Curating SLIA Blog Posts: On Library Collection Development

What I have written so far about library collection development. Because, it's National Book Week and National Reading Month. Because, I get asked and consulted by peers and LIS students. Because, this part of what I do as a librarian.

Ins and Outs of Collection Development  (2010)

Ebook Collection Development 2012

Ebook Collection Development for School Libraries 2012

PPT on School Library Development 2012 - Throwback post for 2016

Developing Digital Collections 2011 - Insights on the topic as gleaned from a seminar I attended in Adamson Univeristy in 2011

Building a Picture Book Collection in a High School Library - Because Picture Books Are For Everyone!

Building a Graphic Novel Collection in the School Library - Because Graphic Novels Is Literature.

Striking the Balance on Collection Development - An AVR I produced for the PNULISSAA Annual Conference last May 2016.

Think Tank Project 2015: Revisiting Goals

Decluttering and decorating helps me think!

This year, I am applying a concept and a process that I have learned in one of our PD (professional development) sessions in school to actual library practice. I am calling this approach as the 2015 Think Tank Project where design thinking is the methodology I will use to plan programs and services for library patrons and users.

Design Thinking is espoused by David and Tom Kelly, authors of the book Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential With In Us All. It is a four cyclical process where participants go through periods of Inspiration, Ideation and Experimentation, Synthesis and Implementation. To strengthen the approach, I am applying Roger von Oech's Creative Whack Pack as strategies to see me through the entire process.

To start, I am looking at the services and programs the library staff has delivered for the first term. Picking out three "take aways" from an informal survey I conducted during in-service training, I will think through and reflect if the "take aways" and the library services and programs agree or adhere to each other. This way, I am able to analyze and explore current practices with insights from library patrons. The patrons I gathered insights from being the teachers.

From here, I write questions to ask myself and my staff. We will do this individually and as a group. These are the questions I have written:

a. How did the library support student research during the 1st term?
b. What helped teachers in facilitating research when they asked assistance from the teacher librarian?
c. What mechanism did the library staff use to inform the community of new resources?
d. How did the community respond to these mechanisms?

This is only the first part, which is Inspiration. Ideas and insight are generated from a context and/or a content. The questions I crafted help me Explore what is current and in front of me. This exploration is like a whack on the head (von Oeck) at seeing what is obvious. Sometimes, we can get answers to questions by looking at the resources we currently have.

Dear Librarian: Appraisal and Evaluation Tool for School Librarians

Rose Marie Quilantang, a librarian from Cebu City sent this query on evaluation tool for librarians and library personnel.
 

Hello Ma'am Zarah. Hope you are fine. I Just want to ask if you have an evaluation tool for librarians. It is because we don't have any. During evaluation time, the evaluation tool we used in rating is the same as the secretaries, maintenance personnel and other staff. Though at the moment I'm still surfing the internet. Thank you in advance and God bless.

I will post my reply to Ms. Quilantang this week.

Ebook Collection Development for School Libraries

Before jumping on the ebook bandwagon, think things over and draft a strategy for developing an ebook collection for your school library. I am sharing what I've whipped up for starting out an ebook collection in the library.

Why an ebook collection?
1. Experiment on a new business model in acquiring digital content for the library that adheres to a required budget allocation.
2. Offer new services to a market that is young, fickle, media induced and tech savvy.
3. Expand the library’s collection, thereby, addressing the clamor on information access for all and at all times (as possible).

What to consider?
1. License agreement containing terms and agreement, restrictions and scope of access.
2. Business model may be by lease or perpetual access.
3. Fees/budget may vary according to choice of business models: one book/one user, subscription, multi-user, simultaneous unlimited use, print on demand, pay per use.
4. Purchase by consortia. Plus: increase buying power. Minus: libraries have different needs
5. Evaluate vendors and analyze cost, especially among and between vendors

Ebook vendors / Third party solution:

FolletShelf  - http://www.aboutfollettebooks.com/follettshelf.cfm
EBSCO - http://www.ebscohost.com/ebooks/schools
OverDrive - http://www.overdrive.com/Solutions/Schools/K12/SDL/
Project Muse - http://muse.jhu.edu/#3

* FolletShelf and EBSCO can provide demos. With the changing landscape in epublishing and new business models that publishers implement, it is good to request for demos as needed. Schedules of demo are indicated in the websites.

