Tag Archives: media specialist

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

CMLE Featured Service: Shadowing

Walk alongside another librarian for a day to see how alike or different your worlds are!

Image by Pings and Needles. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Pings and Needles. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

The CMLE shadowing  service is relatively new, but promises lots of potential in Central Minnesota.  CMLE staff pay attention to the details of academic, public, school and special libraries in 319 locations in 12 counties. Through our work in the field, our communications to library staff, and our use of  tools like our Quick Question Polls, we strive to have a good grasp on the library landscape in Central MN.  Then, by using that knowledge, our staff can play matchmaker and connect you to a library setting other than your own. We call this activity shadowing.

Who could benefit from a CMLE shadowing experience?

  •  Many librarians wonder wistfully whether they made the right decision back in library school about what type of librarian they wanted to become. Maybe shadowing can provide clarity without the professional risk of changing jobs!
  • Are you a para running a school media center, wondering if you should pursue a degree? Particularly in K-12 schools, the experience of media specialists can be quite different, depending on whether the school is moving into Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) or One-to-One Initiatives (1:1). CMLE staff  know which schools are in these stages of transition and can provide you with the right fit.
  • Are you an academic librarian trying to anticipate how the high school student coming out of a BYOD or 1:1 school might approach a college experience differently? Will there be impact on how you provide an academic library or teaching experience?
  • Are you a high school media specialist feeling beyond stretched as you single handedly run the media center and teach classes? Are you wondering if a public  or academic library might be a better fit for you?
  • Are you a special librarian, working fairly solo (often not feeling so special), and wondering if it might be time for a larger setting and a team of people with whom you can work?

If any of these scenarios sound like you, our  shadowing program may be a good option for you. Or, maybe you are simply a curious person, willing and anxious to understand a bigger library world….that is ok too.

If you are interested in setting up a shadowing experience, please make contact with me to sort out the details. I will help you with connections and logistics.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Mindfulness in Librarianship

Image by bibigeek. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by bibigeek. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

In an earlier post, I mentioned a thread of  programming at the fall MLA Conference about mindfulness and reflective thinking, as it relates to librarians.  This idea keeps coming back to me. From a review of the literature, and from conversations with librarians embracing mindfulness, I believe it has value to our practice. Professional and personal growth can increase if we slow down and take the time to understand mindfulness.  A few key things to consider about this concept include: 

  • If we embrace a state of being aware, focused and present in the moment, we can reduce job-related stress and improve the quality of  library services.
  • Multitasking is finally being questioned, and not necessarily valued as it was in the past.
  • “Monkey-mind syndrome” describes a state of being where thoughts continually flit in and out of our minds. This is often caused by too much multitasking or by  continually shifting gears or changing priorities without tools to manage it.
  • In MLA president Kristen Mastel’s article about mindful librarianship (see end of post), she talks about “beginner’s mind” and the challenges of achieving  beginners mind. As you may guess, it is harder to achieve this state when you have been in positions for long periods of time.
  • Mindfulness can be used anywhere or anytime, making it the ultimate mobile device!

As we embark on the 23 Mobile Things program in mid-January, CMLE staff will  inject a mindfulness thread in the program, to help participants manage their focus and enhance their learning outcomes.

Mastel ends her article by saying, “Mindful librarianship—practiced with awareness, intention, and open mind, and a spirit of compassion—could make the difference in the success of our students, our profession, and ourselves. Read the full article: Insights and Practical Tips on Practicing Mindful Librarianship to Manage Stress

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

The Art of Appreciation

In honor of Thanksgiving, I would like to highlight an Edutopia article titled, Gratitude Can Fuel School Transformation. According to author Elena Aguilar neuroscience suggests that, “Our brains need to feel gratitude in order for us to want to be at work.”  She further illustrates how the brain grabs hold of negative comments and interactions. Conversely, the retention of supportive moments and compliments is a muscle that needs to be worked and flexed to stay strong, “to create new links between neurons.”

Aguilar suggests becoming a trailblazer in your schools. She provides several ways to practice both giving and receiving appreciation.  In keeping with this idea of appreciation, CMLE would like to go first in a Message of Thanks from the Director.

Image by Celestine Chua. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Celestine Chua. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

 

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Teaching Competencies

Image by Tatadbb. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Tatadbb. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

Minnesota Educational and Media Organization (MEMO) has developed a list of Information and Technology Literacy Standards highlighting 21st century skills necessary to bridge K-12 and higher education expectations for students.  The standards for grades 9-12 include;

  • Inquiry, Research, and Problem Solving:  The student will learn a continuous cycle of questioning, gathering, synthesizing, evaluating, and using information individually and collaboratively to create new knowledge and apply it to real world situations.
  • Expanding Literacies: Read, view, listen and communicate in any format for a variety of purposes.
  • Technology Use and Concepts: Students will explore multiple technologies, evaluate their suitability for the desired educational or personal task, and apply the tools needed.
  • Ethical Participation in a Global Society:  The student will participate productively in the global learning community and demonstrate safe, ethical, legal and responsible behavior in the use of information and technology.

As a library media specialist, how do you effectively teach these skills? This November, author Terry Heick shares several approaches to frame and effectively delivery content.  The article, 11 Brilliant Ways To Frame Critical Content: A Complexities Chart discusses patterns, cultural trends, themes and more.  At the bottom of the post Heick notes, “This isn’t an either/or proposition…take a standard–or concept behind a standard–and “refract” it through whichever of the following Depth or Complexity made the most sense according to that student’s knowledge-level.”

As an additional resource, TeachThought also published a visual information graphic on how to gauge understanding between a teacher and the learner(s.) Click here to view 27 Simple Ways To Check For Understanding, November 2013.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Feature Book: Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital

This post is a part of an original series created by librarians/media specialists across Central Minnesota featuring books. If you have a book you would like to showcase, send your review to our offices.

Review by Kathy Parker, Director of Libraries, Media, and Archives, College of Saint Benedict/Saint John’s University Libraries

Feature Book: Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital by Sheri Fink

Image of Kathy Parker provided by CSB/SJU.
Image of Kathy Parker provided by CSB/SJU.

Combining the best of both worlds, Five Days at Memorial has the tense plot line, complex characters, and life-and-death flashpoints of a thriller, but it’s actually a meticulously researched work of remarkable reportage.  Fink investigated events at a New Orleans hospital during and after Hurricane Katrina.  Healthcare workers struggled to keep critically ill patients alive as electricity winked off, generators flooded, HVAC systems failed, sleep was unattainable, looters were roving the streets, and rescue was uncertain.  In the end, some staff faced criminal allegations for injecting patients with drugs that hastened their death.   The author carefully avoids judgment, and instead helps readers understand how professionals trying to do their best in a crisis may arrive at very different decisions about how to respond.

As it happens, I was reading this book while updating and expanding our library’s disaster plan.  It made me realize that much of our plan is focused on keeping collections safe, and that I needed to pay more attention to how to keep people safe as well.  I learned some lessons about communication, coordinated responses, and compassion.  Sheri Fink’s book reinforced my fervent hope that I never have to live through such a horrendous disaster as Katrina; and it has given me the opportunity – the luxury, really —  to think about how I might wish decisions would be made should a disaster happen here.