Infoblog

Posts Tagged ‘cla’

Inspired by conversations during the California Library Association conference in San Jose earlier this week and by online coursework through the University of North Texas, I’ve been completely immersed in discussions, articles, and examples of how onsite and online reference services are developing. It’s no surprise to discover that much of what works in one arena carries over effectively into the other, and the continuing popularity of Infopeople workshops on reference-related themes, as mentioned in the first of these two articles, tells me that there is still a very strong place for libraries in reference and information retrieval assistance.
One of the most consistently interesting sources on the topic is Thomas Mann, a reference librarian at the Library of Congress and author of The Oxford Guide to Library Research. His 41-page article (“The Peloponnesian War and the Future of Reference, Cataloging, and Scholarship in Research Libraries,” written in 2007) draws from the book to offer an insider’s view of how first-rate reference services can work in almost any setting. There is plenty here for us to absorb as we consider what we should be providing through learning opportunities targeted at library staff as well as at library members and guests.
Although the article is directed toward staff and students in an academic library setting, the basic procedures obviously remain useful within public library settings as well. He discusses how encyclopedia articles, through references at the end of those pieces, can help students and other information seekers locate standard works on a topic. He discusses the resources available through online public access catalog subject searching; mentions how the often overlooked printed volumes which form Library of Congress Subject Headings can lead to even more resources; and continues with demonstrations of how searching for journal articles not only provides great source materials but leads to additional finely targeted resources in the form of citations at the end of those articles. Again, there is nothing here that could not be used just as effectively through an online reference session if both parties have access to collections which support the reference work underway.
In two other articles (“Teaching Library of Congress Subject Headings,” published in 2000 in Cataloging & Classification Quarterly, and “Why LC Subject Headings Are More Important Than Ever,” published three years later in American Libraries), he focuses on a very specific part of the process and offers easy-to-learn tips and tricks which assist us in the reference and research process. His theme is readily identifiable: libraries offer wonderful resources for those in search of information, but library staff does not always do a great job at making library users aware of those resources.
Library of Congress Subject Headings, Mann maintains, is “one of the most valuable conceptual tools a researcher can have,” but “it must be taught, explained, and exemplified by librarians” (Mann, 2000, p. 117), and that is a lesson not to be ignored by any of us in our role of trainer-teacher-learner. “Teaching library research without LCSH is like teaching medicine without anatomy,” he adds (p. 118).
A noteworthy part of all Mann’s writing is his consistent pattern of avoiding either-or solutions. He does not overtly choose one method for assisting information seekers. Instead, he offers a variety of options in an attempt to provide the best assistance he is capable of offering. In the process of working alongside him through the material he has published, we have the opportunity to learn more by example. Through this process, we move a little closer to the level of achievement he has reached—to the benefit of those we serve.

Deputy State Librarian Stacey Aldrich and Metropolitan Cooperative Library System Executive Director Rosario Garza were not the only people talking about the future of reference when they offered a “Statewide Reference for Tomorrow” session during the California Library Association conference in San Jose a few days ago. Everyone seemed to have their own ideas of where libraries and reference are—or are not—going, and the opinions remain intriguing for those involved in training-teaching-learning.
Some, including Aldrich, suggest that the word “reference” needs to be replaced by more contemporary terminology promoting information retrieval. Others say that library staff members need to acknowledge that large numbers of library members and guests are fully capable of satisfying their information needs without assistance and have even come to the conclusion that it is a weird idea that they would go into a library to ask someone a question.
Yet another model, which is finding its way into academic libraries but not yet receiving much attention in public libraries, is the information commons where reference, collections, and technology come together in a very creative hybrid as described in works by Donald Beagle and others; examples here in the San Francisco Bay Area include the newly opened Learning Commons facility on the Santa Clara University campus. Additional resources are available on the California State Library website, including sections on statewide reference and how Californians are finding and using information.
While nothing ever remains the same, it is hard to agree with those at one extreme end of the conversation who believe that library reference is dead. Infopeople has consistently drawn library staff throughout the state to workshops including Mary Ross’s reference interview sessions, Joe Barker’s onsite and online reference classes, and Sarah Houghton-Jan’s online reference sources workshops. The Book a Librarian program which Marc Webb started at the San Francisco Public Library last year and which he is now continuing with Oakland Public Library is popular with library members and guests. And first-rate Library and Information Science programs such as the one offered through the University of North Texas work their students through incredible numbers of resources drawn from highly detailed lists of resources to prepare them for what they may face in the contemporary onsite-online library workplace where reference questions are increasingly complex and challenging.
All of this provides tremendous food for thought for anyone organizing library staff training programs designed to help employees meet the challenges of the contemporary workplace. We have no disagreements about the need for customer service sessions, management and leadership training, and computer software and technology updates so we are not left behind by the rapid pace of change. But when it comes to what we need to know about reference and information retrieval, we are confronted with basic issues which reach the heart of what it is that libraries do and are expected to do to meet the needs of the millions of people who still turn to them for service.
Next: Thoughts From a Library of Congress Reference Librarian

