Staff Development

At the end of last academic year we have two consecutive staff development days to round off the term. For the first time I 'led' a small group during an activity. I found this helped me to be more engaged with the task and, if I'm honest, more willing to carry out the activity (more on that below).

It all began on the morning of Thursday 20th December with the whole of the Student Services division congregating in the LRC's HE Centre. The Director of Student Services started with a presentation on recruitment and success rates. It was interesting to see how much competition the College now faces from provision across other College and Sixth Forms. He then got us thinking about self-assessment and the College's strengths and weaknesses in preparation for work on our SARs (Self-Assessment Report) - this generated some lively opinions amongst some! Following this we divided back into our divisions to work on our own SAR.

The Director of Learning Resources divided us into groups in which we focused on specific aspects of the service and thought about its strengths and areas for improvement along with what evidence could be provided to back up our statements. I led a small group looking at use of resources and e-resources. I found this activity a really good way of not only highlighting our recent successes, but also of bringing to light certain aspects for improvement which have been overlooked in the past. Here's an overview of my groups' discussion:

Strengths: significant improvement in provision of print and e-books following an increase in budget which allowed for collection project end of 2011/2012; purchased new e-resource Key Note to support business and subscribed to free e-resource Primal Pictures Anatomy & Physiology Online; upgrade of LRC PCs improved experience of accessing LRC eResources; this academic year has seen a considerable increase in the number of LRC resources embedded into Moodle courses; staff have worked to improve liaison with BTEC business tutors; LRC works hard to promote resources and can identify several publicity methods.

Weaknesses: 2011/2012 student questionnaire shows low awareness of resources; LRC awareness of reading lists and assignment details across College is patchy; analysis of usage data from Learning Resources pages in Moodle shows some areas rarely viewed; Moodle courses containing LRC content not widespread; no consistent monitoring of induction takeup, specifically e-resources/starting your research inductions; low use of DVD collection; past few years have seen a decline in the level of access provided to physical resources due to changes in opening hours.

At lunch we all headed back to the HE Centre for lunch and the annual quiz and raffle (in which I won a bottle of wine!). The afternoon began with a presentation from one of our Vice Principals on the changes to Ofsted's Common Inspection Framework after which we finished with an LRC senior team meeting tidying up loose ends from the morning's activity.

The following day was more laid back with updates and brief training. I gave an E-resources update highlighting new e-books purchased, changes to existing LRC eResources and new LRC eResources. One activity my colleague ran was based on teamwork and I thought she came up with a very ingenious idea: she had given us an activity to do first in small groups. For the second part, she gave each group a small jigsaw which we had to put together in our team and to shout out as soon as we'd completed it. Well there we were, all shouting FINISHED!, and she was going round saying that we hadn't! We soon twigged that in actual fact our individual jigsaws fitted together to complete a bigger picture, so we had to come together as a whole team to complete it - I thought this was a great idea. The College closed at 2pm that day so after we had finished we all headed off to the pub for a very well-deserved drink!

Reflections and wisdom

2012 was a good year. Highlights included: getting married; presenting at the JISC eFactor Showcase in London; being promoted to the position of Information Advisor (Resources and Content) and being involved in a collections project ordering books, books and more books (appealing to the traditionalist in me!).

I don't really have any new year's resolutions for this year. So instead, I thought I'd share with you some wisdom. Now, I have to admit that this wisdom isn't my own! My husband and I decided that, for our calendar this year, we would purchase one called The wisdom of kids created by Zavacopoulos and The London Studio. Some very insightful views follow. My personal favourites are September (no.9) and October (no.10)!

1. What's the moral of Cinderella?: 'Good things happen when you wear the right shoes' (Sophia, age 10).

2. Getting your priorities right: Love is the most important thing in the world, if you don't count football' (Andrew, age 10).

3. Who is the boss, mummy or daddy?: 'Daddy is the boss, until mummy comes home' (Chloe, age 7).

4. Why do grownups love wine?: 'It helps them live long. Cos it's grapes it's 1 of your 5 a day, so basically it's a health drink' (Alice, age 6).

5. What are the signs of ageing?: 'Old people have huge CD's that they call records' (Selina, age 6).

6. Is it better to be single or married?: 'It's better for girls to be single but not for boys cos they need someone to clean up after them' (Anita, age 9).

7. When is it okay to kiss someone?: 'When they're rich' (Pam, age 7).

8. The difference between men and women: 'Women have boobies. They have one for hot milk and one for cold milk' (Michael, age 5).

9. If you can't remember your age: 'Just look in the back of your pants. Mine say five to six' (Tina, age 5).

10. How to make someone fall in love with you: 'Shake your hips and hope for the best' (Camille, age 9).

11. The best present for a girl ...: 'Boxer chocolates' (John, age 6).

12. 'I tried to eat brussel sprouts but my mouth wouldn't let me' (Robby, age 4).

