Losing Your Right Hand

What does it feel like to lose your right hand? I mean, my right hand at work. My assistant has been on medical leave since May 18 and that doesn't sound like a big deal. Except that I only have two employees besides me and about 5 student assistants.

I have been relearning how to do things I gratefully forgot, like how to add new patrons, how to fix circulation issues, remembering to put equipment in places and deliver films, checking on a multitude of little details that always needs to be checked before a new quarter starts, employee timesheets, reconciling a money drawer, etc. The list goes on.

That's in addition to my own usual duties and projects, like budgets, periodical renewals, collection development, new course management materials, etc. It takes one little situation to make you appreciate when you have a well-oiled machine running. When a part is gone, the whole thing just seems to fall apart. For us, running smoothly and collaboratively has been the key to our success with such a small staff.

Actually, I am proud of myself - no major crises, no major snafus. I have learned that I hate to reconcile a money drawer and deadlines always exist.

But I got to go back to my roots, so to speak, and do some cataloging functions, which I always enjoyed and clean out some clutter.

Luckily, it sounds as though there is daylight showing. My assistant might get to return part-time soon. And that will be a day for celebration. Hallelujah!!!

The dog ate my homework

One of the more interesting posts in my bloglines account this morning was from Wired Campus: 'The Computer Ate My Homework': How to Detect Fake Techno-Excuses. It's a report on a new web site, Corrupted-Files.com, that will (for a price) create a corrupted file for students to submit to instructors. Instead of missing a deadline or imagining an excuse, this web site enables purchasers to turn in that assignment in a completely unreadable format.

Q: Is this cheating?

A: It's a fine line… It's basically just a good excuse vs. outright cheating but even though you are handing in your own work, you are getting an unfair advantage so by that definition, yes you are cheating. Please ask your professors for an extension before you use a corrupted file. This is meant to be used as a last resort, a one time thing, not a crutch! Everyone is entitled to a second chance, but not a third. - Corrupted Files.com, FAQ's Page

Putting aside for a minute the interesting ethics of the FAQ's page and tentative contact information site disclaimer, the Wired Campus post and it's subsequent comments make good points regarding plagiarism and cheating. I particularly enjoyed the comment from a user who puts this statement in his/her syllabus: "Any corrupted files are YOUR responsibility. Check your outbox after you send the file, open the attachment. Any files I cannot open will receive a zero." Plain, simple, to the point.

The site offers a wide variety of customized corrupted files (the list is rather extensive) with a 12 hours turn-around and 100% satisfaction guaranteed; if you have that much time, just finish the assignment.

CMCIG Workshop: Presentation links

The spring CMCIG workshop featured two presentations prepared and delivered using the popular LibGuides "knowledge sharing system;" Bowling Green State University and Ashland University. By popular demand, and as promised, this post highlights links to both presentations.

Time for questions was brief; please feel free to contact presenters individually for more information or to further discuss their topic.

Kathy Yoder, BGSU
New Books in the CMC
Realigning the CMC with New Titles
and New Presentation of the Collection

Dr. Deanna Romano, Ashland University
Diane Schrecker, Ashland University
Realigning Teacher Education:
Using Web 2.0 Technologies to Meet 21st Century Skills

This information was originally posted on the CMCIG blog: Workshop Presentation Links.

CMCIG Workshop Photos

CMCIG Workshop: Ready to go

I know, the business card looks suspiciously familiar. This is not another post about an AU LibGuides presentation, though in a way it could be. Finishing touches on Friday's CMCIG Spring Workshop presentation Realigning Teacher Education were made yesterday. As with the ACRL poster session, some kind of token handout with our presentation URL and contact information is necessary. I have IRC pens for each attendee, so creating a card and attaching it to the pen seemed a quick and easy solution.


Why does it look like a LibGuide? After Deanna mentioned her strong aversion to PowerPoint, the presentation tool we selected was ... LibGuides. As co-editors we were able to work independently and collaboratively, thus using a web 2.0 tool, to discuss web 2.0 technologies. The presentation is a timely addition to our growing LibGuides arsenal and includes education, library, and technology resources for interested patrons.

For the first time I incorporated an RSS feed into a LibGuide, though I am a bit frustrated by only being able to use one proxy address. I wanted to create an Ebsco database alert about RSS feeds to demonstrate how users can keep track of desired search strategies and to present articles about using RSS feeds in education. The feed was easy to create and adding the AU proxy for off-campus database access took only a click of the mouse; not being able to use an OhioLINK proxy (allowing OhioLINK members to view the feed) was problematic. I had to settle for advising attendees the alerts would not work off-campus for non-AU users. All of the additional resources will be accessible with OhioLINK authentication.

I'm always learning something new when creating a LibGuide, this time was no different. I discovered you can manipulate the size of a tab. Our presentation includes twelve tabs displayed in two rows. To make the tabs fit on the page, I added html coding for a space (nbsp;) behind different titles and was able to finagle how they displayed. Since we have had luck adding that same code into a box title, it was worth trying.

