End of Semester Thoughts

Posted December 10, 2019 by Amie Grosshans

I can’t believe the semester is over already!  I have completed all my assignments except for a group project, but that is 90% done and will be submitted by the time this blog is posted.  I’m happy that I made it through unscathed, and I’m also happy that I won’t ever have to take three classes in one semester again.  It was doable, but definitely required a lot of focus and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had forgotten about an assignment (I never did, but I also constantly checked my syllabi to make sure I was covered!).  I will be glad to get back to only two classes next semester.

I think the biggest lesson I learned from my classes this semester was how broad the field of librarianship really is.  The Digital Libraries course expanded my concept of what a library is and showed me how much work goes into setting up a digital library.  It requires a lot of people from different areas to work together to provide something functional and useful.  It involved issues that I never considered before, including making sure copyright is legal and ensuring that the images are all searchable and expandable.  I’m particularly interested in the metadata, and I’m excited to learn more about it in my metadata class next semester.  My Social Informatics class forced me to think about how librarians can connect all people to all library services.  It showed that technology and social media can be vital for libraries, but there also needs to be engagement between librarians and patrons of all abilities.  Inclusion is very important, and this is another topic that I will be exploring next semester in my Info Services for Diverse Users class.  And lastly, my Intro to Programming course showed me new ways that technology can be used in libraries.  I’m really interested in creating or teaching programming classes for library patrons, especially kids and older adults.  I think this course was a great first step to help me get closer to that goal.

Even though I enjoyed this semester, I am really looking forward to winter break!  I am going to read a lot and knit a lot and eat a lot, too.  I’ll see you all next year!