My student (Minzah) has been moving right along with her learning, and a fair bit of it is self driven as I like to see my students become independent in the workplace. As this is what it will be like for them when they hit the real world.
Minzah was given a task to create an entire new (but small which is good) collection. She was required to assess our GIS CD-ROMs’ with the GIS Consultants help, to determine what categories they should be filed in. (our special library files items on the shelf by category, not dewey). Once the items were in their sections, she needed to think about the fields that would be filled out in the Library Catalogue, and then if she was unable to fill out all the fields, due to information missing from the CD cover, she could ask the GIS Consultant to fill in the gaps for her. Together, we determined the shelf numbering of the item, and how it would look on the shelf. And off she goes…
She also carried out many other smaller activities, like quick reference, getting a quote for book acquisitions and doing some hands on work in the library. Just to mix it up a bit.
Here’s what Minzah has to say about Week 2 of her placement
Wow another week already over. This week was quicker than my first. I must admit I had an exciting week as I was able to apply my theoretical studies to practice.
Early this week I had a meeting with the Knowledge & Information Manager. That was great as he really got me thinking about my future goals. During this meeting I was able to examine the services offered by the K&IM team to Urbis and understand how I&KM is applied to the organisation.
Mid-week, I was given a problem to solve which really got me thinking about information management. From scratch I had to organize CD’s into a collection that agreed with the current library cataloguing rules used by Urbis. Firstly, the CD’s were arranged in sections, then I examined what appropriate fields should be used, finally with the help of Jill we decided on suitable shelf numbering and the CD’s were ready to catalogue. I enjoyed going through the process as it gave me a break-down of how cataloging is done.
I have also been doing a lot of on MediaWiki. One of the projects I have been given during my time here is to set up an induction page which is to be turned into a series of podcasts. I have been using MediaWiki to share my thoughts and ideas with the team. I think it’s a fantastic tool to use, as it allows me to collaborate with others.
Yesterday Jill, Katy and I went to visit the Bureau of Meteorology library. I really enjoyed that, it allowed me to understand the organisations range of resources and services offered. It gave me a different perspective of a specialised library.
Overall I have an excellent second week, and covered so much.
Minzah
Her learning is now moving up a notch and she is working and communicating well with our team. The group collaboration with the podcasting activity, while using the Wiki is also facilitating her interactions.
I’m looking forward to next week, and of course, we’ll give you an update at the end of the week…
