Taft Middle School Library/Media Center Page
by Walter Minkel -- School Library Journal, 6/1/1999
www.infotaft.marioncity.k12.oh.us
Taft Middle School Library/Media Center Page
Library media specialists who can both navigate the Internet and teach this skill to others know that sometimes the simpler an explanation, the better. Debra Logan of Taft Middle School in Marion, OH, takes this advice to heart with a simple and effective site that earns my vote for the SLJ Online Library Web Site of the Month.
Logan (jd3logan@bright.net) explains that she wanted to make the Internet non-threatening for first-time users. With this in mind, she shied away from using flashing graphics and color overload, opting instead for brief text and plenty of white space.
The site includes links to basic tutorial sites about the Net in general, as well as a page of basic Net definitions and a lesson on URLs or Web addresses. Logan is particularly pleased with teachers' enthusiasm for the site's Project Page (www.infotaft.marioncity.k12.oh.us/project), a collaborative effort with teachers to create Web pages for short-term classroom projects. At press time, the page's content ranged from a forensic science project to a study of chemical elements.
Logan's greatest challenge is finding free time to work on the site. Right now, most of the work is done after hours. Why does she keep putting in the unpaid overtime? "It's a wonderful feeling," Logan confesses, "when someone has an information need that can be met with a few quick clicks."
--Walter Minkel
