Jet lagged but H1N1-free

View from the fifth floor of the Nai Lert Swissotel on Wireless Road, Bangkok, May 12, 2009

Greetings from a severely jet-lagged but excited blogger from Bangkok. I hit my hotel room at about 1:00AM this morning and was wide awake again at 5AM. Flights were long but uneventful except for the hour and a half our flight spent sitting at Tokyo's Narita airport while surgical-gowned and face-masked characters from the Andromeda Strain walked up and down the aisles of the plane scanning passengers with a heat detecting camera looking for anyone with a fever (and a curly tail who is given to making oinking sounds.) I caught my connection, but it was close. And I must not have the swine flu or I am sure I would be deep in some contagious disease ward in Japan, never to be heard from again.

Ann Krembs from ISB Mumbai and I are here on a site visit to the International School of Bangkok. The school is building a new secondary library and we are here to help to provide some insight into the following questions:

How can the MS/HS library program and facilities be improved to support student learning and achieve the ISB Vision for Learning?

1. What is the school’s vision for the role and function of the library?
2. How can the MS/HS library best support ISB’s Vision for Learning?
3. What is ISB’s vision for Literacy Learning?
4. Who will this library serve?
5. What are their needs now and in the future?
6. How can we best serve these needs?
7. What impact does and will Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 impact learning and what implications does this have for future library program and facilities needs?

Given the high-power staff already on board (bloggers Kim Cofino, Rob Rubis, Jeff Utecht and others), I am guessing that I was asked to participate because of my good-looks alone. (Or not.) Some great surveys and studies have already given Ann and me useful data and the focus groups over the next few days will add to the information.

Anyway, I am really excited to be involved with such a group of thoughtful, future-oriented, and student-centered educators.

I'll keep ya posted.