I thought it might be fitting to end the Happy Birthday celebrations this week with a link (right here? from the blog?) to a clandestine view of the new WebJunction home page. Cleverly titled “sneaky peeky” this is the view that WJ staff have themselves been playing with in our “sandbox” for the last couple of weeks. It’s not nearly ready for beta release yet, but as you can see, My WebJunction is right there at the top of the page, along with our fancy new brand, just waiting for me/you/us to populate it with whatever i/you/we care about. It’s gonna be rockin’ and we can’t wait to start evolving this with more than just a few of us with our eyes on it.

Next week we get together with all of our current community partners for some good old fashioned f2f training, and this will be our first chance to show off and gather input on the new system with people outside of the WJ staff. Next? Our WJ Advocates will get a sneak peek and they’ll tell us what they think. Then? Well, by that time I think we’ll all be ready for a broader audience. And that’s where we all get to tell each other what we think. And it will grow from there.

Stay tuned…

I admit it. I like shoes. They’re fun. It’s one of my little things that keeps me going - when otherwise things might feel a little blah, a cute pair of shoes (on me or someone else) literally makes my day. Voila!

Personal faves from around the office? Kathleen (yellow sling-backs or teal clogs, I can’t decide). Jennifer (the ones that go perfectly with the plaids!) Dave (the old ones). Rachel (black sandals or red patten flats, I can’t decide). Michael (I can’t decide). Laura (plum ankle straps, hands down).

For WebJunction’s birthday, I decided to highlight my five favorite WebJunction moments *that have to do with shoes*. Whatever does this have to do with supporting libraries, you ask? Read on…

1. The photo you see here is me, Rachel, and Laura from the audience at CIL 2007. We were listening to the librarian from the National Geographic Society library talk about some cool 2.0 stuff they were doing with their intranet. Thanks to Rachel, we visited their library later that day.

2. This photo gives you a glimpse of one of our card-carrying shoe-lovers here around the office, and one of the 365 Days at WJ set that we started last year (before we started really planning for the new WJ in earnest, which is why we haven’t kept it up…shame on us!)

3. On the way to Midwinter Meeting in San Antonio 2006 I found myself without anything to wear but tennis shoes because my luggage had been lost on the way by United. Luckily, the conference center was practically attached to a mall and I was able to get some cute metallic silver flats to wear to my fancy dinner with Patrick Hogan. These shoes remind me of the shoes Sharon Streams is wearing this very minute! (This is also the blog post where I suggest that OCLC pick up Library Thing. Hmmm.)

4. When visiting the bay area just before the Online Community Uncoference in 2007, I sent a tweet about a cute pair of shoes I’d just bought. Colleague Dave Ungar (located in Dublin) picked it up and asked for a picture, which I posted on flickr. Several days later, our online exchange culminated in a spoof on some secret brand stuff another colleague had going on at work. You cannot hide on the tubes!

5. Finally, Michael Porter blogs his first (or was it second?) post at BlogJunction after accepting a transfer here from OCLC Western. In the post, libraryman admits to having purchased shoes from his WebJunction desk’s internet connection. It was after-hours, so we gave him a pass, but it brings me to my point about what any of this has to do with libraries…

We all work in or around libraries. We often struggle through the same challenges and share similar joys or successes. But we often don’t know each other personally, mainly because we work in diverse locations, and not just geographically. We can get together at library conferences, meetings, trainings, workshops, or other convenes, but even that’s limited by our niche in the library space, or our availability to physically get together; it’s never all of us.

Connecting online is relatively new to our profession, considering our extremely long history of shared professional practice. But by now most of us have felt the power of making those connections. Together we support and rely on one another, on everything from printers to politics. Once you’re online (not under-estimating how difficult that can still be) it’s possible to cross the boundaries that typically keep us from connecting with one another.

One key to making meaningful connections possible online has been revealing who we are as the people behind the text and even the avatars. When we open up and talk about otherwise superfluous things like shoes, we show that we are real people, and we build trust and connections that support the rest of our work, and perhaps more importantly, connections that will likely last far beyond our day jobs, whatever they be.

Happy Birthday WebJunction. Here’s to many more…

That’s why we thought it might be worthwhile to surface a special offer from Drexel University Online for WebJunction members – a 20% tuition savings on a nationally ranked M.S. in Library and Information Science, M.S. in Information Systems, and Post-Masters Certificate of Advanced Studies in Information Science and Technology. Heck, if this whole library gig is getting tiresome, WJ members may also qualify for 10-25% discounts on other Drexel online programs in psychology, education, nursing, and a variety of other fields.