As to the presentation guide, Deanna mentioned we have over three hours of information to present during a forty-five minute session. We are meeting via yahoo IM later this week to finalize - and tweak - the guide and plan.

2009 CMCIG Workshop @ AU

If you are attending the CMCIG spring workshop, Realigning the CMC to the Governor’s Pre K – 12 Education Plan,21st Century Skills, and Discovery Learning, at Ashland University this Friday, here are a few informational links including directions to Ashland, location of the Dwight Schar College of Education, and campus parking maps.

• Local Area Hotel List
• Directions to Ashland University
• Mapquest Map and Driving Directions
• Campus Map (PDF)
• Ashland University Parking Map

Dwight Schar College of Education is building #19 on the campus map; please note the academic corridor in front of this building is a closed walkway. Enter using the main doors and Ronk auditorium is located behind the main staircase in the vestibule.

Parking is available in Lot B, across the street from the senior apartments and COE.

"If you continue down King Road and take a left turn on to Samaritan Avenue, there is a large parking lot, Lot B, on your right. There are no visitor parking signs in this lot, but the lot is open to visitor parking. " -- Parking Lots on Campus

General Ashland University resources:

• Ashland University
• Dwight Schar College of Education
• Ashland University Library
• Instructional Resource Center

Teaching and playing to learn

Over the last few days I have been collaborating with Dr. Deanna Romano, Ashland University Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, Dwight Schar College of Education, on a presentation scheduled for next Friday, the 2009 CMCIG workshop. Our presentation, a work in progress titled Realigning Teacher Education Using Web 2.0 Technologies to Meet 21st Century Skills, will focus extensively on technologies currently being taught in EDCI 232/505 Introduction to the Principles of Instructional Technology.

I have had opportunity teach this course as an adjunct for the COE and appreciate each week brings a different technology to the forefront that may be used in the classroom. I get to refresh and polish my technology skills and theorize the same for the Instructional Resource Center. Concepts we are practicing, and in some cases introducing, to pre-service teachers may often be applied to libraries; students of all ages expect us to be if not proficient, at least have a rudimentary knowledge, of 2.0 technologies they are using at a blazing speed.

And, to be honest, it gives me the chance to play to learn. My tools of choice this week were Windows Movie Maker and YouTube. I spent time working with my new toy, a shiny new HP laptop, pulling together free, accessible resources to create a short library video. With the exception of wanting to "tweak" the sound at the beginning of the presentation, it is difficult to hear, I am pleased with the end result.

Revisiting ACRL 2009

While unloading my 2009 ACRL green bag Friday morning I realized that while I blogged about my poster, I had not discussed any sessions attended. Well that instance and, I am chagrined to acknowledge, an email from a friend asking me how I liked the ACRL conference; he read the poster session blog post but didn't see anything about the conference. Let me remedy the oversight!

First things first, let's talk about the bag. There was a lot of discussion and dissing of the green ACRL/EBSCO bat. Put me on the plus side; I like the bag from this conference. I find it just the right size because I cannot overload it and can immediately reach inside for what I need. No, it did not have pockets or any other bag amenities. But to be honest I rarely carry the conference bag at the conference, I have my own bag fulfilling that function. I use the conference bags at home and work. It was certainly a step up from the neon orange bag at ALA last summer.

New to me, Cyber Zed Shed sessions soon became my favorite conference function. At twenty minutes, fifteen to present and five for questions, they allowed speakers to present their information quickly and concisely and provided opportunity for audience questions. I missed the afternoon Zed Sheds do to the poster sessions, but the crowds seemed to increase, an illustrating the popularity of these presentations.

• iMacros, Todd Quinn, Northern State University
  This may be more than I am able to handle without opportunity to practice first. Check out his LibGuide for more information on the topic.
• Sprout, Memo Cordova, Boise State University
  Though Sprout has now moved to a fee based service, users are able to create three widgets. Cordova has a blog with more information insight from the conference.
• Library Subject Guide Widgets, Michael DeMars, California State U. Fullerton
  Great ideas for subject library guides
• LibStats, Jason Coleman, Danielle Theiss-White, Melia Erin Fritch, and Laura Bonella, K-State Libraries
  Reference desk statistics and google apps; for more information visit their google apps page complete with presentations

The only thing I found missing from this ACRL conference (and the one prior) was information for education librarians beyond ERIC, instruction and curriculum materials. As an education liaison and curriculum librarian managing a materials center supporting children's literature courses, I have a vested interest in juvenile collections and collection development. For that reason, I often find ALA Annual, with its plethora of public and school library sessions, more beneficial. This ACRL conference was better than the last one I attended, I will look forward to Philadelphia in 2011.

Now, I can take one more thing out of my ACRL bag!

