INF506 Delicious commentary

Dealing with Delicious

After registering and a brief struggle of setting up the Delicious save button on my browser, I was set. I saved a few websites of interest. But what next? There wasn’t a help button or an instructional video that I could find easily. The help button was at the bottom of the page and the information wasn’t very comprehensive.

After experimenting for a while I found I could import my links from Facebook. Most of these links were rubbish and I didn’t want to keep them so I learnt how to delete them with the edit icon in the top right hand side of each box.

Tagging wasn’t intuitive. The important ingredient is to use the “Enter” button before pressing “save”. Multiple tagging and then using the “bundle” option in the side bar were obvious next steps.

Connecting with others was a nightmare. Putting people’s names into the search bar revealed nothing. I had to put the complete URL in. This makes searching for like-minded colleagues problematic. The help button says:

·        When you come across a user on Delicious who's collecting great stuff, click on their profile pic or user name to go to their profile page. Then, click the green "Follow" button.

Well, excuse my ignorance, but just how do we come across other users when I can’t find them through the search bar? How do I know when I save a site on ‘discus throwing’ that there are other people collecting the same thing? No red light flashes. To me it seems that I am bookmarking in a vacuum. I see the value of Delicious in keeping favourite sites but the connectivity with others eludes me.

ETL503 Selection Woes

Selection is undoubtedly a fun activity. You have the right to choose large quantities of books, DVDs and other resources. It's not your money that pays for these items either, it's the school's. But there is a downside. What to choose? The TL has to cater for the school it serves. This includes all patrons: staff, students, parents and the community. Students of all reading abilities need to be catered for. teaching resources also need to be considered and staff can help to guide selection here. But ultimately it is the TL who is the last word on selection.
   The TL therefore needs a strong policy on selection to help guide their choices. They can also refer to reviews, existing bibliograpies and publisher/vendor websites and catalogues to aid selection.
TLs need to be mindful of the authority of the material, the physical quality and design, the appropriateness, currency and cost. This leads to the TL having to do a lot of decision-making, and being able to justify her selctions through policy alignment.Then there is the ever-present spectre of censorship.
   Omission is in itself a form of censorship. Items could be omitted because they are from small independant publishers who don't have distribution rights that give them the exposure of the larger publishers. Items may also be omitted due to controversial content. Libraries support the democratic notion that information is for all, regardless of the bias/disturbing content/extreme views that may be presented.
   It's all a lot to contend with; selection is more than just grabbing a few books off the vendor's shelf and signing a blank cheque. It is complex decision making, a task suited for a professional.

INF 506 Assessment item 1

I am naturally reticent. I hate talking on the phone or addressing the class for prolonged periods. I dread public speaking events and as an author this makes me a marketing liability for my publisher. But with Social Networking I can connect with the world without having to speak.

Websites where people with common interests or shared histories can publish their own content and connect with others are called Social Networks (De Rosa, Cantwell, Havens, Hawk and Jenkins, 2007). Those in vogue currently, and they are rather transient beasts, include Facebook, Twitter, Google+1, Flickr, YouTube and Linked In. There are countless others.

A few years ago, on the advice of my publicist, I started up a blog and an author’s page on Facebook. I enjoy blogging. I can surround myself in book reviews and thoughtful comments and feel as if I’m closeted. I have neglected the author site and aside from linking it to my blog I rarely use it. However I post to my personal page weekly and check statuses every day. I try to keep my author self and my personal self separate as many in the writing world do (Woodhead, 2011a). I also find I waste a lot of time when I could be writing (Baverstock, 2011).

I’ve tried Twitter and hate it. It’s like a crowd shouting different messages with no-one listening. Twitter connects strangers, not old friends (Woodhead, 2011b). As a retiring type this makes me nervous. I am concerned about privacy and making an idiot of myself. But in the writing world Twitter is an ideal way to build your profile and connect with readers as its medium is concise text (Woodhead, 2011b).

