New Year's Resolutions

It's that time of year to make New Years Resolutions I hope to keep for the year of 2013. Right now, 2013 feels shrouded in mystery. I know that I will be graduating from SU in May with my library science degree but beyond that I have no idea what the future holds!

-I will be a devoted job hunter. I have already started working on some job applications for both academic and school library jobs and I vow to continue my pursuit in hopes of landing a library job-finally embarking on my dream career!

-I will read more books leisurely.This is a resolution every year. I am hoping once I graduate in May I can spend some time catching up on my leisure reading. I attempted to complete an end of year reading challenge but the death of my maternal grandmother has caused me to lose focus temporarily. I am currently reading John Green's The Fault in Our Stars.

-I will seek more professional development opportunities. I already plan on attending the NYLA SSL Conference and ALA Annual in Chicago but I hope to seek out more opportunities as the year progresses.

-I will finally learn how to code. I have been avoiding this goal since my HTML experience in IST511 but I must overcome my fear of coding.

I think this is a good start. What are some of your New Year's resolutions?

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End of the semester

This semester was my busiest one yet-and possibly the least stressful. I realized the beauty of time management as I embarked on 2 separate internships concurrently (my school media secondary practica and an academic library internship in references and collection development) and took 2 online classes (Literacy in School Libraries and Library and Information Services for Students with Disabilities). To say I learned a great deal would be an understatement! For literacy in school libraries, I chapters for a class e-textbook about different literacies. I contributed to group chapters on literacy 2.0 and information literacy. We each also contributed 2 lesson plans and a unit plan. More details to follow on when the book gets published... I am excited to see the final product.
My students with disabilities class was a real eye opener for me. I had taken a teaching students with special needs course during my undergrad; but I found this class much more informative. I was able to learn about different kinds of disabilities and how they affect students. I also was able to experience what it might feel like as a student with a hearing impairment or physical disability. I took away many different ways I can make my library welcome to all students ranging from the library set up BLANK, print and electronic resources including assistive technologies, and services I can offer students as a school librarian.
I had a tremendous experience at the Penfield Library, the college library of SUNY Oswego. I really felt like part of the team there and it was very sad to leave last Thursday. I feel my training in reference services and collection development will help me wherever I end up but I honestly wouldn't mind working in an academic library. My supervisor offered me a position as an adjunct reference librarian for the night shifts after I get my degree. Honestly, even if I get a school media job, if I am still in the area, I would totally do a few nights at the desk too!
I have already reflected on my school media internship in previous posts. I received some news that my sponsor librarian from my secondary school media practica will be relocating back to her home state of Iowa concluding this school year. I am happy she gets to be closer to family again but I would be lying if I didn't say I was sad to see her leave.
I am excited to start my elementary practica a couple weeks from tomorrow. I see the light at the end of the tunnel! (Senioritis, please don't kick in!)
I also decided to try and read at least 3 books by the end of the year (13 days and counting) as part of the Last Reads of 2012 Readathon. I am starting by reading Skinny by Donna Cooper. I picked up the arc at ALA Annual and I am finally getting around to reading it.

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Penfield Internship check-in

Yesterday I had a very successful "check in" teleconference with my three Penfield Library supervisors and Dr. Stripling. It was very refreshing to know I was doing well and hear some of the things they had to say. I was surprised to hear not many people seek out internships with a collection development component. I have vastly enjoyed learning how to deselect materials and replace the materials with new purchases.
We also discussed good qualities of an intern (which they thought I exhibited): willingness to try anything, ready to accept a challenge, responsive to constructive criticism, (I was surprised Deborah said this) learning from mistakes, and never making the same one twice, and not being afraid to ask questions.
Dr. Stripling noted that she would like me to observe a few instruction classes as well considering my previous experiences in teaching so I am going to try and find time to sit in on a few sessions. I am considering spending some time at the library next semester learning a bit more, I just am not sure what yet other than instruction!
All in all, I was pleased with the teleconference and I think I will be sad ending my internship December 13th.

