Writing the SLO's

As I'm writing out my "student learning outcomes", I'm trying to put all the pieces of my work together.  I know some people would think this is just drudgery: picking through files and folders to find the appropriate work to match the outcome.  For me, however, it's a bit of a walk down memory lane.  I've been thinking about all the great classes I've had or the those little "a-ha" moments that happened when working on a paper.  It's those times that I remember why I wanted to be in this profession and still continue to be fascinated by it.  

I'm happy to be ending the degree program this fall, but am going to miss those schedule moments of learning.  Those times when I knew I would be with all those other folks who were just as interested and passionate about the profession as I am.  I think that's why so many people love conferences because it's the one time that we are together and "get" each other!

Okay...back to organizing and sorting!  A librarian's job is never done ; )

Cheers,

Amy

Capstone...working towards the light

It's been difficult, to say the least, to sit and work on my capstone over the past few weeks.  I have a lot of catching up to do!  I finally wrote my PDP - prof. dev. plan on the blog.  You can check it out under the "PDP" tab.

It probably seems like I whipped this out in 30 minutes but I've actually been writing it in my head for weeks.  My future as a public school librarian is uncertain these days.  I'm not afraid to say that here, but it's hard to say that on a PDP when I need to project my goals and desires for a path I'm not even sure I want to keep moving on.  I have not enjoyed my elem. school experience.  No one tells you how challenging a fixed schedule really is and NO ONE tells you the reality - you are the planning period for the teacher and they don't care about collaborating with you.

That's the truth.  I said it, so help me God.

While I know there are teachers and principals out there who see the benefits of flexible scheduling, it's not happening at my school or many in my county.  As school librarians, we struggle; we lament; we curse; we blame; and at the end of the day we really want to do more for our students but it's really a challenge to get anything done.

Teachers will tell you that the school librarian has it easy.  We don't have to worry about grading.  We only see a class for 45-minutes so we should be able to suffer through even the worst.  We don't have to deal with parents or homework.  AND...I can't forget...that we are not being evaluated on how well our students do on the state standardized tests.

And I agree with those teachers...except for the "easy" part.

There is nothing "easy" about being a school librarian.  We don't have a formalized curriculum because we are supposed to be teaching information skills in collaboration with THEM.  We are to be working together not in silos.

But that isn't happening at most schools and it's sad.  So I've decided to do what I can, hone my skills as best as I can and not worry about the rest.  Come January, my resume will be ready to hit the Internet waves and I will be open to the possibilities of a new adventure someplace else.

Cheers.

Excuse the mess...

While I'm in the process of ending my graduate school career, I'm working on transferring my information (PDP, resume, portfolio, etc.) to my blog.  Soooo...it's messy.  I don't like a mess.  I'm going through book fair at school right now and my desk is a mess.  My library is not a mess but in book fair land so sort of a "mess".  My house needs to be cleaned - it's a mess by my standards.  And sometimes, life is just messy, messy, messy!

So please excuse the mess.  I find that as I get older, I get more OCD about things like white space and clean countertops.  : ) However, it's in the midst of mess that I find what I'm looking for:

• keys to my long forgotten bike lock
• that really cool picture my son made back in May at school
• a great lesson plan idea I wanted to try last spring and
• myself.

Sometimes a mess is just necessary.  So please excuse the mess.  I'm a work in progress.

Cheers,

A

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

I can't believe it's been almost a whole year since I last wrote a post, but that's what happens when one is doing grad school, new school librarian job and raising a family! It's been a crazy time and thankfully, I'm finishing my MLIS journey this year.

WHOO HOOOO!!!!!!!

I've rounded the bases and am nearing home plate. I can't tell you how good that feels to be almost free and in the clear.

