First Term: Fall 2019
Newer posts: Spring 2020
November 25, 2019
Learning new tricks.
Thinking back to our institute for INFO 5000, I remember being particularly daunted by the idea of our term paper and doing a literature review. When I did my previous M.A. in literature, I had not done such research, and I was hesitant about how I'd even begin to tackle such a project.
I was thankful that our class broke down how we'd be turning in our papers, giving us time to refine our topics, and the chance to get feedback before turning in a final version. But for me it was the literature map that helped me envision my final paper.
[Image description: A screengrab of the literature map I made when putting together my literature review. The graphic notes which of each of the 10 articles discussed the past, present and future of librarianship, and the sections for present and future are further broken down into categories like roles, including collection development, research support and teaching, and skills that include collaboration, data management, and planning.]
Out of many new concepts I tried to master during my first semester, this one probably resonated the most. I have always been someone that prefers to work from an outline, but this was even better.
I had reviewed my articles and looked for common themes before starting my review, but I saw that using a graphic like this would allow me to have one image that could drive all of my writing. It helped me to create a focused review without forgetting any one article as I moved from topic to topic. And it helped to build an overarching organization that made my writing more coherent. (See the final product here.)
If and when I attempt another literature review, whether for a class or for publication, I know I'll be keeping this tool in mind to use again.
November 5, 2019
Teamwork.
Since I started my internship at SMU and my classes at UNT at the same time, I had a steeper learning curve than my intern peers when it came to understanding how to answer questions at the reference desk. In addition, I've been working as a freelancer for more than 10 years, a position where I needed to figure out things on my own without a team to turn to for questions or guidance.
At the beginning of November, I returned to my undergraduate alma mater, the University of Missouri, for a women's leadership conference. As I listened to our keynote speaker, who had just retired from a long career as a television presenter to start a new business, I was reminded that starting over means that I need to acknowledge that I don't know everything about my new field. If librarianship is complicated enough to require a master's degree, it is complex enough that I will always be asking questions and discussing new ideas with my colleagues.
[Image description: The hands of one of the women attending the Griffiths Leadership Conference in Columbia, MO. She is holding a program for the event.]
I realized that I had been struggling with asking my peers and my mentors for help while working the reference desk. I had felt that it would show weakness if I asked questions or needed guidance. On my return trip to Texas, I pledged to turn to my fellow librarians more in order to improve my work.
Postscript: When I had my end of term meeting with my supervisor, he mentioned that my work had greatly improved during the month of November. I was thankful to be reminded that it is better to ask for help and guidance as I learn my new trade rather than struggling through on my own. I will continue to remember that as I learn more -- and challenge myself more -- as a librarian.
Griffiths Leadership Society for Women. (2019, November 1). 15 Years of Celebrating LeadHERship [photo]. Facebook. Retrieved July 8, 2020 from https://www.facebook.com/GriffithsLeadershipSociety/photos/ms.c.eJxllcttBEAIQzuK~_A~;039gqOUTa56vFGAyGcfNJt8x3OdZmP~;6PvPVvZKNWY~;ob2SwioTEjyBIZI~;IM2XeTMZeIOWfN58i~_fuTJbiBx1HV1jFnmisdXcYWYlG7EkdmFOR~;7k~;WILDvm7wnCzpcFc21Qu7xKVrhhx1ziKDOqKFExBf~_sLb06UqHfMddr4aGKEO2V8so5wepiDF~_958w1W7JfJrk4rxOHT5D5tfRZvDpGnpAKu5wxRu0RqHCrOPc~_qgjx~;JOORUqF9MaabGVfcLsb2jeOM81KeUVdaeRJI48nfdgpnX8NZg~_~_mhBmF0clp9PJPs9IPeKfYMxm8mJPNF~_17M6QuVqu8eNWdhOpM8Yk51682BstKnghN4d7Gvz1NuVKyFXfNvKUuKV4kfZ3mTBTXuOtodIsuqWM9WTzQhZ~;ve3~_69gHxC~_Q~;A~-~-.bps.a.10163103370195500/10163103371810500.
September 22, 2019
Frustration.
I have been working on websites for more than 15 years, and I've taught myself a great deal of content management through Googling for tips and tutorials. I consider myself fairly tech savvy when it comes to figuring out new software.
But NVivo has bested me.
Our job description assignment for INFO 5000 required that we use NVivo software to create charts and infographics for a presentation analyzing several different job descriptions. I was able to learn how to mark text in the descriptions in order to track different phrases or skills. I thought creating the graphs would be a simple next step.
[Image description: A screengrab of the software NVivo that shows the problems I was having creating a graph to reflect what I had found in my research.]
I was wrong.
I searched for tutorials. I asked my classmates. I asked my fellow interns at SMU (who also have completed this class at UNT). I found plenty of ways to mark and categorize information, and no guidance that led to the graphs I was envisioning in my head with multiple nodes. I worked on the project for nearly 12 hours, trying to create the desired graphics, without success. I woke up at 5 a.m. the next morning unable to get the project out of my head, and I continued to play with the settings for creating graphs.
No dice.
So I decided to step back and re-envision my data. If I couldn't create the graphs I originally sought, there were other ways to create data visualizations using the software,
[Image description: Success! This graph, created in NVivo, shows that 11 of the job listings had at least one responsibility that correlated to user services, with 28 different instances in the responsibilities listed for these 15 jobs. ]
as well as other ways to create additional graphs within PowerPoint.
[Image description: This graph, created in PowerPoint, categorizes the job responsibilities across 15 listings into such categories as assessment, campus involvement, data and collection management, information literacy, marketing, research and scholarship, teaching, and user services.]
In any job or project, it's likely that I'll hit a stumbling point. It doesn't help anyone to repeatedly try something that isn't working. My goal is to work on becoming more flexible, so that when one approach doesn't work, I can always step back, analyze the situation, and figure out a different approach that WILL work.
And possibly take a class on NVivo if I ever need to use it again.
September 9, 2019
Research. Read. Learn. Repeat.
It has been two weeks since I attended the day-long institutes at Denton for INFO 5000 and INFO 5600, and one month since I attended training for working the reference desk at Southern Methodist University's Fondren Library.
Today is my first day on the reference desk without a librarian behind me to answer questions or to guide my responses. What on earth am I going to do when I get my first question?
[Image description: A photograph of the stacks at Fondren Library, the main library at Southern Methodist University.]
I never realized how much knowledge is necessary for becoming a librarian. Where things are. WHO people are. Who to ask for specific information, and to whom to refer specific questions. It's been a long time since I had to reorient myself to a new job and a new field of study.
I learn more every day, and my assignments for INFO 5600 are particularly helpful as I navigate the ref desk and help people find information in the library. But every answer leads me to another question; as I refer a question to the Digital Collections librarians, I want to learn more about what they do and how they accomplish it.
I am setting a goal for myself to learn more about the varieties of jobs here at Fondren Library and beyond. While I am glad to see that we have assignments in INFO 5000 that will facilitate this, I will go beyond to meet people within the departments and learn about how they fit within the broader community here at SMU.
Photograph of Fondren Library at Southern Methodist University taken by Joanna Russell Bliss.