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Secondary practicum completed

On Friday, I finished my secondary practicum at Fulton Junior High. Overall, it was a great experience. I learned a great deal and made some great friends and a colleague along the way. The following takeaways:
Takeaways from my secondary practica
-How to catalog books
-Setting up a reading incentive program is a multifaceted process; requires promotion, staff support, include student input when possible
-Great idea: Hold mini contests to attract students to library (book fair promotion, 3 Apples Award vote, etc.)
-Collaborate wherever! Halls, copy room, email... Know your staff and what works for them
-Try to integrate technology through lessons; students extremely engaged!
-Make suggestions to teachers for technology integration
-Whenever you host a collaborative project, look at students' finished products. Evaluate the skills you taught, take notes, and report back to teacher. Make some comments on students' overall projects too.
-Folders are great organizational tools!
-Library helpers can be a great program to implement: tasks like dusting, shelve-reading, shelving graphic novels and fiction, decorating, special projects
-Separate processing orders and check off books as they come in. Make sure the secretary or office need a copy when order is completed.
-Try to save a bit of your budget for student book requests
-Create engaging lesson hooks!
-Classroom Management- something I need to try to focus on more when teaching
-Display library expectations and consequences for those who do not follow them
-Allow past issues of magazines to be checked out by students
-Use Magazine check out envelopes- create a temporary record in the system
-Use Bibliography sheets for students to collect citation information
-Set up displays for special occasions, events, and holidays: Halloween, research projects
-Email everything to a superior first and always spell check your emails
-Keep things short and sweet in emails, announcements, etc. Easier for everyone to read

I had such a great experience and I cannot wait to start my elementary practicum in January.
I also took the Library Media CST yesterday. I met some new people including someone from my alma mater, SUNY Potsdam; I also ran into a couple classmates from SU: Amanda B. and Erin B. As for the test itself, some of the questions were challenging but I still think I passed the test, which is what matters.


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Semester update

Officially in the ninth week of the semester, I find an update is needed.
Both of my internships are going incredibly well. In my school media internship, I have completed a variety of projects. I set up a reading incentive program/contest. I created the reading logs and collaborated with my librarian on coming up with a name, benchmarks, and prizes (posters, bookmarks, books, a combo mp3/ DVD player, team pizza party, and "pie throwing privileges). I thought this was a nice combination of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. While I know and agree that intrinsic motivation rules and works best, these are teenagers so they need some extrinsic motivation as well. I am excited to see the results of data collection for the first month's minute tallies. Some students are very excited. We are also introducing conferences with students to discuss their reading progress and address the accountability issue. Students have to conference with library staff six times (at least once a month) to qualify for prizes.
I have also taught library skills lessons. Last week, I collaborated with the social studies teachers to discuss valuable research strategies for students to use while exploring immigration trends of the 20th century from a specific immigrant group. We also showcased a Microsoft Word citation tool for inputting students' works cited. Next week, I will be working with an art teacher in supporting artist research. We'll be discussing the elements of a citation and again creating citations using the Microsoft Word tool.
In my college library internship, I have been learning many valuable skills as well. I have vastly improved my reference interview skills with more room for improvement. The students find me easily approachable and I enjoy hoping students over hat reference as well.
I recently finished weeding the Teacher Resource Center, a collection made of textbooks, guides, and more for educators. I weeded all materials pre-dating 2000 and there were quite a few! Now, I will be evaluating new materials for the collection. The library recently hired a new education librarian who I am excited to work with.
Needless to say, I am enjoying both of my internships immensely!



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#engchat discussion

I attended an intriguing and thought provoking English (educators) chat on Twitter tonight which discussed the future of school librarians. I enjoyed the lively conversations and made some great new colleagues. Here's an introduction from the moderators from engchat.org:
Join with ELA teachers and others in #engchat to consider provocative questions about the future of school libraries. Library services and librarians are being cut from school budgets all over the United States. Some school libraries are closed for some parts of the day or week. What key questions should we consider about the future of libraries - beyond financial ones?

Is the book dead? Is the school library a place of the past? Is the role of librarian obsolete? These questions challenge us to consider how contemporary tools and connectivity are impacting the school library as we have known it. What do users - students and teachers- value as library services? What needs to change?

