Sunday, December 30, 2012

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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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

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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