Re:Generations

Our new home

2010-04-28T17:06:00.002-04:00

Hello again, gentle readers. The new home of the Re:Generations blog is http://clatoolbox.ca/regen. Thank you for updating your bookmarks and feed readers.

Re:Generations is moving!

2010-04-28T13:18:00.000-04:00

Dear Re:Generations readers: we are in the process of migrating our blog to a new platform, so disruptions and a bit of messiness are inevitable. Please bear with us, and watch this space for the announcement of our new location!

Reminder: CACUL Research Support Grants

2010-04-19T07:16:00.001-04:00

CACUL members...

Do you have an academic library research question burning a hole in your pocket? Are you looking for financial support to help take your research to the next stage? Then a CACUL Research Support Grant could be just right for you!

CACUL has available up to two $1,000 one-time grants to support your research. For more information in submitting a proposal by our May 1st 2010 deadline, visit http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Research_Support_Grants.

Grants can be submitted electronically to the attention of:

CACUL Director Grants
Carol Shepstone
cshepstone @ mtroyal.ca

Introducing RSS readers to Faculty & Grads

2010-04-12T21:01:00.009-04:00

Another “in” to getting to know a faculty member is to introduce them to social media and other “new” tools and products on the web. Introducing them to RSS readers could be very helpful to faculty and grad students who may not have had the time to learn how to use them.

I had a meeting with a grad student last week and with a faculty member this past week to show them how to set up an RSS feed and reader so that they’ll start receiving RSS directly into their Reader.

But not in all instances would a Reader be suitable. After an hour and a half in to a session with a professor, explaining and helping him set up accounts and passwords, etc,. I came to a realization that the types of feeds this particular professor was trying to set up could easily be directed to his email account; instead of an external RSS Reader. For him, and perhaps other professors who are strapped for time, having an effective email system with custom filters and rules could be more useful than yet another account he must remember to check.

Knowing what’s out there and its benefits and draw-backs allow us to best advise our users according to their needs and preferences; and RSS Readers could help our users and colleagues save time. I personally find RSS Readers helpful when there is no email option on a website to email me its’ updates; now having said this, I haven’t found myself checking my Reader enough to say that I actually use it.

Do you use RSS Readers and find yourself using it on a “regular” basis? Have you introduced RSS Readers to users in your library and colleagues? Did it meet their needs?

Career development discussions

2010-04-12T10:46:00.001-04:00

In anticipation of the Re:Generations committee's sessions at the upcoming CLA conference, we'd like to ramp-up our blog discussions on the theme preparing for the profession. Building on Deborah's helpful post on "interviewing from the other side," I'd like to share a little résumé epiphany that I had recently.

Several weeks ago, I attended an excellent workshop on career development led by the incomparable Ulla de Stricker (Sponsored by the CLA McGill Student Chapter, the CLA-CASLIS Government Section, and the McGill School of Information Studies. See the event announcement here). [Aside: if you ever have a chance to go to one of Ulla's workshops...go!]

*Update! I should also have linked to Ulla's blog, a great source of advice and discussion of issues relevant to information professionals: http://destrickerblog.typepad.com/.

Primarily attended by LIS students along with a few fellow current professionals, the full-day workshop was arranged into four segments:

Résumés: Let’s tackle the monster
Where do you “fit”? Understanding your “career type”
Self-promotion without cringing: Gaining visibility through giving
Positive politics: Building a healthy workplace

I emerged from the day with with mountains advice and insights that will be useful to me at all stages of my career. I'm sure that some of it will be making its way into future posts, but for now, here's a résumé tidbit:

I had never really thought about it this way before, but résumés are documents that are written for other people to read. They're not for your own record-keeping. Even if in comprehensive c.v.s, the purpose is not to list every minute detail of every job; it is NOT a passive list of job responsibilities. As Ulla put it, employers aren’t interested in what you were supposed to do. They want to know what you achieved. It's much more effective to describe “what was different when I left” instead of saying “I did X function.” When selecting details to include in the c.v., it's essential to anticipate what the potential employer will want to know. In other words, look at your résumé from the reader's perspective. When you read it, can you easily see what "the candidate" would bring to the job? Does the description of their past experience prove their value?

Just to put the pressure on a little more, Ulla reminded us that "your skill in designing the résumé is a harbinger of the skill you’ll bring to the job." It is indeed an important document, worthy of careful work!

And now to broaden the discussion, I'd like to humbly ask for some feedback to serve as fodder for future posts and for our "unconference"-ish session at the CLA conference. Here are some open questions begging for comments:

1. Employed librarians: what do you think were the most important factors in landing your current position?

2. Librarians with at least a year of experience under your belt: what do you wish you knew before you started your current position?

3. Students: what is your most burning question about getting a professional position?

WILU 2010

2010-04-07T11:51:00.001-04:00

Registration and housing for the WILU 2010 conference, to be held May 12-14, 2010 at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, is now open!!!

WILU is Canada's annual information literacy conference. This year’s theme, Design Play Learn, explores best practices in instructional design, games and 21st century fluencies, and features keynote speakers Dr. James Paul Gee (Arizona State University) and Dr. Steven J. Bell (Temple University). Detailed program information is available at http://wilu2010.blog.lib.mcmaster.ca/program. Please check the program prior to registering as you will be asked to select your sessions when you register.

Registration fees are as follows:

Delegate: $325 CDN, taxes included

Speaker: $300 CDN, taxes included

Registration includes all sessions, the University Librarian's Reception, 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, and all breaks.