These questions help us begin to answer a grand challenge for the future: How do we create and design school library services that serve contemporary learners and educators well?

There was such a great mix of educators and librarians. We discussed the role of the school librarian and how the school library has to change from its original paradigm. The stereotypical "shusher" librarian was mentioned where I argued for a multifunctional library with quiet spaces and collaborative spaces. How do librarians foster literacy? By whatever means necessary to get kids reading! Tweets also discussed what the three most important roles of a school librarian are, library design, and the ebook vs. paperback debate. I think we should focus on what kids are reading; not how they are reading it. We need to focus on what works best for them.
Overall, the chat was very engaging. I was happy to see some familiar faces from my classes (Marie and Shannon) were on chat too. Thanks to Barb Stripling for posting this announcement to her classes!


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Internships

So far all is well with the semester and both of my internships.
This week is library orientation at the junior high school I am interning at. I watched my librarian teach the lesson as students helped set the expectations of the library by visiting stations and writing an idea for an expectation using the school's new iPads. The lesson got better and better each time she taught it. On Wednesday, I will be conducting the lesson with 8th graders.
Last Thursday, I spent 5 hours in the college library gaining an introduction to reference. I learned about the reference procedures, the technology used to conduct reference and record transactions. We use a system called Gimlet to communicate important reference queries and keep track of what kinds of questions we receive. We use Pidigin chat reference and also offer reference over email and phone.
Today I think I will also be starting my collection development project which will be interesting. Overall, it's been a great start to the semester; I am either ahead or on track with all of my assignments. I hope the entire semester stays this way!

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major update needed

My summer public library/ bookmobile internship has ended and my fall ceases have begun. Tomorrow I begin my fieldwork/ practica at the local junior high school and later this week I embark on an additional internship experience at the local college library. I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my summer internship before embarking on a few new adventures!
My summer internship was an exciting experience. I was able to compete a variety of projects and gained a variety of experience in the field. I will summarize my experiences below:

• Created a bibliography of suggested graphic novels for the library to purchase
• Assisted with the facilitation of the digital media club
• Taught 2 internet safety lessons to teens
• Assisted in recording microfilm pages for digitization grant
• Assisted with the Summer Reading Program finale
• Assisted in the Children's Room at the Library preparing story hour crafts and shelving materials
• Helped children and teens select books from the Oswego Bookmobile along with other associated tasks
• Planned the Bookmobile Theme for Outer Space week which included suggesting read-aloud books for purchase and donation, gathering themed reading response activities including designing a space quest requiring Bookmobile visitors to visit the Oswego Public Library to answer basic information literacy questions.

My favorite part of my internship was working on the Bookmobile and working with the Children's Room. I enjoyed delivering books to at-risk children in our area and helping them find the right book. I also enjoyed the atmosphere and children of the children's room. I was offered opportunities in both places for next summer so those are definitely opportunities to keep in mind!! Honestly, I would ride the bookmobile year round if it ran; the experience is that rewarding!

Tomorrow I attend a staff development day for the local junior high school I am completing my fieldwork and practica hours at. My librarian is a recent SU graduate and very enthusiastic about her job. We are working together to create a reading incentive program for middle school students and I will hopefully also be completing a collection development project weeding and suggesting resources for the school library's reference section.

On Thursday, I begin my supplementary internship at the college library. I will be working on gaining reference skills and another collection development project. I will receive reference training and be able to answer students, faculty, and staff reference questions via in-person, phone, email, and IM inquiries. I will be weeding materials in the Teacher Resource Center and suggesting new materials to add to the collection. I am excited about this project because I can use my background in childhood education to assist in this project.

On top of my crazy (albeit, self-inflicted) internship schedule, I am taking Literacy in School Libraries and Library Services for Students with Disabilities, a new requirement for teachers and librarians in New York State.

I hope to keep the blog more updated this semester even if it's my busiest semester yet! I am considering copying and pasting my blog and journal posts from my internships here for your viewing pleasure. In the meantime, I am signing off. Early start tomorrow! Wednesday will be the first time I experience the first day of school in the eyes of a teacher librarian!

