Why do librarians ask you to "not reshelve the books"?

Yesterday I was curious to find out why librarians ask patrons to "not reshelve the books".

The ACU Library has used the policy in my time there as a student and still do so.

I came across this blog entry by Covenant Library:

http://covenantlibrary.wordpress.com/2009/12/02/please-don%E2%80%99t-reshelve-the-books/

The entry itself gave a good answer. The Librarians want to keep a record of the "in house use". I have come across this in reading of the text as a means of monitoring use by the patrons to assess the usefulness and relevance of resources to the library.

It was one of several forms of evaluating the collection. I think it is a good means too. People for varying reasons may not want to borrow a book. They just need a page photocopied, or need it to seek clarification or just a reference book. Sometimes we cannot take the books home with us because our bag may be full or it is heavy.

A book that is heavily used within the library often means that is of relevance or interest.

But we cannot discount other forms of collection evaluation such as surveys and applying techniques applied by other libraries if we want the "big picture" to provide an effective evaluation.

Without that information, we cannot improve the library in terms of what the collection offers, how it can be enhanced and how the library can contribute towards the academic achievement of students.

It was great too that I came across a professional reading that also encouraged it. I have downloaded it but I don't know where it has gone too. Will have to post that later.

The marks are in

The good news at this point of semester is that I am on track to pass both units which is pleasing.

Assignment One was 65 % in ETL503. It shows that I am quite capable of resourcing a curriculum area. The topic that I selected was quite a dry topic overall which I overcame quite well. There is scope for improvement - particularly the application of selection procedures. My tools were not professional enough and need to make more effective use of them in Assignment Two along with the general principles.

Fortuantely I was able to justify how I approached the selection and acqusition of the resources which I think was a saving grace for me. I was also able to demonstrate how the resources satisfy resourcing needs.

ETL504 - The mark was only 52 %, and for the effort put in, that was a very generous mark. Given I was in a group that was not organised effectively that is actually a good mark. The markers comments were generally negative particularly that the assignment had "no single clear direction" that addressed no theory. A comment of that nature is normally rewarded with a mark of no more than 40 %, in fact it would be lower.

I personally have developed good group work skills particularly during my university studies and I did not demonstrate that to a large extent. My self reflection identified weaknesses such as the need to express firmer leadership and effective goal setting. Collaboraition was generally poot and I ended up not working that group culture effectively.

The assignment was generally rushed. I perform poorly in such circumstances and I find it increases my anxiety to a point where I cannot perform. I wanted to start straight away but it was a week before group members were able to locate me and another week to organise a suitable time.

I wanted to communicate with skype, but the group members were reluctant to use that tool. To me Skype is better than a telephone because it's clear and there was also the prospect of using a face cam to provide an emotive element. Online assignments miss that component because you can understand how one feels as well. You cannot see that when in a chat room typing your thoughts.

ETL503.

Resourcing the Curriculum? Collection Management? What did i know before starting this unit?

I definately have forgotten what my initial impressions were. In a year from now, I will be completing a portfolio so it's important that I do this now so I don't forget.

Simply I had no idea about the unit was going to be about.

Resourcing the curriclum to me just a matter of weeks ago was merely about the process of obtaining resources for the curriclum. This would comprise of:

1. What the syllabus requires teachers to teach


2. What the school programmes require teachers to teach to satisfy currilclum requirements


3. What resources are needed to satisfy learning outcomes? Do they contribute towards student learning? Are they relevant?

That is narrow and comes from my teaching background. I have had limited teaching opportunities since I graduated at the end of 2009. I am 100 % certain that there were elements missing.

We are now at mid semester and I have learn't in simple terms:

• How to select resources - What elements do I need to consider - such as information from publishers, web reviews and requests by teachers and students


• The types of resources available.


• The tools available for Teacher Librarians and teachers to select useful teaching resources.


• Creating a system for effective selection of resources.


• How to acquire resources - Budgeting, how to undertake an effective purchase of an item, and how they will be made available to library users.

Now I will have the chance to learn how to manage an entire collection. This is important if we want to resource items effectively. There needs to be a system for me to evalaute existing resources and how andwhy I would approach management of the collection.

While it has helped me grasp a greater understanding of the role of teacher librarian through examining a key element of their role, it helps me alot as a teacher in general. I have been exposed to selection tools that were previously unknown to me particularly online tools such as the Teaching and Learning Federation.

I now have the chance to create a collection management policy, and this is where many of the key concepts will be applied. It will be through this assignment, that I can get a key grasp of the ideas and concepts in ETL503.

Collection Management Policy

For me creating a collection management policy is proving to be quite interesting.

I am amazed firstly by the fact that are quite a number of them publically available:

Georges Hall Public School - http://www.georgeshal-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/collection_management_policy.pdf
Scone Public School - www.scone.ps.education.nsw.gov.au/.../ Collection%20Management%20Policy.doc
St Marys Primary School, Swan Hall (Victoria) http://www.stmarysswanhill.com.au/library/policy.php

These are excellent becaue they give me a template for how I can present the school in question. The school featured in the assignment is hypothetical because I am not familiar with the collection management policy of one school. The practical examples as listed above are there but I am not familiar with the school in a wider context, which has to be considered when writing one.