Drexel is ranked as one of “America’s Best Graduate Schools” by US News and World Report and their iSchool provides quality education in a flexible learning environment delivered fully online. They currently host The Internet Public Library, a training ground for many of the nation’s budding reference librarians. I really enjoyed the quarter I worked on the IPL and learned a lot (go ahead, ask me about Ford F100 power steering or Famous people from New Jersey!).

The Fall quarter deadline is Sept. 1, 2008 and you can apply online.

The spotlight article showcases efforts to connect with a student population that has grown up with the web. Del.ico.us tagging, online courses, Flickr accounts, digital “Read” posters, a blog, and a vodcasts are all part of the mix.

The Web 2.0 recipe du jour seems to demand online video. Depending on the site, that can be a blessing or a curse. Over the past year, I’ve worked through a number of hit and miss library-specific YouTube offerings. But this fun effort by Harper College definitely hits—it’s amusing, informative, and well produced, without seeming over-the-top or slick. If your library is thinking about trying out video, Harper is a good example to emulate.There’s much more in the spotlight article, so be sure to give it a read.

In my del.icio.us resources the sites I designated as training are technology based, but not all strictly about technology. The most popular one is “Jakob Nielson on Usability and Web Page Design”, with over 6400 members sharing his site on web design as of December 2007; his current article talks about what makes a great Intranet. The Ohio Library Council has a program, Ohio Reference Excellence, which has a fantastic site about Library Reference (including a new section on Virtual Reference), Customer Service and Marketing skills. It only has 9 members, but I strongly recommend it as the best free library training site on the Internet. Educause is a news clipping service focusing on stories about education and technology, and has 600+ member sharing it. Our own Webjunction.org, is currently saved by 218 people, up from 157 in August 07!

In my book I cite two books that are not library, but people focused. Skills in these two books, when used in training, offer solid grounding in people and organizational skills. In my Librarything resources the highest shared resource is “7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” shared by 3100+ members with 23 reviews, up from 2500+ with 15 reviews in August. Another book, “The Greatest Salesman In the World”, is shared by 342 members, up from 270. Besides having great content, these books are also widely available, as opposed to books from our industry, which, even in a large consortia like SHPL belongs to, are often hard to get a hold of. Plus they’re expensive.

The most popular Library-focused one, with 103 members sharing, up from 90 in August is Rachel Singer Gordon’s “The Nextgen Librarian’s Survival Guide”, mentioned in the webinar. It contains things they won’t necessarily teach you in library school!

If you’ve got favorite web sites or books that help in training, please share them in a comment!

Next week, I’ll be blogging on New Year’s Resolution Resources on building up your body (language), reducing clutter, dealing with noise and handling conflict.

In honor of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, I’d like to refer you to the chapter of my book that deals with fighting Intolerance, another ally of Ignorance.

Enjoy the day off!

-Ed Rossman, Interim Branch Manager for the Bertram Woods branch of the Shaker Heights Public Library and author of Castles Against Ignorance: How to Make Libraries Great Educational Environments

Click here to access an archive of Ed’s webinar and a PDF of the slides he used.

The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County is encouraging their library staff to Become Champions of Learning this week by participating in ELW. Proposed activities for the week include highlighting learning opportunities and tips for staff in daily email messages, surveying staff on training they would like to have available in the coming year and prizes for participants.

You don’t need to be a member of ASTD to participate in ELW. Even if your library is not taking part in ELW this year, there are plenty of occasions to provide year-round learning opportunities for staff. The following tips and resources can give you some ideas for planning your own ELW and making workplace learning a part of your ongoing staff development initiatives. We look forward to recognizing ELW again next year and sharing some of your stories.

If your library is participating in ELW this week, we encourage you to share your story by commenting to this post or on our Community Discussion Boards.

Resources for Getting Started with Employee Learning Week

• ELW Fact Sheet
• ASTD sponsored events, background and FAQs
• Marketing Materials
• Getting Involved with ELW

Suggested Activities for ELW

• Introduce new learning opportunities during the week
• Communicate learning and development tips to your workforce each day of the week
• Institute an employee development recognition event to recognize individuals
• Host a brown bag lunch where staff can share expertise around a certain topic
• Implement a wiki page for staff to share knowledge and best practices around the workplace
• Plan a Staff Development Day or mini-conference for library staff

Planning for Staff Training Initiatives

• Help employees create individual development plans to increase and enhance their skills departments in your organization
• Creating a Training Program in Your Local Library
• Six Components to Consider When Developing a Staff Training Program
• Plan for Training
• WebJunction’s Blended Learning page offers tips, best practice and case studies from libraries that are blending face-to-face instruction with online training
• Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki - Staff Training

Resources for Year-Round Learning

• WebJunction Webinars & Archives
• Personal Learning Environments for Library Staff
• WebJunction Online Course Catalog
• Weekly Tips
• E-Learning Institute – resources for managers, trainers and learners who are engaging in online learning

If you can ‘copy and paste’ you can easily build your own interactive PLE to help manage and revitalize your learning.