ALA Amazingness

I recently embarked on a cross country adventure to the Annual American Library Association conference in lovely Anaheim, California. I had the pleasure of meeting some amazing people, learning some amazing things, hitting jackpot on the exhibit floor, and of course, Disney!
I flew across the country early morning with new friend and recent Syracuse University grad, Margaret (Follow her on Twitter: @tophile). We made it to Anaheim pretty smooth sailing and while we were waiting for our hotel shuttle, we ran into Barbara Stripling, Syracuse University Assistant Professor in Practice and President Elect of the American Library Association! It was nice running into a familiar face across the country.
We spent the rest of the (very long) day exploring Anaheim, reading books, and sitting pool side participating in #libchat. (Yes, we're nerdy librarians!)
Thursday we registered for the conference and I went to Disneyland with a couple of other librarians I met on Twitter. It was great to go on some of the classic rides I missed on my senior trip to Florida in 2006.
Friday was the big day: the official start of the Conference! We started the day finding the Unconference with Emily Thompson(@librarianofdoom) and Addy
Matteson (@queenaddie) of LitTech. (Emily is also an academic librarian in my local academic library!) Together we wandered the second floor lobby to find the unconference. What happened was we gathered a group of people also looking for the Unconference and filed into the room awing the 2 people who were already present. We were the unconference!
The unconference was really interesting. An unconference is essentially a group of people getting together, brainstorming topics they want to learn or talk about, and split into groups to discuss!
I joined groups that discussed teen and adult programming and social media in libraries. We agreed that both teens and adults want a social component to their programs. Great ideas for increasing teen involvement including big incentives for reading programs, using teen volunteers for the children's summer reading program, and ringing in clique leaders to increase teen involvement. I also liked the ideas of inviting local speakers and hosting library lock-ins. Someone had the cool idea for fundraising of hosting a pay for your dinner at a local restaurant and so much of the profit goes to the library.
I liked a lot of the ideas presented at our social media table as well. I think every library should have a facebook page and it would be a great way to connect with kids and teens if the summer reading program had a Facebook page as well. I know Emily's library has something to tweet about everyday: database of the week, website of the week, meet our staff, etc. four square initiatives to check in and receive a free coffee.
I went with new friends from that morning to an Indian restaurant. Topher, fellow iSchool student (@hieanon) was present as well. I discovered I actually dislike Indian food but some of us also venutred to Lego Land and acted like total kids building our own Lego people to abandon them after completion, taking pics of all the Lego models: Toy Story, the Genie from Aladdin, and a large dragon.
I was a bit disappointed by the YALSA meeting because it was overcrowded so nothing went as planned. We basically went around a room of 80 people introducing themselves then got up and left.
I got to see most of Rebecca MacKinnon's opening session about her book Consent of the Networked. A lot of what she was talking about related to topics we are and will be discussing in information policy this summer. The main point was its not the argument over whether the Internet empowers people but how it can support rights and liberties of people worldwide. She even spoke of Arab Spring which we were required to read for class that week.
I helped man the Syracuse University booth in the exhibit hall during the opening. I got to meet a few alumni and acquaint myself with fellow classmates (mostly campus students). I was reacquainted with Henry Mensch from my cohort (@henare) and met incoming student Kai Li (@nalsi).
I was pretty tired after an exciting day so I went home and crashed. I would call Day 1 at ALA a success!

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Internship update

I met with the coordinator of my internship on Wednesday for a brief meeting concerning my internship schedule. I have to complete 20 hours a week in order to fulfill SU's internship hour requirement. After realizing we were falling short on hours, I decided to add a few more projects to my internship. I will be working with the Bookmobile about 6-8 hours a week. The details of when and where are still in the works as they prepare the summer schedule but I will be attending a bookmobile training this coming Friday. I am excited to be more involved in this project this year. I will also be implementing a graphic novels club for pre-teens and teens. It has always been a passion of mine and I want to be able to motivate reluctant readers to read as well as advanced and average readers. I will also be compiling a suggested bibliography of graphic novels for the library to purchase to expand their collection.
I definitely have my work cut out for me but I am very excited preparing for this internship!

