Having promised to continue my blog after completing the 23 things I have not had chance to post until now. My excuses include an Ofsted inspection at work amongst other things.
I am continuing to work on things covered in the cpd23 course and have been following up on Thing 22 relating to gaps in my CV. As a result I have arranged to undertake some voluntary work at my local secondary school library which I am very much looking forward to. Hopefully I will be of some help to them whilst learning at the same time. Their LMS (Heritage) is not one I am familiar with, but I know is more common in the sector than those I am used to (AMLIB and Galaxy) so even having a working knowledge of that could prove useful when applying for jobs in the future, you never know! Having studied school libraries as part of my qualification it will be interesting to see the pratice and compare to the FE sector in which I currently work.
Further inspired by the "things" to get more involved, I am going to visit Worcestershire College of Technology Study Centres next week as arranged by my regional CILIP group so I will report on this in my next blog post.
Tuesday, 8 November 2011
Wednesday, 12 October 2011
Thing 23
The final thing!
As I mentioned in an earlier post, in a former life I was a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and still use their forms to record my training and development. The Development Record has the following headings:
As I mentioned in an earlier post, in a former life I was a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and still use their forms to record my training and development. The Development Record has the following headings:
- What do I want/need to learn?
- What will I do to achieve this?
- What resources or support will I need?
- What will my success criteria be?
- Target dates for review or completion.
I also use it to inform the individual development plan (IDP) which I have to complete at work as part of the appraisal process. In fact my participation in CPD23 things was a result of something recorded on my IDP, as my line manager suggested it to me. This means I can now tick off one thing on my list. However, participating in the course has actually now lead to me adding a whole load more things to the list as it has invited much reflection and has reignited my passion for learning. (The completion of my PG dip earlier in the year had led to a brief lull and period of recovery - the house needed decorating, I needed to start speaking to my family again etc!)
I have enjoyed the CPD23 things immensely and will certainly be revisiting it many areas at my leisure over the coming months. The "things" came thick and fast and it was sometimes difficult to keep up. Despite the end of the course, I hope to continue blogging about my experiences as I think it is a useful way of recording and reflecting on what I am doing.
Tuesday, 11 October 2011
My reflections on Library Camp 2011
I was lucky enough to get a ticket to library camp 2011 at the eleventh hour as I had been on the waiting list. It was an interesting and enjoyable day for a number of reasons:
- The discussion
- Putting faces to names
- The cake
1.Briefly, sessions I attended included:
Information literacy and the gap between what is taught in school/FE and what is expected at undergraduate level. The group were in agreement of the importance of this area. We discussed the need to embed information and literacy skills into the curriculum, liaising with teaching staff rather than having separate library sessions which students often fail to see the point of. The need to get students to understand that they are transferable skills and can be used across subject divides was also commented on. This session interested me as we are currently trying to increase our delivery of such sessions at my workplace.
Shared reading - I went to this one out of curiosity as it is new to me. The text used to illustrate how shared reading works stirred emotions within the group and certainly demonstrated the powerful effect it can have and how texts need to be selected with care.
Bringing the retail experience into the library/zoning and use of library space - this was an enjoyable session (partly due to the danger element introduced by throwing a ball around to those wanting to speak) and gave me much to reflect on in terms of how space could be better used in my workplace. Since my return I have reserved the books recommended by Jo Alcock as I wanted to learn more about this.
HE in FE. I learned that the library's experience of this seemed to vary partly because of different contracts with HE establishments concerning computer access etc. Institutions differentiate between FE and HE students and it seemed that the two groups were not always treated equally with either one or the other being dominant in terms of access, skill sessions and resources.
2. It can feel a bit daunting when you go somewhere not knowing anyone at all but there were lots of friendly library people to chat to. As we were such a diverse range of library people it was perhaps a little harder than when you go to a training course or a particular conference where you have at least the sector or topic in common as a starting point. It was good to meet people whose blogs and tweets I have been reading face to face.
3.The cake!!! Everyone had made a great effort and I enjoyed cupcakes and cookies. The display by SWETS was stunning it has to be said...