I was reading my post from last December 2012...I really need to go back and read that again and again. There are so many truths in what I wrote that day that I have forgotten. Being a school librarian is "such a lonely job" to quote Ms. Lotta Scales (Thanks Ms. Deedy for understanding our profession!).  The hats that I wear each day - technologist, teacher, cataloger, analyst, writer, events coordinator, financial manager, collection developer, book reviewer,...it just gets exhausting some days and I didn't even mention my real title: LIBRARIAN.  Some days, I just want to be MOM...which has it's only specialty areas that include some of the above mentioned but at least it's to only 2 children.

I'm going to keep working on my blog now that I will have more time.  There are some really great lessons I've learned and I'd like to keep sharing what I'm learning.  The journey doesn't end with my grad school career.  It's only just beginning...

Cheers,

A

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Lessons Learned from a Newbie School Librarian - Part 1

So much has happened this year in my career, it's been taking me a long time to process and get things down on the virtual "paper pad" known as my blog.

This fall, I began my first year as an elementary school librarian.  While it has been an exciting time, it has also been one filled with anxiety, challenges and has caused me to question my career choice over and over again.  (Did I really sign up for this?!?!?)  I liken it to having kids. Just as no one can prepare you for those first few weeks with your newborn baby, no one can really prepare you for the first day with students, how lesson plans will go over and what to do if they don't go over well, classroom management techniques, so on and so on.  You just have to dive in and start swimming and pray - ALOT of praying.

So what have I learned in 5 months?  Here's my short list to help me remember because I always want to (and think I should be doing) more....

1. The school library is NOT about me.
   I'm not self-centered, but I can see how being the only person who does this job makes me sometimes feel a bit single focused.  Which leads to my next point...
2. Build a community of support and advocates.
   My 2 main goals this year were to 1) build relationships with teachers and students and 2) establish a focus for the library.  I've been working on this steadily but sometimes it just doesn't feel like enough.  DUH!??!  It's HUGE!  Building relationships and letting people know you care about their classroom needs, their homework needs, reading interests, etc. is what gets students and teachers in the door and keeps them engaged in the conversation.  The second part comes after building those relationships.  When I know more about the communities needs and desires, I can start creating programs that focus on addressing these things.  From that comes support and advocacy ; )
3. Be flexible.
   You want to have me travel to rooms during a one day staff luncheon?  Sure! I'd be happy to support that.  You want me to stop in the middle of book fair and help you find a book so you can work on your book report over the weekend?  Yes, I can do that just help me move these tables.  You need a video played right when I'm working my K's on transitioning to tables from story time and I have no assistant that day?  Of course, just please call me about 5 mins. before you need it to run and I'll make sure it's ready.
   Ok.  Take a deep breath.  This is what makes the school library achieve point #2.  Whether we like it or not, we need to meet instant demands so that we build the culture of 'yes' and continue to communicate limitations when appropriate.  Sometimes all we can do is smile and then tear our hair out behind closed doors.  Remember - it's not about the person or the task, it's about building relationships for the long haul.
4. Find a good support network.
   This is probably one of the best things I did was to find people who were open to talking about their work - the highs and lows, as well as, more experienced school librarians who were open to sharing what they do, how they do it (well) and allowing me to come see their libraries.  Everyone and I mean EVERYONE has a battle to fight on some level.  No one thinks their program is perfect.  No one has the "ideal" situation.  It's about looking for the small wins and celebrating them every chance I get.
5. Look for inspiration, but remember to be realistic.
   A teacher-friend of mine said how much she loves Pinterest, but lovingly refers to it as 'teacher's porn'.  It is so true!  I can spend hours on this site (and others!) coming up with really great ideas only to feel totally ineffective and inadequate because I don't have enough money, time, experience, etc. to start or complete a project shown.  Two hours wasted and still nothing on my lesson plan for 2nd grade tomorrow - ugh!
   I began creating an 'idea book' at the beginning of this year to jot down things I saw at conferences, meetings, conversations with other newbies/mentors, etc. and have just learned to say 'save it for later'.  I now do this with Pinterest and use Evernote the same way.  Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was a really strong school library program.  I can always come back to these ideas in June when I'm thinking about what I want to add/delete/change for next year.

