LAS Libraries!

Next Book Giveaway on Wednesday, February 25!

Next Library Lecture on 16 February!

LAS Libraries will host their next Lecture Series event on Monday, February 16 at 7:30 p.m. in Savoy Library. Paul Magnuson and some students will present "Hack School: Linguistics and Languages." Find out answers to questions like: What is LASER? What the heck is hack school? Why are the students of Linguistics and Languages writing a book? Is the class really a Duolingo class? Hear about how students are learning to hack (construct) their own ability to learn. Students say, "The goal is to quit waiting for the teacher to tell us what to learn - and how to learn - so that we can practice the skill of working toward a goal we want to accomplish, using the resources we think best." And there will be snacks! Check it out @ LAS Libraries!

Paul Magnuson writes about

Hack School

Among the initiatives in our research center this year are two activities we call hack school. One is an after school activity for coding and robotics, the other a linguistics class.

While the format and subject areas differ, they share the perspective that students must learn to create their own educational path, not simply adopt this or that teacher's program. Through a combination of blended learning, guidance from the teacher, reliance on peers, and self-motivation students hack - or create - their own learning.

In coding, students choose a programming language, or languages, and create a course for themselves using for example Khan Academy, Treehouse, Code School and other resources to learn. In linguistics, students learn language online and from each other to create an exercise in linguistics, which they test on each other in class and will publish at the end of the year online. 

There is not a textbook, but rather an almost unlimited range of digital, material, and human resources. There is not one end goal but many. It is messier than a traditional syllabus, much harder to grade, and can just as easily let a student slip through a crack as provide the opportunity to shine brighter than imagined possible. 

Fundamentally, being able to hack one's own learning is a skill that students must have. A school model that supposes it can provide the information that students need cannot keep up with the rate of change in what adults actually need to know. What one must know simply changes too fast. 

So we're teaching students how to hack. How to position themselves to continually learn. How to leverage available resources. How to choose their own goals wisely ... and how to reach them.