Information on accommodation is available at http://wilu2010.blog.lib.mcmaster.ca/accommodation .

A 10% travel discount is available for delegates who book with WestJet airlines; more information is available on our travel pages. For more details, please visit http://wilu2010.blog.lib.mcmaster.ca or email us at wilu2010@mcmaster.ca .

Subject Guides Revisited

2010-04-06T16:33:00.000-04:00

Online library guides, how I love thee.

Ok, maybe that's a bit strong, but here's the reason: I will be graduating from library school next week and will also be starting my first post grad school job - a short contract at a local college to create subject and course guides using LibGuides.

I am oh so very excited.

Graham wrote a great post last fall titled Subject guides: an undervalued resource, which gives a bit of background to the advantages of subject guide use in academic libraries. Though it may be difficult to drive student traffic to these guides, I do believe library guides are very useful for students, and thus a good use of librarians' time.

I have overheard or read or been told a few things about library guides over the course of my schooling and work experience. Though not overly scholarly or backed up by any statistics, the librarians I've worked with seem to think:

Course guides tend to be more popular than subject guides.
Chat widgets rarely get used by students.
A library must take advantage of the facebook and twitter integration in order to 'be where the students are'.
Free/open source software is just as good as the paid services you get via subscriptions.
It's all about marketing, marketing, marketing!

Do you agree?

In an effort to avoid reinventing the wheel, I would welcome any comments about library subject guides in your library. Do you think your students prefer subject or course guides? What software/format do you like? What add ons or extras work well for you library? How do you market these guides?

(Note: this will be the last blog post where, as a student, I solicit advice from all you wonderful experienced librarians in the field! However, it's highly probably that in my next blog post, as a newbie librarian, I will solicit advice from all you wonderful experienced librarians in the field...)

So, what DID we buy?

2010-04-06T14:22:00.003-04:00

At my institution, we pool all the unspent monograph monies (and this year, all the lovely dosh we saved on the exchange rate) at the end of the year and purchase items on our wishlist. These could be new subscriptions, onetime purchases of archives, large monograph sets, etc. Part of my job is to provide access to our electronic content through our link resolver. A link resolver (one of the most quietly revolutionary tools in library history) usually works one of two ways: you select a package the resolver people have put together for you, or you can create your own using Excel title lists. Easy, right?

Nope. Why? Because to provide access to what you've purchased, you need to know what you've purchased. And shocking as it might sound, getting that information out of vendors in a straightforward, usable fashion is ridiculously difficult.

Sometimes, vendors give you PDF title lists, which are the equivalent of stone tablets. Sometimes, they give you lists of everything they have ever offered with no ability to sort to get your package information. And sometimes, more often than you think, vendors can't produce any sort of title list. As i mentioned on my Twitter, "only libraries would buy things when they don't know what they're buying from vendors who don't know what they're selling."

What can be done? Very little, if you're an electronic services librarian at a run of the mill library. But large institutions and consortia need to pressure vendors to produce usable title lists at time of purchase. It needs to be standard clause in vendor-library licensing agreements for electronic resources. It's absolutely ludicrous that we often have no idea what we're purchasing...but vendors know exactly what to charge us for it.

Conference Survival Tips

2010-04-06T13:29:00.002-04:00

As conference season is upon us, I find myself planning for upcoming conferences and looking back to last year's sessions. My first library conference was the mother of them all - CLA in Montreal last year. At the First Timer's Breakfast, a really great guide was handed out to us with conference survival tips. I thought it might be nice to pass along that list - but of course, I seem to have misplaced it. So instead, I will make up my own list - feel free to add to it in the comments! Some of it might seem like no-brainers, but some are useful tips that might help you for this and future seasons.

Pre-Conference:

Check out any funding that might be available to you. Will your library administration pay for your attendance if you can justify how the content might apply to your job? Academic librarians often have professional development funds that they have to budget between all the conferences and PD they want to do, but there might also be university-wide funding available if you are presenting at a conference - might be worth submitting a proposal just in case! Often associations you are in will also help pay for conference attendance, especially if it's your first time (for instance, CACUL has a first-timer's grant that can be very helpful!)
If you're on your own dime (even if it's your PD budget, you want to make it stretch as much as possible) see if you can find someone from your library, library school, etc that you might be able to share a room with - this can HUGELY cut costs.
Packing - don't forget business cards! As for clothing, I've heard that you should 'dress for success' - meaning especially if you're looking for a job, you want to impress those potential bosses you might meet. This is probably true, but as a comfort-first kind of girl, I also advocate for wearing something you'll be comfortable walking around in all day. I was also pleasantly surprised that most librarians at these conferences don't wear business attire - and many even wear jeans. Also - don't forget to leave a little room for all the swag you'll be bringing home - and any additional shopping you might be able to squeeze in!

