SLYA 2010

Just got back from the first meeting of the award panel. I am pleased and honoured to be on the panel again this year. It has been a long day, leaving Guildford station at 7.04 and returning twelve hours later.
The journey was an ideal opportunity to read a chunk of Gone with a wind, which is our latest parent's book group book and it is so long 1000 pages. Anyway I will be able to hold my head up at the meeting next week and say I have read it!

Back to the award. We met at Cheltenham College, which is a very different world from a standard comprehensive world. In the morning we reviewed and reflected on the process and then after our canteen lunch in the splendid former chapel canteen, complete with stained glass windows we looked through all the entries and made our initial long listing. It was an enjoyable process and we were so pleased to read fantastic nominations. It will be a tough call a think later on in the process.

Careers fairs

Just read Seth Godin's blog about the uselessness of careers fairs.
What I would like to know are his ideas on how we should help students learn about the world of work.
I was intrigued by
"There are average jobs, certainly, average in that they require people to fit in, do what they're told and follow the manual. I'll grant you that those jobs need to get done, but I'm not sure they have to get done by you."

Would not most jobs fall into the above. Most of us do what we are told and follow the manual to some extent and still have chances to be creative, proactive and innovative. What is wrong with doing such a job? Certain tasks need doing everything, every week, every term or whatever. Even the most creative of people will often have to follow the brief or ideas of their client.

When I plan lessons etc with teachers I enjoy it and find it stimulating, but then I might have to deliver the same thing 10 times over to each teaching group.

I wonder what jobs Seth thinks do not fall in this average job category?

Three days at home because of the snow. Took this photo when walking dog around the river next to our house.

Have managed to do lots of Frog while off and pestered the helpdesk far too often. They are brilliant and very patient with idiots like me

Also had time to do other stuff, gym closed too and so even more time on my hands.

Surfed for ages last night looking at knitting and crafty stuff
Fancy making socks and some bags, fabric not knitting
Found some brilliant stuff online and am amazed at the creativity of so many people. My stuff always ends up less than perfect. Knitting is my best bet. But I am a butterfly and do like to flit from craft to craft, sewing is often my least successful. I think it is because you can rush sewing and make mistakes while knitting can only go as fast as your fingers. Hope to get to the shops tomorrow to buy some sock wool and a pattern, or will use one online. 

Started making cushions for lounge and one for daughter which I am going to decorate with Kirsty's flower fabric decorations from her Christmas show, I was so jealous of her getting to do all those crafts. 

Do students value their librarian?

It appears not.  Thanks to Sheila Webber for this link

http://projectinfolit.org/pdfs/PIL_Fall2009_Year1Report_12_2009.pdf


Few students in our sample consulted librarians about research assignments (e.g., developing a research strategy) (20%) or about the campus library system (24%) ey did not use librarians for help with a course-related research assignment.


A significant majority of students in our sample—8 in 10—did not ever consult librarians for course-related research assignments. Instead, instructors played an important role in coaching students through the research process—from figuring out a research strategy to finding acceptable resources to writing up their findings.


Looks like we really need to be proactive and push stuff out to the students rather than expect them to come to us

Also looks like we need to send stuff via teachers and students seem more likely to take notice of them

Collaboration then

Embedding a VLE

Just read this on Seth Godin's blog

Don't have any meetings about your web strategy. Just do stuff. First you have to fail, then you can improve.

I think this fits my ideas for working with Frog this term

I have decided to create one thing each week to show the functionality and try to wow everyone with that.

And then help others to create stuff for themselves
Will also do his idea of making note on whiteboard in staff room to show how much use people are making of Frog.

Just do it, is really what I always do anyway

And yes rather than But

I thought that I would try this one to try to stop creativity. How often do you suggest something or have someone suggest something to you and instead of giving it time and thought you immediately reject it by saying but....
So I am going to try to and yes response instead.
I will hopefully be able to report good results

New Year, what to change, what to aspire to

New year, new decade, new start
Like others I too am using the end of this holiday period to reflect and decide on my aims and goals for the coming months.

When I am off work I always start thinking about all the things I could start to do and get involved in but then I know that once I go back to work life will kick in again and lack of time will cause me to fail with many of these new ideas.

Consequently I resisted the temptation to buy wool for more knitting today.

So what do I want to do?

1. Revitalise the libraries. I feel as if they have been on hold for a good year (for various reasons) now I ought to be able to focus again.

2. Get Frog up and running by March!

3. Use Frog to push stuff to the kids.

4. Sort out my on line presence.

I think I will stop there as any other stuff is really just sub lists of these four.