I am keen to master Twitter and use it as a marketing tool.  It would help if I bought a mobile phone, I guess, and learnt to use it. As a budding T/L and blogger I see merit in Linked In, Delicious and Flickr. All I ask for is the time to master these tools. Then hopefully I could be a connected professional librarian and a marketing success.

References

Baverstock, A.(2011). Using Facebook to Promote Yourself as a Writer. Writers’ Forum #115, June

De Rosa, C., Cantrell, J., Havens, A., Hawk, J. & Jenkins, L. (2007). Sharing privacy and trust in our networked world: A report to the OCLC membership. Dublin, Ohio: OCLC. [ebook] Available http://www.oclc.org/reports/pdfs/sharing.pdf

Woodhead, R. (2011a). Facebook: Share but Beware. Writing Magazine, May

Woodhead, R. (2011b). Build Your Profile on Twitter. Writing Magazine, Feb

 

ETL503 Collection Management

Collection Development or Collection Management? The latter term is the more traditional and is coming back in vogue. Collection Development has its roots in American Library lingo and is sometimes meant to mean the buiding of the collection, not so much its maintenance.
So what is collection development? It is selecting, aquiring, evaluating, preserving and ultimately disposing of items in the collection. In short it's the library side of the work the teacher librarian does.



What to select? A perennial question for a TL.

How to e-book?

The big question at the moment at the Junior High School library is what to do with e-books. Should they be part of the library or not? If yes, how do we present them? Does the library buy kindles or some other device? Should they lend out the e-reader or just let students use them in the library? How do we go about buying content? Is a subscription the way to go? And how do you catalogue an item that has no tangible quality?
   I can't help thinking that there must be a way to do it. Perhaps we need to really think 'outside the square' to develop a suitable borrowing model. But more and more questions pop up.
   I have a Kobo at home and it uses a USB cable to download content. Is this better than wireless because you can regulate what gets downloaded? The school techy is adamant that strict regulation is needed. What about licencing? Does the library have the e-book for just one user or for multiple users? Is the cost for multiple users prohibitive?
   I have been reading No Shelf Required  by S. Polanka (2011) and I'm afraid I'm more confused than ever by all the problems e-books pose. But the future of e-books is expanding. E-books are so popular now that we can't afford students to miss out on them at school. So I hope our school library finds a way.

Just for a laugh...

For those of you who haven't guessed, I love Discworld novels. I found this quote the other day and thought this audience may appreciate it.

   'But we're a university! We have to have a library!' said Ridcully. 'It adds tone. What sort of people would we be if we didn't go into the Library?'
   'Students,' said the Senior Wrangler morosely.

Pratchett, Terry. (1998). The Last Continent. Corgi Books. p31

ETL401 Part B: Critical Reflection

The Role of the Teacher Librarian

I was interviewed for a Teacher/Librarian (TL) position in March. Some of the questions the panel asked were: what are the features of a good library, can you tell us of any occasions where you worked well with others, how can you help students with their research? I made universal statements about access and organisation, about sharing ideas and helping people, about evaluating websites and avoiding plagiarism, but I had limited notions of the role of a teacher librarian.

I didn’t get the job; they wanted someone who was qualified. But with my enthusiasm sparked I began this course. Since doing some CRT work in a school library and wading through the subject readings my perceptions have evolved. What I once thought would be a stress free job shelving books and helping students use the catalogue has transformed into a super-charged position full of creative potential.

Working in a school library is busier than I ever imagined. New books need scanning and summarising for upcoming power point presentations. A monthly report needs drafting. Letters for overdue books need to be collated. Tasks are never completed in one sitting because interruptions are inevitable. Teachers want tubs of books made up for next week’s classes. Students want staplers or sticky tape, or help with the printer or photocopier. Class sets go out and come in again and there are always students and staff who can’t find something on the shelves or the Internet.