What a term!

There has been very little time to be involved in anything 'extra-curricular' since the beginning of term. It has zoomed by and I'm only now just able to start checking Twitter and the blogs I follow again. To get me back into the swing of writing for my blog I thought I'd start with an overview of what's kept me occupied for the last couple of months!

• Staffing the Enquiry Desk and other Centres and helping lots of new students with basic queries such as printing and using self-issue.
• Working out how to solve the problem of matching up returning student records on our LMS now that the College has introduced a new ID system.
• Delivering introductory inductions to groups of new students.
• Training new member of the Front of House team.
• Preparing and delivering in-depth information skills inductions in lessons.
• Training and observing colleague to deliver referencing inductions.
• Preparing and delivering training to teaching staff on how to use and utilise Moodle.
• Managing collections requests and acquisitions.
• Troubleshooting issues as part of the Moodle Support team.
• Promotion to position of Information Advisor (Resources and Content).
• Showing round interview candidates for new post.
• Training and mentoring new member of the senior team.
• Involvement in 'Study skills afternoon' for Access to Science students delivering referencing refresher and introducing guest speaker from Examstutor.
• Attending senior team meetings.
• Housekeeping tasks for our LMS.

I hope as the term starts to calm down that I'll be able to get involved again in some development opportunities. It has been mooted that I'm to sit on a new cross-College committee starting next week so looking forward to that.

New starts

It's almost the start of the new academic year which, to me, like New Year, is a time for new or fresh starts. I also got married last month so another cause for feeling like the start of something new.

When I was at school and university the start of the new year always meant sorting out my desk at home and buying new stationery. At school it also meant the start of a new system whereby whenever I was given homework, I would start it that evening. (I don't think I even managed to keep that up until the October half term!) I now work in a College and so the start of a new academic year now means new stationery (still!) and a renewed enthusiasm and motivation to make the most of each task and interaction. I have even given my blog and Twitter page a fresher look with a new background design!

At home at a time of new starts I always come up with what seems a lovely plan to fit in regular exercise around my working week - but I rarely manage to sustain it! Also to keep more on top of the housework which, week by week, has varying degrees of success! Linked back to the 'sorting out my desk at home' I have bought several new lever arch files in a pretty design to display all my family history work rather than having boring files in boxes. I also have plans to go through our filing cabinet of important documents and have a good old sort out.

Thinking about it all of my new starts revolve around being more organised in various forms. I come from a family of 'list-makers' and am always making lists of to do jobs. I think this is probably one of my biggest strengths and I know that I'm happier and calmer when I'm more organised. I'm also very critical though and, as you can see from my new starts, always thinking I can do better!

e-Factor 2012: "It's all about the learner"

On Wednesday I attended JISC RSC London's e-Factor 2012. The day brings together practitioners from a variety of organisations to share approaches and examples of best practice in e-learning and e-technologies. Last year I attended as a delegate but this year I answered the call and offered to present a showcase. Although I've delivered inductions to large groups of students before I've never presented at an event so was looking forward to the challenge.

To begin with I had to write a proposal of 200 words describing my showcase which would fit under one of the following categories:

• Enhanced teaching and learning through the use of innovative and creative technology
• CDP/staff development models that make effective use of technology
• Learner Voice - learners are involved in shaping delivery/staff development/quality systems/contribute to how technology is used
• Organisational efficiency - through the use of technology

I chose the first category and developed my proposal with the title Embedding creative e-learning technologies to enhance learning resources delivery, both in and out of the classroom. I sent in my proposal at the end of March and, a month later, received an email saying it had been accepted! Now I had to deliver! I began planning my showcase properly about a month ago, working out what I wanted to say and choosing examples of our work and, by the middle of June, felt that it was ready to go. I took the opportunity to run through it whenever I could.

The day finally arrived and, wanting to look eager, I arrived soon after 9.00am when registration opened. When I arrived though everyone had been evacuated outside whilst the fire alarm was going off - exactly the same thing happened last year, maybe it's jinxed! After we were allowed back in I met up with a couple of colleagues and we took our seats for the Welcome given by Graciano Soares, Regional Manager for RSC London. He outlined the plan for the day linking the theme It's all about the learner with the current climate and changes in OFSTED's inspection approach. My category was next....

