TLA Launch: Week 5

 

This was the last week of TLA Launch. We discussed Change Management. We focused on the REDUCE acronym based on the book, The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone's Mind by Jonah Berger. It stands for Reactance, Endowment, Distance, Uncertainty, Corroborating Evidence. Examples were given of how to lessen the fear of change and get more people on board with them. For example, providing a menu of change options so that staff feels they have agency over the change. One option I never thought of was to "harness freemium" which is like a free trial to get others on board. If you are confident and have done the work necessary, the change should bring about a positive effect. Once people give that free trial a test run, they can see for themselves that the change is warranted. 

Overall, I think the program was useful. We were the first cohort to do the program virtually, so some of the lessons had to be converted appropriately. It was nice that for a lot of the breakout sessions we were divided into similar libraries, though I always got lumped into the academic library group. Which wasn't a problem, per se, but I couldn't relate to everything discussed. I feel like five weeks was such a short time to adequately cover all topics. The topics they chose to cover (Emotional Intelligence, and Influence; Communication & Crucial Conversations; Team Work & Collaboration; Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion; and Change Management) are very substantial and a five-week course over any one of them probably wouldn't cover everything necessary. So in that sense, it was nice to get an overview of these important workplace topics. The teachers did provide further reading and did emphasize that they were always open to more questions. They also stated that they might have a reunion meetup since it's a lot harder to network virtually and it would be nice for us to meet each other in real life. 

TLA Launch: Week 4

This week during TLA Launch, we discussed equity, diversity, and inclusion. First, the teachers went over the definitions of each, which is great because I always get equity and equality mixed up. They had a cartoon to help visually explain the differences, which did help. 

In a breakout room with other academic/special librarians, we made a TRIZ list so that we could hypothetically achieve the worst result imaginable when it comes to an EDI workplace. The list was segmented into Direct Report, Peers, and People You Report To. It was eye-opening to see just how many of the things listed were happening at a previous place of employment. Seeing the columns of segments made it abundantly clear that there is never just one negative issue in a toxic workplace. The negative traits trickle down and out. 

On our collaborative slide, we listed a bunch of different ways workplaces are not EDI, from the obvious, showing favoritism, to less obvious ones like hiring homogenously. As we looked over our list, we were asked to highlight on the slide and reflect on those in which we may be complicit. Many people highlighted working in silos, not being a team player, and being disconnected from employees. I've done some of these myself and it just drove the point home further that even if you're trying to mind your own business and ignore the issues, your reactions to them just add to the overall culture. The lesson provided some great food for thought. 

TLA Launch: Week 3

This week during TLA Launch, we discussed teamwork and collaboration. Again, because I started at SwRI during the work-from-home orders, I have not had many "traditional" teamwork interactions. However, as far as "team" projects go, I think my co-worker and I did great work on the Famous Mathematicians virtual exhibit. Because we each had our own bullet points to work on, it was easy to work separately, then come together to put our two halves to make a whole. 

However, as far as the TLA discussion goes, I had to resort to past work experiences to find common ground. The TLA team put us into breakout rooms by library type. I ended up with the Academic & Special librarians. The first quality on our list of what makes a high-functioning team was open communication. Someone in the group also came up with the term "compassionate professionalism" which was described as having empathy for co-workers but maintaining professional boundaries. A lot of librarians in the group-at-large liked the term. 

You can't talk about what makes a high-functioning team without talking about dysfunctional teams. We spent some time in breakout groups to discuss the different aspects of dysfunction we've experienced at work. Though everyone has experienced the negative team qualities before, because of the current situation the listed traits are now presenting themselves differently. Some felt that COVID has created more meetings just to meet. These meetings are labeled as check-ins to ensure that people are on-track, doing their jobs, and being held accountable but usually, nothing productive comes out of the meeting. Again, I too have lived through many of the negative team traits listed but I haven't encountered them at SwRI. 

TLA Launch: Week 2

As homework for TLA Launch, they asked us to complete a test to get our Style Under Stress Score. You’re asked 33 true or false questions about the way you handle stressful situations. The makers of the Style Under Stress test use Silence and Violence as two indicators of your stress style. On a range of 0-6, you are scored on how you act towards silence and violence. The lower the number the better. 