It's hard. I'm not going to lie.  There are days when I think I could just wrap up my degree right now, say to heck with the certification part and just move back into higher ed or corporate worlds.  But part of me feels that if I give up now, I'll never truly know whether or not I could have succeeded at my goals for this school library.  I still feel a passion and commitment to this particular area of the profession.

I'm going to keep on pluggin'...

Cheers,

A

Literacy...how many kinds are there??

Despite my best efforts to avoid summer classes, I've ended up having to take 2 this year.  Both are required, however, one is an undergrad course to help me meet the state teaching licensing requirements and the other is part of my graduate studies that was instituted a year after I started the LIS program.  It was called "the teaching of reading" but has since been changed to "Libraries and Literacy".  


Our first class assignment was to define literacy prior to readings, definition lookups, etc. I wrote my definition and then went online to learn more about literacy (there's always a catch to an assignment like this!)  It's amazing how many different types of literacy there are these days.  More importantly - it's AMAZING how many types of literacy school librarians need to be aware of and account for in their instruction to students.


Apparently, a whole lot of folks have been thinking about literacy and discussing what it means to be literate in the 21st C.  Fortunately, I keep stumbling across their paths since the start of class two weeks ago.


Here are some really great thoughts on literacy...the NPR interview came to me on a drive to Costco and the Daniel Russel talk was sent to a listserv forum I subscribe to and that came to me email inbox (yea!). I'm collecting as I go...so look for more posts on the topic soon...happy reading/listening/watching/etc.:


Diane Rehm's interview about 'touch screen devices and very small children'. 
Daniel Russell on "What Does it Mean to be Literate in the Age of Google?" 

5 Ways to Improve an Online Course

Well, this has been a depressing start to my blogging credits!  I'm almost 1/2 way through spring semester and have been so darn busy with classes that I've not had any time to blog.  Let me tell you why...

I'm taking the hardest class EVER! What is it, you ask?  Oh, let me tell you my sweet friend....it's a materials class for adolescent lit.  Sounds fun, right?  Lots of YA books, good reading, great discussions...nope.  Try this one - lots of readings, very few discussions and a wicked ton of papers/projects and presentations. I'm about to go postal.

In all fairness, this course is being taught online for the first time this semester.  The professor is doing the best in a very difficult situation.  I've decided to write a top 5 list of things to do that might help improve the online class experience.  Here goes....

1. Plan, plan, plan...Everyone thinks they can take their face-to-face (f2f) content and slap it up on Blackboard or whatever LMS they are using and voila - instant course!  Uh huh...doesn't work this way.  The best way to transition a traditional course to online is to work with an instructional designer who knows how to work through this process.  If that isn't in the funds, get online and look at some resources.  There are lots of good ones out there to help faculty new to online teaching.
2. Be ready to roll...this means, get all of your semester's worth of prerecorded lectures, readings, assignments, etc. online.  There are features within most LMS's that allow a faculty member to choose when they want students to see materials.  But having them already online will save time and hassles later.  It will keep students from being frustrated because class started a week ago and they still don't have the syllabus or they are still waiting for a recorded lecture that has important assignment information in it due this week.
3. Sync up the work...for example, if there are 3 assigned readings for the week, write meaningful discussion board questions from the readings for students to discuss.  Readings being articles, books, chapters, etc. - it doesn't matter, but allow students the opportunity to be able to tell you what they've read.
4. Lecture on time...this seems to be a big problem this semester.  Lecture time needs to be established upon enrollment.  In other words, if a faculty member plans on doing a live lecture via some collaboration tool every Thursday, they need to have that weekday associated with the course at registration.  This is a back end issue, probably dealt with in collaboration with the registrars office and the faculty member but one that needs to be addressed.
5. Ask for feedback...take time to ask students how things are going.  Some professors normally do a +/delta at the end of every class meeting.  This will help turn any problem areas around quickly and get everyone moving in a positive direction.  Allow students to contact you offline as some students may not feel comfortable sharing problems/concerns in a group setting.