I’m excited to share what’s worked for me personally, but as a public library trainer I’m really thrilled to showcase a concept so simple that helps staff fulfill their individual learning goals on their own terms - in minutes at a time. I’m also looking forward to hearing your ideas on the Personal Learning Environment concept via the chat feature of the webinar and here in comments.

Please join me and the WebJunction Learning Team for Start You Up! The Personal Learning Experience for Library Staff and other Busy Professionals on December 5th, 11 AM - 12 PM PT / 2 - 3 PM ET.

Hope to see you then!

Marianne Lenox
Staff Training and Development Coordinator
Huntsville - Madison County Public Library

I attended two sessions this week that captured this spirit of discovery through play - Erica Reynolds’s presentation on library website redesign, Lessons from 4000 years of art and Jenny Levine’s talk on Games, Learning & Libraries.

Inspired by a visit to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, MO, Erica saw how the way we experience art in a museum can inform the way we present information on the web. Having recently led the complete revamping of the Johnson County Public Library site (which is definitely worth a peek), Erica drew parallels from her experience at the museum and came up with twelve lessons for guiding designs that are both “prestigious and playful” (Lesson #12). The library’s new website features a collection of striking photos taken by teens in the community, a need a story? search box and a tab labeled “surprise!” Some of the other lessons that stand out are:

Lesson 2: Be bold. Be dynamic. Be human
Lesson 3: When you paint to sell, you paint people
Lesson 4: Enliven your collection through reorganization and presentation
Lesson 8: We like surprises. And anticipating the surprise is even more delicious.
Lesson 9: A good guide enhances the experience exponentially

In a similar vein, Jenny’s presentation on gaming in libraries challenged the audience to think about where we draw the line between learning and play - and if this distinction really matters. Games like Dance Dance Revolution and World of Warcraft teach pattern recognition, build literacy and strategy skills, and are a great teaser for bringing more young patrons through the doors to interact with each other. When thinking about offering gaming services in the library Jenny suggests considering the value that games can bring. By presenting information in a fun and appealing way and fostering social connections among patrons and staff, games can improve how people see the library - as a place that entices you to come in and discover something new. And you might even have fun doing it.

Any recommendations for maximum class size for teaching technology?

It depends on the topic, the space, and also on the number of computers you have available. I’ve seen some classes work well with two people per computer, but I wouldn’t try to squeeze in more than that. Generally, in a computer lab, I’d say not more than 20 people at the very, very most!

How to determine what info is best for beginners, intermediate, or advanced needs?

I try to outline what the basic skills or competencies are for each software program. Then from there you can break down which are beginning skill sets and which require more knowledge and would be more advanced. It will also depend on how long your workshops are. If you have an hour or you have a day or a week that will change what you can cover. Learning objectives are the best way I’ve found to make sure I don’t try to cover too much. For each 15 minute segment, you want to cover only one objective.

The focus of today seemed to be on technology training. We didn’t really focus on training for technology so much as the basics of training. Are there particular “take a ways” we should think about with technology in particular?

Since this webinar was part of WJ’s Learning series, we were especially focused on fostering learning in relation to technology training. With technology in particular, it is very important that the class be conducted hands-on if at all possible. Build their confidence. Give participants time to explore and let them work independently and in small groups. Let them do it. Rely less on step-by-step instructions than on helping them learn to try things out on their own. Otherwise, when they leave the workshop, or don’t have your instruction sheet with them, they might be at a loss. With how fast technology is changing and with all the emerging social technologies, I think we have to encourage adults to get used to exploring on their own, and not waiting until someone shows them. Of course, with a beginning Word or Internet class, you will need to really orient beginners by using a lot of analogies to help them understand how the software mirrors other things they can relate to. For example, how files and folders on the computer are similar to physical files and folders or how a URL is similar to a street address. It has been very interesting to me to learn how the foundation of good training techniques apply universally to technology training though!

Is there a good resource for computer classes that have already been designed?

Yes! I’ve found the following websites. Also, notice that WebJunction has a lot of lesson plans already. I think it would be wonderful if every library trainer were to contribute one of their lesson plans to WJ. Then we’d have an even richer resource! These are also available on my website.

Akron-Summit County Public Library, Ohio
Very thorough handouts for library workshops on everything from Introduction to Computers to eBay and Blogging.

Hennepin County Library’s Extranet
Includes trainer outlines, PowerPoint presentations and handouts for workshops for the public.