At the Conference:

Plan the sessions you want to attend. There's usually lots of choice and sometimes the choices can be tough, but you can try to be strategic about taking in different topics. Some advocate choosing a single 'stream' and sticking with it (ie all on one theme); I don't necessarily agree, but I do think it's important to choose sessions that have to do with your current job (or the job you hope to get) - especially if you're reporting back to supervisors on what you learned!
Take notes! Especially if part of your attendance/funding depends on making an after-report to your supervisor/colleagues, you'll find that many of the sessions start to blend together after a while... it can get somewhat overwhelming! Notes will help you remember what's what about each of the sessions you attend - and personally, I find just the act of taking notes helps my recall, as well as keeping me more engaged. Even if you don't have to prepare a formal report, people will ask you what you attended/learned/liked, so it's helpful to have some memory of what you took in!
Budget - Besides sharing a room, there's other things you can do to cut costs. Sometimes lunches and coffees are included in the conference, which of course helps. If not, staying in a hotel which offers a free breakfast can offer a huge cost savings, because usually you can fill up on enough food to take you through 'till supper. Buying snacks at grocery stores is of course far cheaper than going to restaurants and/or vending machines. And often, special interest groups/first-timers/vendor demos have special breakfast meetings or lunches - take advantage! And nothing bugs me more than paying for water - unless your conference is in a country with questionable tap water, carry a water bottle and refill it yourself.
Swag - If there's a trade show included in the conference, you'll get lots of 'freebies' from vendors - just remember, try to be somewhat selective because you'll have to drag all that stuff home! And for the environment's sake, I beseech you not to take brochures you have no plans on looking at again. I know I don't need to say this, but it's not considered good decorum just to run up to a booth and snag whatever freebies they have available without having the slightest interest in the product they're trying to sell.
Network - I hate the 'schmooze' implications of this term probably more than anyone, but it actually is important - and not nearly as hard as you might think. Just the simple act of talking to others, introducing yourself if you're sitting near someone, and being friendly is networking - it doesn't have to mean you have a hidden agenda. You never know when knowing someone at another library will come in handy - and the library world is incredibly small, so chances are you will run into these people at another time in your career, be it in the near or far, far future.
Take in as much as you can. While I've heard others say that it's important to take a 'time out' every once in a while - and maybe, for some people, this is absolutely necessary - my motto is 'go hard or go home'. You're here, so you may as well make the most of it - attend every session, take up others' invitations to dinner and post-conference activities, troop through the trade show, and see the town you're in. In fact, I'd recommend staying an extra day (or more) just to make sure you get to experience the city you've come to - what's the point of traveling there if you can't say you've actually seen all it has to offer? If you really need a break - or time to see the sights if you haven't planned for extra days - skip the trade show. Free pens aren't worth as much as seeing Old Montreal.

Post-Conference:

Review your notes. If you have to write a report, do it right away while things are fresh in your mind. In fact, on the flight home is ideal! Even if you don't have to prepare anything official, looking it all over is going to help you cement it more firmly in mind.
Reflect. What was useful? What was a waste of time? Good things to keep in mind for next time.
Follow-up. If you told someone you'd get back to them about something, do it. Now. Otherwise, it might fall to the bottom of the list and/or be forgotten forever. If you have collected business cards, promptly file them/add them to your contacts before they too are lost in the shuffle. If you've connected with potential employers, now's the time to send your CV/'it was great to meet you, don't forget about me' emails.
Implement! If you heard about a great idea at the conference that you thought you wanted to try, there's no time like the present. Take it from me - if you think 'I'll have to remember that' and think you'll deal with it in 6 months, you won't. Do it now.

Most importantly... have fun! I'd also be interested in hearing about your best - and worst - conference experiences.

Interviewing from the other side

2010-04-02T23:19:00.002-04:00

I recently attended (along with two ReGen members) a workshop on interviewing from the other side of the table. This workshop was put together by a local association and was intended to be a different take on the traditional interview prep kind of workshop. The speakers (Kathleen De Long from the University of Alberta and Louise Reimer from Edmonton Public Library) were asked to reflect on a variety of topics relating to the interviewing process. This is some of what they had to say:

1) Don't make them work to find out whether or not you're qualified for the job. Put your qualifications up front in the cover letter and resume.

2) Don't do a functional resume. Stick to a classic chronological resume.

3) When you get your interview be professional, but be yourself. They're looking for employees who will spend their entire career with the organizations(their words!), so they need to know if you'll be a good fit.

4) Being nervous is okay. But, try to control it so that you can get your answers across clearly.

5) Try not to speak too much or too little. Kind of like Goldie Locks, I know!

6) Backup your responses. If you say "I like books" (which apparently is a no go for some interviewers!) or "I like to research" be able to back that up! What books do you like? What is your research program?

7) Be thoughtful about the questions you ask them. It's okay to ask questions about benefits, etc. but, try to think outside of the box as well. One recommended question was "What do you think is the best part about working here?"

8) Do your research on the organization. We're information professionals! The least we can do is look at their web site.

9) Ask for the job description before the interview. Review what it is they're looking for and be prepared to answer questions about those specific requirements.

10) It's okay to contact the organization to find out more about the position before you apply. Just don't be too demanding about getting every single detail. Save the serious detail questions for the job interview and job offer.

That's just some of the great advice Kathleen and Louise offered the other night. I hope it's helpful for those of you looking for jobs out there.

Good luck with the job search!

Getting up to speed in a new subject

2010-04-01T18:35:00.002-04:00

Many thanks to everyone who offered me advice and encouragement after my last post about being a liaison librarian for a subject I have no background in. I'm a couple of weeks into my new position at McGill's Howard Ross Library of Management now, and it has certainly been a challenge so far. If I had known I would be here today, I would definitely have taken the business information class in library school; as it is, I'm having to learn about a lot of databases and other resources I've never used before. For that matter, I'm being asked questions about topics I've never heard of before! Fortunately, my colleagues have been super supportive, and they've even been able to tailor the schedule so that I'm hardly ever alone. I'm learning a lot, but sometimes it's hard to know what would be the best way to learn more. So today, I want to discuss a few ways to get up to speed in a new subject.