That's my 2 cents...Back to the salt mines...cheers,

A

Looking at Poverty

I think one thing that has really hit home with me this semester is the demographic of this school.  I have to admit, I'm more of an armchair advocate...I think and say a lot to my close friends and family, but I'm not a woman of action.  Why?  Because most times, I just don't know how to get involved or make a difference.  One thing I realized about being a school librarian is that I have a built-in opportunity to make a difference everyday - even if it's just a little thing.

So where do I go w/ the aspect of poverty?  I'm not sure...the demographic this school serves is extremely poor.  Let me just lay out some data that I've researched:

• In NC, poverty is classified as a family of 4 making a total yearly income of $23,000.  Over half the demographic of this school is AT or BELOW the poverty line.
• 100% of the school receives either a free or reduced cost lunch.  That's huge! In my child's school, only 20% of the students need assistance.  There are 450 students at this school while there are almost 800 at my child's...incredible.  
• Test scores in reading and math for 3rd-5th grade are 30-50% lower than the state average

What I've seen with my eyes are...

• Children in 4th grade who read at a 2nd grade level or lower
• Children who come to school with a myriad of emotional, behavioral and physical issues
• Children who are not fed, bathed and taken care of on a daily basis

I've only been at this school for a few months, but in that time, I've realized that there is a huge problem.  I know what I read in the papers and hear on television - American schools are broken.  But I think it's more than that...and I think public education has become the scapegoat to fix all that is wrong in our society.  How can educators be expected to fix what they can't control?  How do we tackle poverty in our schools and our communities?  How do we give children a chance at life between the hours of 3:30pm-6:30am?  or in the summer? How do we get parents, who can't even take care of themselves, to take care of their children, let alone their child's educational needs?

I don't know the answers and I have a lot more questions.

"Character Welcome" in the library

I finally finished my goals assignment for my field experience course on Friday.  This probably isn't a difficult assignment for most school librarians.  Those of you who have been doing this for awhile might laugh at my lack of experience - I'm painfully slow at selecting materials and pulling things together!  I'm sure, over time, I'll get where I need to, but this was a very fun and somewhat labor intensive project for me.

I just posted my pictures on my tumblr account - the 'before' and 'after' of the shelves and display - so you can check out what I did.  (Bibliography of books from the school library - if you are interested!).

I chose to create a book display based on character development topics.  The reason for my project was 1) because it was required for my class but 2) because I wanted to do something that might have a subtle impact.  Kids come to the media center with the guidance counselor in the mornings and afternoons on alternate weeks.  They discuss topics, such as peer pressure and bullying, and then watch a video on how to handle certain situations.  I wanted to give them a chance to explore some of the topics they are discussing in this class through the language of books.

We've all had great books touch us in some way.  Maybe as a way of modeling responses, the book characters will give students a way to express themselves and protect themselves, more than watching the videos.  I've not done any hard and fast research studies on how book characters can affect actual behavior, for better or worse, but I do believe that if we find a character whom we admire for whatever character traits they portray (trust, loyalty, bravery, respect, leadership, etc.), don't we somehow want to emulate them and be viewed in the same way?  I remember wanting be seen as Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird for years because of her attitude, chutzpah and courage. (In some ways, I think I still want to be Scout ; )

I'll be observing to see if any books from my display get check out over the next few weeks.  Fingers crossed...I'll keep you posted to learn what happens!

Testing the waters of teaching

I had the 4th and 5th graders in the afternoon this week and was able to teach a lesson on how to use the online catalog.  Since this was my first time teaching students, I was really excited.  It's one thing to watch, but it's another thing to create the lesson, plan out the objectives and then teach it!

