Again, I am doing some catching up. I got Pandora running last Saturday and took some time to look over a couple of presentations from the HigherEdBlogCon. The better half was working, so I had some time to be productive. I read over the "Blogging at a Small Academic Library" presentation by Natalie Forshaw, Karen Jensen, and Ilana Kingsley. I also read over Chad Boeninger's "Blogs, Wikis, and IM: Communication Tools for Subject Specialists," but I will post on that one later. The Forshaw et.al presentation was interesting to me for what I could learn to use in my own academic setting, where we have a set of library blogs.
The presentation is done on a blog, which makes it very easy to read through, plus it illustrates use of a blog. The presentation authors consider three types of blogs: a training tool for circulation workers, a blog for liaison work in the English area, and one for the reference librarians. Personally, I am more interested in the latter two given they are things I could use, but I learned a bit from their discussion of the training blog. I was already thinking a little about this after looking over Johnson's presentation on "Subject Librarian 2.0." I may need to go back and review that.
In regards to the circulation blog, the authors point out the blog's use as a record of communication. This would be something I would appreciate in a reference blog. For us, this could be a place to note frequent reference questions, assignments, policies, and some incidents in one central location that could be searched as well. An issue for us would be privacy, as this would be for the librarians. Maybe password protection and secure posts? Just speculating at this point. Another issue would be getting the librarians to use it without making them feel that one is adding "yet another thing to look at." I do think this could have an advantage over the various e-mails one has to remember to keep in a folder, which is done haphazardly. All I have to do is ask around to find varying degrees of keeping such types of information. A blog might be a way to centralize this. Yes, I said it, centralize. When it comes to policies, everyone should be on the same page. We should not be saying, "oh yea, it was in that e-mail from last semester." You know, it's the one e-mail no one can find now. That's just one example.
When discussing the reference/service blog, the authors remark that only six of the reference staff had posted (as of the posting's writing). This is an issue for us: getting more librarians to post. Our Engineering Technology Librarian has an Engineering Technology subject blog, and she does a pretty good job of posting to it. However, we have other blogs that sit without regular updates other than the latest technology downtime news. I should note that as of this writing, there have been some postings (maybe some psychic confluence?), which is good. This includes the bright note that the Director, who is one of the our two business liaisons, rediscovered the Business blog and began posting again. She e-mailed some of her faculty announcing the new content, and she got some good feedback. Now, it is necessary to keep it up. I do have to claim some fault with this for I don't post as much as I could when it comes to our institutional blogs. I have access to the News blog, the one we use mostly for library announcements, and to the Books blog, the one we use for highlighting new books and some book-related news like awards. For me, a feeling of formality is a problem. Intentional or otherwise, I feel that I have to ask permission. So many things I might post on a whim I just post to my professional or personal blogs.
Overall, I can attest that blogging does require some sense of commitment, but I have some leeway in a personal blog. In something more official, if you build the expectation, you have to keep at it. Overall, while my initial impulst would be to get all the librarians blogging, I know this won't happen for various reasons. So, realistically, we should nurture and encourage those with the inclination, talent, and eye for blogging. I think for the Business Cornerstone classes, a core class that is one of our big instruction clients, the business blog can be a good resource if cultivated and marketed well, but it needs content to market. On the feedback the Director received, one of her readers told her that he would be adding the blog to his syllabus. Now that is a good start we can build upon. In the future, I would envision using wikis for guides in those classes, maybe using the current print guide as a starting point. This may or not require additional staff training. Personally, I have a sense of who is savvy enough or not, but since a lot of things are compartmentalized, it is just that, a sense. Maybe we also need to look at issues of focus when it comes to our blogs. By the way, I am not averse to letting something stagnant die a quiet death, preferably swift as well, but for this I just think we have a case of underutilization combined with a feeling of "yet another thing to do." Just my guess from the trenches.
The author's subject blog is dedicated to English studies. This caught my eye since freshman composition classes make up the bulk of our instructional services. Like the example, we could use such a blog to provide research hints and links to resources for those classes. I jumped over to our website as I was looking over this presentation, and I think we could use a general research guide for freshman composition. Maybe it's time for me to talk to someone at the Writing Center for some collaborative possibilities. Therein lies the rub for me. I keep coming up with all these seemingly neat ideas. Heck, if I do a search of my blog, I probably have a trail of ideas with a notation to revisit or look over later. Coming up with the ideas is easy. Adding them to my perpetual list of things to do is not so easy. I suppose I need to remind myself that I am a guerrilla kind of librarian: small objectives, one at a time, hit and run, live for the next day. But I am disgressing.
In the example, the authors mention that the English blog is used more as a webpage, but it also serves as a communication tool between the liaison and the department. Maybe there's applicability to my Arts and Humanities subject area. I love their long term ideas for the English blog, particularly the one for a creative writing section where students could post their own work. I would be curious as the the authors are if such a section would attract users to the blog. It does sound like a good community building idea.