I look forward to more events and congratulate Jo McCausland and her team of organisers.
Friday, 7 October 2011
Thing 22
Volunteering
The only voluntary work I have ever undertaken was on the Adult Basic Education scheme in Warwickshire many years ago. This consisted of helping adults who struggled with reading. I was not working in libraries at the time but my interest in literacy and the acquisition and application of reading skills was there even then. It is still a useful example to mention in interviews along with more recent work in this area. It was a good and rewarding experience and I only ended it when I got a job which involved a long commute and some evening hours so could no longer manage it.
At the moment my main role is in FE but I am also interested in school libraries as I find the areas of my work which interest me most are the ones which would feature highly in a school setting. I also studied an optional module on school libraries as part of my PG Dip. As I work part time I am considering approaching local schools for some voluntary work on my day off - voluntary work or work shadowing. Obviously I do not want to be a hindrance and a librarian could see it as a chore and unwanted extra burden. However hopefully it could also be seen as an opportunity to engage with a fellow professional and a fresh pair of eyes.
The question of whether we should work for free and it endangering the profession - I would say that voluntary work should never be done if it is at the expense of someone's job. I see it more as undertaking a project that otherwise may never get done or for someone to gain a some experience in the short term not anything sustainable or long term.
The only voluntary work I have ever undertaken was on the Adult Basic Education scheme in Warwickshire many years ago. This consisted of helping adults who struggled with reading. I was not working in libraries at the time but my interest in literacy and the acquisition and application of reading skills was there even then. It is still a useful example to mention in interviews along with more recent work in this area. It was a good and rewarding experience and I only ended it when I got a job which involved a long commute and some evening hours so could no longer manage it.
At the moment my main role is in FE but I am also interested in school libraries as I find the areas of my work which interest me most are the ones which would feature highly in a school setting. I also studied an optional module on school libraries as part of my PG Dip. As I work part time I am considering approaching local schools for some voluntary work on my day off - voluntary work or work shadowing. Obviously I do not want to be a hindrance and a librarian could see it as a chore and unwanted extra burden. However hopefully it could also be seen as an opportunity to engage with a fellow professional and a fresh pair of eyes.
The question of whether we should work for free and it endangering the profession - I would say that voluntary work should never be done if it is at the expense of someone's job. I see it more as undertaking a project that otherwise may never get done or for someone to gain a some experience in the short term not anything sustainable or long term.
Thing 21
Having been working for 20 years now, I think I finally know what I like and don't like doing. I had recently started to list my qualifications, achievements and experience in preparation for updating my CV as I have not done this since I qualified. I do find that there is a lot of information about writing CVs out there but more often than not it is aimed at those just starting out, straight from school or college rather than those of us who must sift through quite a number of years of work experience to produce something no longer than 2 sides of A4. I think I may use my CILIP membership and get some advice on this in the near future. I have to say that it is at least 10-15 years since I applied for anything that asked for a CV. All posts nowadays seem to require the completion of an application form which is a time consuming task to say the least.
The interviews I have been successful at are the ones where I have been prepared, confident and above all enthusiastic. I have been to some where I have had some doubts about aspects of the job (eg the hours) and I think this comes across as it is in the back of your mind and you therefore do not get as far as discussing any concerns. I am not sure about the solution to this - sometimes a telephone conversation prior to interview may be helpful. Incidentally, do many people do this? I would be interested in comments back. I once worked with someone in HR who said she wouldn't consider applicants who hadn't rung up for a discussion in advance. (This was not in a library environment I have to say). Have you done this? What did you discuss? Did you get the job?
In addition to the areas to prepare posted by the wikiman in his blogpost http://thewikiman.org/blog/?p=1561 I would also suggest:
The interviews I have been successful at are the ones where I have been prepared, confident and above all enthusiastic. I have been to some where I have had some doubts about aspects of the job (eg the hours) and I think this comes across as it is in the back of your mind and you therefore do not get as far as discussing any concerns. I am not sure about the solution to this - sometimes a telephone conversation prior to interview may be helpful. Incidentally, do many people do this? I would be interested in comments back. I once worked with someone in HR who said she wouldn't consider applicants who hadn't rung up for a discussion in advance. (This was not in a library environment I have to say). Have you done this? What did you discuss? Did you get the job?