Daniel Pink, best-selling author of A Whole New Mind, takes us on a tour through the world of innovation, competition, and the changing nature of work while entertaining and challenging us. Charting the rise of right-brain thinking in modern economies, he outlines six abilities individuals and organizations must master in an outsourced and automated world.
This is a podcast version of the talk Pink gave as part of the Master Speaker series at the California Library Association’s annual conference on Nov 15, 2008 in San Jose.

If good things really do come in small packages, attendees at the California Library Association 2008 Conference and Exhibition in San Jose are going to find plenty of treasures through the Infopeople Mini-Demo sessions which begin this evening and continue through Sunday afternoon (November 16, 2008).
While many of us extol the virtues of learning sessions which include preparatory time and extensive follow-up, we also find a great deal of charm and useful information in these brief sessions which bring trainers and learners together for 10-minute tip-laden teasers that cover a variety of topics. It’s an enticing format for trainers and learners alike, and gives all of us food for thought in how we approach our own training-teaching-learning experiences.
With more than four dozen time slots filled with mini-demos and more than two dozen presenters scheduled, there is something for nearly everyone working in libraries. Trainers will see plenty of examples of how to break their material into concise and effective sessions from Infopeople presenters including Linda Demmers, Beth Gallaway; Cheryl Gould; George Needham and Joan Frye Williams; and Mary Ross as well as State Librarian Susan Hildreth and Deputy State Librarian Stacey Aldrich. Learners, at the same time, will be able to pick and choose from a variety of topics including spontaneous programming; planning book clubs; using library mashups; what open source software can offer libraries; bringing creativity to the workplace; creating exciting and memorable user experiences with minimal expenditures; and strategic positions for libraries in today’s changing environment.
Those of us used to much more in-depth presentations stand to learn a lot from these sessions, and the sessions promise to be fun as well. All events will be held in Infopeople’s space with the Exhibitors’ Area (Booths 410, 411, and 511).

John Ward, familiar to longtime Infoblog readers from previous postings about his work, wants to leave us with a vision. And if you’re in San Jose this weekend for Infopeople “Master Speaker” series events at the California Library Association 2008 Conference and Exhibition, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to share and help construct that vision.
Ward, as a graphic facilitator, visualizes meetings and other events—but not in a text-based way: “I won’t be interacting with the speaker or the audience. I’ll be listening hard, and whenever I hear anything important come down, I’ll find a few words and an image and get it up on the wall…It’s not a recording process, it’s a capturing process,” he explained.
What Ward and other graphic facilitators capture in real time are simple, memorable images and a few key words. Combining these simple elements, they produce a finished mural on paper. Digital copies are made accessible to participants and serve to create a visual reminder of events which otherwise might quickly fade from memory.
The process will be on display to conference attendees throughout the weekend. Ward himself will provide a brief explanation of how the process works in a session which begins on Saturday, November 15, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. in the San Jose Conference Center, Ballroom A, and will invite attendees to join him in graphically recording what they are experiencing. The mural-in-progress will remain on display for more contributions, and additional murals will be created by Ward as he captures presentations by Daniel Pink Saturday afternoon and William Crossman Sunday afternoon.
What attendees will be left with is a cohesive exercise in creatively combining words and imagery as they interact with Ward and two master speakers whose presentations themselves are meant to inspire us all to think beyond the constraints which we usually create for ourselves. And for those of us who are involved in training-teaching-learning—as most of us working in or around libraries these days are—what could be better?