One of the best ways to learn a new set of topics and resources is to practice with sample questions that have actually been asked at the library. My colleagues have been giving me some of the questions they've received from students, and then they've been helping me find my way to the answers. This is easy enough to do with email questions, but they've been going out of their way to write down in-person questions for me as well. Sometimes I feel a bit shy about telling them when I'm having trouble, but I do my best to work on it until I can't get any further, and then ask for help.

A number of business librarians have suggested signing up for the BUSLIB-B listserv, which is a great source for discussion on the following topics (as described on their website):

And more. I'm sure similar similar listservs exist for other subjects - if there's one you rely on for your subject, please leave the name in the comments.

Many vendors are more than happy to provide individual (usually web-based) training for their databases and other resources. A couple of vendors have already offered this to me, and I'm looking forward to these sessions; it's a win-win situation, since they're ensuring that more people will be getting the most out of their products, and I'll be learning about important resources.

As Megan suggested in the comments to my last post, it can also help to do some background research in specialized encyclopedias and review essays, as well as checking out course syllabi and faculty bios to find out what's actually being researched in the faculty.

All this should be enough to keep me busy for a while, but if you have any other suggestions, leave them in the comments!

2010-03-30T15:42:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone!

As we mentioned, Re:Generations will be presenting two sessions at the CLA conference.
For one of our sessions, "Preparing for the Profession: An Interactive Session for New and Emerging Professionals" we are trying to solicit feedback from the community about what questions, trends, or tips you think are helpful for students, recent graduates, and new librarians in the field of academic librarianship.

Head to our Facebook Fan Page, and check out the Discussion called Re:Gen @ CLA 2010 to offer your input. Any and all suggestions for topics to bring up - from scholarly communications, to eLearning tools, to time management - are greatly appreciated!

And if you're planning to attend the CLA Conference this year, in Edmonton, be sure to add yourself to the events pages for both the "Preparing for the Profession: An Interactive Session for New and Emerging Professionals" and the "Speed Updating for Academic Librarians" sessions. See you there!

More E-Books

2010-03-22T00:30:00.007-04:00

So I’ve decided to continue on with the e-book discussion that other Re:Gen bloggers have initiated over the couple months. With the recent explosion of e-reader devices and the impending launch of the iPad in April, it’s clear that e-books have been on everyone’s mind lately.

Megan’s post was greatly appreciated - I am glad that I am not the only one who feels like the e-book options for library users are frustrating (and the comic she posted in the comments section of her post is quite funny as well). It seems libraries are stuck in a tough spot: on one hand it would be nice to exercise our spending power and refuse to buy anything until vendors and publishers remove some of the more draconian restrictions, but on the other hand, our students and faculty want more electronic access and there's no better option for a lot of material.

Both the JISC National E-books Observatory Project report and Highwire Press’s recent survey of librarians clearly indicate that librarians and users think the restrictions imposed by DRM are a serious problem, which is not surprising. Interface navigation and loading speed were also discussed in both reports – again, not surprising, given that there are at least a couple ebook platforms that I use only as a last resort, mostly because I dislike waiting for new pages to slowly load.

However, I am still a little surprised by the lack of discussion around availability for different devices. The Highwire survey did ask librarians about the importance of content being available for preferred devices, and most results were in the somewhat significant to significant range. It will be really interesting to see how these opinions change in the next couple years as e-book readers, tablets, and smartphones become more popular. I am glad that some of our medical e-textbook platforms like MD Consult and Statref have already introduced quite functional mobile-enabled versions that will work on any Internet-ready device with a Web browser (probably not dedicated e-readers though). Ensuring that library-purchased content is actually usable on most devices will keep users from going to less legitimate sources to fulfill their e-book needs (not saying that all users pursue this option, but I'm sure there's a few).

As for the consumer end of the spectrum, I doubt I will be buying too many e-books for personal use until they become device-agnostic. As this Gizmodo article explains, it’s going to be a whole mess of proprietary formats and DRM for the next little while (just like digital song downloads were a few years ago).

The Future of Publishing

2010-03-21T11:22:00.006-04:00

This has been making the rounds o'er the last week or so. It's short and has got great style.

CLA Student Article Contest

2010-03-19T09:08:00.000-04:00

CLA Student Article Contest – Deadline is March 31

The contest is open to all students registered in, or recently graduated from, a Canadian library school, a library technician program, an information science program, or faculty of education library program. Registered students may be full or part time; graduates should have completed their studies within one year of the competition’s closing date of March 31, 2010.

Articles submitted must be written while the student is enrolled in a program of study or within one year of graduation.

First prize is registration, accommodation, and transportation to the 2010 CLA National Conference in Edmonton (courtesy of new sponsor OCLC, Coutts Information Services and Micromedia ProQuest) and $150.

The winning article will be published in the August 2010 issue of Feliciter, the magazine of the Canadian Library Association.

For more information go: http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Student_Article_Contest

Marketing, communications and outreach at your library?

2010-03-15T09:34:00.002-04:00

At great risk of being a typical Torontonian, I’m placing our lovely town at the centre of my post today. A few weeks ago we were once again host to the Ontario Library Association’s Annual Superconference, and while it’s my third year in attendance, it’s my first time showing up as a bona fide librarian.

A common theme that ran its way through several of the sessions I attended was the issue of effective marketing and promotions in libraries. In particular, I attended a great session by three marketing and communications librarians from universities across Ontario (Catherine Baird, Marketing Communications and Outreach Librarian, McMaster University Library; Nancy Collins, Communications Librarian, University of Waterloo Library; Cecile Farnum, Communications Librarian, Ryerson University Libraries), who discussed effective marketing and communications strategies, successful undertaking in their libraries, and how they pulled them off, and what they focus on in their work. Thereafter I found myself in a session about outreach, put on by Jennifer Easter and Caroline Stewart, from the University of Guelph-Humber. The discussed their experiences with student outreach on campus, and how they have been working to improve the library's presence on-campus, and to encourage students to take advantage of library services and resources.