My supervisor helped out so that I wouldn't have to do all the classroom mgmt alone.  That was great because my 4th graders were a bit wild.  However, they did fine and we made it through the lesson.  I'm beginning to learn how to be tough, but appropriately supportive and assertive.  I can see that respect is earned with these students.  

Overall, the lesson went well.  I used a space theme and gave the students a "mission".  My goal was to chunk the lesson into 3 distinct "tools" they would need to complete their mission:

• Guide book = technology vocabulary
• Directions = steps/strategies to finding materials
• Vehicle = navigation the Destiny catalog interface

For the 4th graders, I assigned crew leaders and grouped students at the start of the lesson.  This was a mistake...I ended up grouping students who were a bit rowdy together instead of splitting them up.  When I grouped 5th graders, I waited until the end of my lesson.  This worked out better because I told them in the beginning of the lesson, I would be looking for good listeners to be crew leaders.  Wow!  What a difference in attentiveness!  It was hard to choose my 5 crew leaders. I can see where the benefit of knowing the students helps, too.  I grouped 2 EC students in the same crew in 5th grade and that didn't work out great. 

During the lesson, I allowed students to check their knowledge by coming up front and use the eBeam pen to select an answer.  I had come up front, tell the class what they thought the pictured icon was (IE, Recycle Bin, etc.) and then they could touch the board w/ the pen to reveal the answer.  They really liked that!

After the lesson, I had them work in their groups for practice and conduct a scavenger hunt for terms.  After I checked each group, I had them work independently at the computers doing the same steps: use the Destiny icon from the desktop, identify the catalog tab, and create a breadcrumb doing a keyword search for something they were interested in.  Their 'ticket out the door' to go browse was that they had to show me they had mastered each step.  I didn't do this with 4th but was able to with 5th.  

For next time, I will wait to select my crew leaders until the end of the lesson and the same with crews so I can separate friends or rowdy students.  I liked working with them individually, too and I didn't get to do that with 4th grade so I need to make sure I have enough time to do that.  I also need to work on how to dismiss students so I can successfully manage the classroom while allowing them to browse the media center when I'm not right there.  That would have been tricky if I was on my own.  I need to start thinking about and asking my supervisor about transitions so I know what to do.

The best part was that most of the 5th grade students were able to find the books from the independent search they conducted.  My supervisor was really pleased with my lesson and felt it went really well, too.

 : ) 

Working Under New Leadership

I can't remember what I have written about my school in regards to leadership, but this school has a new principal this year.  He is a very nice man, however, he is not as dynamic or as engaged in creating a collaborative community (yet) as the previous administrator.

My supervisor is struggling with change in leadership as she had built an eight year relationship with the previous administrator.  I can see where this change can be difficult for everyone - including the new principal.  However, I'm trying to remind myself that if I'm faced with this situation (as I will be) that it's important to mourn the loss but move on and embrace the change.  I think I'll try and build myself a little "welcome to the school" kit so that with each new principal, I'll have a way of not only welcoming them but allowing them to get to know me and what I can do (my vision, goals, etc.) for the media center.  I haven't ask my supervisor what she has done to invite the new principal into the media center, although I'm sure she has done something as she's that sort of person - very inclusive, welcoming, etc.

Wednesday was my first opportunity to see how classroom management is done with a class that is completely unruly.  We spent a great time corralling, separating, stopping, etc. for poor behavior in the 4th grade class.  It was so frustrating!  My supervisor and I talked about this and how she picks her battles.  I'm going to have to remember not to gripe over every little interruption, etc.  I think some of my strategies will be to separate kids into small groups and have hands activities, too.  I've noticed that they do not do well in the afternoon.  The 3-5th grades are just not motivated to 'sit' and a hands-on activity or something where they can work together on a project might go over better.  Anyway, that's what I'm going to try when I have them so I can see if a collaborative model will work better for them to learn.

A day in the life of a volunteer school librarian....

