Library Ethnography--Extension!

Hi all,

You've all been working hard on these projects, and I know some of you have been struggling to work out the kinks of this new technology. Because of this, I'm going to give you until the end of the week to tweak your Library Ethnographies--they are now due on Friday, August 31. If you already have yours done and in a state that you like, then you are good to go!

As you finish these projects up, remember:

• You need to have some kind of clear and thoughtful narration or annotation of your project--so if you did a powerpoint with pictures, make sure you have descriptions for each picture of what you did and why you did it. 
• You also need to have a self-evaluation posted on your blog with a description of what you specifically did in the project. This is to make sure that you get credit for the work you've done. If there is someone in your group who did not pull their own weight, let me know and I will handle it. Honestly, I can tell pretty easily if someone did not participate, so you may get contacted by me whether or not someone in your group said anything to me at all. 
• By next Wednesday you'll need to post a response to a classmate's project. That means make sure you post your project as soon as it is done so your classmates can review is and give you feedback. Do not wait until the last minute.  

If you are having issues uploading your project to your blog, here are some tips:

•  If you have a powerpoint, you should upload it to slideshare.net and then get the embed code (it is a little link on the top right of your presentation.) When you go to post the embed code in your blog, click the 'options' button on your right under 'post settings' and make sure it says "interpret typed HTML" 
• If you can't figure out the embed code, you can also just upload it to slideshare.net and post the link to your presentation in the body of a post. 
• If you posted a video, you can upload it to youtube, and then click the button that says "Insert a Video" at the top (It looks like the little board they snap in movies.) and upload it that way. You can also just link to it in your blog if the uploading doesn't work. 

I'll be in my office tomorrow (Thursday) if you have any follow up questions about how to upload your materials!

All best,
Jessica

Wednesday (8/29) Blog Prompt

Hi All,

Sorry this is up late, you might have noticed that we've had a few issues with internet on campus this morning.

Here's is your prompt for today:

 Brainstorm possible topics for your group project (This is an individual assignment). Find 3 news stories and post the links to your blog. For each story, identify the Who? What? When? Where? Why? Remember the evaluation criteria we came up with in the Evaluation Carousel in class. Also remember the list of forbidden topics below (this list is also posted in CourseDen).

--

LIBR 1101

Forbidden Topics

Good research requires scholars to think out of the box. Students should come up with topics that interest them and fall beyond the scope of the generic controversial topic. To that end, students may not choose any of the following subjects for their assignments.

Abortion
Animal Cruelty
Cloning/ stem cell research
Death penalty or capital punishment
Global warming, pollution, climate change, etc.
Gun control/ zero tolerance in schools
Homosexuals in the military
Piracy
Poverty/ homelessness
Product Placement
Same sex marriage
School prayer
Steroids and/or drug abuse
Underage drinking
War on terror, Invasion of Iraq, etc.

Your Group Evaluation Acronyms

Hi all,

Here are the evaluation acronyms you all came up with--fabulous job, all of you! Make sure you read through these, because we'll be voting on which one we want to be the class acronym in class on Wednesday (I know yours is the best, but no, you can't vote for your own!.) The winning group might get a treat! If I remember!

We have......drum roll please....

Relevance
Experience
Audience
Current
Trustworthy
--
Sponsor
Credentials
Author
Reliability
Factual
--
Trustworthiness
Reliability
Accurate
Point of View
--
Authority
Sponsor
Audience
Point of View
--
Credibility
Unbiased
Relevancy
References
Accuracy
--
Relevance
Authority
Trustworthy
--
Reliability
Authority
Date

Which one do you think is best?

Jessica

Class Evaluation Criteria

Hi all,

Here is the list of evaluation criteria we came up with in class today. Feel free to use this to inform your group Evaluation Acronym:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eXDBU-3LwLd7vt17cOE09A0DJQjUgT8HDUxt5FICu1c/edit

I know we didn't have a whole lot of time to talk about your library ethnography projects, so if you have any questions, let me know soon. If you run into a problem tomorrow night, there is probably not a whole lot I can do to help you.

