On the Fast Track

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In just a few weeks, I'll be heading to Charlotte, NC to attend the American Association of School Librarians' National Conference.

A former colleague asked me, "Why now - you're retired?" Well, there are a number of reasons.

Since I'm no longer tied to a school calendar, I have more freedom to travel. And because I'm also increasingly active in social networking, there are people with whom I'd love to connect in real life, to continue and extend our online conversations.

Which brings me to a seeming contradiction: I'm no longer employed as a teacher/librarian, yet I spend more time on "professional development" than ever before.

This apparent logical incongruity makes perfect sense to me. I continue to care about this country's education system, libraries (both school and public) and the future of our children.

We're at a critical juncture, when priorities need to be re-examined in light of what we know about the nature of learning and the economic realities of the 21st century.

Whatever I can contribute to this dialogue of change will be shared gladly.

If you plan on attending Rev Up Learning, please say hello. If you can't be there in person, a number of us will be blogging and posting to Flickr, YouTube, TeacherTube and Twitter, using the hashmark #aasl2009.


"The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn." -Alvin Toffler


"Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries stand virtually alone in accomplishing this mission." -Toni Morrison