Summer internship

I met with the director of the Public Computing Center a few weeks ago to discuss an internship. The woman is a retired school librarian herself which made our conversation very interesting. I will be starting my internship when I get back from the ALA Conference in the first week of July. I get to work with the digital media club with two other lovely ladies. The club uses various digital media tools to promote fitness and nutrition while learning new technology. Since the library is a partner of the local Bookmobile, I will also have the opportunity to volunteer there as well. I am excited because I enjoyed the time I spent volunteering last summer. The last part of my internship requires me to create and implement social media and internet safety workshops for teens. It's a program I have been dreaming of implementing since I thought of the idea last summer. I think social media is a great vehicle for students' expression, creativity, and knowledge; but I also want students to know how to safely use it and not broadcast personal information to the world wide web. I cannot wait to get started on this venture!

Update & summer goals

So it's been quite a busy semester! I am currently in the midst of composing a post about the #140cuse conference I attended virtually yesterday, which was an amazing experience. I also will be updating readers on my semester long project for my library planning, marketing, and assessment class next week after my final presentation. I am also meeting with someone from the Oswego Public Library next week to discuss a possible summer internship. The woman who contacted me coordinates the public computing center housed within the library so it will be interesting to hear what she has to offer.
I think I want to set some goals for myself this summer to keep myself on track and motivated. So here it goes:
-Do well in my summer course. (IST 618: information policy)
-Do well in my summer internship (whatever it is...)
-Read 10-15 books for pleasure
-Come back from ALA becoming well acquainted with at least 5 new people including librarians and library students
-Study and become well acquainted with the Common Core Curriculum

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#140cuse

I am currently attending the #140cuse conference via webstreaming and what an amazing experience!! Read up on the conference itself here. Basically, a bunch of amazing, innovative people are discussing how they use real time web (especially Twitter)  "give people the power the real-time web has to disrupt businesses, change lives and create serendipity." (http://140cuse.com) It's amazing to hear the accomplishments of a wide variety of people through this social media tool. The conference is set up so that each speaker has only 10 minutes to tell their story and so far the stories are great! I'm going to highlight some of the presenters; though all were good. I'm currently reporting on what I've heard so far but presentations are still going and I can't report on every one!

• I missed a couple of the first presentations because of technical difficulties but I was glad to tune into The "That's Not Cool Bro" Theory of Privacy presented by Brad Rosen (Twitter: @drabsnore), a professor at Yale University. He spoke of how our privacy is affected by real time social media. For example, if you don't like what John Doe wrote on your facebook, you block him, but John Doe's friend, Jane Doe, can take screen shots of your Facebook wall every day and send them to John Doe. Therefore, you're information is never completely private/ safe. "That's not cool bro..." but it happens. What you expect and what the law protects are two different things. "As the norms continue to grow and change, there will be a change in the law." (Rosen, B.)
  
• Another great presenter was George Couros, a principal from Canada, who presented 140 Characters of Kindness. He told this great, heartwarming story of joining Twitter and later posting a video of the last 20 minutes with his pet dog who was old and sick. He was touched by the friends and complete strangers who reached out to him to share condolences. (Couros, G.)
  
• F*ck SOPA: The World is Not Flat, but the World Wide Web Is was a great presentation by Alexis Ohanian (Twitter: kn0thing), a founder of Reddit. (A bandwagon I have yet to jump on.) He discussed SOPA, the day the web blacked out to make a stand, and the effect it had on the bill in Congress. He said "Syracuse University iSchool was the only school that came out against SOPA; I think Georgetown was for it." Needless to say I loved this presentation.  Alexis discussed how he took videos for Occupy Wallstreet and covered the event extensively. (Ohanian,A.)
  
• Bob O'Brien (Twitter: @ClevelandBob) tweeted about LeBron from his dorm room and got famous! People were chanting his chants he created at basketball games when LeBron returned to the basketball court to play for Ohio.
  
