Friday, September 4, 2020

Teaching and Communication Strategies for a New Era

Teaching and Communication Strategies for a New Era

By Dr. Ruth Childs, Theatre professor

 Top three recommendations:
Be prepared, authentic, and communicate

Be ourselves.

Breathe deeply-- slows our speech down.

Aim your camera for your full face and shoulders (if teaching online).

Dress the part,.

Demonstrate, if possible.

Stand up when teaching or recording a video.

Get a light ring, better light for videos or online teaching.

Do a few rehearsals of the script or class before the session.

Add symbols to your notes: One for breathing, one for a smile.

Add variety to your voice.

Underline the most important words.

Keyword-- exercise
    Try changing how you speak the important words:

  1. Loud
  2. Pause 
  3. Slower
  4. Add a guesture


Wednesday, June 24, 2020

New Metrics for Telling Your Library's Story

New Metrics for Telling Your Library's Story
June 11, 2020

1 Evaluating Events: Maurini Sturb from U of R spoke

2 Research Commons: Meris Longmeier at Ohio State
Supporting the Research Lifecycle


3 RAMP - Jon

UT Austin -- Krystal Wyatt-Baxter
Institutional Assessment

Monday, June 8, 2020

Reframing reference services: Perceptions and futures of the reference desk, findings from a mixed-methods survey of United States academic libraries

Reframing reference services: Perceptions and futures of the reference desk, findings from a mixed-methods survey of United States academic libraries

ALA webinar,  June 8, 2020


Traditional reference desk is still prominent.
75% , perception: reference desk gets mostly reference  questions

https://rdw.rowan.edu/lib_scholarship/20/

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iyptdl1rsKk-1JMpUtbDngp540KmbBy1etb2HtvHaMk/edit?usp=sharing

A research and writing studio example: 
https://library.wwu.edu/rws

Someone mentioned that using LibCal really helped with research consultations.

Majority of research consults are often a follow-up from the instruction sessions they have done. 

Thursday, May 21, 2020

Psychological First Aid Webinar 05/21/2020




Speak warmly and genuinely with those you are working with survivors.


Help families create routines and structure: predictability.
Help the survivors by letting them be involved in the decision making process.  Instead of open ended questions, you might want to give them three choices to choose from. 

Validate survivor's thoughts and feelings. 
Express empathy.  So you feel?... It sounds like....
If you get the feeling wrong, apologize and let the survivor clarify or say what they really feel.  
Don't say "I know how you feel"  --- reflect back to them, like it sounds like you feel really sad or upset....
Don't start any sentence with "At least ... [anything]"

Some questions are just unanswerable.  Just stand there (be there). 

Dealing with anger:  Sometimes the will direct at at you, just because you are there.  Validate, but don't take it personally. 

To be empathetic, you need to take care of yourself.  You might just not be able to help at certain times.

We are in "chronic ambiguity" --say I don't know or provide accurate information

Normalize your reactions... we don't feel normal, what your feeling is what is expected or understandable. 
Positive Coping Strategies
How have you gotten through this before? 
What skills or strengths do you have to get through this? 
What do you have control over and what do you not have control over? 

Effective vs. ineffective ways of coping (seeing it in writing can help)

Thursday, May 7, 2020

Stress Management and Self Care Webinar (05/07/2020)


Institute for Disaster Mental Health


Eustress:  The positive stress that keeps us functioning.. like challenges at work, or pushing oneself physically

Sometimes there is a delayed response to a particular stressor

Stress Reaction:  Emotional, Cognitive, Behavioral, Spiritual, Physical (Shame, Guilt)

Quarantine Brain can be a stressor!  yes!

