In my 4 years in the Library, only rarely does an encyclopedia get used. We try to direct students there if they are looking for information on specific moments and people in history, well at least those that lived, and died before 2009!
For the purpose of this assignment, I have decided to evaluate the French encyclopedia that I have in my collection called "L'Encyclopédie Découverte".
Riedling states that "a good resource is one that serves to answer a question" (p.17) In thinking about the subject that teachers (in my school) require their students to do research in, Social Studies comes to mind. Our school is heavily involved with Heritage Stamp, Heritage Stamps and Concours d'Art Oratoire (French public speaking contest). Even though the choice of topic for the CAO is open to anything, teachers tend to insist on Canadian content - a famous Canadian, a Canadian location... So, come January and February, everyone is wanting the same resources!
Our non-fiction collection is not vast enough to satisfy 200 students wanting to research Frederick Banting, John Naismith and Terry Fox. I do have, in some instances more than one resource on the same person... but not enough.
I decided to evaluate l'Encyclopédie Découverte by focusing on the following criteria:
- content / curriculum fit
- accuracy, bias and social considerations - correct information, presented without bias (gender roles, aboriginal people, multiculturalism, gender identity and sexual orientation
- arrangement and presentation - text organization, language and use of visuals
There are 14 books and one index in this encyclopedia series. L'Encyclopédie Découverte is visually appealing on the outside and on the inside. Its blue cover filled with hot air balloons, is attractive to students. The pages are well laid-out, with titles (in red), images on a colored background with captions, maps and labelled diagrams.
The vocabulary used is appropriate for elementary students, more suitable for intermediate classes. I found the section on "blogue" interesting to read and the students may also be interested in finding out that it started as an on-line journal, or web-log and in time the name became blog.
In using the index to search different things, I was sad to find 2 pages dedicated to basketball, but no mention of Naismith.
Keeping the new curriculum in mind, I looked for First Nations content. Under "Autochtone" (Aboriginal) I found many resources, but most of them related to the Aboriginals from Central and South America. There was nothing under "Premiere Nations" (First Nations) and when I looked under "Indiens" (Indians) I found information about the Cri, the Crow, the Mi'kmaq, the Miskitos and the Salish. I guess that "Indiens" was an acceptable term in 2009 when referring to First Nation people.
Again, with the new curriculum in mind, I looked for information regarding different sexual orientations - no keywords in the index.
I have summarized my evaluation in a chart. This resource has its purpose in my library however, it does not answer the questions my students are generally asking. I need a resource that has a more Canadian focus. L'l'Encyclopédie Découverte could be used as a starting point for a general research, just like Wikipedia is used. The information included in this resource is clearly stated and visually appealing. Once the student has read the information from the encyclopedia, they can move on to other resources: either print or digital. We do have access to the digital version of this encyclopedia, but it is lacking information in the areas mentioned above.
I would like to add the following French digital resource to the ones purchased by the District. Idéllo is described as "THE CANADIAN REFERENCE IN FRENCH EDUCATIONAL CONTENT for teachers, educators and parents". This digital platform is presented by Groupe Media TFO, and was originally created to support Ontario French teachers - providing excellent quality resources that can be used in Immersion, Francophone or FSL classes.
There is a cultural bias towards the First Nation tribes of the East, but you can find resources for the western ones. On the home page you can see that people of diverse cultures are showcased. Resources a good fit to the BC curriculum. They include videos, songs and links to games. I must admit that I am biased as I was a member of the ERAC team that evaluated this resource and I fell in love with it. Along with a partner, we evaluated the resources for K-3.
My school is a test school for Discovery Education (tech book) and the number one complaint is that NONE of the resources are in French! This resource provides a collection of French videos that are appropriate for second language learners. These videos are generally hard to find.
Resources can be searched using key words and a long list of filters (level, subject, type, theme, FSL, language and skill (which is similar to the competencies we need to teach).
Although I cannot access the official ERAC evaluation, here is an abridged version.
Of course, one of the key factors Teacher-Librarians must take into consideration is the cost of new resources. Well, the best part of this resource is that there is a short term offer through ERAC. There is a link to follow, but bottom line you must get your District coordinator, the one who is able to login and access the information in order to get the "confidential pricing information". After many emails between my District Librarian, ERAC and Idéllo, I have the coveted information! And I will share it with you!
Here are the regular prices
For a 1 year subscription (1 year + a free month)
5 licences : $230/yr. $115 with ERAC
promotion10 licences : $350/yr. $175 with ERAC promotion
20 licences: $692/yr. $346 with ERAC promotion
For a subscription that would go until the end of June 2018 (a free trial
month in February + 1 year + 4 months)
5 licences : $306.66 $153.33 with ERAC
promotion10 licences : $466.66 $233.33 with ERAC promotion
20 licences: $922.66 $461.33 with ERAC promotion
If I compare these prices to the three French resources we purchase through Les Plan at $190 each for 8 pdf's per year... that can only be used by grades 3-7, I think that this website has better value for our students and teachers. One of the goals in Immersion is to provide opportunities for students to hear a variety of French accents through presentations, songs and videos. This website does this. It is also an excellent fit to our new curriculum and the core competencies that teachers must focus on.
It is time to plan how I am going to present this to the staff. I tried to get them to play with the site when my evaluator password still worked. A few teachers did, but no one jumped. It was a busy time and everyone was knee deep in new curriculum and Discovery Education. Perhaps now, if I create a quick presentation of the website and all that it has to offer, I may be able to convince staff to give it a try! And admin to pay for it using our French Resource budget rather than the Library budget... sneaky I know! 😊
References
L'encyclopedie Decouverte. Vol. 1-15. Chicago: World Book, 2009. Print.
Evaluating, Selecting and Acquiring Learning Resources: A Guide. ERAC, 2008. Web. 31 Jan. 2017. http://www.bcerac.ca/resources/whitepapers/docs/erac_wb.pdf.
"Idello: Educational Website, Resources for Online Learning." IDÉLLO. Groupe Media TFO, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. https://www.idello.org/en.
Lesplan Educational Services." Lesplan Educational Services | LesPlan. LesPlan Educational Services Ltd., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2017. https://www.lesplan.com/fr.
Riedling, Ann Marlow, Loretta Shake, and Cynthia Houston. Reference Skills for the School Librarian: Tools and Tips. Santa Barbara, CA: Linworth, an Imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC, 2013. Print.