The first showcase was presented by West Thames College who shared how they enhance teaching and learning through the use of video casts and social media. I particularly liked how their tutors had really thought about what their students actually do and came up with using Facebook to develop a web page and Twitter to provide study support. Their use of video casting in plumbing is a great way of enhancing learning in a very practical subject. As a librarian, I really liked the section in the video where the tutor explains how to use their textbook to help them study! He was quite right in saying that often, students on courses like these, either think they don't need a textbook or are frightened of using one. I was next up and for the next 15 minutes it was just me on stage, behind a lectern, with a microphone and my presentation facing 60-70 people! (My script is available here.) I began with a Prezi (available here) as a visual aid whilst I explained why I feel this area of e-learning is important. I then showcased four e-learning technologies. First was XtraNormal - a cartoon creation tool - which we have used to create a short, humorous (hopefully!) cartoon on why students should renew. Second I showed two examples of enhanced podcasts we have created using Windows MovieMaker to combine images/Powerpoint slides with audio and music. Next I briefly spoke about Jing - a screen capture tool which will capture a video of what you do on screen along with audio. The fourth technology was Xerte and I showed how we have used it to create a suite of interactive revision and study skills guides. To finish off I played a video that had been created by the College as part of the KUBE project (Kingston Uplift for Business Education). The project looked at ways of combining face to face and online modes of curriculum delivery and included Xerte units and podcasts. The video had students and staff highlighting the impact and benefits of using these technologies. My showcase went really well and I was congratulated afterwards by my colleagues, delegates and our Principal who was there to give the Plenary at the end of the day. Questions were invited after each showcase. I wasn't look forward to this as, whilst I'm confident speaking about something I'm well prepared for, I'm not very good at coming up with answers on the spot. However, I was pleased that I could answer the four questions directed at me well! Finishing our section were VITAL who demonstrated how they had been involved in projects which successfully used Kindles in class. I thought Kindles were a great idea for encouraging reading for pleasure - the anonymity of what you're reading can be a big draw - but felt that it was difficult to extend this into academic work as many textbooks aren't available on Kindle.

In the second section of the day I chose to watch the Organisational efficiency category. St Dominics Sixth Form College were first up showcasing their use of Google Docs to manage and hold the dissertation style EPQ project for A level students. All the work was uploaded and stored in Google Docs with the College's IT team having very limited involvement. I thought it was a very effective example of when cloud computing works well. Second were Stanmore College who explained their 'Plan-Do-Review' cycle of technology with regards to Moodle whereby they are currently developing their new ILP2 area in Moodle. One of the features I liked was their use of ePace tests to highlight strengths and weaknesses in skill sets to aid teachers in planning class activities. Third were Redbridge Institute who have been investigating free software to provide a timetabling programme, accessibility solutions for students with learning or physical differences and video tools. In the latter they highlighted Freemake which can edit and convert a range of different video file types -something I want to look into. Last were Newham FE College who have used Adobe Captivate to develop interactive learning packages in a similar way that we use Xerte. I thought the look of the final product was more professional than Xerte but it would be interesting to see if it had the same range of functionality.

After lunch I went to the 'Creative Lab 2' category. In this Westminster Kingsway College showed how they use screencasts to record lessons in 3D modelling for students to refer to later; Ealing Hammersmith and West London College showed how they use comic strips to liven up classes; Coulsdon College showed how they have used iPads and Apps in their art and French classes; and Newham Sixth Form College showed how their tutors are using Moodle to create an effective and interactive learning experience.

I really enjoyed the day and the chance to see what other organisations have been doing. I found that presenting helped network as several people came and spoke to me during the day and I felt that I 'was' someone rather than just a body in the crowd which gave me more confidence to go up and speak to people. I did find it was very frustrating not having a business card or something similar to hand out with my contact details! I'm really glad I took the opportunity to present at this event. Not only will it look good on my CV but it's a new experience and on a personal level I can say - yes I can do that!

London Dawson Day 2012 - Success through synergy

Yesterday I spent a very enjoyable day at this year's London Dawson Day run by Dawson Books and, this year, held at the very impressive headquarters of the Institution of Civil Engineers. The theme of the day was Success through synergy and the presentations highlighted the successful collaboration between Dawson and Bertrams and academic institutions.

After the initial sign in, tea and coffee and networking, the day began with a presentation by Jason Cherrington, Sales Director for the Bertram Group. He gave us a business update outlining the benefits of Dawson joining with Bertrams and re-assured us of Dawson's strong performance in the market. Following Jason were Karen Carden, Bibliographic Services Manager at the University of the Arts, and Heather Sherman, Head of Technical Sales at Dawson. In their presentation Karen spoke about the reasons for and process of centralising their bibliographic services across the six Colleges that make up the University and, also, how they have developed the centres to be self-service orientated - they hit 90% self-service in November! Heather talked about how Dawson helped them with the centralisation and streamlining some of their processes further. She also highlighted how Dawson can work with other suppliers, for example 3M in this instance to collaborate with RFID.