2009 EduComm Conference

EduComm 2009 Helps Higher Education Institutions Compete for the Best and the Brightest Students

Powerhouse keynote presentations delve into cutting-edge technologies such as cloud computing, sustainability, social networking, and technology-based best business practices

NORWALK, Conn., April 9, 2009 – Student enrollment is declining, endowments have dried up, Alumni donations are in the tank, so how’s a higher education institution to stay afloat? Integrating innovative technologies that both cut costs and attract top-notch student talent ensures that high school students are Tweeting positively about your school. EduComm (http://educommconference.com/) provides the “how to get there” for education executives.

Technology futurist George Gilder, New York Times columnist and best-selling author David Pogue, a panel on cloud computing with executives from AT&T, Amazon, Cisco, Google, IBM and Microsoft, a performance by School House Rock creators, as well as education industry experts from Crestron, E&I Cooperative Purchasing and Stamats will lead a power-packed three-day professional program.

During EduComm, top-tier executives and managers from college campuses around the nation will partake in stimulating intellectual debate on how emerging technologies are transforming todays—and tomorrow's—college campuses while they enjoy the breathtaking views of the Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes Resort. EduComm is being held there June 16-18, 2009.

“This year we are helping higher education executives learn about cutting-edge technologies and smart business practices, while providing a little entertainment,” said Tim Goral, editor-in-chief of University Business and program chair for EduComm.

The first two days of the conference will offer attendees entertainment in the form of performance-enhanced luncheons. The Emmy award-winning creators of Schoolhouse Rock will perform a Schoolhouse Rock reunion concert enlisting music and song to share lessons they have learned about using new media with the digital generation. On the second day, David Pogue will use tech-themed parodies of popular songs, jokes and magic to turn insights about the latest social media and tech trends in education into laugh-out-loud entertainment.

Additionally, Gary Wilson of E&I Cooperative Purchasing, Jeffrey Singer of Crestron and Brenda Harms of Stamats will participate in a panel to discuss what the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act means to higher education and the strategies that institutions can use to weather the economic storm.

“Colleges and Universities need to attract top notch talent, both in the way of student leaders and staff,” claims Goral. “Schools that remain behind on technology use, from managing business practices, to freeing up professor time, to preparing students for great careers are doing everyone a disservice, especially themselves. With the advent of Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube, students are sharing information at lightning speed and the power of a school that is “the buzz” is profound.” EduComm programming tracks are made up of Technology in the Classroom & Around the Campus, Facilities Design & System Support, Internet & Social Media, and Strategies for Success.

More About Educomm

EduComm is the only national technology management conference focused on connecting higher education with AV and IT technology to enhance the classroom experience. From keynote addresses and dynamic presentations to hands-on sessions and professional workshops, EduComm's goal is to help develop successful strategies for integrating AV and IT, make wise purchasing decisions, and provide solutions for managing the training and support functions in higher education facilities. For more information visit EduComm online at http://educommconference.com or e-mail info@educommconference.com.

OLSSI 2009

OLSSI 2009 : The Ohio Library Support Staff Institute

Denison Univiversity, Granville, OH

August 2 - 4, 2009

The Ohio Library Support Staff Institute, has opened registration for OLSSI 2009!

We’ve added a discounted Early Bird Registration Rate of $200 until May 15th. And our scholarship contest is still open for first-time attendees!http://www.olssi.org/

• Descriptions: http://www.olssi.org/index_files/Page727.htm
• Registration Form: http://www.olssi.org/index_files/Page736.htm
• Scholarships: http://www.olssi.org/index_files/Page834.htm

For more information, contact Michael Bradshaw at OLSSI.

CMCIG Spring Workshop 2009

Realigning the CMC to the Governor’s
Pre K – 12 Education Plan
21st Century Skills, and Discovery Learning

Friday, May 15, 2009
8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Ronk Lecture Hall # 138
Dwight Schar College of Education
Ashland University, Ashland, OH 44805

This workshop will feature Lou Staffilino, Associate Superintendent, ODE – presenting the Governor’s Pre K-12 education plan with time for questions and answers.

Other sessions will include:

• Realigning Science Instruction using Science Materials by FOSS and Delta Education
• Realigning Math Instruction using Everyday Mathematics by Wright Group McGraw Hill
• Realigning Teacher Education using 2.0 Technologies to meet 21st Century Skills
• Realigning the CMC with New Titles and New Presentation of the Collection

Registration:
ALAO Members $30.00
Non-Members $60.00

Registration deadline: May 8, 2009
No refunds after: May 11, 2009

Registration includes continental breakfast and lunch.

Registration forms are available @ http://library.centralstate.edu/

Please make checks payable to ALAO and mail with a copy of the registration to:

A. Carolyn Sanders
P.O. Box 1006
Hallie Q. Brown Memorial Library
Central State University
Wilberforce, Ohio 45384