I've been such an awful blogger this semester, partly because I'm bloggin' on Blackboard (or "The Costco of Online Learning") and partly because I'm friggin' overwhelmed in my new career path. I'm loving it, but I'm just a fish out of water right now...So I'm taking some of my "Costco" posts and putting them online to share...enjoy! It's been eye-opening ; )

9/12

This week we are on the "A" schedule and have K-2 during the mornings. The school librarian is working with the K's and 1st graders on the parts of the book and how to protect the books when they are checked out. This was a really cute lesson with "Mr. Wiggles" the worm and the book was all drawn on and pages were torn/ripped. Another example that she showed was a book with a spine damaged so that the pages all fell out. The school librarian combined her lesson with hands-on examples, as well as, using the E-beam technology to reinforce the 'do's' and 'don't's' of taking care of library books. She introduced the children to the 'not' symbol and but them on things like a glass of water or a car. She emphasized that places the books are safe are in their book bags. 

To get the kids to remember the parts of the book, she used a rapping technique. Today, she wanted them to remember the parts on the front cover so she would say, 'T' is for Title' in a chant or rap. Then she would just say "T is for"...and they would say back "Title". It was cute and fun and they got it quick! She read a cute book that had a hand puppet (it was a book) associated with it. The book puppet has words such as 'title', 'author', 'spine' and the children need to put the words on him in the right spots. The book covers where all the info goes, too. 

The K's had a difficult time sitting still for the book. The school librarian not only read the book to them, but has it placed on a stand with a document camera in place. The document camera projects the book onto the white board so all the kids who are upfront can see the book pages better.

With the 2nd graders, she focused on them learning how to check-in their books. She had a nice powerpoint and also incorporated the rapping technique to help them understand where the books go on the shelving cart: E's (top), F's (middle) and #'s (bottom). She has her library organized by streets, so E's are 'everybody street' and are primarily picture books, easy readers; F's are for Fiction and #'s are Non-fiction. 

Today was a great experience for me as I was able to see some instruction, but probably just as important was the classroom management. Some techniques I thought were very effective such as calling on people by name to get their attention or reminding them that their reward - a tiger paw - was going to be taken away. (I have to ask what they get for the tiger paw!) However, the 2nd graders didn't get one today. One little boy in the K's tore his name badge with barcode in half. When the teacher came back to get the class, she told him she was "sending him home to his Mama hungry". The little boy had told me earlier that he wouldn't be able to get lunch because he tore it. I felt badly. I understood that he was being a discipline problem (lots of acting out during the school librarian's session), but not having lunch wasn't going to help his behavior improve for the remainder of the day. (I found out later he did get lunch and was very much relieved!)

One particular thing that really floored me was how inattentive the K's were during the book reading. Not one of them could sit still. It was so obvious to me that their parents don't read to them, probably never took them to a story time and most likely, prop them up in front of TV or a video game. I have a child this age and she would have had no problems sitting through story time. I could understand it if was the last thing that they did in the classroom time, but this was one of the first things the school librarian did! It just makes me more thankful that I have given my children the gift of reading and story hour. It does make a difference.

On a happy note, I received hugs from all the students I met today! I loved that part the best. Wednesday, I get to observe one of the classroom teachers, although I'm not sure which one. I get in early on Wed. mornings so we will have time to decide who I can observe before the pace of the morning sets us in motion. On the "A" weeks, I will be hitting the ground running!

School is in Session...well, almost...

The summer went so fast and I had all these great plans to post and read about LIS stuff.  So what did I do instead you may ask??  I took my kids to the pool, read great books and stayed away from my computer for as much as possible! LOL...it was a good summer but as August is here, so is the time to start thinking about what to write about for this upcoming semester.


Some things I find interesting...