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Monday, July 24, 2006
An Immersion Report. . .
. . .or what I would write if I had to turn in an "official" report to my superiors.
I have to admit that I am very overwhelmed. I took in a lot of information in a short amount of time. So, I am having a bit of a hard time deciding how I will write some things up. When my A.D. asked if I had a "life changing experience," my answer was "yes, I have seen the light." Think of the scene in the film The Blues Brothers where Jake and Elwood visit the Reverend Cleophus's Triple Rock Church, and Jake sees the heavenly light and starts jumping. That's pretty close to the feeling of rapture I had as I came out of Immersion. So, here's the "official" stuff.
I have to admit that I am very overwhelmed. I took in a lot of information in a short amount of time. So, I am having a bit of a hard time deciding how I will write some things up. When my A.D. asked if I had a "life changing experience," my answer was "yes, I have seen the light." Think of the scene in the film The Blues Brothers where Jake and Elwood visit the Reverend Cleophus's Triple Rock Church, and Jake sees the heavenly light and starts jumping. That's pretty close to the feeling of rapture I had as I came out of Immersion. So, here's the "official" stuff.
- I attended and participated in general sessions. By this, I mean sessions for both tracks. Topics included information literacy, creativity, and assessment.
- The teacher track sessions were more focused on teacher needs. Teaching techniques, learning styles, additional work on assessment, and leadership were among the topics covered.
- I worked on a project based on one of my lesson plans. The plan was written before attending Immersion, and it was revised during Immersion to reflect new concepts learned. I also gave a presentation from part of the plan. The presentation was mostly designed to practice teaching techniques with peers and our faculty. The presentations were done in smaller cohort groups.
- I did some networking, and I had the opportunity to meet with peers from various library settings. Talking to my peers and learning from them was a significant part of the experience.
- (This stays out of the "official" report) And I had fun at the social events. A good balance is one where there are both work and play. The host's hospitality in this regard was very good.
- A complete review and revision of teaching practices. We need to move away from lecture models as the primary method and integrate more active learning techniques in our lessons.
- Train the other librarians. The idea is to make the work of integrating active learning and assessment into a collaborative effort. We need to work on enhancing our information literacy initiatives from within.
- Review and revise efforts to reach faculty. Faculty and librarians have a common interest in student success. More work in communicating expectations and teaching with faculty is necessary. This may include looking at library procedures regarding faculty who "conveniently" do not attend classes in the library with their students. Exploring various collaborative opportunities would also be recommended. We need to work outwards to enhance our information literacy initiatives, but more importantly, we need to see how they align with other campus initiatives.
- The library needs to send other librarians to Immersion on the teacher track. Any librarian involved in teaching can gain benefit from this. Off the top, I can identify two colleagues who should go. Maybe I can "talk" them into applying.
- We need to send someone to the program track. Going through the teacher track and talking to people on the program track has made me very aware of institutional issues, mostly in terms of programs needing development. If we are going to grow in terms of campus involvement and make sure information literacy is an important part of student success, we can gain from participation in the program track. For me, this would be the next logical step to allow my outreach duties as well as my instruction librarian position to expand. Additionally, one of the administrators, preferably the one most directly involved in public services, should attend as well. If funding were an issue, then the administrator should be sent in lieu of the librarian. Ideally, both the instruction librarian and the administrator should go through the program together. This would allow them to work together on creating a campus action plan, which is a core of the program, as well as engage in the learning experience.
Short Booknotes on Graphic Novels 4
Here are a few more brief notes on graphic novels I have been borrowing from my local public library. Like most libraries, they don't have everything I would want in this genre, but they do manage to have a nice selection for starters. At any rate, these make for fun readings most of the time; there are one or two that are not as engaging to me, but hey, one has to take chances.
Wilkins, Dave, Kevin Munroe, and Tony Washington. El Zombo Fantasma. Milwaukie, OR: Dark Horse Books, 2004. ISBN: 1-59307-284-8
When a Mexican wrestler is murdered after a match, he is given another chance at redemption. El Zombo Fantasma is the greatest and baddest luchador around, used to getting his way. Now, he has to return to L.A. in order to be a ten-year-old girl's guardian angel. However, not all is at it seems, and Belisa Montoya is no ordinary little girl. Some very bad people are after her, and Zombo is on a quest to keep her safe while trying to find the man who killed him. He finds that he has to embrace the luchador traditions of pride and honor to win. This compilation collects the first three issues of the series. I enjoyed the art greatly, and the story was entertaining as well; it ended too soon, so I will certainly be looking for other issues. I do note that the compilation can stand by itself.
