What I have enjoyed about this subject is that it made me critically think about programs and services for children and young adults in a public library setting. From my experience working within both a school library and now a public library it is important that as librarians we are constantly working on both the collections and the programming to suit the needs of the community we serve. By working through this subject, it has shown me that one of the most important roles that we will have as a librarian is to understand that it is our job to never stop learning and responding to the world around us. The library profession is dynamic, diverse, and broad and it is essential that librarians have these skills and knowledge to confidently respond to the needs that present themselves for future practice. Librarians are in a position to positively impact the patrons that come into the space, and this can happen with ongoing professional development (Stephens, Partridge, Davis & Snyder, 2022, p.258).
The area of this assignment that I enjoyed specifically was going through and reading the other students’ thoughts on the topic areas that we were asked to focus on. Not only do we need to think about our own learning and how we can do that in a formal way, but we can also grow from our colleagues around us. Something that stuck out when I was looking through the blogs was that everyone chose different activities from the next person. Everyone has their own way of viewing certain ides and it allowed me to widen my ideas and think about how I can change certain areas of practice in my own library.
Professional development is about constantly learning and not becoming stagnant in our profession. The information industry is always evolving with new developments in technology, to changing perspectives on current events and responding to the needs of the community you serve. Being a librarian can feel like an overwhelming job with many mountains to climb, finishing one project and moving onto the next, however by being proactive and undertaking professional development activities as simple as listening to a podcast on diversity then it can help you in the long run. The ability to access e-learning courses, tutorials and webinars has enabled learning opportunities to happen whenever and wherever possible. Professional development has grown beyond formal sit-down learning to looking beyond the workplace, from social networks, reading clubs and participation in specialised groups (IFLA, 2016, p.27).
This subject has allowed me to expand my knowledge through both assignments but also to learn through my fellow students. It has allowed me to further think about certain areas of the services I would like to provide to my community, and I can plan them better to ensure I am making the program the best I can. I am very happy that this is my final subject as I have really reflected on how I can become the best librarian I can be.
Word Count: 502
References
IFLA. (2016). IFLA Guidelines for Continuing Professional Development: Principles and Best Practices. https://www.ifla.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/assets/cpdwl/guidelines/ifla-guidelines-for-continuing-professional-development.pdf
Stephens, M., Partridge, H., Davis, K. & Snyder, M. (2022). The strategic, curious & skeptical learner: Australian public librarians and professional learning experiences. Public Library Quarterly, 41(3), 257-272. https://doi.org/10.1080/01616846.2021.1893114
Topic: Digital materials/resources and emerging technologies.
Within my library service one of the main questions we receive from parents is about what STEM related activities or resources that can be accessed from the library. We already offer a number of take home kits, Spark Discover Boxes, and during term time we hold a Code Club at one of our bigger branches. However we have been looking at new technologies that we can introduce into the collection to help with this growing demand. There is a growing demand for exposure to STEM activities in both schools and libraries within the immediate future. The rate at which technology is advancing, it is important that the children now are developing these different skills from an early age so they are able to fill STEM specific roles when they are ready (Jacobs, 2017, p.68). The technology we are looking into trialling for our library is the Ozobot and we purchased one to see how it worked.
The Ozobot is a robot that can be coded using two different ways, online using Ozobot Blockly, a program created by Ozobot or screen free using different colour codes. Each pack comes with one Ozobot, coloured pens and a charging cable and the little robot has roughly an hour charge at the ready. On their website they provide a host of free instructional videos and printouts to help those first time users of the technology. For library staff who would encounter any questions about the use of the equipment there are free to view webinars on getting to know how to use and any troubleshooting issues that may arise (Ozobot, 2022).
