Talk It Up! Developing Outreach Strategies for your digital resources, BEN & NSDL

1. Talk It Up! Developing Outreach Strategies for your digital resources, BEN & NSDL Sarah Giersch Director of Development & Special Projects

2. Session Goals • Introduce NSDL outreach efforts, tools, lessons learned • Identify NSDL tools available to support your outreach efforts • Begin work on your outreach plan

3. Why Talk about NSDL and BEN? • Promote NSF • Advocate for STEM education issues • Benefit from research on online digital resources: usability, accessibility, outreach lessons, pedagogy • Network of partners for grant writing • Distribution network for your resources • 250,000 visits/month • 1 million page views/month • NSDL, DLESE, some Pathways

4. Outreach Needs I Heard… • Promoting websites and software - need ideas to get these out • Raising colleagues' awareness and interest in inquiry-based learning • Raising colleagues' awareness and interest in using online resources • NSDL’s: generate awareness, interest and use of NSDL, BEN, inquiry-based learning pedagogy • Activity: Think, pair, share - Your Outreach Needs

5. NSDL 2007 Outreach Goals • Increase usage • Strengthen the NSDL Network • Series of campaigns • discrete period in time • measure and analyze a campaign’s efficacy • adjust strategies to focus on the tactics that are demonstrating increased usage

6. NSDL 2007 Outreach Campaigns • NSDL at the Point of Need: NSDL toolbar on school laptops, library workstations - part of workflow • Usage Stories and Statistics: package contextualized statistics, usage vignettes • NSDL in Web 2.0 and Social Media Spaces: drive web savvy users to NSDL with a combination of web broadcast technology (RSS, podcast) and online content • Building Awareness at NSF: NSDL PIs send the NSDL Annual Report with a letter to non-NSDL program officers, especially in research directorates • Building the NSDL Brand: distribute branding best-practices to partners, develop logos

7. NSDL Outreach Efforts to Date • Conferences • Professional Development • Tool Time • NSTA Web Seminars • Workshops (NSF) • Outreach Campaigns for 2007 • Toolbar • NSDL Google Gadget • Outreach request materialshttp://nsdl.org/resources_for/library_builders/outreach.php?pager=materials

9. Tools & Services NSDL on your Toolbar • Search NSDL from your browser • Firefox (Windows, Apple, Linux) • Microsoft Internet Explorer (Windows) http://nsdl.org/toolbar/index.php

11. Outreach Support Available from NSDL • Online Materials • Ready Talk Seminar platform: Tool Times and online seminars • http://readytalk.com • Expert Voices for internal use or external use using the Discovery Team model of a researcher, educator and media specialist • Potential for an outreach wiki • NSDL Calendar to push events: • http://nsdl.org/resources_for/library_builders/outreach.php?pager=calendar

13. Outreach Support Available from NSDL • Print materials • NSDL print outreach materials • NSDL backdrop for conferences, • Banners and giveaways: • http://nsdl.org/resources_for/library_builders/outreach.php?pager=materials

14. Outreach Support Available from NSDL • Conferences • NSTA and AAAS: • NSDL has a double booth to allow Pathways to run mini-sessions about their programs and sites • limited number of registrations for conferences • Submitting session proposals with CI staff or connecting within the NSDL Network at regional conferences

15. Other Outreach Resources • Creating an NSF Nugget • Crisp summaries and attention-grabbing images - static illustrations, animations or movies that highlight your noteworthy accomplishments. • People, Idea, Tool Nuggets • Graphics are very important in getting the message across to viewers. • Text and graphics should be at the level of a press release, or what might be called an "8th grade level". • The message should state what has been accomplished and the reason it is significant. • http://www.nees.org/Research_Activities/NSFNuggets/MakingNuggets/ • http://www.nees.org/Research_Activities/NSFNuggets/

16. Outreach Pitfalls • One size fits all: remember the audience you are intending to reach • Use of jargon that doesn't speak to the audience in mind • Fliers and promotional materials with too much information • Being everything to everyone: Be open minded to take new ideas, but pay more attention to what fulfills your larger goals and what is cross-cutting in impact • Avoid being "feature" oriented vs benefits oriented for the user; don't too caught up in demonstrating features instead of communicating how someone will benefit by using the resource, pedagogical approach, etc.

17. Outreach To-Do’s • Know your audience • Leverage partnering relationships • Do your research to see what others are doing in the types of format or content you are trying to provide • Make occasional contact with people who you like or who have influence within audiences or groups outside of your realm • Identify those people who advocate for you, connectors or influencers and keep them informed as well. NOTE: Do include CI and BEN on that list! • Leverage the NSDL network to push info through channels and cross promote on your behalf

18. Activity - Group Discussion • Identify Outreach Pitfalls • Identify Outreach To-Do’s

19. A Framework for Considering Educator Professional Development

20. NSDL Example - Part 1 • PD Participants • Higher Ed faculty • PD Design Elements • Content: pedagogy, tool introduction, content • Strategies: T3 • Sites: workshops, campus meetings, libraries • Media: face to face; not online

21. NSDL Example - Part 2 • Data Sources to Document Impact • …? • Content recruitment - not done much, but… • Implementation Issues • Burnout among T3 trainers and participants; need for a structure to incorporate volunteers, and there should be incentives to get them there in the first place; it's time consuming, but one-on-one works. • Introductory outreach efforts have a limited life-span, and the next generation that focuses on content is more effective (e.g., long-lasting) • Go to people where they are instead of having them come to you

22. NSDL Example - Part 3 • Recommended for consideration • Systemic Goals: includes issues at the department, campus or other organizational level that the effort could align with or might affect broader dissemination • Partners: primarily who might I partner with to accomplish my goals

23. Activity - Brainstorm Ideas for Outreach Plans • Questions about the Framework • Individual Brainstorm on Section A - Practical Questions for Developing an Outreach Plan • Share your thoughts with a partner • Next Steps - Using the BEN Scholars Outreach Planner & Worksheet (Marsha)