Before lunch Hugh Ferguson, Former Deputy Director General of the Institution, gave an overview of the history of the Institution and its location at One Great George Street. Having a passion for social history I very much enjoyed his presentation. Little did I know as well that the Great Hall, where I began the day, had been used as the setting for the Law Council dinner in the film Bridget Jones 2: the edge of reason! Back in the Great Hall we had a very nice lunch - I had salmon - although there wasn't really enough places to sit or perch at! For the remainder of lunch I went round the exhibitions from publishers, and Heritage (the LMS), with a couple who work at The National Archives. In our programme was a 'treasure hunt' so we went round the stands finding out the answers to the questions. Sadly we didn't win the grand prize of an iPad 3!

At 1.30pm we were back in the Telford Theatre for the last two presentations. Chris Foreman, Collections Development Manager at the University of Roehampton, and Jude Norris, Marketing and Technology Director for Dawson, kicked off the afternoon. Chris and Jude told us about the collaboration between the University and Dawson to manage the implementation and development of patron-drive acquisitions (PDA) for e-books. I am interested in PDA so it was good to hear how it works and the pitfalls and successes they've had along the way. The second presentation was from Keynote Speaker Ed Fay. Ed is the Digital Library Manger at the London School of Economics and he spoke about the Digital Library there and its role in preserving digital material.

A 2.30pm we had a final opportunity to visit the exhibitions and do a bit of networking - with the help of some very nice cookies! - before the prize draw for the iPad3 and raffle. I came away with £20 of John Lewis vouchers! I would recommend attending. It's a great chance to network, establish links with publishers, learn about developments and what others are doing and meet the Dawson team who are both very friendly and enthusiastic about how they can help you. A very enjoyable day all round!

From CoFHE and UC&R to ARLG: the past, present and future

I attended this event on Wednesday 9^th May which was held at CILIP for London and South East members of the newly formed Academic and Research Libraries Group (ARLG). The group has been created by merging two of CILIP’s existing special interest groups – Colleges of Further and Higher Education (CoFHE) and University, College and Research (UC&R) – and is the first within CILIP to be created in this way.

The two main speakers were Anne Rowlands (co-Chair of the national ARLG committee) and Annie Mauger (Chief Executive of CILIP). Both spoke about the background to the merger – Anne from the CoFHE/UC&R view and Annie from the CILIP view.

Anne spoke of the increasing overlap between the work of the two groups, especially now that Colleges are being given the opportunity to offer their own foundation degrees. Anne also highlighted the process that has been involved in creating the merger and the next stages that are required in consolidating the committee and regional groups. Alongside this she highlighted some of the current concerns with members. The national ARLG committee is split with an equal representation from FE and HE. My concern is how this translates into the regional committees and whether there will be any monitoring to ensure equal representation at local level. Anne also introduced the group’s mission: To engage with “professional” issues of interest to information professionals working in Further Education, Higher Education and Research Libraries and to shape all levels of academic libraries of the future. I have a slight problem with the end of the statement when it refers to all levels as this implies some form of influence over school libraries as well.

Annie spoke about the background of the merger in the context of the changes CILIP is going through. She praised both CoFHE and UC&R for taking the leap and being the ‘pilot’ on what she hopes will be a series of changes to the special interest groups to ensure that they are up to date and relevant.

The remainder of the evening consisted of two lightning talks highlighting examples of success stories from both the FE and HE sector. Genevieve Clarke from The Reading Agency and Stephen Wickens from Westminster Kingsway College began by showcasing the success of The Reading Agency’s Six Book Challenge with a group of the College’s ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) students. We have run the Challenge in the past with ESOL students and a group with learning differences. Both have been very successful with the students enthusiastically engaging with the Challenge – it’s something we hope to run again. Genevieve and Stephen were followed by Ella Mitchell from the University of East London (UEL). Ella presented the award winning Info Skills site at UEL which supports undergraduates through identifying, finding, evaluating and referencing information. I think it’s an excellent site, not only visually, but also the way in which they support differing learning preferences by providing guides, videos, demonstrations and quizzes.

Overall I was a little disappointed by the first half of the event as I seemed to have different expectations to the actual purpose of the meeting. I was hoping to find out more about how the London and South East area of ARLG would be going forward but it seems that there still needs some work done on a national level before we can see what will be happening locally. I was also surprised by the low number of attendees. 17 attendees were listed and only 7 of them (myself included) weren’t a speaker or already involved on the ARLG London and South East Committee. It may have been the start time (5.30 may have been an awkward time for some), or lack of communication (although it was advertised on mailing lists), or simply lack of interest which would be sad.

I used to be a fairly regular attendee of the CoFHE LASEC (London and South East Circle) in 2008/2009 but for various reasons stopped going. With the merger I see a good opportunity to get involved again and look forward to seeing how ARLG develops in this region.