If we are looking for permission to be creative, have fun, and tell stories, we don’t need to look much beyond Daniel Pink and his popular nonfiction book A Whole New Mind. And if we want to spend a little time face to face with him, we won’t need to look much farther than San Jose this weekend when he appears as one of the presenters in the Infopeople “Master Speaker” series.
Pink will be onsite at the California Library Association 2008 Conference and Exhibition signing copies of the book and talking about the idea of developing a whole new mind as well as how the book itself was developed.
Although the author himself, in a conversation this afternoon, described the 2005 release as “a book about business…and economics,” many of us have appreciated how far he goes in describing what he sees as the new essential skills—moving from left-brain to right-brain thinking—which lead us toward success in many of our endeavors: engaging our senses through design and story; developing a sense of invention and big-picture thinking while incorporating empathy into everything we do; incorporating humor and laughter into our work; and recognizing the importance of meaning in our day-to-day activities.
As he guides us through the process of changing the way we work and think, he enthusiastically acknowledges what this can and will mean for those who work in libraries: “Libraries in general have to do some rethinking about what their role is. At one point, they were repositories for information. That monopoly has been broken. They have to do things that are more high concept and more high touch” and ask questions including, “how do you serve your patrons in ways that delight them and surprise them?
“It requires a different set of skills,” he continued, and “in some ways, this can return libraries to their first principles: they’ve always been great civic organizations…They’re situated to democratize society…to become places where they (library users) can talk about their ideas.”
Pink, in his work and in his upcoming presentation, challenges us to push ourselves beyond the limit which we set and inhabit, and he infuses his work with plenty of examples to lead us toward that goal. Those unfamiliar with the book will find excerpts online, and those of us lucky enough to be in San Jose this weekend will find him on stage in what promises to be an engaging opportunity to hear him speak and respond to questions from his audience.
Pink’s CLA/Infopeople presentation is scheduled for Saturday, November 15, 2008 from 2:15-3:30 p.m. in the San Jose Conference Center, Ballroom A. He will be available in the Infopeople section of the Exhibitors’ Area (Booths 410, 411, and 511) that afternoon from 1 – 2 pm to sign copies of his book.

Philosopher-futurist-professor William Crossman believes that reading and writing will be lost skills by the middle of this century, and he’s going to be at the California Library Association 2008 Conference and Exhibition in San Jose next month talking about and signing copies of the book which he wrote to support that thesis.
“I think by 2050 we’re going to recreate the worldwide oral culture driven by talking computers,” the Founder/Director of the CompSpeak 2050 Institute for the Study of Talking Computers and Oral Cultures said during a conversation we had this week. “This might scare people, but actually we’re talking about something very positive: we’re democratizing the flow of information worldwide. We’re erasing the digital divide worldwide—even in the electronically underdeveloped countries—to access to the Internet…I think this is going to change every aspect of human society and interaction—education, business, international relations, politics, the arts, and even human consciousness itself—our brains.”
As a presenter in the Infopeople “Master Speaker” series, Crossman says he is looking forward to discussing his ideas with CLA conference attendees. He will also be talking about the critically important role he believes librarians will play during the transition from reading and writing to a world in which voice-in/voice-out computing—talking computers—will bring a new form of literacy to much larger numbers of people throughout the world.
The rapid change, he suggests in Vivo [Voice-In/Voice-Out]: The Coming Age of Talking Computers, is no different than any other shift from an outmoded technology—in this case, the use of the written word as a technology to preserve and provide access to information—to something which more effectively meets the needs of those who use(d) it.
Librarians, he predicts, will play a key role in helping people make the transition from reading-writing to the VIVO world while “remaining as the guardians of information….there needs to be a bridge that helps people walk into the oral culture. That means helping them develop the skills and accessing the information which, more and more, you’ll be able to access by all-sensory skills.”
Crossman’s CLA/Infopeople presentation, “The Coming Age of Talking Computers: Implications for Culture, Democracy, and Social Change, is scheduled for Sunday, November 16, 2008 from 3:15-4:30 p.m. in the San Jose Conference Center, Ballroom A. He will be available in the Infopeople section of the Exhibitors’ Area (Booths 410, 411, and 511) that afternoon from 2 – 3 pm to sign copies of his book.

Congratulations to our creative, innovative and inspiring leader, Holly Hinman, who was named CLA’s Member of the Year!
If you missed the award ceremony, don’t worry. We’re working on making a video available online (perhaps as an archived webcast!) of Holly receiving the award and her acceptance speech. Stand by!