Book Talk Beats Bed
Posted March 25, 2019 by Katie Carlson
Sometimes, as a student with a mishmash of jobs and an objectively messed up sleep schedule, it can be hard to find the motivation to go to SLIS events, even if they are right up your alley! This Tuesday was one of those days where I just needed a nap. I was ready to trek to the bus, journey home, and wrap myself in covers. But, at the invitation of my friend Lee, I powered through and ended up at Professor Jeannette Bastian’s talk on her new book: Decolonizing the Caribbean Record: An Archives Reader. I’m so glad I went! In undergrad I took a slew of courses on colonization in Latin America and Caribbean women writers that changed my entire outlook on life. This event, put on by the Student Chapter of ALA International Relations Round Table (SCIRRT), brought me right back to those amazing classes! Professor Bastian’s background as the Territorial Librarian of the United States Virgin Islands from 1987 to 1998 means that not only is she an expert on the subject,…
Library Instruction: What I’ve Learned
Posted March 21, 2019 by Megan Ondricek
Last week I had my final “big” teaching day at the internship: a packed morning with three classes in a row. I’ve now taught the same lesson to eight unique sections belonging to four unique faculty members. While I in no way consider myself an expert, I do feel qualified at this point to talk about some of the big things I’ve learned through this experience. 1. It’s okay to be nervous. Experiencing nerves does not mean that you are doing something wrong or are not up to the task ahead. I’ve heard from several experienced instructors that they still routinely get nervous. For me, my nerves generally fade away once the class is underway and I get into the “flow” of the lesson, but they can still show up again at seemingly random moments. 2. Every class is different. Even though I had the same lesson material for eight classes, each one turned out a little different. I asked different questions, said different things, and spent more or less time on certain parts of…
It’s That Time Again!
Posted March 20, 2019 by Sarah Callanan
It’s the most wonderful time of the semester…registration! Not only is it registration time for Summer 2019, in just a few short weeks it will be Fall 2019 registration, so it’s time to think about that as well. Here’s my dilemma, and if you’ve read some of my past posts, you know a little bit about this. When I came to Simmons, I started in the Archives Management program, and I created my course planning roadmap under the impression that I was going to continue in Archives Management. I also decided to take my first class, LIS 407: Information Sources and Services online, whilst fully planning to take the majority of the rest of my classes on the ground in Boston. Then, I got a job not in Boston and realized that I may not actually want to continue on the archives track, so I’ve been taking classes one at a time online, hoping that there will be an in-person class that will mesh well with my work schedule and that I will figure out…
Group Project Musings
Posted March 19, 2019 by Amie Grosshans
There’s some weight off my shoulders this week because I finished my first group project. It wasn’t just my first group project at Simmons, it was my first graduate level group project ever! I was pretty nervous about it. Since I’m taking the class online, I had no idea how we’d choose partners or topics or how we’d actually work together. But everything went surprisingly smoothly. The project was for my tech class, and we had to create a tutorial on a new app or program. Choosing groups ended up being easy because we chose by topic and proceeded from there. I chose to work on the Raspberry Pi, which is an inexpensive little computer that you can use to learn coding and other programming skills (if you want to check it out, you can go to the website www.raspberrypi.org It is really fun!). Our first assignment as a group was to fill out a Team Contract. This was extremely helpful because it forced us to think about all the logistics of group work: how…
Student Leadership
Posted March 15, 2019 by Peggy Hogan-Rao
It’s finally Friday! This week was a busy one, starting off on Sunday using Google Docs to be a part of a LISSA (Library and Information Science Student Association) officers meeting. Tuesday was a student leaders meeting, for all officers of the eleven library science student groups. After I got out of the student leaders meeting, I checked my phone to find five emails from my other SCIRRT (student chapter of International Relations Round Table) officers regarding an event we are planning. Wednesday was the most fun of all the meetings, since I got to attend a faculty meeting as a student faculty representative. From there, the week got easier. How did my week get so busy? Well, back in December, a fellow student posted on the SLIS current students Facebook group asking if anyone was interested in being a student faculty representative. I had no idea as part of this position I would be accepting a role as a LISSA officer, or what I would be doing in this role. But my…
Hello Peggy!