I'm wondering if marketing, communications and outreach are discussed at your organization, beyond tradition (and often individual or ad hoc) liaison activities. I'm interested in integrating these principles and practices into my own work -- but is this area of interest to others? Do you see it as integral to library services and resources, or an ancillary afterthought? Comments welcome!

Ambassador Visit to SLIS

2010-03-03T00:43:00.000-05:00

This week, I was fortunate to convene an ambassador visit organized by CACUL's Re:Generations committee (thanks Christina and Dale!) at the University of Alberta's School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS). Our thanks go out to LISSA (SLIS's Library and Information Studies Student Association) for providing bagels and other snacks which were greatly appreciated over the course of the lunch hour!

On the panel, we were fortunate to have two librarians representing the University of Alberta Libraries, as well as a librarian from MacEwan University and King's University College. The strength of the panel was the breadth of the experience, from new librarian to experienced librarian to library director. Also, the diverse natures of the academic libraries the panel represented, including large research university, medium size and small college environments, gave the students present a wide range of opinions to consider.

Our hour long session was structured as an informal Question & Answer session. The students were eager to ask questions, and the range of questions differed as much as the range of experience on the panel!

A popular topic was current academic library trends, and the panel discussed issues such as the:

state of the post-recession job market
increasing emphasis placed on user experience
shift from library as a place for books to a place of social gathering
increasing importance of information literacy instruction
delivery of library services and programs to students who are already technically savvy

The panel also discussed doing research and obtaining tenue - the extend of which differently greatly depending on the institution. All librarians stressed the importance of marketing the library to and nurturing relationships with faculty. Also mentioned were possible conferences to attend (don't forget about ALA!), professional development opportunities and training provided to new-hires.

The two newest librarians on the panel talked about their job interviews, which again differed greatly: one librarian was asked to present a short lesson to the interview panel, whereas the other was only required to answer questions about instructional methods. All the panelists stressed the need to consider non-traditional library jobs, such as working for a research institute or creating contract opportunities via networks.

While holding this informal Question & Answer panel meant this ambassador visit differed slightly than previous visits, I got the impression the students learned a lot about academic librarianship. I expected more interest in job hunting, so was surprised by the student's desire to learn more about many diverse areas of the profession. If you are interested in specific job hunting tips, you can read more about Re:Generations past ambassador visits to McGill (2009) and SLAIS (2008).

Overall, it was a fantastic opportunity for library students to meet and hear from librarians currently working in the field, an opportunity I for one greatly appreciated!

E-book frustration

2010-03-01T05:31:00.018-05:00

I feel a bit of a rant coming on. Because e-books are very frustrating.

I've felt this way for a while, but my emotions have risen to surface following a talk given by Michael Porter at the recent Web 2.You conference. (I cribbed some phrases here from an e-mail that I wrote to him; hope he doesn't mind!)

My library, like many academic libraries, has purchased thousands of e-books that are essentially PDFs to be read on the computer screen. Indeed, as Mark recently discussed, e-books are inevitable. At first, I thought, "ok, great, students can read books at home without having to borrow them from the library." The main drawback seemed to be the potential discomfort of reading off a screen. Professors, too, are excited by this type of e-book as it allows them to reduce the size and cost of their coursepacks and to lessen the burden of textbook prices on their students. But alas, it is too good to be true, as many other before me have found.

My frustration especially arose after Michael Porter's exhortation for libraries to "give users what they want in the format they want" during the Web 2.You talk.

On the one hand, many students are uncomfortable reading off screens and want their print books. A session at the 2009 EDUCAUSE conference reported on a user study that found that students exhibited emotional reactions to e-books, often describing feelings of psychological distress and confusion when reading them. They needed a tactile experience of annotating and seeing page numbers to feel like they were really reading. Although the students had an affinity for handheld devices, they expressed a preference for physical print books. These students were using "real" e-books on Sony Readers, but the interfaces for browser-based e-books are miles vis-à-vis clunky navigation. They also restrict printing and downloading.

Even worse, many publishers and/or platforms place nonsensical limitations on concurrent users. Maybe it's just me, but I find it difficult to explain to professors that the online version of a required textbook for a class of 600 students can only be read by one or two students at a time, and that nope, the provider will NOT let us buy additional copies or licenses. It seems to me that this model is broken. (N.B. some providers sell licenses for unlimited users...why can't they all?)

DRM (digital rights management) is also a huge concern when discussing "real" downloadable e-books. DRM often prevents people from using media in valid and lawful ways due to "overprotection" of the distributors' rights. A post on the schooling.us blog gives a great illustration: DRM is "as ridiculous as telling someone that they are only allowed to read in certain rooms of their house, but it's roughly the equivalent." How can librarians fulfill their professional responsibility of connecting people with information if there are technological walls blocking the way?

However, on the other hand, students want everything to be available online all the time. Furthermore, the same study presented at EDUCAUSE found that students' reading comprehension was the same whether they read electronic or paper books. And although most of our e-books are currently digital reproductions of the printed page, the technological possibilities are enormous—for example, to include multimedia content, interactive features, custom content, integration with assessment and grading, or social learning features.