• I was really touched by Alicia Staley's story. She was diagnosed with cancer while attending college at SU in 1991. Alicia was lucky to have supportive family and friends who brought her to and from chemo treatments and saw her through her many battles. She's now a 3 time cancer survivor. She used Twitter hash tags to find support for people battling cancer. She was surprised to find a young woman in a situation similar to her own. She said, "It take a village; you can't battle cancer alone;" which I thought was very inspiring and very true. My uncle just passed away from a hard battle with cancer a couple months ago. It was interesting to hear a survivor's perspective.
  
• I really enjoyed Tim Nekritz's presentation. He works out at SUNY Oswego and runs a "Day on SUNY Oswego Campus" dipity account. I loved his entrance: "[SUNY] Oswego is known for three things: Al Roker, Hockey, Snow. Oh and Jerry Seinfeld was there one semester and dropped out; probably because of the snow." The dipity project was a great way to get students engaged in their school. There were pics of the zamboni smoothing out the ice on the rink, students studying in the 24 hour room (I'll admit I tried to scope out my best friend who is known for studying there all hours of the night), concert performances, art galleries, and more. I thought it was a great way to promote the college.
  
• Hajj Fleming spoke about the Start up You Economy. I found some very powerful messages in his presentation. Change is evident; it's not a matter of if; it's a matter of when; that's the challenge of a start up economy. You have to be willing to disrupt yourself. Personal branding is telling stories; you have to be better than anyone else telling your story. 

I really enjoyed attending this conference virtually. I hope it's the first of many more at Syracuse and across the globe.

(2011). The #140cuse Conference. Retrieved at: http://140cuse.com

Awesome meeting with local high school librarian

Today I am subbing for my 10th grade biology teacher; which is weird all on its own since I haven't walked these halls in 6 years and now I am a substitute teacher running into all of my previous teachers... So after the initial shock... I decided to go speak with the librarian here who was hired the year after I graduated and seems awesome at relating to the students judging by the high school library website. I was very pleased with my experience.
This librarian (whom I will not name due to confidentiality reasons) was very down to earth and quite blunt but I loved it. She had a lengthy discussion with me about her career and how she does things in the library and why. I even got a full tour. She let me know first thing that the pretty picture they paint for you in library school is not what the real world is like, her job has been on the chopping block every year but this one, when she first arrived at this high school she was seen as a more of a study hall monitor than a librarian (sometimes it still seems that way), and no one was interested in collaborating with her.
She started by rearranging the library; moving a row of computers out of an area that was blocking access to the fiction section which was her next task. No one was taking out the books on the shelves; so she started doing her research, asking the students what they like to read, and filling the shelves with that. Now the library has a very nice fiction section. Some of it is color coded, new releases and displays are sprinkled throughout, and books are coming off the shelves again. We looked at the nonfiction section which is gaining greater curricular importance thanks to the Common Core standards which New York state has begun adapting. However, the only nonfiction books taken out are generally biographies about mobsters, athletes, and other famous people. There was a 2 volume set about French Canadian History that looked like it hadn't been touched in years.
The reference section was located against the wall on the far wall behind the computers. There was a question in the librarian's mind as to whether the reference books were even worth keeping with missing volumes and students flocking to online databases.
She is working with a high school earth science teacher on developing and co-teaching a bioethics course in the fall which I found very exciting.
Even though the life of this particular school librarian isn't all rainbows and butterflies, she stressed that she loved her job which made me happy to hear admist her struggles. I found this to be a very beneficial experience.
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new wave of school librarians