I could have told you before the test that I’m definitely a silent stress-er. I can’t think fast enough on my good days and I’m very conscious of how correct and accurate I am. There is no way that I’m going to spew things I’m unsure of when I’m under stress. In the Silent section, I received a score of 1 for both Masking and Avoiding and a score of 2 for Withdrawing. 

In the Violence Score breakdown, I received a zero for both Controlling and Labeling and a 1 in Attacking. 

The next range they measure is your Crucial Conversations Score. These can be scored 0-3 in each category. I received a 1 in the Explore Other’s Paths, Move to Action, Start with Heart, Learn with Look, Make it Safe, Master My Stories sections, and a 2 in STATE My Path. 

I am pretty self-aware when it comes to my shortcomings in stressful situations. I am definitely a withdrawer and I have a hard time understanding conversations that focus heavily on emotions. I love taking all kinds of personality tests, so this was just something else I have in my arsenal of self-awareness. Knowing how I react in stressful situations is always helpful. 

TLA Launch: Week 1

TLA Launch is a leadership program geared towards those in the library field who have been in the industry less than five years. Though I’m not interested in being a manager, the fact that I was one means you can’t ever say never. While I was a manager, I learned that there are many skills I lacked when it came to managing, leading, and influencing. Even if I never manage people in the future, I think that this program will help in my overall professional development. There will be some skillsets I’ll know to work on and on the flip side I’ll have a better understanding of what bosses have to go through when it comes to supervising others. 

The first week was dedicated to Emotional Intelligence and Influence. I guess it’s good to get the hard things out of the way first, right? Though I think I’m good at recognizing my own emotions, I’m not comfortable expressing them at work. Even less so to others, with others, about others, because of others, or in any way relating to others. I like to think I have a good handle on my emotions and the way they get expressed at work (which honestly has been easy because of COVID) but part of emotional intelligence (and its relation to leadership) is that you have to be attuned to others as well. Well...I’ll just add that to the list of things I need to work on. 

"...Then Success is Sure"

"All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure."

Mark Twain

Rare Book Exhibit Meeting As promised, we had our Rare Book Exhibit Meeting. Both my coworker and I showed Michelia examples of virtual exhibits we liked. We decided to forge ahead with the interactive presentation/PowerPoint examples we had. Now that that’s settled, we start on the actual doing. Because my coworker is in charge of the Rare Book Collection and has a more intimate knowledge of the contents, she’ll be compiling the content. I’ll work on the technical aspects like creating the website/PowerPoint, etc. I’m excited to get started! I’m sure some staff will be happy to interact with some of our collection virtually. 

Rare Book Database Update As of the end of this week, I have upload a total of 2975 images which equals a total of 138 books. 

They Published Where?!: Analyzing Faculty Publications for Scholarly Communications Assessment I watched another on-demand video from the 2020 ER&L Conference. This one was about predatory publishers. It was a great introduction to analyzing various publishers. The presenter also shared some of their top resources to use when looking into whether or not a publisher may or may not be legitimate. 

2020 koha-US Annual Conference September 22-24 was the koha-US Conference. I watched a few sessions as I was able. There was a session on the second day that walked through the steps of the advanced editor. Though, I don’t catalog all that often, I think it would be impressive to go into the advanced cataloger and type in things like I know what I’m doing. But since I don’t, know what I’m doing that is, I watched the session. It seems pretty easy and I think the term “advanced” is a bit of a misnomer. I think the more you use it, the more you understand how it works and the faster you get with the keyboard shortcuts. I also watched a session titled, Very Very Basic jQuery. Though I don’t particularly know what I would need to use jQuery for in koha, the session was helpful because I’ve never used jQuery in my life and the presenter did a very good job of breaking it down. 