Waid, Mark and Barry Kitson. Legion of Superheroes: Teenage Revolution. New York: DC Comics, 2005. ISBN: 1-4012-0482-1
In the year 3000, the world has achieved a utopia where disease, hunger, and other problems have been eliminated. You would think things would then be happy for everyone. But every utopia carries a price, and utter boredom with a lack of problem solving ability have become the order of the day. While the Earth is now part of a planetary alliance, things are peaceful on the surface. Teens seeking adventure and just looking to find themselves rebel. Teen superheroes come together under the Legion of Superheroes facing a future where children are under genetic surveillance, and heroes are all but forgotten. These new heroes are the ones who come to realize that danger is in the horizon, from an enemy no one expects. The premise of a far future is very good, making an interesting commentary on the present. The series features good art as well. Overall, the series makes a solid plot and story that draws the reader in. This series will also have a strong appeal to teens given the way it presents issues of interest to them. This is a good example of the superhero genre as well as utopian science fiction.
Byrne, John. Fantastic Four Visionaries: John Byrne Vol. 2. New York: Marvel Comics, 2004. ISBN: 0-7851-1464-5
The second volume in the Visionaries series, this one collects work by writer and artist John Byrne. For readers who keep track, it collects issues 241-250. Compared to the previous volume I read in the Visionaries collection, this one has a better sense of continuity since the writer and the artist are one and the same. The issues collected were published in 1982, which basically brings back some memories for me. In this issue, the Fantastic Four confront Doctor Doom, Galactus, and the Skrull. This set features appearances by Spider-Man and Captain America. As always, the heroes don''t just rely on their powers, but they use their minds as well. Reed Richards should become a spokesperson for studying science since it is his genius that often helps to save the day. It's an element that I personally enjoy in reading the Fantastic Four's adventures. Fans will definitely enjoy this set.
Miller, Frank. Batman: Year One. New York: DC Comics, 2005 ed. ISBN: 1-4012-0690-5.
Though originally published in 1986, this graphic novel remains as powerful as ever. Frank Miller, with David Mazzucchelli providing the art, gives readers a gritty and engaging retelling of the Batman legend. The story is Batman's first year in Gotham after Bruce Wayne returns from a long exile abroad. The city is corrupted and in need of a hero. James Gordon is a young lieutenant in the Gotham PD trying to walk a straight line in department full of corruption. As his partner tells him when he starts the job, "a cop has it made in Gotham." Bruce Wayne is trained, but he still has much to figure out. By the end of the year, he seems to be settling in, but it will be an ardous journey. This is a great work, giving a good set up for the many Batman stories to come. Personally, I can not get enough of Frank Miller's work. This new issue has new introductions by the author and the artist as well as some art galleries.
Austen, Chuck. Superman: The Wrath of Gog. New York: DC Comics, 2005. ISBN: 1-4012-0450-3
Superman faces Gog, an enemy who has travelled through time with the goal of destroying him. Gog manages to wound Superman, though Superman manages to vanquish him. However, that is not the only problem Superman faces as minions of Darkseid invade the Earth as well as local villains come around looking for a chance to beat a weakened Superman. Superman along the way is helped by some of the Teen Titans and Wonder Woman. A lot of action, but the story is not terribly coherent. At one point, he is convalescing and talking to Lana, and the scenes move to him fighting another adversary. The narrative transitions were not very good compared to other works. For a moment, I thought it was some dream sequence, but it is actually a flashback sequence. Not handled well, thus makes the narrative a bit jarring. A good piece of comics action, but not the best of the Superman comics.
Wilkins, Dave, Kevin Munroe, and Tony Washington. El Zombo Fantasma. Milwaukie, OR: Dark Horse Books, 2004. ISBN: 1-59307-284-8
When a Mexican wrestler is murdered after a match, he is given another chance at redemption. El Zombo Fantasma is the greatest and baddest luchador around, used to getting his way. Now, he has to return to L.A. in order to be a ten-year-old girl's guardian angel. However, not all is at it seems, and Belisa Montoya is no ordinary little girl. Some very bad people are after her, and Zombo is on a quest to keep her safe while trying to find the man who killed him. He finds that he has to embrace the luchador traditions of pride and honor to win. This compilation collects the first three issues of the series. I enjoyed the art greatly, and the story was entertaining as well; it ended too soon, so I will certainly be looking for other issues. I do note that the compilation can stand by itself.
Waid, Mark and Barry Kitson. Legion of Superheroes: Teenage Revolution. New York: DC Comics, 2005. ISBN: 1-4012-0482-1
In the year 3000, the world has achieved a utopia where disease, hunger, and other problems have been eliminated. You would think things would then be happy for everyone. But every utopia carries a price, and utter boredom with a lack of problem solving ability have become the order of the day. While the Earth is now part of a planetary alliance, things are peaceful on the surface. Teens seeking adventure and just looking to find themselves rebel. Teen superheroes come together under the Legion of Superheroes facing a future where children are under genetic surveillance, and heroes are all but forgotten. These new heroes are the ones who come to realize that danger is in the horizon, from an enemy no one expects. The premise of a far future is very good, making an interesting commentary on the present. The series features good art as well. Overall, the series makes a solid plot and story that draws the reader in. This series will also have a strong appeal to teens given the way it presents issues of interest to them. This is a good example of the superhero genre as well as utopian science fiction.