At the EDUCAUSE session, a representative from McGraw-Hill argued that we are still early in the process of e-book development. The book is only one part of the larger learning process or “learning ecosystem,” so more research is needed on the ergonomics and “ethnography” of study.I can only hope that this way of thinking comes to pass in reality, with distributors of content, whether they be publishers or libraries, paying attention to the evidence and giving people what they want.

In the meantime, what can we do when our options are limited in terms of meeting users' needs? Do we provide less-than-ideal materials in spite of the limitations? Do we wait until better e-books exist? How can we make e-books better?

References

EDUCAUSE 2009 session: "E-Books, E-Textbooks, and E-Readers," featuring panelists from Penn State University, Northwest Missouri State University, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, and VitalSource. November 4, 2009. http://www.educause.edu/E09+Hybrid/EDUCAUSE2009FacetoFaceConferen/EBooksETextbooksandEReaders/176075

Web 2.You 2010 session: “2 Point Where? Technology Evolution and the Uncertain Future of Libraries” by Michael Porter. February 5, 2010. http://web2pointyou.pbworks.com/

Thanks to Flickr user baking_in_pearls for use of the image. License: Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 Generic

Teaching Tips

2010-02-22T22:42:00.003-05:00

I find teaching to be the most stressful part of my job. Being on the spot, in front of a room, anticipating questions, technical glitches, and wardrobe malfunctions... it all makes me a bit nervous. But the anxiety has definitely decreased over the past 1 1/2 years; I'm to the point now where I can actually sleep through the night before a class (!) and I don't quite dread them as I once did. Even though the outcome is almost always positive, and nothing major has yet to go wrong in a class (touch wood), I always have a bit of nervous anticipation beforehand - especially if I've never taught that particular lesson before.

Today was one of those days - my first time teaching EndNote to a room full of grad students. A three-hour workshop, to people who really have a vested interest in what I'm showing them, as opposed to disengaged undergrads - talk about intimidating! So needless to say, I'm glad the day is done.

But what can you do about pre-class jitters, other than practice, practice, practice? Run-throughs certainly make me feel more confident. But one of the BEST pieces of advice that I got from one of my colleagues before my first teaching session, nearly 1 1/2 years ago when I was brand-new on the job, was this: Just remember - you know more than they do. And really, that sums it up, doesn't it? No matter what, you are likely going to show them SOMETHING they don't already know. Every time I get worked up about a class, I try to recall that sage piece of advice and it immediately puts me more at ease. Because she's right; I AM going to show them something new. Even if these students have seen me in other classes, the evaluations I get back invariably say "I saw you before, but it was great to be reminded of..." this or that search tip, database, idea, etc. And even if I look out over the class and am greeted with blank stares, bored faces, and glazed eyes, my evaluation forms belie my fears - they are almost always positive, saying how much they learned, how valuable the session was, etc.

So the moral of the story: you're always more effective than you think you are. A bit of nervous anticipation is probably good, as otherwise you'll get a little complacent in your preparation; but ultimately, it always goes better than you think it will/did. And remember: you know more than they do.

Any other tips/tricks to help with pre-class nervousness or preparations?

Being a generalist vs. being a specialist

2010-02-21T14:53:00.005-05:00

In case anyone was wondering after reading my last post, I'm pleased to say that I will be starting a new position next month. I'm not leaving McGill, but I will soon be a liaison librarian at the Howard Ross Library of Management (i.e., the business library).

I'll admit that I don't have any background in business. My undergraduate degree is in psychology, and I've never taken any business classes. Some people would say this puts me at a disadvantage as a business librarian; without any specialized knowledge of the subject matter, how can I hope to serve students performing high level research? Indeed, many libraries require their subject librarians to have a second Masters in a relevant subject.

So here's the question: should academic librarians who are responsible for serving students in a certain subject area be required to have a background in that area? Or, to look at it another way: should librarians only apply for jobs that match their previous academic experience?

As I'm sure you can guess, I support the generalist model for librarians. I feel that the library experience (not to mention other customer service experience) that I've already acquired puts me in a good position to serve students and faculty in any subject area. It will certainly be a bit of an adjustment for me to learn the most important business terminology and concepts, but there will be a lot of learning for any new position I take on, especially at this early stage in my career.

I'm not saying that having subject knowledge is not valuable at all; certainly, if I were choosing which of two applicants to hire, and their skills were identical except that one had a second Masters in a relevant subject, it would make the decision much easier. And if someone has a particular passion for a certain topic, it might make sense for them to hold out until they can find the position that fits them perfectly. All I'm saying is that I am confident that I will be able to handle the challenge of my new position.

I've already joined the Business Libraries group on the Canadian Academic Libraries Network, and I'm looking forward to learning from experienced business librarians. Does anyone have any suggestions for learning a new subject area?

So you want to do a PhD?

2010-02-20T00:30:00.002-05:00

I was recently accepted into a PhD program. It was an exciting moment in my life receiving the news, but that moment came after a lot of hard work (and not a few tears). Since I received my news, I have a few people tell me that they too were considering applying for a PhD, so with that in mind I thought I'd share some of the lessons I learned during the application process:

1) Talk and ask questions: When I first started thinking of a PhD I spoke with as many people as I could about the process: former professors, other faculty members I knew, other PhD students, and spouses of PhD students and faculty. I was told that completing a PhD can be a lonely process and that you need to have a lot of self-motivation. Many people spoke of the toll it took on their personal lives. And, I was warned that the loneliness and commitment will not stop after it's over as the life of a faculty member can be equally exhausting.