Outbreak Specific Stressors:
General Uncertainty and Unfamiliarity

-Impact is unpredictable... we don't know when this will end.
-Unprecented use of social distancing
-Information changes rapidly
  
Result: Constant need to adapt

Stressors:
Medical Fear, Caregiving, Practical concerns (job loss, enough supplies, education, other healthcare needs), Social Experiences, Economic Concerns, Work/Life Balance,


Self care imperative:  "People who do not take care of themselves cannot take care of others or meet their professional demands."   Taking steps to take care for you own

Compassion Stress Continuum: 
Compassion satisfaction <----------------> Compassion Fatigue
http://www.proqol.org

Burnout

Emotion and Behavior-Based Pratices
Meditation
Mindfulness
Yoga

Breathing exercises
Exercise

Cognition Based
Self talk, Stress Inoculation, Cognitive restructuring

Stress Innoculation:
Acknowledge that stress exists


Component elements:
1. ID potential stressors

2. Appraise or evaluate the stressors
--is the situation a challenge or a threat? 
--is it under my control or not?
3. ID how we're going to cope with them 
A. If under my control:  Develop a problem-focused strategy. 
B. Not under my control: Emotion-focused Strategies, like the Serenity Prayer
4. ID Organizational Strategies

Friday, April 24, 2020

Productivity: Coping with Distraction While Working from Home 4/23/2020

Although this webinar dealt with distractions while working at home, the part about productivity I found particularly useful.  '

Focus blockers
Freedom https://freedom.to

Self Control Https://selfcontrolapp.com (free for Macs)
Focus (for Mac) : https://heyfocus.com

Figure out your own circadian rhythm. When do you work the best and have the most energy?  Use that time to do your "deep work" and save the other time for "shallow work."  
Deep Work
Writing
Curriculum development 
Strategizing
Planning/Forecasting
Make a video/image/instructional materials
Flowcharts
Researching  
Lesson Planning
Reading/Studying

Shallow Work
Email
grading
Data Entry
Scheduling/Calendaring
Editing (?)
Marketing
Purchasing
Book orders

LibChat
Registering
Blogging

Our brains can only focus for so long.  Deep work will make us feel more tired.
Admit, I can only do this much today.

52 min. work, 17 min. break
80/20
Pomodoro Technique

Deep work: “Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.”- Cal Newport

Shallow work: Noncognitively demanding, logistical-style tasks, often performed while distracted. These efforts tend not to create much new value in the world and are easy to replicate.” Cal Newport 

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

Internationalizing the Curriculum

CELT workshop, March 3, 2020

COIL
Two reasons
1. Lerong He — business
Comparison about mexico and US
Lit review
NAFTA comparison
He said she said youtube videos
Small research paper
Use social media account

2. Priyam. BUS 437 advertising with graphic design students , they were not used to reading journal articles
Icebreaker is critical
Advertising brief
Used Slack

3. Morag Martin
HST Oral History
Interview way to require students f2f with someone in a different culture.
Used padlet
Faculty have to do group work too.

FB messenger
Technology tough
Cultural iceberg
Icebreaker exerci

Monday, February 17, 2020

Notes from APA webinar 2/13/2020

  • Use reference templates.
  • Gov't agency= include the specific agency name
  • 20 authors in ref, if 21 list the first 19  . . . last author
  • 3 or more authors (in text) Martin et al.
Helpful Hints 
  1. Document type: rely on that, it's how you cite.
  2. Retrieval method does not matter.
  3. Webpage = document type.   Websites and webpages category is your last resort.
  4. Online and print references are identical. May not have a URL.
  5. Cite what you see
  6. 2 format patterns:
  7. Adapting APA style
 http://crossref.org to find doi
Cite as: https://doi.org/

  • Use links that work for readers (outside of your institution)
  • Retrieval dates: Only for works designed to change and not archived (wikis, OERs, online dictionaries. (basically work that is not stable and may change)
  • No author: Could be a nonprofit.  Look at "about us" or Author
  •  Personal Communication -  does NOT go on the reference list
  • Limited circulation you don't usually list the databases, but sometimes you might for things from ERIC or Proquest Theses
From the video for librarians at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmZIfLX_qs8

Friday, February 7, 2020

SUNYLA Midwinter Virtual Conference 2020 (Feb. 7, 2020)

--Session 2:  Teaching Primo to Every Student: Incorporating Primo Instruction into an Online Information Literacy Course, by Kris Stacy-Bates, Erin Thomas, and Cara Stone (Iowa State University Library)

Book and course info here:  http://bit.ly/isuprimoil

LibWizard Tutorials


Stack Mat: How they show where the books are


--Session 3:  A New Discovery – Marketing Primo to Faculty and Students, by Rocco Cremonese (Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania)

The name "Discovery" didn't work very well.  
In hindsight would have called it OneSearch or FindEverything
Use "student friendly" language


Used Libwizard to make a tutorial for Primo
https://sru.libwizard.com/f/FindLibraryItems

Video tutorials are very hard to keep up to date because of the more frequent updates to Primo/Alma.
 

