Children’s media award for disability experience

Among multiple awards for youth media announced Monday by the American Library Association, the Schneider Family Book Award honors books that that “embody an artistic expression of the disability experience.”

A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin, written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet, won in the ages 0 to 10 division.

“This picture book biography of self-taught African American folk artist Horace Pippin demonstrates the dogged determination of a wounded soldier to paint again,” according to the ALA on its Schneider Family Book Award page. “After a WWI injury threatened to end his potential artistic career, he trained himself to paint by supporting his injured arm with the other hand.”

Oregon Reads 2014: ‘for children and teens too’

“Oregon Reads 2014 is for children and teens too!” On the Southern Oregon Education Service District librarians’ listserv, Library Materials Specialist Kelly Bryant passed along information from Katie Anderson, youth services consultant, with the Oregon State Library.

‘Verification Handbook’

A new resource, “Verification Handbook,” offers guidelines for verifying online information and user-generated content.

I worked with one of the contributors, Steve Buttry, while employed at a northern California newspaper. As a library professional, I have a continuing vested interest in promoting information literacy.

The handbook’s contributors address a variety of topics including verification fundamentals, as well as applications for specific types of content. It also offers suggestions for putting “crowdsourcing” to work when verifying information.

The “Verification Handbook” was written primarily for journalists and for aid providers but, more and more, citizens are relying directly on online sources and bypassing professional outlets.

If you care about the accuracy of the information you consume, if you want to be information-literate, the “Verification Handbook” is worth checking out.

Accessibility of online tools: report tracks top ideas

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Partnership on Employment and Accessible Technology (PEAT) and the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) have completed a report compiling “participation metrics” for an online conversation about making web-based tools easier to use for workers with intellectual disabilities, cognitive issues, traumatic brain injury or other disabilities.

The dialogue was open from Dec. 9 to 20.

I’m gratified that the idea that I backed — concern for personality screening of job applicants — made the report’s “Top 5 Ideas” under “Applying for Jobs.” But I want to express my concern about the competitive nature of the PEAT-ASAN forum. Why was it structured so that people were able to vote down other people’s ideas?

Cuesta College internship: Early impressions

I am interning this spring through the Instructional Media Center (IMC) of Medford School District 549C. A drop-down menu on the district website lists 22 schools.