In such an environment TLs need to plan and prioritise. Wilson (2009) suggests taking time to plan the day into manageable chunks. TLs need to know what to give their full attention to as there is little free time (Wilson, 2009). Even lunch hours are pared back because TLs are supervising students. Purcell’s (2010) time study exercise is one method of recording what a librarian achieves each week. It can also inform where productivity measures can be introduced.

TLs can’t afford to be recluses. I know of one TL who only leaves the library to use the toilet, which I would suggest is not the best way to get to know the staff and their curriculum needs. Sharing ideas is important but a librarian must do more than offer a few resource suggestions to colleagues in the rest-room. Yucht (n.d) suggests TLs should have lunch with different staff members each day to make sure you are on good terms with everyone. She stresses the importance of observing faculty interactions and school culture carefully. TLs can’t afford to exclude people just because they have little in common. Libraries are for all. 

TLs need to be good listeners to cater for both student and staff needs and to deal with conflict situations (Gilman, 2007; Sanders, 2004, p127). Conflict between staff creates a climate of negativity in which librarians shouldn’t indulge. Good professional relationships should also be cultivated with the principal. Haycock (2004) states that this is vital to foster support for the library program. Likewise, joining curriculum panels or management committees further shows the school community that the TL is a leader, a team player and a committed professional. This engagement also advertises to staff that you are willing to engage in collaboration (Ashworth, 2006).

Collaboration is one of the key skills of the TL. If TLs are actively engaged with the teaching process they will be held in better regard by staff and if good results ensue, staff will return for further collaboration. As a CRT I’ve had little opportunity for this but I make sure I’m hovering nearby to guide staff and students to relevant resources whenever a class researches a topic.

Another way of generating collaboration is through using Web 2.0 tools like wikis and blogs with staff members (Gilman, 2007). Being a ‘techno savvy’ individual is another vital skill of the modern TL (Ashworth, 2006) and TLs need to encourage staff and students to become more information literate. 

There are many Information Literacy (IL) models that provide a framework for helping students to understand their learning journey and give cues for TLs to step in and help. I see a lot of merit in Kuhlthau’s Information Search Process (ISP) however my local school is over-represented by ‘macho’ Outdoor Education type teachers who would sooner kick a football than articulate feelings about looking for information.  Despite this, Kuhlthau’s (2012) ISP is a great theory for TLs to identify the steps students go through in the library. Every day students are muddled about what an assignment means. We see students eager to find a book on their topic, or downcast when bombarded with 200,000 hits on Google. Students are unsure of how to take notes when they do find relevant information. This is where TLs can guide students on their research journey.

I’m still in the exploration phase of my journey. Let’s hope I can focus on the task ahead as the TL position at the local school remains unfilled.

 References

Ashworth, Justin. (2006). Letter to a First Year Librarian.  School Library Journal.  Retrieved 27 Sept from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6367047.html

Gilman, Todd. (2007). ‘The Four Habits of Highly Effective Librarians.’ Do Your Job Better. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 21 July from http://chronicle.com/article/The-Four-Habits-ofHighly-E/46544/

Haycock, K. (2004). Priority-setting: the Tough Work.’ Teacher Librarian, Apr, Vol.31 Issue 4, p6

Kuhlthau, Carol Collier. (2012). Information Search process. Retrieved Sept 3 from http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~kuhlthau/information_search_process.htm

Purcell, M. (2010). All Librarians do is Check out Books, Right? A Look at the Roles of a School Library Media Specialist. Library Media Connection, v. 29 n.3 p30-33 Nov-Dec

Sanders, R. (2004). Conflict Resolution.  Australia Library Supervision and Management (2^nd ed.) (pp. 127-132). Wagga Wagga, NSW: Centre for Information Studies, Charles Sturt University.

Wilson, Tim. (2009). Effective Time Management for Teachers-How to Manage Your Workload. Retrieved 21 July from http://www.time-management-success.com/time-management-for-teachers.html

Yucht, Alice. (n.d.). Alice in InfoLand. Y’s Guide to Starting a New School/Library/Job. Retrieved 27 Sept from http://www.aliceinfo.org/ysgd-new-job/