Assignment 1: Course Reflection

Learning events:

Access

Initially I thought access only applied to when and how often students came into the library. Access is a multi-faceted idea where students can physically, intellectually and digital access the library. With the growing push in society to be data centered, students need to know how to interact with the library's print and digital resources. I have been developing a unit for the intermediates, introducing them to the various e-resources available. Our students should be independent inquires.

Access to the library physically means students have the opportunity to visit the space during class time and spread out. They enjoy the welcoming area, and get in touch with our resources. Classroom teachers are coming regularly, to book time. This is a very exciting time for our library!

MARC Records

MARC records made me anxious. I now, however, have a greater appreciation for what our District Learning Commons works towards. The staff at the DLC takes the time to enter our MARC records. Without our centralized data entry, the teacher librarians would have another hat. This not-so-simple task really takes stress away from the teacher librarians and allows us to focus on educating.

Catalog Organization

Our new catalog system is wonderful! Students can search books easily. They can get all the access information they require, and see an image of the cover! I have many students who struggle with the Dewey Decimal system. This catalog is really helping them find their way around the library. I am introducing them to searching database.

Self-assessment

I have found this semester difficult to balance. Usually when I am enrolled in a university course I spend a great deal of time focused on the content. This term, however, I have been fully immersed in my library and the endless possibilities of learning. This course has made me think about ways to make the library more organized and accessible to my students. I am currently working with the library club to create posters to help direct students to commonly requested resources. These additions should encourage library independence.

I have tried to stay on top of the readings and participate in the discussion boards; therefore I would self-assessment myself as a good participant. I used my time wisely and participated when, and where I could. As I have been very focused on adjusting to my new position, given the time I have spent I have participated well. I commented on 10 / 13 discussion boards, and commented on several people's comments, though this was not as regular as it should have been. I did my best to participate as often as my job would allow.

Resources used:

ERAC Publication

The ERAC publication is often referred to in our district. Several of our Teacher librarians work with ERAC to evaluate resources. The ERAC document helps support information literacy development by providing specific guidelines when looking at new resources. This document lays out checklists that teacher librarians can access, and evaluate their own resources. This sets a high standard for resources. It allows us to ask ourselves, "If a resource does not follow the criteria is it worth being in the collection?"

I value the suggestions of my colleagues especially those involved in the ERAC process. They are taking the time to look at new resources and decide if they should be used.

ODLIS - Search Access, OpenAccess, and Perpetual Access

The ODLIS is a dictionary database that allowed me to quickly search terms I was unfamiliar with. As mentioned, I did not understand the full scope of access when I started the course. I used ODLIS to search Assess as a keyword. The database provided a dictionary definition, and also provided several "See Also" terms. Having access to the dictionary allowed for quick more clarification of unclear terms.

Library of Congress -Introduction to MARC

I felt like MARC records were going to be my end in this course. I did not understand the framework. I understood that they were necessary for cataloging, organized resource data, and that they provide a standard format for library catalog organization. This allows all libraries to sort and catalog their resources in the same fashion and provides consistency throughout the library world. They also allowed the user to search various search parameters. I, however, did not understand their own organization, until using the Library of Congress website. I took the time to read through the various chapters. They familiarize me with the order and the corresponding MARC tags.

Summary

Overall, this course has provided me with a better foundation for organizing the collection, and has presented the multiple layers involved in functioning libraries. We cannot simply stick our books on the shelf. There is a process, and the organization ensures our libraries will be more accessible in all areas.

OPAC - Online Public Access Catalog

Our district recently change over to a new public access website: District Learning Commons Discovery Portal. The portal is more accessible for students at home, than the previous version. This new system allows students to quickly search the school or the entire district for resources. This version is easier to navigate, with fast results.

On the home page of the portal, students can select their school (as seen above) and enter their search parameters into the catalog search engine. I have searched for books on hibernation, as the Kindergarten and grade ones are starting a new unit.

After students have entered their search data, the catalog will show students the cataloging information, as well as an image of the book their are searching for. I clicked on the third result, "What is Hibernation by John Crossingham.

When a student selects a desired item, a detatiled record of the resource will appear in a pop-up window, and indicate if the resource is available. In this case "What is Hibernation" can be found in the non fiction section, under the call number 591.565 CRO.

I think this new system has opened the opportunity for user-independence in the library. Students can see what book they are looking for, before they leave the computer. This system also allows students to view a book summary. The student can decide, based on the provided summary, if this resource is in fact what they are looking for. This also allows the students to generate a list of resources at home, and search the library later. This feature is helpful, especially since students have limited access to computers in the school.