* Project Muse orders on ebooks can be made but, license agreement must be checked and referred to for further study and evaluation.

* Tech requirements for ebook access via ereaders ℅ Tech Dept. and Finance (purchase and insurance matters).

* Ereaders (Kindle/iPad) can be used as storage devices for ebooks. Allot one ereader for a collection: References, General Collection, Fiction and Teachers Resources

* Explore other means of developing a digital collection: file server where pdfs can be saved, organized and retrieved / Google Docs as database for pdfs / collection of web resources.

* Draft a set of rules and guidelines for ereaders use / ebook selection and purchase must be reflected in the collection development program and policy.

FUSION '13: Negotiation Power Skills & Library Services Management

Philippine librarianship will never run out of conferences and seminars! It seems that there is a great need to learn continuously in the discipline. Such is the challenge of the 21st century. Knowledge is not stable and technology has proven that creating and communicating information is a dynamic endeavor.

Adamson University is staging a national conference dubbed as FUSION '13: Negotiation Power Skills and Library Services Management. The conference has an impressive list of Filipino Librarians, new names and seasoned ones, as speakers.

If you visit the conference's blog, you will find a link that will lead you to its objectives. What's interesting to note is the suggestion of possible output for each conference objective. This is helpful as many librarians merely echo and share conference experiences back to their colleagues. Nothing wrong with that, but, concrete end product of one's attendance to conferences is an indicator of learning.

I suppose this covers a bigger pie known as library staff supervision. Library coordinators need to chart a path for his or her staff to grow in the profession as well as, follow through on work accomplishments. How well trained are library coordinators in people management?

SLIA's Reply on Library Staff Supervisory Program

Here is my reply for Rose Marie Quilantang's email about making a supervisory program for the library staff - 

Dear Rose --

What you can do is to refer to the school's HR department for a set guideline and rules on supervision. Do they have a supervisory program for all faculty and staff that managers of each department can follow? What expectations do they have of librarians? Are there indicators for assessment and evaluation of performance? Most schools have. Use this as your guide. If you are supervising your librarians, refer to their job description next. 

Create a list of focus areas that merges the school's standards on performance and the librarian's or staff's expected job description. This is for your perusal. This comes in handy during supervision and monitoring where notes can be written or documented. In time, this could be used as your reference when finalizing a report or document during staff evaluation and rating purposes. 

There are performance instruments as well. These are made by the HR department. It has, basically, three components -- Professional Competence; Work Ethics; Personal and Community Relationship.

Remember that supervision is two-way. It can be directed by you, as supervisor, or by them as independent workers. It would depend on the librarian's or library staff's level of experience, competence and yes, EQ. For senior staff, they can be self-directed, meaning, they can set their own goals and objectives at work. They can also be depended upon to manage their time better. Therefore, monitoring and supervision of their work can be done periodically, say once a quarter or semestral. Or, their report on the work they do is enough for you to know that they deliver. If not, then change strategy. There are cases when supervising a senior staff is like mentoring a newbie or worse.

For newbies and junior staff, more frequent monitoring and supervision should be done until such time when they manifest self-directed work skills and ethics.

What will you supervise and how? Begin with assessment of their skills. We're talking of library skills here inclusive of basic communication skills. You may also refer to past performance records of the staff. That's a starting point to assessment. Focus on areas that need improvement in a given time - six months, one year, etc. What measurements will you employ to see improvements or otherwise. Rating scale? Narrative reports? This must be clear.

When these are identified - areas of focus, indicators and measurement, speak with the staff and work together. Staff should also be aware of his or her weakness and strength. The result of your dialogue becomes the supervisory plan for that staff. The accumulated supervisory plan for each staff becomes the supervisory program.

The trick here is that, you, as library manager, must be able to set individual objectives leading to the attainment of library goals. You act as conductor giving direction and achieving harmony. It's not so much as who is doing the job or not, but seeing to it that library goals and objectives are achieved by the people you've entrusted to do the work. Praise when necessary. Manage behavior as needed. Managing and mentoring people can be tough, but keep trying. I wish you all the best!