I also didn't get a chance to remind you of your quiz on Wednesday, so make sure to read up on class policies, library basics, and evaluation before then!

Remember that you have until tomorrow night at 11:59 to redo (or do!) your blog posts from last week! 

All best,
Jessica

That's how I (blog)roll!

Hi all,

I hope that as the semester goes along, you'll start to explore different things you can do to customize your blog. You can see that I've added a blogroll--a list of all the blogs I follow (yours!). Feel free to use this to follow your other classmates if that is easier for you.

You should also notice that I've added tags to my blog posts. This will allow you to find other posts similar to the one you are currently reading. You can add tags to your blog post with the 'labels' function (you'll see it to your right when you are writing a post) This is especially useful for blog prompts!

Best,
Jessica

Monday (8/27) Blog Prompt

Hi all,

Here is the blog prompt for Monday, August 27th. This post does not need to be 200 words, just be mindful that you address all of the required parts of the prompt.

Post your group’s new evaluation acronym using some of the criteria we came up with in class. Make sure you discuss what you mean by each one of your words--you won’t get credit for just listing the words.

Looking Ahead to Week 2!

Hi all,

I hope you had a great weekend. I've been reading through your blogs, and I hope that you all with follow up with me about anything you continue to be confused about throughout the semester.


A few things:

--Unless I tell you otherwise, each of your blog posts need to be 200 words. You will get points off they are not. Your responses need to be at least 50 words. Many of you were under this mark for your Wednesday responses.  

--Please also be aware of due dates. Your blog responses are due by 11:59 on Monday and Wednesday, unless otherwise noted. You will get points off for missing these due dates as well. 

--Remember that your Library Ethnography Project is due on Wednesday. You will also have to respond to a classmate's project by the follow Wednesday (Sept 5). Please feel free to visit me during my office hours on Monday (11-1) if you have any questions about the library ethnography project.

--If you are keeping up with the syllabus, you will have noticed that our first quiz is Wednesday as well. This will mainly cover introductory things about the library, the syllabus, and what we'll introduce on Monday (Evaluation.) All quizzes are short answer and given in-class.

--I have updated the class schedule to reflect days that you will not have a blog post for homework, so make sure to review that.

Here is the link to the class schedule Google Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1skjT7ToBya25seL0Ju-yg2GMRWau1hH9YesCwSkIwms/edit

--One of your classmates has made a very helpful suggestion that you all might want to start titling your blog posts and labels (you can see it on the right under "Post Settings" when you write your posts) to make it easy to find and organize your posts. 

As always, let me know if you have any questions!

Best,
Jessica

Today's Blog Prompt/Getting adjusted!

Hi all,

I hope you are all adjusting well to your classes (especially this one!) I know we did a fair amount of logistics stuff on Monday (and we'll do some in class on Wednesday as well) but it is important to make sure the rest of the semester runs smoothly.

This is very important: If you have not posted your gmail email address and your blog web address to our class gmail directory, do so now!  Make sure when you post your information that you post your blog web address correctly.

I am going to make every effort to finish responding to your blog posts by the time class starts today. I am enjoying getting to know you all a little better!

Please note that I've updated your CourseDen with a list of the groups you'll be working in this semester. I more or less put these groups together randomly, and assigned each group a color name. Feel free to change the name of your group to something more exciting and fun.

I've also posted the directions for your first class project (Library Ethnography) on CourseDen as well. Make sure to read these directions thoroughly.

As you might have noticed, my instructor blog is going to be one of the main ways I communicate with you all as a group, so make sure to check this space regularly for reminders and other important class information.


Here is today's blog post prompt, to be completed in no fewer than 200 words after today's class:

What are you still confused about regarding the library space and/or library services? What, if anything, are you still confused about regarding the course? What are you most excited to do or learn this semester? 