The library portal is not only the school search engine, but also the gateway to all the e-resources, the district has bought licenses for. Students simply return to the home page, using the house icon at the top of the page, and navigate to the E-Resources link.

Once students have accessed the E-Resources link, they have a large selection of options, including but not limited to World Book Online, Encyclopedia of British Columbia, EBSCO, and Passport to the Internet.

One issue with the E-Resources is that if students are accessing them from home, they do require the district password. This is easy enough to gain by talking to the school teacher librarian, but if in a hurry to finish an assignment, students may forget to get the password. If a student is accessing the resources at school, the network automatically will log them in from any computer in the school.

After using the search program last year, and the new portal, I think the new system is much more user friendly, and suited to our students. I have, however, heard some negative feedback regarding this at the secondary level. The high school students find the appearance and layout too elementary and demeaning. The high school students don't want to see Pete the Cat on the home page, they want to see resources that apply to them. As an elementary teacher librarian, this OPAC meets the needs of my student demographic.

MARC Records

MARC Record terrified me! Our public library has provided a link to each resources MARC record. When I first started viewing them I didn't understand up from down. As I started viewing more, however, I started to pick out key features that allowed me to construct my own MARCs for Assignment two. I still do not feel I have mastered created MARC's in any way, but I feel I could work through them if it became necessary.

Check out my MARC Records on my Wiki: http://librarianlynx.wikispaces.com/

Delicious

I was strongly encouraged last year by a colleague to get a Delicious account. I tried it, but after one day of using it, stopped. I went back to it today for this portion of our assignments, and realized why. I am a visual learner. I find delicious rather boring to search through. That being said, I did give it another try. I started by searching Adrienne Gear and only got one hit, within Delicious. I find that quite shocking, so I changed my search parameters to Education, Library and got 15666 results. I looked at the first ten and saved my top five results. You can check out those results at: http://delicious.com/lisacprice

I still don't like delicious for is lack of visual appeal, I use pinterest regularly. I find it easier to navigate. I have been generating a Library Links page with Pinterest for quite some time. If you would like to check out those links please visit: http://pinterest.com/teachprice/the-library/

I must say that using a library catalog is far less tedious than the internet on most occasions. The consistent and standard form of subject headings make searches far less frustrating. When searching the web, there are endless options and results that will pop up, especially with the popularity of Google. I appreciate the standard format used with in the library world. Consistency is vital and allows for optimal results.

Access Part One.

What does access mean in the library world? There are three points of access: physical, digital and intellectual access. When I started this course I always thought of access in the physical sense. When do my students have access? How often can they visit the library? Can all the students reach all the resources? It was all about when, how and where. I did not consciously think about the intellectual and the digital access. Currently our library is lacking in digital access. Our school went through the greening process this past summer and all six of the student computers were removed from the library. The library is more open now, and students can be seen in all areas of the room, however, the computers were not replaced. The students are now limited to accessing digital information from the school lab, which is not attached to the library. Problem? Yes! This may not be an issue in the beginning of the year, but teachers are going to be starting their students on research papers soon, and I feel obligated as the source of information and access to information in the school, to provide. I am limited by the technology, or lack of technology, and therefore so are the students.

Reflections - LIBE 465

I have used this blog in a previous class to post my reflections regarding learning, and thought it would be fitting to continue to use my Library Lynx to do the same with LIBE 465. Over the past year I have completed six out of ten University Library courses. I will be completing my diploma in April 2013. I have learned through other classes, and my practical experiences, the importance of reflection. Without reflection teachers and teacher librarians have no way of looking forward and back to determine what should be changed in their practice or what should remain the same.

I try to reflect daily on three things: What went well? What could I have improved on? What should be changed for next time? Through self-evaluation, I can take the time to move on if something did not work out, and not fixate on the problem. Reflection has given me a chance to improve myself and my ability to move past self doubt and focus on self success and the success of my students, staff, and parents.

Final Reflections

My reference collection journey is now coming to a close. I have discussed many different aspects of the reference collection, related them to our course readings, as well as to my current connections with various libraries in the school district. I see a push for more electronic references within the libraries, but still see students accessing the print copies for addition research information. Overall, this reflection process has allowed me to revisit each topic and express how it relates to my current situation and how I will use the reference collection in the future.

Thank you