In addition to the areas to prepare posted by the wikiman in his blogpost http://thewikiman.org/blog/?p=1561 I would also suggest:
- partnership working
- equality and diversity
- safeguarding.
Thursday, 6 October 2011
Thing 20
Library routes and roots
I did blog about this for thing 10 so won't repeat it all here but will link my thing 10 blog post to the Library routes site. To answer the questions posed by thing 20 about whether my own path ws typical or unusual compared to others, having read some of the other posts on the Library Routes site, one realises that there is probably no such thing as a typical path into library and information work. In the same way there are many different roles within many different institutions/companies etc. Having said that I have gone around the houses a bit before finally realising my ambition of qualifying as a librarian so have not followed the straight out of college and into the profession route but this means I have lived outside the echo chamber and have other experience and skills to offer the profession.
Do I have advice for people in the early stages of their career? Well I am in the early stages of my career in one sense having qualified this year although in another sense I am mid way through (or maybe less if the government keep on raising the retirement age?!). Having realised my ambitions somewhat late perhaps, I would say follow your dream and don't give up - its never too late to get back into education, I started my library postgrad at 40. Take any opportunities to gain relevant work experience and keep a record of all the transferable skills gathered along the way you never know when they may come in handy to get you a post.
I did blog about this for thing 10 so won't repeat it all here but will link my thing 10 blog post to the Library routes site. To answer the questions posed by thing 20 about whether my own path ws typical or unusual compared to others, having read some of the other posts on the Library Routes site, one realises that there is probably no such thing as a typical path into library and information work. In the same way there are many different roles within many different institutions/companies etc. Having said that I have gone around the houses a bit before finally realising my ambition of qualifying as a librarian so have not followed the straight out of college and into the profession route but this means I have lived outside the echo chamber and have other experience and skills to offer the profession.
Do I have advice for people in the early stages of their career? Well I am in the early stages of my career in one sense having qualified this year although in another sense I am mid way through (or maybe less if the government keep on raising the retirement age?!). Having realised my ambitions somewhat late perhaps, I would say follow your dream and don't give up - its never too late to get back into education, I started my library postgrad at 40. Take any opportunities to gain relevant work experience and keep a record of all the transferable skills gathered along the way you never know when they may come in handy to get you a post.
Monday, 19 September 2011
Thing 17
I have jumped the gun somewhat on this one. Although I knew it was coming up in the things, I wanted to do something different for induction. I felt like a change from boring myself (never mind the audience) with Powerpoint so having read the Wikiman's blog post http://thewikiman.org/blog/?p=1690&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thewikiman+%28thewikiman.org%29 a while back, I had a go. I must admit that it is a first attempt and done under time pressure so there is a lot that could be better but for a first attempt to present to an audience who has probably never seen Prezi before it is OK. The difficulty has been that as our inductions are normally delivered in Powerpoint in a linear fashion it was hard to get out of that mindset and be more creative. This is especially challenging for me a person who comes out as a definite "square" when using Myers-Briggs personality types. My colleagues were impressed however and thought that despite its rough edges it looked "arty" so I ran with it. I must admit I didn't fully understand what I was doing in terms of zooming in and out and sometimes things just happened randomly! Given more thinking and planning time though I think I will definitely be using it again.
You can see my first effort here.. http://prezi.com/faxzu8lasgii/lrc-induction/
Although I had heard the name Slideshare before I must admit I had never investigated it or realised what it was - I'm sure it would have and will be useful to me had I known and it will be another thing to add to my growing armoury of useful tools.
You can see my first effort here.. http://prezi.com/faxzu8lasgii/lrc-induction/
Although I had heard the name Slideshare before I must admit I had never investigated it or realised what it was - I'm sure it would have and will be useful to me had I known and it will be another thing to add to my growing armoury of useful tools.
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