Randi-Marie Gonsalves

We must be viewed as leaders of our library, and one way we can do this is through learning all we can about technology and all it encompasses. Often patrons and students will come to the library for certain information or certain books. We can use and create digital media to aide in their search of the information they are looking for. We not only have to be up to date with technology but also realize what the needs of our patrons are and develop ways to meet their needs. We need to be able to point them in the right direction with whatever kind of information they are looking for. 

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At the start of my MLIS perusal, I was in agony over meeting this SLO. I was not well versed in any technology and the simple task of turning on a computer could be daunting at times. However, I decided a "baptism by fire" might be the best approach to take for me and I began my MLIS journey with two technology classes: LIS 635 (Media Production) & LIS 674 (the Virtual Community). If I didn't take them then, I may have tried to avoid them the whole way through. 

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To my delight, these classes and others that included technology, helped me immensely in overcoming my ineptness with technology as well as gave me great insight to the importance of technology in the library. Technology was not something to shy away from but rather something to be embraced. Technology is here to stay and I needed to get going in learning a few things. 

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I have included three different artifacts for this SLO but I believe I could have included more. These are all examples of how technology could be used in the library for varying audiences. For instance, the author study I did on Chris Crutcher was geared towards a young adult or adolescent audience, as most of his books are written for that age group. However, as an adult, I found many of his books entertaining. So I wouldn't limit this presentation for that age group but might include it on the library's website to expose patrons to his works. 

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The poetry book presentation I did could also be used to expose people of all ages to poetry and the authors that write them. This would be a great tool for teachers too as they could collaborate with the librarian on a poetry unit. The presentation is meant to be a tool to uncover the many different kinds of poetry out there, not just the typically thought of poetry that people relate to Hallmark cards. 

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Finally, I included the School-Aged Book Series digital curation I did for my LIS 635 class. This was an assignment that I have already used in my past library job and continue to use in the library I am working at for my practicum. Book series are a great way to get people excited about reading and coming back for more. When I was working at the elementary school library, many times the students wanted books that would be fun for them to read with characters that they could relate to. They also often looked for book series so that the story wouldn't end when the book did. The library was set up  in a way that all of the series couldn't be put in the same area because of limited space. So I decided on the digital curation of the book series in the library as well as other book series that were geared towards school-aged. This would put all of them in the same space regardless of the room on the shelves. I presented this to all of the classes when I was there and have the presented the curation to my new school library.  

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The digital curation is a tool that can be used for many different topics and themes. Libraries can and have used this tool for letting patrons know materials that they have in their library that might not be readily accessible in tangible form. It is a valuable addition to a library's website or other social media platform.