Introduction to R for Libraries Part 1 This week was a week of webinars, I guess. I watched the first in a three-part series on using the statistical software R for libraries. My boss asked me last week if I was familiar with the program. Though I had heard of it in undergrad, I never had the chance to actually use it. She’s interested in seeing if R can help make sense of the different reports from COUNTER4 and COUNTER5 where the data is structured differently. I reached out to an old professor and she said that she did think R would be able to do what we are looking for. So even though my boss is in charge of the reporting and all that I wanted to look further into it. I stumbled across this webinar and thought, “what a coincidence - let’s watch”. The presenter is very good. He explains all the parts of the software, what they do, what they might be used for, etc. He even made handouts and...can I just say, swoon? There is nothing more exciting than a well-done presentation. I still need to watch the other two sessions to get a better understanding of how he specifically uses the software for his library though. 

Online Together koha-US 2020 Conference

 

Today is Day 2 of the koha-US virtual conference. I just finished watching the Catalogers, Advance! session and I'm very excited to add and use a macro. I haven't used the Advanced Editor in koha because I'm very intimidated. But I do love me some keyboard shortcuts. Though, I don’t catalog all that often, I think it would be impressive to go into the advanced cataloger and type in things like I know what I’m doing. But since I don’t, know what I’m doing that is, I watched the session. It seems pretty easy and I think the term “advanced” is a bit of a misnomer. I think the more you use it, the more you understand how it works and the faster you get with the keyboard shortcuts. 

I also watched a session titled, Very Very Basic jQuery. Though I don’t particularly know what I would need to use jQuery for in koha, the session was helpful because I’ve never used jQuery in my life and the presenter did a very good job of breaking it down.

NASIG Mentee

 

Back in June, I was matched with a mentor through the NASIG Mentorship program. I had applied to the program in May because I understand the value of having mentors in the profession. Especially when one is coming from a completely different background, like me. I had a wonderful mentor when I started my video work right after high school and I had a great mentor towards the end of obtaining my Bachelor's degree that helped me apply to graduate school and even wrote a letter of recommendation. I still talk to both these mentors and they have been extraordinary in helping me get to where I am today. Good mentors are invaluable and can help newcomers feel more at ease with the new terrain they will be navigating, can help lessen imposter syndrome when describing the scope of work one already has, and is just a great sounding board for questions, comments, and concerns. 

This past Friday my mentor and I spoke for the first time via Zoom. It was so nice to meet her. She works at a university in Kentucky and has been in the library science field for years. She was ever so nice and helpful. 

The prompt for our first conversation was "What have you learned/did you learn in library school that seems the most useful? What do you wish you had learned/was available in library school but wasn't offered?"

Like many careers, libraries have changed dramatically. My mentor stated that getting a degree in library science is great for the theoretical issues that arise. However, it's always best to put them into practice with work experience. Though I am just starting my third semester, I found this to be true. There are many issues I learn about in school that I wouldn't necessarily know how to put into practice at my job currently. However, there are many issues I've faced at work that have shaped the way I attempt or think about assignments in class. 

I'm excited I was considered for the program and can't wait to see what else we can teach each other throughout the year. 

ALA Virtual 2020

With the uptick in COVID cases, the ALA annual meeting was virtual this year. This ended up working well for me since I wouldn't have been able to attend the in-person event. However, I was able to watch a lot of the webinars and felt like it was still a well-done event. 

My favorite presentation was Using “SIFT” to Teach Digital Literacy in a Democratic Society. It was a really well-done and very interesting presentation. Information literacy is something that I am very passionate about and I think that this new method is superior to the CRAPP method so often taught. The basic premise is teaching users how to use the internet to check the internet. So for instance, doing a reverse image search, checking well-known fact-checking sites like Snopes, and checking Google News. These are all really easy things that can be done to help users (though in the presentation they specifically talk about students) realize that not everything on the internet is reliable. 

35th Annual NASIG Conference

I was so appreciative that NASIG was able, with its sponsors, to offer a free virtual conference for students. I would not have been able to attend the conference otherwise and therefore wouldn't have been able to see first-hand what NASIG is all about. Prior to the conference, I wasn't familiar with NASIG but the conference presentations really gave a feel for what issues and subjects NASIG focuses on. 

As I watched the webinars, I took some notes which I've pasted below.  

Mapping Domain Knowledge for Leading and Managing Change

"Just because you said you're a leader, doesn't mean that you were giving the leadership that was needed." 