Posted March 13, 2019 by Lindsey Clarke
We are adding another new blogger. Everyone welcome Margaret “Peggy” Hogan-Rao to the team. Here is a Peggy’s Bio: Hi, I’m Peggy! I’m fairly new to the Boston area, so far I love it here. I started the Simmons LIS program in fall 2018, and moved to Boston a few weeks before classes started. Originally from the mountains of upstate NY, coming to Boston is a big change for me – getting used to the city life in Boston. I completed my undergrad degree in Media & Communication and English Writing at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, NY, few hours west of my hometown in Eastern New York. My dream job for after I finish the Simmons MLIS degree is to be a certified school library media specialist in a city school district, and a bestselling children’s author. You can find me most weekends exploring a new church or a cool independent bookshop in the Boston area. My hobbies include collecting more books than I can read, cuddling with cute dogs, visiting beautiful beaches,…
Breaktime
Posted March 12, 2019 by Amie Grosshans
Last week was Spring break. I didn’t go anywhere, because I still have a full-time job, but I was able to relax. Instead of coming home every day and doing schoolwork, I got to come home and read, or knit, or catch up on my tv. I still worked a bit on a group project, but I didn’t have to spend nearly as much time on that as I would my usual work. While it was really refreshing to have a break, I have to admit that I got a bit antsy after a few days. I’ve been so used to my study schedule that I feel a bit lost without it. A week was great, but I’m ready to get back into school mode. I have a lot to think about for the second half of the semester. I have a group project for my tech class that’s due next week, and then two projects due at the end of the semester: a group project for my info organization class and an individual project…
Developing and Managing Collection Development and Management
Posted March 11, 2019 by Katie Carlson
I, Katie Carlson, am a ‘microwave thinker.’ This idea was introduced to me by a professor at Mount Holyoke, and indicates that given a moment, I can always supply an idea. Put simply, my brain moves fast. (Sometimes too fast – especially when the goal is quality over quantity.) Microwave thinkers are placed in opposition to ‘slow cooker thinkers.’ These are people who need time to let their ideas marinate, especially before they feel comfortable sharing them with a group. A round table discussion can be torture for these ‘slow cookers,’ especially when the room is populated with ‘microwaves.’ While I originally responded negatively to being a ‘microwave’ — thinking of unevenly heated food with weird textures — my professor stressed that one brand of thinking is not better or worse than the other! We landed on the idea that in any educational setting, it’s important to plan activities and allow for opportunities that work well for both ‘slow cookers’ and ‘microwaves.’ The reason I bring up this ‘thinker’ dichotomy is that…
Putting It All Together
Posted March 7, 2019 by Megan Ondricek
These past few weeks have been about putting things together and wrapping up everything I’ve been learning into an actual product. At my internship, all my previous class work, observations, readings, and discussions have finally culminated in an actual teaching experience! I have now taught undergraduate freshmen and lived to tell the tale, haha! But really, my first teaching day went as well as I could have hoped. It was rigorous – three 75-minute classes in one day – but rewarding. I did not realize how unaccustomed I would be to talking and standing that much in one day! My very first class was a little wobbly and I couldn’t quite shake the nerves, but my second two felt much more natural. By the last one I wasn’t even looking at my outline or checking the clock. Whew! I am relieved to have the first day over with so that I never have to be teaching for the very first time again. In my metadata class we are working on an assignment that involves several…
Spring Break!
Posted March 6, 2019 by Sarah Callanan
It is Spring Break everyone! Does it feel like Spring Break to you? It certainly does not feel like Spring Break to me. We are not having Spring Break-esque weather with the snow and the freezing cold and everything. Last year for Spring Break I participated in the SLIS Alternative Spring Break program at Papercut Zine Library, but this year I have to work so sadly I am unable to participate this time around. This year they are working with The History Project, The Prison Book Program, 826 Boston, and Papercut Zine Library. I had a great time last year and I learned a lot, and volunteering is a great way to give back to the community while also gaining valuable experience! Also, last year I had recently moved to the area and it was a great way for me to meet new people. The Alternative Spring Break program is an excellent way to get involved at Simmons, to give back to the community, and to gain experience. This year for Spring Break, as I…