03.20.08
Of Unconferences and other thoughts
I attended my first Unconference (and the first one in Kansas) yesterday. It was a really great experience. Interesting, engaging, interactive, and informative. All the things you hope for in a workshop/conference/etc. Of course, the fact that it was free and practically in my back yard didn’t hurt either. I was intrigued by the whole concept when I was asked to participate in the planning group. And I’m glad that I got to participate. If you ever see have a chance to attend an unconference, I highly recommend it.
This got me thinking about conferences in general. Generally we are encouraged to attend conferences for professional development, networking, and a variety of other reasons. But I don’t always walk away feeling that I got much for my money (or my library’s money if they are footing the bill). Are the conference planners really interested in what we want? Do they read the comments? Or are librarians just too nice to express dissatisfaction? Now this doesn’t happen all the time fortunately. But there have been occasions when I really have to wonder “why bother” when it seems to be the same stuff rehashed from the other 3 conferences I just attended. (Yes, I pretty lucky that I do get to go to things fairly often. Although 3 is an arbitrary number here.)
There were several things that I really liked about yesterday.
*It was nice that the topics for discussion were driven by the people who attended. So we got to talk about stuff that really mattered to us in our jobs or things that we were wondering about in regards to other people’s jobs. There was no formal program put out ahead of time.
*The discussions were timely. As someone pointed out, some conferences require proposals almost two years ahead of the actual conference. No wonder it sometimes feel like old news by the time you get to the actual date. What we talked about was what we were dealing with right now or facing in the near future.
*Not too much structure. But just enough. While there was no formal program, there was a schedule to help keep things on track. While I wouldn’t necessarily want days of this, it was nice for a change.
*I loved the fact that everyone was engaged in the discussions. Personally, after three days of being talked at in most conference settings, I’m bored (unless the speaker is really dynamic). And there isn’t always time to really ask questions and share information. This was what the whole day was about yesterday. And I came away with some interesting ideas to talk about with my colleagues.
I would definitely attend something like this again. Hopefully this will become a yearly event in KS.
Reader’s Advisor Online
As a new librarian, it is often difficult to start a new job, learn the culture, and stay on top of everything “library”…knowledge needed especially for those of us staffing the Reference Desk. I spend a lot of time scanning blogs, subscribing to hundreds of feeds via Bloglines, to get as much information as I can so I am ready when that question comes from a library user. To make this task easier I found Reader’s Advisor Online, originating from Libraries Unlimited Genreflecting series. Not only do the multiple authors make known some of the best resources and reads out there, but there is a “weekly update, from a scan of more than 100 blogs, newsletters, magazines, newspapers and television” for those of us too short on time to scan everything ourselves. Check it out! Where do you like to look for current information pertinent to libraries and their users?
Introducing….
Now that I’ve finished my exams and final papers for my first semester of grad school, please allow me to introduce myself. . .
I’m the Sidetracked Student, a relatively new MLIS student. I’m a non-traditional, part-time student who will be posting to this blog about life in grad school by a mature student with a full time job, three kids and way too much to do.
I think that my personal statement for my grad school application tells who I am and why I’m doing this, so I’ll just point you to my portfolio website should you be interested.
Of course, I broke the first rule of applying to library school by declaring my love of books, reading and libraries in the first paragraph. I did, however, get accepted so I’m left to wonder if it was my undergrad grades, outstanding recommendations or stunning prose which lead to my acceptance. After my interacting with some of my fellow students, I’m inclined to believe that one’s ability to pay tuition is the key factor.
I hope to write regularly and look forward to participating in this blog.
