HE versus FE: my top 5 observations

Still learning.
Image taken by Chelsea:( Used under a CC license.

Last week I passed the probationary period in my new job. I felt uneasy with the direction FE was heading, so I was glad when changing jobs meant leaving the FE sector and joining the HE sector. I loved working at the college, but had long wanted to try my hand in a university library and was excited at the chance to do so. Now that I have been here almost six months, I have had chance to reflect on the differences between libraries. My initial top 5 ponderings are below:

MCLIP revalidation

Last week I received an email telling me my chartership revalidation was successful. I originally chartered in 2010 and this was the first time I had revalidated. I attempted to do so back in 2012/13 but it didn’t get off the ground. Gathering evidence was time-consuming and knowing it was optional meant I didn’t prioritise it.

The new regulations are far more user-friendly and an online portfolio is much easier to maintain. I originally found CILIP’s VLE difficult to use but with perseverance I now have no trouble navigating it. Since submitting my revalidation I have continued to log CPD activities online in preparation for my next revalidation. I much prefer this new way, the process is less hassle and as a result I aim to revalidate annually.

Ofsted

Time for an inspection! Image taken by thom

I have worked in school and college libraries since 2003 and during this time I have worked through 6 Ofsted inspections. During these inspections I have held various roles ranging from learning resources assistant, school librarian and systems librarian. Each of these is a different rung on the ladder and has differing levels of authority, and I can see how my contribution during inspections has differed accordingly.

Apprentice success story

*Not* the library apprentice!
Image by Loren Javier

In 2012, the library in which I work appointed an apprentice. I'll admit that, back then, I was hugely sceptical. I felt the government was trading on the well-respected reputation of apprenticeships from decades gone by; my father, for instance, completed a 6 year apprenticeship to become a master craftsman. I wondered if a modern-day apprenticeship could offer a valid comparison. I was also concerned about the salary offered as it was much lower than that of a standard library assistant. I didn't want the apprentice to be short-change financially. However, I had no valid knowledge of apprenticeships and I am pleased to say my preconceptions were wrong.

During 2014, the apprentice completed her two year contract and was offered a permanent position within the library team. We were not obliged to offer a permanent post after the end of the contract, but we submitted a bid to do so which was accepted by HR. She had become a fully-contributory team member and of great value to the library.

A day in the life of a Systems Librarian

Hello! Here I am at the library helpdesk

In recent years I enjoyed taking part in the Library day in the life project. This ran from 2008-2012 and saw library staff from all disciplines across the world record and upload their daily diaries for a week. I found it invaluable and really interesting, and was quite sad when the person who organised it announced there would be no more. You can read my participating blog posts here.

The library in which I work has a very active blog and this year I decided to introduce a series of posts based on the idea of a daily diary. There are 11 of us in the team and we each blogged about our day at work; these posts were uploaded once a week over a period of 11 weeks.  We publicised it within college as the chance to see what goes on behind-the-scenes in a library. Whenever a new post was published we would highlight it on the staff intranet and the library's social media profiles. They were by far the most viewed posts on our blog! It was mentioned at regional JISC events and we even had another FE library say they enjoyed reading the series so much they were planning a similar one for their blog. A huge compliment!

As a rule, I tend not to link this blog to my workplace blog, but on this occasion I'll make an exception. If anyone fancies reading about a day in the life of an FE systems librarian, here's the link to my post. Enjoy!

Two year anniversary

Image taken by Leo Reynolds

My boyfriend believes that blogging is mostly self-indulgent waffle-tosh of little value to anyone else. Usually I disagree with him on this topic, but I’m afraid this post may well prove him right…

 Last week marked the second anniversary in my current job. It gave me cause to ponder the last two years and all that has happened since I left my last post. I found redundancy to be a very traumatic experience and hope I never have to go through it again. It affected me in all manner of ways I didn’t think possible; the majority of these are too personal to share in a public blog, but I admit I found it distressing and fundamentally sad. I refused to take redundancy lying down and treated finding a new job like going to war – I was determined to succeed and go out fighting. I managed to secure a new post within 10 weeks but will long remember the feelings of sheer relief and utter elation. When I received the call telling me I was the successful candidate, I’m embarrassed to say I actually jumped with joy!

My First Anniversary

Image taken by nubobo

Last week was the one year anniversary of my starting work in my current job and the time seems right for a mini-reflection. Initially, I didn’t plan to stay very long in my current job - the commute is long and the petrol bill high - but I find myself liking the library, the college and the people.

Whilst I loved my previous job, it was no longer challenging. I wonder how long it will be before I start to see this role in the same way? At the moment I can’t ever imagine feeling that, even after a year I still feel as though I am learning how to do things. I can genuinely say that almost every day is a learning curve for me in one way or another and whilst that can be tiring, it’s also stimulating and enjoyable. Trying to narrow it down is quite tricky, but here are the main activities which I think have helped me develop the most over the past few months:*

Ofsted

Image by Jim Linwood

This week, the college in which I work has gone through an Ofsted inspection. I’ve gone through two inspections whilst working in secondary education but this was my first in further education and I was keen to see the differences...