1. LIS students!  I will be an officer for our student association and I'm eager to find out what students want from their selected officials.
2. School media - of which I know very little but will be doing some field experience this fall.
3. Social media  + Technology Tools...now that I've switched from an academic lib focus to school media, I'm more interested in finding ways K-12 can use these tools
4. AASL + Those in the "know" - I have a lot to learn...so getting plugged in w/ groups and people who have been in the field will be key
5. Volunteerism - I'd like to do some more of this in various libraries but probably not until next semester...volunteering = learning a TON about not only an organization, but the profession overall

Of course, there's other stuff, like becoming a better runner, biker, swimmer (oh, yeah - the "tri" is on the mind!), however, I think that's a good glimpse into the professional arena for now.

Cheers,

A

A Change in the Calling

My year spent at UNCG's Jackson library was truly a great experience.  Mostly, it was because of one very dynamic, positively-charged ion - Beth Filar Williams, the distance education services librarian.  We had a great time working together and accomplished so much!  I feel every minute of my internship was used to the fullest and that's more than I can say for some of the full-time jobs I've had!!

But...and there is always one of those lurking somewhere...I realized that I would probably not find the hours or schedule I would need to be home w/ my kids when they got home from school.  The thought of putting them in camps all summer was not an appealing idea, either.  So, I went back to the drawing board...Would it be so bad to rethink the thoughts about becoming a school media specialist?  I had started on that track when I first began taking classes.

After a week of thought (and looking at what I would need to do to make it happen!), I decided to jump back into it and this time, no turning back!

I start my field experience in the fall at a school in High Point.  They have a fab.u.lous media center and the woman who runs it is just so high energy - pretty incredible!  I'm excited to work w/ her...a little nervous about working w/ the elementary school kids, though.  It will be a learning curve but a good experience.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed!  Hope this goes well and there are jobs out there when I'm ready! ; )

Cheers -

A

Done and gone..sort of...

It's been a week (almost) since I handed in my final and finished classes this spring.  I'm officially 1/2 of the way through my MLS program.  Hard to believe, but I am.

I've watched friends graduate this semester and as they walk out into an uncertain job market, I wonder what I will be facing in another year.  How much better will things get?  Or worse?  Although I've never felt that being a librarian was a career that would bring me wealth or status, I have always thought I would be able to find a job in this field rather easily.  Now, I'm not so sure....

A few months ago I had the opportunity to interview and amazing woman, Mary Ellen Bates.  I was interviewing her for an upcoming book on entrepreneurial librarians.  My piece on Ms. Bates is a supplementary article and will either conclude or introduce the chapter on business owners who are librarians.  Talking with Mary Ellen reminded me, once again, that the job market doesn't have to start and stop with who is or more likely, who isn't hiring.  I can create my own work, my own job description and my only limitations are...well...quite frankly, myself.

I don't want to give the whole interview away, but there is a very good part where she talks about what skills you need to have to be successful as, not only an entrepreneur, but also as an employee.  While I can't publish it here...I will post the link to the book once it is in print.  I think it is one of the most important things I have learned about seeking my own place in the job market.

Looking for opportunities and making connections in everything I do that has to do w/ this career field is very important. I hope my friends and colleagues who have recently graduated have great luck in finding their career place in the world, but most of all, I hope they remember the value of learning and growing continues with or without that immediate paycheck from a library.  They can continue to hone and refine their skills as information professionals no matter where they are and they will continue to be successful if they work towards being business-minded, creative, entrepreneurial and professional.  We are never really "done" with the business of learning...

Good luck to all of you recent grads!

Cheers,

A

On w/ the body count...

or at least the credit count!  (I'm on an 'old school' lyric kick...I promise it will soon pass...please be patient!)

I had to scramble a bit to put the pieces in place for next semester (Fall 2011).  The course listings just went live today and I knew if I didn't act fast, I'd be sucking wind in classes that I had either (a) no interested in or (b) no attentions span for (or (c) both which would be the kiss of death!).