This quote really resonated with me. It's so true. I've worked for, or worked with, people who see themselves as leaders but who were in fact...not. Calling yourself a leader does not automatically make you a good one, a nice one, an efficient one. Leading is hard and many people are not born leaders. The information provided in this presentation was very helpful. 

Practical Approaches to Linked Data

This is interesting. I don't even know what linked data is specifically but it is definitely something that I want to look into further. Wikidata? Wikimedia? Further study is needed on this. 

Access to Supplemental Journal Article Materials 

This is something that I've never really thought of before. I never really needed SJAMs when working in undergrad and never realized how difficult they might be to access. If researchers build off of other research(ers), then why isn't there a universal way to send/receive all the pertinent information? 

COUNTER 5: Lessons Learned and New Insights Achieved 

Interning at SwRI was the first time I'd ever heard of COUNTER. I think the concept is really interesting for insights into what kind of content patrons are using. I like that they are all standardized and that they can be downloaded and pulled without much hassle across various platforms. 

Knowledge Bases: The Heart of Resource Management 

A very thorough and easy-to-understand explanation of what a knowledge base is and how important they are to the library. I haven't come across the term in school yet but will now have a sense of what the term means if I ever do. 

Transforming Library Collections and Support Student Learning with Collection Mapping

I loved this presentation. This is something that I would absolutely love to do. The fact that you have to set these goals but you're also utilizing data from many different areas to figure out what your goals should be is amazing. As someone currently going through graduate school and as I am unsure of what type of position I want in the future, this presentation brought me joy. I love that it's interdepartmental and that faculty were consulted with regards to weeding and purchasing. I love that whole degree plans and single elective classes were taken into consideration for what should be kept, weeded, added to. 

The Backfire Bias

Having taken psychology courses in undergrad, I'm aware of biases and how we all fall prey to them. In an on-demand training I took called Overcoming Bias there was a section devoted to the backfire bias. The backfire bias is when people who already hold a strong belief, double down in their belief even when shown evidence to the contrary. Because I am very passionate about information literacy, I was interested in hearing ways to help overcome this bias. Dr. Michael Shermer, author and narrator of the training, gave six steps that may help when talking to people about difficult subjects. 

1. Keep emotions out of it. 
2. Discuss - don't attack. 
3. Listen carefully so that you can tell their belief back to them. 
4. Show respect. 
5. Acknowledge that you understand why someone might believe that. 
6. Try to show that changing facts does not mean changing their entire view of something else. 

Ethics Literacy

Much like information literacy, information professionals should also be ethically literate as well. Information professionals may deal with many different types of ethical scenarios daily and therefore having good background knowledge, and a strong understanding of ethics is important. The American Library Association (ALA) has deemed ethics as an important component in library science since the 1930s. The ALA Code of Ethics has informed many professionals about ethics but it may not be enough. Its accreditation does not mandate that coursework include any sort of ethics training nor does it standardize ethics curriculum (Buchanan, 2004, p. 51). Though it’s important for the ALA to continue to demonstrate the importance of ethics in the workforce, it doesn’t seem to be truly effective in practical applications.

Luo (2016, p. 197) found that when dealing with an ethically ambiguous situation, many professionals reached out to others in their field to seek advice on how to handle the situation. This may be an issue because organizational ethics may differ from company to company and, in some instances, from the ALA Code of Ethics as a whole (Luo, 2016, p.197). Because of this, it is necessary that organizations have ethics policies in place so that staff may defer to them when ethical situations arise. However, this may be easier said than done since situations that involve ethics do not have clear-cut outcomes. It is in the best interest of organizations and especially those who work in reference services to partake in an ethics course or attend ethics workshops where practical applications may be discussed.

References

Buchanan, E. (2004). Ethics in library and information science. What are we teaching? Journal of Information Ethics, 13(1), 51-60. doi:10.3172/JIE.13.1.51

Luo, L. (2016). Ethical issues in reference: An in-depth view from the librarians’ perspective. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 55(3), 189-198.

Traditional versus Modern Skills for Information Professionals

What are emerging skills are needed by modern information professionals? How is this different from traditional notions of the profession?