From my experience I found the colour coding sheets easy to follow and I was able to get the little Ozobot to navigate the pages that I tried. For younger children this would be a great way to learn and develop early coding skills, while using the program Ozobot Blockly would suit the older children who can use computer programs to help code the robot in more sophisticated ways. As a whole I thought this little robot is a wonderful tool that can be used within libraries to help support the learning needs of children in STEM related areas. As public libraries have a great impact on the community it is vital that they are promoting lifelong learning skills and e-learning through their services. Supporting the developing needs of children and young adults needs to be at the forefront of their programming (Abumandour, 2019, p.183).
What I found when researching other library services to see what STEM and makerspace activities and resources they were offering was that so many have technology and coding resources for their patrons. Many had specific Ozobot workshops, The Central Coast Library service is running 4 throughout June (Central Coast Council, 2022) and The City of Sydney Library offer take home makerspace kits, with one being the Ozobot Bit 2.0 (City of Sydney, 2022). As a librarian I think it is vital to help children extend their learning and develop new skills by exposing them to these new technologies. Looking and exploring different ways of achieving this is a skill that we as professionals need to think about constantly and reflect on our service so we are able to meet the needs of all our community.
Word Count: 550
References
Abumandour, E.T. (2019). Public libraries’ role in supporting e-learning and spreading lifelong education: A case study. Journal of Research in Innovative Teaching & Learning, 14(2), 178-217. https://doi.org/10.1108/JRIT-06-2019-0063
Central Coast Council. (2022). Ozobot robotics. https://www.centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/libraries/whats-on/ozobots-robotics
City of Sydney. (2022). Makerspace kits. https://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/library-collections/makerspace-kits
Jacobs, B. R. (2017). Transforming your library into a learning playground: A practical guide for public librarians. Libraries Unlimited: California.
Ozobot. (2022). Frequently asked questions. https://ozobot.com/support/faq
Topic: Young People’s Book Awards
The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) was established in 1945 to engage the community with literature for young Australians. Its aim is to celebrate and showcase Australian creators and works with authors, illustrators, publishers and booksellers to foster a love a reading for all children and adults. In 1946 the CBCA first established it annual awards to promote books of high literary and artistic quality and they are now the most influential book awards within Australia for children and young adult books (The Children’s Book Council of Australia, 2022).
Eve Pownall was an Australian historian and author who was an early supporter of the CBCA in New South Wales and helped establish the annual Book of the Year Awards. After her death in 1982 her family initiated the Eve Pownall Award for Information Books in her honour in 1988 and in 1993 this has been included in the annual awards for the CBCA (Reading Time, 2015, para.5). The Eve Pownall Award focuses on books that fall within the non fiction category. The entries have the intention of documenting factual material with considerations given to imaginative presentation, interpretation, and a variation of style. The entries in this group cross all age brackets can be for 0-18 years.
This year there is a diverse range of shortlisted titles that bring awareness to different informational areas. The entries are vastly different from one another, but they all have interpreted and documented factual information in a variety of ways. Still Alive, Notes from Australia’s Immigration Detention System by Safdar Ahmed is a graphic novel that details personal experiences within the immigration detention system in Villawood NSW. This entry is different in every regard to Sami Bayly’s illustrated encyclopaedia which I reviewed for this topic. Non fiction books can come in all different shapes and sizes but what I like about this specific category is that even though by just comparing these two books they are quite different but they both have something very important to say.
I understand that there is much talk around book awards and how they can at time be seen as a popularity contest for the most well-known author at the time or the one that has been most publicised. But by focusing my attention on one category within these awards to has allowed me to explore the titles more closely. When I was reading about why these titles were selected, I tried to look at them from a collection development viewpoint. Book awards do help guide selection of titles, but I think it is also important for the individual to think about their collection and the community they serve and then chose what is best for them. From my experience working within a junior school for a number of years I know that every book on a shortlist won’t work in every collection, but they do help aide the process of selection.
Word Count: 489
References
Reading Time. (2015). Who was Eve Pownall? http://readingtime.com.au/who-was-eve-pownall/
The Children’s Book Council of Australia. (2022). About the children’s books council of Australia. https://cbca.org.au/about