Today I substitute taught in a local elementary school. I decided to saunter down to the school library because I had recently virtually introduced myself and promised to stop in the next time I was in the building. The meeting, although pleasant, gave me mixed feelings.
This librarian seemed almost defeated and I felt disappointed. (Any discussion from here on out is paraphrased.)  She told me that the "pretty picture" they paint for us in library school isn't the real world. School librarians have to fight to be noticed, she never sees or speaks with her administration, teachers are difficult to collaborate with because of state testing constraints, etc. Some teachers don't even understand what a librarian's role entails. In one district, this librarian was basically a study hall monitor and her library skills were severely under utilized. It all comes down to the district, she stated.
Now, I understand that this is no "pretty picture" because school libraries would be mandatory if their importance was recognized, schools would not be cutting librarians to staff the libraries, and libraries would be seen as a hub of not only the school community but society. I know it's not like that. Yet.
That's part of what new librarianship is all about. We have to change things. She mentioned something about teachers needing a class in college to understand the librarian's position in a school and it's true. We were told nothing about how to use the school library or collaborate with the school librarian as educational partners in my undergraduate program. So let's change it. I refuse to believe that I can't make a difference in whichever library I end up in. I decree I will make myself known to teachers and seek out collaborative opportunities, my administrators will know who I am and recognize the hard work students put into learning twenty-first learning skills in my library. I want to make a difference in the lives of my future students and my community; and no one shall stand in my way! (Stepping off the soap box now... it was just really disappointing to hear and this librarian loves her job but to think she feels this way is sad.)

Call me crazy... ALA Annual 2012

Call me crazy but I decided to take a leap of faith and made the decision to attend ALA Annual in Anaheim this June. The only things barring me from this experience have been financial difficulties and fear of the unknown. However, thanks to tax refunds and thoughtful savings I already have enough money for registration and my air fare; though I am waiting to see if prices will drop before I buy.
I have never traveled across the country before and I am most likely embarking on this journey on my own although I know there will be familiar faces in Anaheim and some new ones I would like to become acquainted with. I can't imagine what it would be like to meet Library Greats like Buffy Hamilton or Kristin Fontichiaro or many of the other Library Land bloggers I keep tabs with. I am excited to read about the different sessions that will be offered. I am planning on attending a variety of offerings since I am not 100% sure of what I want my focus to be. I'm excited to meet with fellow library students from across the country and hope that there will be some SU students as well.
I'm really excited for this adventure. I would love to hear any tips from past conference goers!

On a totally different note, on the verge of a Teacher Recruitment Fair later this month, I am in debate on how my resume should look. I feel as if it's getting a bit long but I am afraid to cut out work information because I don't want it to look like there have been gaps in my employment history. Does anyone have any good resume advice?

March Madness

This month has to be one of the busiest months of the semester for me. My calendar is full of assignment deadlines, a weekend residency, concerts, miscellaneous social engagements, and professional events. I'm excited for all this month has to offer!
I've gotten a lot of email lately promoting various local and regional conferences. (Some I wish that I had been informed about much sooner...) I am hoping my knowledge of these conferences will inspire me to keep such conferences in mind for next year. I truly enjoyed my NYLA Conference experience and I was sad to see an obligation conflict with the School Librarians Conference in May. I enjoy all of the networking and professional development that arises from attending conferences.
In other news, I am considering continuing on for my doctorate. I have always been fond of education and learning as a lifelong process. I would want to stay at SU and pursue an information science and technology focus with a concentration in information and education. I am not sure about what I would want to my research focus to be quite yet; I just know that I am intrigued by the overall topic. Perhaps something I can consider while completing my masters studies. I could see myself becoming a college professor or working in an academic library. My only fear with getting a Ph.D. is being "overqualified" if I wished to teach in the K-12 school system or other library jobs. My pursuit of knowledge is quite fantastical though.