2) Why?: Everyone I spoke with always started off with the same questions: Why do you want to write a PhD? What do you want to do with it in the end? You need to be able to answer these questions to keep you going through the process.

3) What?: Do you have the beginning of an idea that not only hasn't been covered in the literature but will also keep you going for 4+ years? The idea doesn't have to be complete (in fact it's best to be open to new insights) but can you identify a gap in the literature and start thinking of ways you (and your brilliance!) will fill it?

4) Shop around: If your semi-serious, start looking at your various options early, really early. There are only a handful of LIS PhDs in Canada. Are you close enough to one of the programs to attend? Are you willing to move? Is there another library-related discipline that you think might offer you a good home, like education, sociology, or even business? Is there a local interdisciplinary option? Is there a distance PhD that might work for you? Check out program web sites and course offerings. In other words, window shop.

5) Shop around some more: Once you've settled on a few programs, talk to the directors of the various departments and schools you are interested in. Tell them your plans and find out what their program strengths and weaknesses are. Is there a faculty member in the program who might be a suitable fit as your supervisor? If you plan on working while completing your PhD, are they used to working with part-time students? What are the requirements for admission and graduation? How many courses are you expected to take? Do you have to write comprehensive exams? What are the funding options available to you? What kind of research (qualitative vs. quantitative) does the department do? If the program isn't an LIS program, ask if they've ever worked with librarians before. Is there room in their program to study LIS topics?

This step accomplishes two things: first, you get a clearer idea of what will be required of you during the admissions process and what will be required after you've been accepted, plus it ensures that at least one person in the department knows your name and interests. That way if the department has to pick between you and someone they've never met, you might have the advantage.

6) Follow up any recommendations that are given to you. If the director suggests you speak with a faculty member, do it. This will give you an even better sense of the department, while at the same time ensure more people know who you are. Although all of this is easier to do in person, this can also be accomplished over email and on the phone.

7) Read and write: If you think you may have found your new academic home start reading and writing. You know those articles you've had sitting on the back burner for a while? Finish and submit them! PhD programs like publications. Remember that start of an idea you needed in step 3? Start reading more about it. Talk to other people who have the same research interests as you. They'll point you in the direction of new ideas and research. This will help when you write your statement of interest for your application.

I found the statement of interest to be the most difficult part of my application. It was a 1500 word treatise on everything about me and my research interests. I had to demonstrate that I had the knowledge required to address my topic, that I had read widely enough to show that there was a gap in the literature that needed to be filled, that the department I was applying to was the prefect home for me, describe the work I did during my MLIS and the professional experiences that lead me to wanting to complete my PhD, my other academic and relevant work experiences, and a statement about how I intended to complete the program (full vs part time, etc.). In. 1500. Words.

8) Find a good editor! Show your application to as many people as you feel comfortable with. Get opinions and feedback. Don't take any of it personally, just use it to form the best application you can.

9) Line up your references: Make sure all of your references will be positive. the best advice I was ever given for soliciting references was to ask, up front, for a positive one. It's a sad but true fact that some people will agree to give a reference when all they can give is a bad one, so ask up front! At least two of the usual three should be from academic sources (former professors, co-authors, etc.). So, make sure your professors remember you well enough to give you a positive reference!

10) Most applications are due during busy academic periods, so order your transcripts in advance so they get there on time. Sounds obvious, but one set of transcripts took 10 weeks to be delivered when I applied.

After all of this hard work you then get to sit and wait for months and months. It's a horrible feeling! And, unfortunately sometimes you don't get the answer you want. That happened to me the first time I applied. I didn't follow my own advice that time and when I didn't get in I was heartbroken. But I didn't let it defeat me. After a good cry and a few choice words, I revisited my application, corrected my mistakes and applied to another program (and got in!). In the end, my first rejection was a godsend. That program would not have been a good home for me, but because I did my homework the second time around I know that I have found the right place for me.

Re:Gen sessions at the CLA conference

2010-02-19T15:25:00.001-05:00

If you haven't yet seen the announcement: registration is now open for the 2010 CLA national conference in Edmonton (June 2-5). The preliminary program is available online. Get your name in there before the early bird deadline of April 9!

The Re:Generations committee is proud to be presenting two sessions at the conference.

First, is our mini-unconference, Preparing for the Profession: An Interactive Session for New and Emerging Professionals. We really do mean interactive. We will ask attendees to drive the course of the session, with the precise topics and discussion format to be determined right then and there. A panel of present and past Re:Generations committee members will share advice on such topics as job hunting, creating an academic c.v. and cover letter, life on the tenure track, networking, creating a web presence...and whatever else you want to discuss. In fact, we'd like to open up the discussion before the conference itself. Watch this space in the coming weeks for preliminary discussions and tips.

Mark your calendar for Thursday, June 3 at 4 pm

Our second session is Speed Updating for Academic Librarians. The session description says it all:

Overloaded with information? Pressed for time? This session will provide a one-stop shop to keep academic librarians up-to-date. Lightning round updates will be presented by experts on key issues facing our profession, including open access, metadata standards, and research methodology. After the presentations, conversations will continue in break-out groups.

Mark your calendar for Friday, June 4 at 3 pm

We're looking forward to hearing your comments and ideas about the sessions. Stay tuned for more!

Thanks to Flickr user eliazar for use of the image "Mini!". Creative Commons license: Attribution 2.0 Generic

New network for academic librarians

2010-02-18T09:17:00.000-05:00

A message from Pam Ryan, 2010 CACUL President:

CACUL invites you to join the Canadian Academic Libraries Network:
http://caculnetwork.ning.com/

All those interested in Canadian academic libraries are invited to join
here to discuss issues and share information.