Because libraries of today look different than the libraries of the past, it makes sense that the skills needed would be tailored differently as well. In the past, finding information meant that a librarian would look through physical documents, today many librarians still assist users in their information search albeit with a computer rather than a card catalog. In the past, librarians espoused reading literacy, today information literacy is an important aspect of teaching a new generation. One of the biggest changes from traditional libraries is the creation of Makerspaces and Learning Labs within modern libraries.

 

Technology has advanced rapidly and with the innovation can come gaps in knowledge for those who are unable to access all that is offered. Learning Labs offer patrons places to learn technology, interact with media, create projects, and engage with the community (Koh & Abbas, 2015). In positions such as these, it is important to have a variety of skills that include both hard and soft skills. When it comes to soft skills, Pradhan (2015, p. 110) found that communication skills were the most sought after skill in India. Lopatovska and Baribeau (2017) found that over the eight semesters of analysis “communication” was one term that yielded the highest results (p. 748), corroborating Pradhan’s findings in the United States.

With both Learning Labs and Makerspaces, it is important to have knowledge of technology, equipment, and software. Koh and Abbas (2015) described this best as the ability to learn (p. 119). The term encompasses more than just the knowledge one has but includes the ability to learn more than a list of duties and helps describe one’s drive to educate themselves on new and emerging technologies.

In Pradhan’s (2015) research, interpersonal skills were mentioned in 80% of the jobs. These skills such as teamwork, leadership, and problem-solving have always been important parts of the library science professions. However, the way professionals now enact these skills are different. Teamwork now includes working with IT, multiple departments, and diverse populations. Problem-solving now includes fixing the printer, finding the broken code on a sample coding program and assisting patrons with their research project.

Another way in which modern librarians have had to reassess their traditional strategies comes to their moral responsibilities. As Lor and Britz (2011, p. 12) explain, the use of technology has made librarians shift their moral responsibilities from a retrospective model to a more positive perspective model that includes “anticipating possible harmful impacts of modern ICTs” (information and communication technologies). Again, librarians have had to think of moral responsibilities in the past, but now, the way in which they approach their moral responsibilities has shifted with the unpredictability of technology.

As technology and the idea of what libraries can offer to the community continue to change, so too will the way in which librarians interact with the public and will, therefore, have an impact on the skills that are needed to do their job properly and assist their community.

References

Koh, K., & Abbas, J. (2015). Competencies for information professionals in Learning Labs and Makerspaces. Journal of Education for Library and Information Sciences, 56(2).

Lor, P. & Britz, J. J. (2011). New trends in content creation: Changing responsibilities for librarians. Libri: International Journal of Libraries & Information Services, 61(1), 12-22. doi:10.1515/libr.2011.002.

Lopatovska, I., & Baribeau, H. (2017). What information professionals need to know: Job ads analysis. Proceedings of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 54(1), 747-749.

Pradhan, S. (2015). Study of employability and needed skills for LIS graduates. Journal of Library & Information Technology, 35(2), 106–112. doi: 10.14429/djlit.35.2.8312

Commitment to Lifelong Learning

When an information professional first starts their job, they may find that they are able to perform their tasks with relative ease. However, as technology and the field of information science continues to advance, professionals may start to fall behind. The feeling of unease that may come with newer technologies is common and happens often in a field that changes so quickly. Still, it is important for information professionals to be able to adapt to ever-changing and growing job demands.

A commitment to lifelong learning is such an important philosophy, that even the American Library Association (2003) has it listed as one of its competencies for reference and service librarians. When new technology comes along, or even old technology that one has never used, there must be a drive to understand its importance and the positive changes it can bring about in a community.

To happily succeed in this field, one must be okay with knowing that they don’t know everything. Approaching life as a student will not only help one's job satisfaction but one's patrons as well. Keeping up with “understanding how people learn and with the best ways of facilitating learning” (ALA, 2003) by reading educational journals is just one major way, sans technology, that professionals can utilize to connect with their users.

References

American Library Association. (2003). Professional competencies for reference and user services librarians. Reference and User Services Quarterly, 42(4). Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/rusa/resources/guidelines/professional