Ms. Zarah

Dear Librarian: Library Staff Supervisory Program

This month's letter sender is Rose Marie Y. Quilantang, a school librarian from Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu. She wanted to know more about a supervisory program for the library. Below is her email in verbatim --

Hi Maam gud day! Hope you're doing fine.

I'm a librarian and is confused on how to make a supervisory program. Can I ask help from you? or any sample or guide. Please help me. Am working in one of the private school here in Lapu-Lapu City Cebu.

God bless you always and thank you in advance.

Respectfully yours,

Rose Marie Y. Quilantang

This is a very interesting topic that would help many library managers out there. I have invited a guest blogger to lend advise to Rose Marie. I will give my two cents worth as well. Keep visiting for our responses!

Library Magic

The PBBY has a line up of workshops during the Manila International Book Fair on Sept 12-16, 2008. Visit the PBBY website for more information. If you're a teacher, parent, writer, poet, illustrator, storyteller or literacy advocate, you'll find a workshop/seminar of interest.

For librarians, three seminar/workshops are on schedule for September 13, 2008 at SMX, Pasay City.

Library Magic:
25 Steps to Building a Mobile Library
Nina Lim-Yuson, Director of Museo Pambata (10.30-12.00)

25 Ways to Survive and Thrive: Managing Change in Libraries
Zarah Gagatiga, Sectoral Representative for Librarians, PBBY (9.00-10.30)

Setting Up Children’s
PLAI (Philippine Librarians Association Inc.)

I do not hope to amaze and dazzle. But, I will be inviting participants to identify the variety of changes that occur in today's libraries - from manpower and staffing; structures and systems; analog to digital resources; attitudes and paradigms; roles and expectations. After this, they will be given opportunities to look at themselves and their response to changes through the Emotional Quotient Approach.

Honestly, this is a new module that I've designed in the summer. My motivation sprang from the trials, struggles and challenges I've experienced so far as a school library coordinator. They were far from pleasant, but not at all bad. Something has to rise from the ashes and I invite you to join me in setting the phoenix aflame.

See you there!

Live Blogging: GS LRC Departmental Purposing

Work for us in Xavier School began last Monday, May 5, 2008. We're all scheduled to have departmental activities for the whole week. For us, GS Librarians, we put aside for the meantime our Inventory to revisit our reason for being.

This afternoon, we're a reviewing the GS LRC's VMG (Vision Mission Goals), Roles and Functions of the GS LRC and our MAFs (Mandated Areas of Focus). The session I'm having with my staff is merely a "priming" session for tomorrow's evaluation and planning session.

Wild & Crazy Librarians

Among the many things that struck me from the 3rd Rizal Library Conference, From Classroom to Career: Roadmaps to a Library's Success, it was Anne Riedling's 5 Little Rules With Big Impact that I consider as the most inspiring. She gave these simple rules to live by-

1.Lighten up! ☺
2. Say Thank you ☺
3. Take Care of yourself ☺
4. Do something wild and crazy ☺
5. Make an active choice ☺

Librarians have so much work to finish; so many issues to settle; so many concerns to contend with that often, stereotypes arise from such seriousness. But really, librarians are a lot of fun! Unless a more positive attitude is adapted, people who are outside the circle will always perceive librarians as lifeless, useless and boring. To quote another speaker from the same conference, librarians who do not break the mould run the risk of being categorized as a "non performing asset". Not a good perception of librarians at all.

Days before attending the Rizal Library conference, I've "bullied" my librarians to a chamber theatre style of storytelling for our preschool students in the Early Education Department (EED). At that time, the teachers in the EED were planing Book Week and Pet Week celebrations. They wanted to treat the preschoolers to a week long literacy activities and an awareness for the care of animals. How did the librarians take the "bulying"? There were apprehensions and anxieties, of course, since not all are comfortable telling stories. It does take a lot of guts to tell, besides. But chamber theatre is one technique where everyone has a part to play. Big or small, the task contributes to the overall result. It is a team effort. And yes, it can be fun too!