I am already in the drafting process of writing the policy. It feels straightforward. I do have make to sure it reflects the issues that I have identified with existing collection practices. Otherwise I won't get marks.

Teamwork and Collaboration

As part of assignment one for ETL504, we have to construct a rubric where we assess ourselves in relation to:

1. Teamwork


2. Colloboration


3. Communication

Assessing communication is quite simple. The fact there are readings and resources that are out there to construct the rubric for that component are more than adequate.

But Teamwork and Collaboration are another matter. I have not come across one reading that actually explains the difference between both components.

Only one resource gave me any idea of what teamwork and collaboration are. They are individually defined but still share similar meanings

Teamwork is the concept of people working together towards while collaboration referred to the process of people working towards the goal

Still I cannot any system where you can measure both individually. I need to keep trying.

ETL503 - Assignment One

Assignment One was submitted last week and I thought generally it was pretty straightfoward assignment. Initially, I thought it was going to be hard but after doing some reading and visiting a real school library, the ideas flowed in. I have to admit I overlooked one aspect of Acquistion - relating to placing orders for resources such as biblographical details and ordering the item. I only considered the financial aspect and where I would source them from. I will need to examine that in Assignment Two for sure. It will compromise potential for a good mark. I just hope a pass will do. I like to aim for a credit or higher, but given the difficulty of the course and lack of experience as a teacher - librarian, it just will be too hard. I also have to remember that my marks in education subjects were only enough for a pass even if a credit was obtained. I don't really think about that. But then again what did I learn and how will I apply it?

• I knew nothing about the process of selection and acquistion


• I learnt that I don't have to rely solely on catalogues, publisher websites and online bookstores. There are a myriad of curriculum resources also that would be beneficial such as the Teaching and Learning Federation that appeals specifically to teaching resources. I also didn't realise professional experience or simple we searches are also part of the process.


• The process of acquiring resources - In ETL501 I gained insight into the evaluation of web resources. I was able to apply that to this assignment. Even more interesting the evaluation of the resource itself is undertaken as part of the acquistion process - because you have to consider factors such as cost and accessibility along with currency etc. With other resources, I gained a strong insight into the process and what I do need to consider. Assignment Two will help me spell it out clearly given what I have raised.


• The importance of online resources to learning and how to include them in a library collection. It doesn't feel so distinct.


• Able to provide reasons as to why resources have been selected and how they satisfy the resourcing needs of the library. That is most important given they will influence learning outcomes.

ETL504 - Assignment One -Looking Back

I was relived to have finished the group component of assignment one. As I reflect now on how it went, what did I learn? In a group context, I learn't little. Being an online assignment, collaborating was always going to be difficult to undertake. There was no scope for face to face meeting. I had skype and MSN Messenger which none of the group members had. The time was not used productively. I often sat my chair following the chat and wondering where people were at or for the next move. I can understand group members being busy, but the fact it was a last minute effort has shown through in the final product. In fact it wasn't until last week other group members took to meeting daily if possible and contributing their content. I had done some research but couldn't complete it in full until I knew where we were heading. I would say I spent up to half the time working just to get the presentation aspect covered. As a organised person by nature, that was my core strength. It did remove me from the content component of the assignment which is also important. I was more or less checking contributions relating to content, proofreading and making sure the referencing was right. I miss face to face group work. There is also the emotive component of working with other people. You can understand their contributions far better. Face to face you can show research findings, show articles and do alot more. You can type it together and talk. Our group topic was problem solving and I found the topic interesting overall. It is often overlooked as a leadership skill that one will need for effective decision making. As a teacher librarian, I gained alot from my learning and applying it will be the standard especially in issues such as:

• Limited Resources - Balancing needs and wants of the school community


• Budgeting - Dealing with limited funds and making sure it is spent effectively to ensure that students gain most from their learning.


• Collaborating with teaching staff

The majority of all workers in Australia (70 %) do not possess adequate problem solving skills. To possess them will make me stand out.

Plus it allows me to be creative. I propose and implement solutions. It also encourages innovation? Why, because you actually remedy a problem with a solution that I actually propose. I may be inspired by others but I use that information and the outcomes to implement that strategy.

Assignment One - ETL504

I am doing Assignment One in ETL 504 at present. It is a group assignment and I am not enjoying it at this stage. Why? I cannot work at the speed that I am used to. I don't like undertaking assessment at the last minute. Doing it over a period of time, is much more relaxing for me because when the assessment is due, I am not panicking or stressed out. There is stress, but it is over miniscule things such as sentence structure and grammar. Paranoia at it's best. It is only in the past week any significant process has been made. It took me one week to establish contact with my group members and the communication options seem limited because the others do not know how to use skype or MSN Messenger. I have had to assume the organisational side of the assignment, just to get people talking. It is good though that the others are organising times to meet now, but I still have to post resources etc for people to download and read. I proposed the topic of problem solving in the workplace, because it is an important skill that one needs to have for good decision making. As teacher librarians, we will be confronted with problems on several fronts and it is important that we know how to examine a problem and propose solutions. It was good that my group has supported my idea and it is building up. I was impressed in recent days by the items that they had begun to find and post, which I am happy with. This week will tell whether or not this was a good idea.