Feeling disconnected from your Canadian Academic Library colleagues? Help build an online community of academic librarians and library staff from across Canada in the Canadian Academic Libraries Network. Start or join a group in your area of interest and discuss issues with like-minded folks. Share your events, news, workshops, and professional development opportunities. Make it what you need and tell us how we can
make it better for you.

[P.S. The Re:Generations committee also has a group on the network. Feel free to join us!]

Featured Librarian: Karen Nicholson

2010-02-11T13:13:00.005-05:00

This is the third in a series of posts featuring librarians taking an interesting approach to the profession. Previous posts have profiled bike-tripping University of Oregon Social Sciences Librarian Miriam Rigby and Heather Ward, UN Librarian and certified mahout.

If you know of someone else you'd like to see interviewed, please let me know in the comments.

Karen Nicholson is a fellow Re:Generations blogger, as well as the Teaching and Learning Librarian at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. She's been a librarian for about nine years, and she's about to be whisked away to work with the Council of Ontario Universities on undergraduate learning.

Q: What do you do? (What's your job title, who do you work for, where in the world are you?)

A: My title is Teaching and Learning Librarian, and I work at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

I have *just* accepted an eleven month secondment to work as Teaching and Learning Development Officer for the Council of Ontario Universities: my job will be to help universities implement Ontario’s Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations.

Q: Okay, but really--what do you do? (Describe your job in big outlines--what kinds of things might you do in any given day?)

A: I spend LOTS of time in meetings and meeting with people. This might include informal chats about teaching with liaison librarians, talking to faculty to plan information literacy classes for students, or preparing workshops for librarians related to pedagogy or teaching and learning technologies.

McMaster will host WILU 2010 in May 2010, Canada’s main information literacy conference, so that also involves a lot of online and F2F meetings. I also involved in some projects with the Centre for Leadership in Learning, the campus teaching and learning unit, which involve (more!) meetings, reading articles, reports, etc.

Q: When did you get your MLIS/MLS, and what school did you go to?

A: I got my MLIS from McGill University in 2001.

Q: What other jobs have you had before this one?

A: From September to December of last year, I was seconded to McMaster’s Centre for Leadership in Learning (CLL). Since I work closely with the CLL to ensure that library programs are based on sound pedagogy, working within the department seemed a logical next step in building a strong partnership between the two units. It was a great experience.

During my term at the CLL, I was responsible for two projects: the first was to create the framework for a new third year undergraduate course, “Digital Media for the Social Sciences”. The idea is to help students develop critical thinking skills with regard to digital media, to explore contemporary controversies and issues related to digital media within a social sciences’ framework, and to improve students’ ability to use information and communication technologies to communicate effectively. The second project was to establish communities of practice, or learning networks, at McMaster, so that with people with a common interest in issues related to teaching and learning can meet to share ideas and knowledge.

Before moving to Ontario, I worked as the Information Literacy Coordinator at McGill University in Montreal from 2002-2007, and before that, I was a Reference and Subject Librarian at Concordia University from 2001-2002.

Outside the library world, I have taught a few university courses as well as English as a second language in Montreal and Japan. I also worked in the congress industry when I was a student: it was fun because we got to travel all over the US, and I had the opportunity to visit Paris. I teach fitness classes, and eons ago I was a synchronized swimming coach.

Q: What's the most useful thing you learned on your way to this job--either in school or along the way in your career?

A: Take the time to get to know the people you work with. The worst situations came be made so much better when you’re with friends and good colleagues.

It’s often better to shut up and take the time to reflect before giving an answer. (Something I am not very good at yet.)

Q: What are you learning now? Or, what do you wish you were learning now?

A: I am currently learning about the gap between student and instructor expectations and what universities can do to address it through academic and non-academic programs and services.

Q: If the stars align and everything goes according to your heart's desire, what else would your career bring you?

A: I would love to be able to complete a PhD in education. I would also like to be an extravagantly paid educational consultant to UNESCO or a similar organization, and live in a beautiful city in Europe. Or somewhere warm. I have wanted for several years to undertake a study tour in Australia to learn more about their information literacy programs. Actually, the coolest job would probably be to work as a consultant, staying in fantastic places for a few months at a time. :D

Q: What are you reading right now?

A: I am currently reading Alligator by Lisa Moore, a Canadian author from Newfoundland.

Q: Any words of advice for new librarians?

A: Remember that the library world is very, very, very small. Try to make this advantageous to you, not a hindrance.

A career as a librarian can take you down many unexpected and surprising paths.

Be collegial and ethical.

The good fights are always worth fighting (which is another way of saying “be ethical”).

Thanks, Karen!

Posted by Karen Munro.

CACUL travel grants for CLA conference

2010-02-10T08:04:00.000-05:00

A message from Carol Shepstone,CACUL Director, Grants (posted on the CACUL e-mail list):

If you are thinking about your 2010 conference planning, don't forget that
the Canadian Association of College and University Libraries has
conference grants to help you off-set the costs of attending the 2010 CLA
conference held this year in Edmonton AB.

CACUL has up to 5 grants available for 2010—3 grants (up to $1,800)
each) intended for new librarians, librarians who are unemployed or
employed in a contract position, or a library technician; and two grants
(up to $500) to support mid-career librarians.

For application details see:

http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Conference_Grant

http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Mid_Career_Travel_Grant

Deadline for all conference grants is March 31 2010.