Byrne, John. Fantastic Four Visionaries: John Byrne Vol. 2. New York: Marvel Comics, 2004. ISBN: 0-7851-1464-5
The second volume in the Visionaries series, this one collects work by writer and artist John Byrne. For readers who keep track, it collects issues 241-250. Compared to the previous volume I read in the Visionaries collection, this one has a better sense of continuity since the writer and the artist are one and the same. The issues collected were published in 1982, which basically brings back some memories for me. In this issue, the Fantastic Four confront Doctor Doom, Galactus, and the Skrull. This set features appearances by Spider-Man and Captain America. As always, the heroes don''t just rely on their powers, but they use their minds as well. Reed Richards should become a spokesperson for studying science since it is his genius that often helps to save the day. It's an element that I personally enjoy in reading the Fantastic Four's adventures. Fans will definitely enjoy this set.
Miller, Frank. Batman: Year One. New York: DC Comics, 2005 ed. ISBN: 1-4012-0690-5.
Though originally published in 1986, this graphic novel remains as powerful as ever. Frank Miller, with David Mazzucchelli providing the art, gives readers a gritty and engaging retelling of the Batman legend. The story is Batman's first year in Gotham after Bruce Wayne returns from a long exile abroad. The city is corrupted and in need of a hero. James Gordon is a young lieutenant in the Gotham PD trying to walk a straight line in department full of corruption. As his partner tells him when he starts the job, "a cop has it made in Gotham." Bruce Wayne is trained, but he still has much to figure out. By the end of the year, he seems to be settling in, but it will be an ardous journey. This is a great work, giving a good set up for the many Batman stories to come. Personally, I can not get enough of Frank Miller's work. This new issue has new introductions by the author and the artist as well as some art galleries.
Austen, Chuck. Superman: The Wrath of Gog. New York: DC Comics, 2005. ISBN: 1-4012-0450-3
Superman faces Gog, an enemy who has travelled through time with the goal of destroying him. Gog manages to wound Superman, though Superman manages to vanquish him. However, that is not the only problem Superman faces as minions of Darkseid invade the Earth as well as local villains come around looking for a chance to beat a weakened Superman. Superman along the way is helped by some of the Teen Titans and Wonder Woman. A lot of action, but the story is not terribly coherent. At one point, he is convalescing and talking to Lana, and the scenes move to him fighting another adversary. The narrative transitions were not very good compared to other works. For a moment, I thought it was some dream sequence, but it is actually a flashback sequence. Not handled well, thus makes the narrative a bit jarring. A good piece of comics action, but not the best of the Superman comics.
Friday, July 21, 2006
Gypsy Librarian's Trading Card
Well, folks, it finally happened. I made a trading card. I decided to go playful with it. I started playing with this South Park generator, and one thing led to another, so I made the card (make yours here). Playing with this has given me an idea. I may make a card, put it on some nice card stock, and make it something I can give to my students. I mean, business cards are nice, but I would rather give the students something a bit more cool. I am still a bit dazed by Immersion. On the one hand, I feel like I have to start writing and reflecting, but I am still a bit dazed, which led me to play with this stuff, which led to the card. By the way, I also loaded them to the Flickr group of librarian cards, which meant I had to open a Flickr account. Actually, I used my Yahoo! ID, which made it a bit easier. I am not a big photo taker, but I can see some potential in this. So much to learn. That's one of the things Immersion has made me aware of: that I still have a lot to learn, and a lot of work to carry on, and boy, it will be fun.
A hat tip to Stephen's Lighthouse, where Stephen Abrams posted his South Park look, which made me say, "hey, why not?"
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Quick Immersion Post: Working on the final project
I am still immersed. I have learned a lot of things, and it has been an intensive experience that has changed my life and how I see myself as an educator. I will probably be writing up my notes of the experience over the next couple of weeks, and odds are readers will see other reflective posts going back to Immersion given all the new possibilities. However, just a brief note now to let readers know I am working on my final assignment at the moment. If you are a reader who wants something more timely, Jane at A Wandering Eyre has been blogging her experiences with photos. Go ahead and have a look since it may be a while before I can begin my reflections. It may be a while before I get to blog again at all. As always, best and keep on blogging (or just exploring).
By the way, currently listening to very loud techno and trance. As Ben Grimm would say, "it's clobberin' time."
By the way, currently listening to very loud techno and trance. As Ben Grimm would say, "it's clobberin' time."
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