InfoPeople
Archived webcasts, podcasts, training materials such as handouts and PowerPoints, as well as resources for training. InfoPeople is a statewide LSTA project that functions as the training arm of the California State Library.

MERLOT: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
Created by The California State University in 1997 and free to all users, MERLOT is supported by a variety of schools, systems, and organizations. Individual membership also is free, and any member can submit a learning object to MERLOT. Materials are submitted by faculty members who are experts in their content areas, and a peer review system is in place to make sure that the materials are of high quality.

Milwaukee Public Library
Outlines and Handouts on various popular workshops.

Oregon Library Instruction Wiki
Oregon Library Association’s Library Instruction Roundtable’s collaboratively developed resource for librarians involved with or interested in instruction. Includes handouts, tutorials, and teaching techniques.

PRIMO: Peer-Reviewed Instructional Materials Online Database
PRIMO is hosted by ALA’s Association of College and Research Libraries to share peer-reviewed instructional materials created by librarians to teach people about discovering, accessing and evaluating information in networked environments. Currently includes over 145 projects.

TechAtlas
Free online technology assessment and inventory tool, including staff skills surveys.

WebJunction

• Materials for Working with Computers and Spanish Speakers
• Internet Resources for Patrons
• Training Materials
• Creating lesson plans for teaching the public, an article by the Hibbing Public Library, includes links to lesson plans

Any ideas for academics who have students who may not want to be there?

This might also apply to staff training. The best things you can do are letting them pick topics and projects that they have personal (or academic) interest in. Depending on the class you are teaching, you can let them be involved in independent exercises, small group projects (often best done in class), and sharing. For example, if you have a database class, let the students pick the topics for the sample searches, show them resources that will be of interest to them academically and personally. For example, free access to Cosmo, the New York Times, or other magazines related to their academic pursuits.

Let them make choices as to what will be covered. Give them time to share their interests and experiences. The more personal a training experience, the more memorable it will be as well. Show them immediate benefits. Try to find out what they want to know more about. Also try to build in fun activities. Look to TV game shows to develop a summary exercise, such as Jeopardy, Who Wants to be a Millionaire, or other question based games. They can play as teams or independently. Make it interactive and fun! I’ve seen participants turn from grumpy and mad that they have to attend the class to positively thrilled by the resources “they’ve” found.

Can you share a story from one of your first training events, and what you learned from the experience?

I have definitely evolved as a trainer. Sometimes I’m told that training seems so natural for me, but I’ve really worked at it. In library school, I was actually terrible at public speaking. I set a goal that I would improve by graduation, and just kept throwing myself into situations where I would have to practice. My first real professional training job was at SIRSI, and I was so nervous before the first time I trained that that my co-worker almost didn’t know if I would make it! Training is more art than science. There is not one right way, and no two workshops are ever exactly the same. It wasn’t until my third job (at the Gates Foundation) that I had real train-the-trainer instruction.

Without referring to one specific situation, the things I learned at the beginning of my training career centered on marketing (due to a catastrophic unattended event), gaining confidence, and what I call organized flexibility. By organized flexibility I mean learning to go with the flow and responding to the participants’ needs rather than being tied to an exact agenda. Trying to always be more of a facilitator and learning coach than a lecturer. And some of what I know is most effective about my training, I don’t think I implemented really well until the last five years!

How do you approach training colleagues, in-house?

With staff training you have the advantage of being able to find out more about their learning needs before the actual workshop. Find out what they really want to know about the technology or what they will be using it for. Since they are more likely to know each other, encourage camaraderie by letting them do “show and tell” and small group projects. You can even let them work on their own objectives. I think the Learning 2.0 movement is a great one for staff training, empowering staff to explore and learn on their own. Plus, I really find librarians to be a great group for training, they are usually lifelong learners and interested in adding to their knowledge. Make sure you make them comfortable, create a learning community and let them know they can do this, so they aren’t afraid of making mistakes in front of their colleagues. Try using a theme to add to the fun and create a more relaxed environment. I really believe staff training to be such an important investment for a library to make. Try to make sure ALL staff are trained as well, and not just managers and MLS staff.

Thanks for the great questions and participating in the webinar! Feel free to leave a comment if you have your own opinions on this topic or if you have other questions, I’d be happy to answer them!

–Stephanie Gerding

While registration for this free webinar is not required, we invite you to enter a drawing to receive a copy of Stephanie’s new book, The Accidental Technology Trainer: A Guide for Libraries, by registering through the WebJunction Calendar of Events. We are looking forward to hosting a fun and informative presentation and hope to *see* you there!

The Accidental Technology Trainer
October 17, 11 AM – 12 PM PT / 2 – 3 PM ET
Free via WebJunction’s Live Space
Register here (optional)