--

Remember that you also need to respond to a classmate by 11:59pm on Friday.

Let me know if you have any questions!

All best,
Jessica

Your First Blog Post

Hi all,

Once you've gotten your blog account set up, post a brief introduction so we can all get to know a little more about you.

Tell us:

Where you're from
What's your major (if you have one--if not, what is your favorite academic subject?)
Why are you taking this class?
What is something you wish you knew more about? This could be anything--why people like watching scary movies, your family history, How you make french toast, etc
A fun fact about you!

Also, post a picture if you have one!

I'll start:

I'm from Tallahassee, FL. I moved to GA about a year ago. I went to Florida State for...well, let's just say a long time. I'm a huge Seminole football fan.

I have a Bachelors in English and Humanities, a Masters in Humanities and a Masters in Library Science

I'm teaching this class because I love teaching, and I love making research fun (it's possible, I promise!)

I wish I knew more about computers--programming, web design, etc. It's all Greek to me!

A fun fact about me is that before I got into librarianship, I used to study horror movies. I even got to teach a class on horror movies for a few semesters at Florida State!

Your turn!

Jessica

Welcome to LIBR 1101!

Hi all,

Welcome to LIBR 1101: Academic Research and the Library. My name is Jessica Critten (call me Jessica!) and I look forward to working with you all throughout the semester!

First, class business: 

If you are reading this, there is a good chance that you have already set up your blog. If you haven't, you soon will! You'll use your blogs this semester to reflect on things we discuss in class, and also as a way to prepare for upcoming topics and exercises.

I will be using my blog to send you announcements, to post relevant and important information, and also to post the prompts that you'll be responding to in your individual blogs. It is important that you check this blog regularly so you don't miss anything.

 I will also try to post as much information as I can on the CourseDen site, but we will use that less in this class than, perhaps, in your other classes. This means that I will probably rarely if ever check the email in CourseDen. If you want to email me, use my westga.edu account (or post a comment to my blog!) jcritten@westga.edu

A few important items: 

• Remember that this class meets in the 3rd floor classroom. We will be working on laptops this semester, so the earlier you can get to class and set those up, the better! 
• We have a lot of logistical things to work out in this first week. So make sure that you've: 
• Set up your Gmail account
• Set up your class blog 
• Post your Gmail address to the class Gmail directory (This is linked on CourseDen as well)
• Once everyone has posted their blog info on the Gmail directory, make sure to add all of your classmates (and me!) so you can comment on their blog

Second, deep thoughts about class: 

Take a second and think about why you decided to take this class....



...done? What did you come up with? You want to do better research? Or maybe someone just signed you up for it and you really don't know what you are doing here? Both are perfectly fine places to start!

Whatever the reason, I'm sure you want to make good grades in your other classes, right? I promise you that if you put the effort into this class, you are going to finish this semester better equipped to manage all of the classes you'll ever have. Think of LIBR 1101 as a foundation: we'll give you the tools you need to write papers, to think critically, and to find the information that you need. This is not just going to be useful in college--these are skills that you'll need to be a productive citizen of the world!

Just remember: in this class--like with most everything you'll experience in life--you will get out what you put in. In other words, if you make the effort and pay attention you will learn a lot. If you do the minimum, you'll get a minimum grade.

Most important:  I am on your team. I want you to succeed, but you have to want to succeed too. Let me know how I can help you, and let me know if you are falling behind. I can't help if I don't know that you need it.

Here's to a fun and productive semester! See you soon!

Best,
Jessica

LIBR 1101 Pretest

Hi all:

Our first class assignment is to take this Pretest (try to contain your excitement!)

You will NOT be graded on this Pretest--do not stress out about this! This is anonymous, and meant to give me an idea of what you as a class know (and don't know.)

Because of this, you are not yet expected to know all the right answers here--just do the best that you can.

Best,
Jessica