reaction to 9+ Things That Will Disappear in Our Lifetime

I recently read a blog post on Blue Skunk Blog discussing the post  9+ things that will disappear in our lifetime. The original list was formulated by a Plinio Granado with added comments by Doug Johnson of Blue Skunk blog which I would like to discuss more later in this post. I was surprised at some of the items I was agreeing with on the original list- the post office, personal checks, land line telephones (I honestly have no idea why my parents keep ours-we screen our calls and most friends and family call us on our cell phones...).
Other items I am a bit skeptical of though... I am a proud owner of a Nook Tablet AND at least 100 physical books. I don't foresee the book disappearing off the face of the earth. I also don't see the death of television or the music industry in the near future; Unless they expect users to upload or stream new TV episodes regularly on their Netflix boxes or Roku devices, I don't see network television programming disappearing... How else am I supposed to watch new episodes of my favorite shows? While there are a great deal of people pirating music, many people (including myself) still buy music in compact disc or digital download. One of my friends was actually mocking me the other day when he was discussing buying a physical CD for someone instead of simply downloading it like I do.
I was rather enthused by the items on Doug Johnson's list for 9+ things he thought would disappear in our lifetime.
I love that he started off with book-only libraries and librarians. It's true. The library world is changing from an artifact-centric profession to an information creation, conversation, and knowledge center. I foresee myself working in an active, creative learning center and I relish at the opportunity!
I found the prediction of the disintegration of classrooms comprised of age-groupings interesting. As an educator, I wonder how we could better organize our students into effective learning environments. I am not sure I agree with matching students up by their IEP needs. Fellow educators, I would love some input!
I do enjoy the idea of teachers becoming technology experts. I will admit I knew very little concerning how to use technology in education graduating with my elementary education degree minus the minimal basics on how to use a SMART board and how to use an Elmo projector. Since embarking on my library journey, I have found so many techniques and tools to use in order to better help students learn in today's classrooms. (Which, by the way, I was relieved that public education did not make this list!)
One more thing I was relieved to find on this list was norm-referenced/ summative testing. We need to start focusing more on formative assessments.
I believe this is a lengthy discussion to be had. What do you think about the two proposed lists? What would you put on your list of things that will disappear in your own lifetime? Please provide your thoughts in the comments.

Marketing Project

Last week in IST 613, we chose teams and projects to work on throughout the semester. I chose to work with my friends and colleagues, Morgan and Maria, and we stumbled upon a great project! We will be working with a multi-type library system down in Florida on their need to recruit new members from its region, which includes planning how to find new members, etc. I think this will be an interesting and challenging project. There are a couple other groups working with this library system on different projects. We learned that the community has a 22% illiteracy rate so that will prove to be a challenge when considering which methods we suggest for marketing membership. I will do my best to keep my readers updated on this project.

Why I Am Here: A school librarian’s creed

Why I Am Here: A school librarian’s creed

I really enjoyed reading this article for my Motivating 21st Century Learning class and was completely inspired. The author, a school librarian, really exemplifies the purpose of the library. I can't believe a school superintendent would suggest to eliminate the requirement of a full time librarian in every high school; especially stating it was "antiquated." We need librarians more than ever in the information age; reading these types of statements simply shocks me because I can't believe how naive and ignorant people can be when it comes to actually knowing the purpose of the library and the role of the librarian.

Update

There's a winter storm brewing outside; and schools are closed for the day. So I decided to take this time to update readers on my winter break happenings as well as the start of a new semester. I have enjoyed my volunteer experiences at the local public library. I've gotten to sort through donations, shelve materials, and organize periodicals. I have also become well acquainted with most of the library staff. They are discussing assigning me to a different variety of projects to meet my educational needs. I am going to get to help plan some of the children's story hours! I am very excited for that opportunity. On Monday, the library will be holding a mini golf tournament within its walls and I am excited to be volunteering! I also applied for a library clerk position in the same library. I hope I get it; I miss working in libraries! I will also be meeting with the interim director of the local academic library to discuss my internship there in the fall. I am thinking about what I would like to focus on… I enjoy working with circulation tasks, and I also would love to work with their Teacher Resource Center. I am still on the fence deciphering how I feel about conducting reference work; perhaps I will see if I can experiment with that a couple hours a week… So many ideas! In other news, my spring semester classes are online this week. I am very excited for this semester to be taking great classes with great professors! I am taking IST613- Library Planning, Marketing, and Assessment; and IST 663- Motivating 21st Century Learning. I will be taking IST 613 on campus so I cannot wait to collaborate with library friends, old and new, on a project working with a real-live library. I also hope to teach some of my lesson plan assignments for IST 663 to a real class by possibly asking local school librarians if I could test my lessons on their students. So many exciting things are already happening at the beginning of this semester and I only hope they keep getting better!