I got lucky, however, and my plan to skip a core course worked out well.  So next semester I'll be taking Digital Libraries (a welcome precursor to Metadata in the spring of '12) and Social Marketing for Info Institutions.  By lucky coincidence, both classes are online so no driving to Greensboro next semester - a first in the 1 1/2 years I've been enrolled.  I'm really excited my gas consumption might be less than $200 a month!!! Whoo hooo!

Overall, I'm happy w/ the way things are going w/ my coursework and the past year.  It was a struggle to get through cataloging, but I'm glad it's behind me and I can focus on taking some courses that I "want" to rather than those that I "have" to take.

Looking forward to the next chapter of library school but for now, I'm going to take a bit of a break and enjoy reading, researching and writing about some other topics.  Stay tuned....

This is the last day of our acquaintance...

Unlike Sinead's song, I had a very good year in ERIT and I'm sad that today is my last day.  However, it doesn't really feel like a last day...somehow, I think Beth and I will manage to collaborate and work together on other projects.  We just had a great working rapport and that's not easy to find.  She's been a great boss, colleague, mentor...

And just so I remind myself of all the awesome projects I was able to do because of her, here is the lineup from start to finish...thanks Beth:

Instructional Technology Toolkit
Current Awareness Libguide
Distance Education Services (web redesign)

and a few tutorials that are not online yet. ; )

Okay...off to cataloging....some lasts are good.

I.Heart.LCSH

After weeks of torture in Cataloging, I think we've finally come to an area that I can (somewhat) embrace - LCSH!! (Library of Congress Subject Headings, y'all!)

I don't know why, but I do love the classification of *things*. I've always loved organizing things and making order out of chaos, so this part deux of the class is something I can relate to more than the description of items. Classification and organization are two of the main reasons why I'm drawn to IA (information architecture) work. Finding similarities in items that appear to have no relationship is tricky, whether it is in a catalog or on a website. The main idea is to get users to find the item and hopefully, matched up categories correctly so that they get from searching to finding rather painlessly.

Pete Morville talks about "findability" in his blogs, books, etc. He is one of the forerunners in the area of IA and, I think, quite brilliant. One thing he comes back to and, really this is oversimplified but true, "You can't use what you can't find." I think if Cutter were alive today he'd be leading the charge with Pete and the rest of them in the "user experience" movement and making things more 'findable' whether it be in a database or on the web.

I'm not going to blather on, but I thought I'd leave some good resources on the topic of user experience, findability and IA in general. I hope you get some time to check these out:

Findability - http://findability.org/

UX Zeitgeist - http://rosenfeldmedia.com/uxzeitgeist/
(great place to link to books, articles, etc. on the "above" mentioned topics)

What is IA? - http://iainstitute.org/en/learn/resources/what_is_ia.php
(probably should have started here first...basic def. of what IA is by the Information Architecture Institute)

Getting over the Hump...A Call to Action

I started off this day in a really brash kinda mood, but a glass a wine and 2 sleeping kids later, I realized I need to soften up a bit.

After reading articles, blogs, discussion boards,...you name it...about how there is no money, lay offs, no jobs, etc....I got really, really ticked off!! For example, here was the start of my orig. post from this morning:

Librarians Should Not Have to Work for FREE!!!

The rant continued but I realized that all I was doing was...well..ranting. And while it feels good in the moment, it doesn't really change the fact that libraries still have no money, lay offs...you get the point.

So here's my "to do" list...I need to add more, but this was my first attempt. My top 5 are:

1. Become a "friend" of the local library
2. Get to know my local librarians better
3. Learn how to advocate for my library
4. Find out what the issues are and FB everybody and their brother about them
5. Attend a city council meeting

If I want libraries to be around for my kids to enjoy, then I'm going to have to start making a statement about why these places are important, and not just to me, but from a community point of view. The "why" is a heck of a lot more important these days than the "what".

So out with the bun and the 'shushing'; no more whining about how we are devalued, underpaid, not appreciated...we aren't having that anymore...it's time for a change in our voices and I want to start ushering in that change in my own way.

Cheers,

Amy