So, after adapting the script (thanks to Dianne delas Casas)of a well loved and familiar fable, The Ant and The Grasshopper, all four of us sat down and discussed. A new and a more detailed script included the background, music and a video clip. We had no time to practice since I was out for two days. I was assured that even in my absence, the rest of the team delivered. And they did, true enough. They may have had worries and felt the nervousness all over, but I know I can always depend on them. On the day of the performance, everything fell into place. There were little slips in the first session, but in a live perfromance, it is expected. I'm proud at how we all contributed to the work. The boys had fun and I suppose, the teachers had their share of laughs and amusement too.

What wild and crazy things can we do next?

INFOLIB Orientation & Demo

It has been a busy day. This morning, I facilitated a workshop on storytelling for parent volunteers. In the afternoon, Chit Olivares and I presented the GS LRC's library information system software, INFOLIB, to the GS MLAs (middle level administrators).

There are five modules in the software, but only two are running so far. Mr. Gerry Laroza of the Rizal Library, Ateneo De Manila, software developer, is our consultant. Our GS principal, Mrs. Jane Natividad gave her support by issuing a memo to all MLAs that they must attend the presentation. Academic and Formation middle level coordinators came in full force.

The presentation of INFOLIB is one way to communicate the efforst of the library in its pursuance to automate its services. It is also a user education technique that will lead librarians in assessing and evaluating the project so far. Feedback from the end users will help in the improvement of the project. Next month, the GS LRC will schedule meetings with the different departments to inform tearchers of this project.

Messy Table

This is one side of my table. The right side. There you can see my mobile phone sitting on a red cat mobile phone holder. There's the calendar, my fortune plant, a mug of pens, markers and shears. I have a bottle of water, always beside me since I'm a heavy water drinker now. My brown coffee mug only gets the taste of caffeine once a day. Since June, I've lessend my coffee drinking to help ease my work out regiment. Coffee stiffens the fat mass. I have so much to loose. It meant double the hard work if I continue my three cups of coffee a day.

You can also see the brown paper bag beside the pink water bottle. It has puto and kutsinta bought along the road in Wack-Wack. I munch every now and then. Little bites to tide over the hunger pangs. I did not finish it all as my son, who goes to school in the same school I work in, would look for merienda after a loaded day of academic studying.

And here is the left side of my table. Messy. Messy, Messy.

It's PAASCU Pre-Survey year and reporst are needed here and there. There are questions from the Principal to answer, administrative reports to accomplish and statistics to study. I have made a list of "to dos" for the coming months. I shudder at the length of the things to be done. From the looks of things, I'm afraid I will not be able to finish my Special Problem in grad school. Something's got to give.

Mentor vs. Supervisor

One of the many adjustments I made upon assuming the role of Library Coordinator, was that of a supervisor in charge of evaluating the library staff. Two things are important to evaluation. First, the targets set upon by the librarian in consultation with the supervisor; and the environment set upon by the supervisor for the librarian to reach the set targets.

The targets are of course, relevant to the attainment of departmental objectives and the school's goals. The good thing about the performance appraisal tool that we use is that, it has components that evaluate a librarian's professional character and involvement to the community at large. This motivates the librarian to take a holistic stand on his development. Not only is he expected to perform well in professional competence, he is also called upon to become a professional who is empowered and aware of his worth to the community.

The process looks easy at first, but so much factors fall into place that can spell success or failure for both. The over all culture of work plays a big part in the librarian's and supervisor's performance, as well as individual perceptions and philosophies on the job and the profession in general. Now, that is where conflict can begin.

This coming school year, as I look forward to my second term, I will try not to become merely a supervisor, but a mentor too. Evaluating both the work and the performance achieved by people can be done better if there are clear expectations set by both parties. Of course, the objectives of the department and the school's goals must never be compromised, otherwise, standards will be affected. Mentoring, however, entails acceptance and humility. Such values can be nurtured when those in the ranks trust their supervisors enough to lead and guide them. Such values can be called upon to define a department or a group of people if only supervisors are willing to become colleagues who can also learn from the foot soldiers.