The word 'Ofsted' provokes panic amongst teaching staff, and although this filters through to support staff, the emphasis is not placed directly on us. Pre-inspection, portfolios of evidence were collected and submitted. The library was asked to contribute to the portfolio representing the E-Services department, and I spent three days gathering as much as I could. Stats, minutes of meetings, e-safety work, leaflets, finance information, screen shots – you name it, I submitted it. I’ve only worked at the college nine months and I found the library blog and annual report invaluable tools in looking back at the department’s activity before this time. Reflectively, doing this helped me ascertain particular areas in which we could improve (SEN provision and computer statistics). It also reminded me of the things we do well - almost all the evidence I needed to provide was there waiting for me - and even made me think CoLRiC's peer accreditation scheme.

Time to reflect

Image by Irargerich

It’s December now, which means I’ve hit the six month mark in my new job. Thought I’d have a little ponder and reflect on my time here so far.

Initially, I wasn’t sure how long I’d stay in this role as it entails a 65 mile round trip to one campus and an 80 mile round trip to the other campus. I find the drive draining, and although I try to use it as ‘down time’ I’m not really succeeding with that just yet. I live in hope that one day I’ll find the commute relaxing.

Looking back, I can see I’ve developed skills I didn’t make much use of in my previous role as a School Librarian. I spend a fair amount of my working week classifying new stock, although it is constantly a bottle neck in the book-processing procedure. It’s nice to get my teeth into Dewey again, I didn’t realise how much I missed it while I was at the school. There are some books for which I simply I can’t decide upon class numbers, and these tend to have extended stays on our classification shelf in the office; I know this is a weakness of mine, I shouldn’t pick and choose the books I classify, I’ll try to be more inclusive in the new year.

'My Job' Column

This month, I feature in the ‘My Job’ column in Cilip Update with Gazette magazine. For 300 words I prattle on about the differences between my new job (FE) and my old job (school). If you’re a Cilip member you can view the magazine online with your username and password; however, if you aren’t a member and are curious to read my ramblings, the text is given below. 

(Click on the image and it should open in a larger window, making it easier to read.)

Discover-e 2011

This week I took part in a two-day event organised by JISC Regional Support Centre (West Mids) entitled Discover-e 2011. It was a free, online event consisting of numerous webinars, based on the theme of ‘Supporting learning providers’ priorities’.

Approximately 135 delegates signed up to the event and we were able to individually select which sessions we’d prefer to attend.  This was my first time participating in a webinar / online conference so I was a little apprehensive, but I was genuinely surprised how simple and straight-forward it was. The sessions were delivered using Elluminate software which allows delegates in the room to view a PowerPoint presentation, whilst listening to the presentation being delivered live through headphones. There is also a chatbox visible, so delegates can raise questions or start a parallel discussion. In addition to this, there are function buttons allowing delegates to applaud, laugh or raise their hands.

The first session I attended was delivered by Steve Taylor of Mercia Management. It was entitled ‘Tablet PCs in remote / mobile learning’. There were 38 delegates in the room for this presentation, although the number was fluid as people were able to enter / leave the room as they wished. Steve told of his organisation’s experience of loaning out netbooks to engineering apprentice students. Overall, Steve said the initiative had been smooth-flowing with no acts of hardware / software misuse. Mercia Management found that loaning netbooks generated an excitement amongst the students who were keen to accept the responsibility of the equipment. There was an increase in IT literacy, faster assignment completions and increased achievements. I’m glad this was the first sessions I attended; I have experience of a similar initiative from my previous post in a school and therefore felt able to contribute to the session by discussing this in the chatbox.

Averil Pearson

On April Fool’s Day 2003 I started my first day of work in a library, and on this day I met a woman whom I shall always remember.

Averil Pearson was the Senior Assistant and had a library career spanning 40 years. She taught me how to use Dewey, how to use the Olib computerised catalogue – absolutely everything. She even taught me how to apply eyeliner! The two of us would work a late night together every Tuesday; students rarely used the library during the evenings so we had a little more time to chat and get to know each other.

Over the 3 years that I worked with Averil, I watched her and learnt so much – much more than merely library stuff. She was the first person of a different generation I genuinely regarded as a friend. She would talk the hind legs off a donkey, bless her, but she inspired me in lots of ways. She was a good person who led a good life and opened my eyes to many different things.

Averil died almost two years ago. Her funeral was very touching and I’m pleased to say there was standing room only during the service. She was deeply dedicated to libraries and I want everyone to know what an amazing person she was.