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Defusing Conflict in the Library

Defusing Conflict in the Library 
Webinar, 1/23/2020
Carrie Rogers-Whitehead

We often are in a reactive situation more than a proactive one, which can create stress (increased adrenaline, cortisol, etc.)

Malcom Gladwell's new book "Talking to Strangers"
The Upside of  your Dark Side

Reframe your emotions.
Look for the positives of people who :
Anxiety can cause heightened perceptions causes.
Narcissism

Value all emotions.

Management stress is contagious. 


Stay present. Be curious. Ask open-ended questions. Focus on your body and breathe. 

Don't make it about myself. Return the question to the patron and make it about them.

Verbal Judo: Defending against crisis situations with words.
Book Verbal Judo: The Gentle Art of Persuasion

LEAPS
Listen

Empathize 
Ask
Paraphrase
Summarize

Mental forecasting: we're not very good at predicting what will happen.
Acknowledge that it might not feel good, but do it anyway.
Give options and consequences.

https://respons-ability.net

Other Books:
The Body Keeps Score

Out of Character: Surprising truths about the liar, cheat, sinner (and saint) lurking in all of us
The Seven Principles for Making a Marriage work (Gottmans have done a lot of research, can apply to relationships too)





Friday, January 3, 2020

Design your perfect 2020: How to create powerful goals and stick to them

Notes from a webinar by Michael Hyatt
Lifescore assessment online quiz

1. Get specific about what I want. 
Begin with the end in mind.  Keep it personally meaningful?  At the end of this year what do I want to have achieved? What will I regret not doing? What will matter most to me?
Address the 3 circles of life:
Circle of Being
Spiritual
Physical
Intellectual
Emotional
Circle of Relating
Marital
Parental
Social
Circle of Doing
Financial
Vocational
Avocational
Write down specific goals. 42% more likely to get them done.

Simple Step: Write a list of 7 to 10 goals I will pursue in the coming year.

2.  Concentrate my effort on just a few goals. 
When I write down 25 things I hope to accomplish, I just get overwhelmed.

Simple step: Get clear on 2 or 3 goals on which I'll focus for the first quarter of the year. 

3.  Aim for my discomfort zone.   The things I really care about are going to take more effort to attain. Three zones in Goal setting: Comfort zone, discomfort zone, delusional zone.  I want to be in the discomfort zone.

Simple Step: Make sure each of my goals is in the Discomfort Zone.

4.  Keep track of my progress.  Keep goals visible! Have a plan to view them daily, weekly, and monthly.  as the saying goes: Out of sight, out of mind.

Simple step: Decide how I will track my goals.  

5.  Enlist the support I need.  Only share my goals with those I believe are actively committed to helping me achieve them.  Avoid overload

Simple Step: Find a supportive community to pursue goals with. 


Thursday, January 2, 2020

Eat that Frog


Eat that Frog
1.      Decide exactly what you want.
2.      Write it down.
3.      Set a deadline – set sub deadlines if necessary.
4.      Make a list of everything that you can think of that you are going to have to do to achieve your goal.
5.      Organize the list into a plan.
6.      Resolve to do something every single day that moves you toward your major goal.

**Resist the temptation to clear up small things first.

Develop a compulsion to closure
1.      I actually feel happier and more powerful when I start and a complete a task of any kind.
2.      I satisfy a deep subconscious need to bring finality to a job or project.
3.      The sense of completion or closure motivates me to start the next task or project and then persist toward final completion.
4.      This act of completion triggers the release of endorphins in my brain.

*When I am overwhelmed at starting a project try the salami slice or swiss cheese method slice – layout the task in detail and do just 1 slice.  Swiss cheese method: Work on a task for a specific amount of time, even just 5 to 10 minutes.

Do it now! Do it now!
Back to work! Back to work!

Self-discipline, self-master and self-control are the basic building blocks of character and high performance. 

Prepare the workspace.
1.      Put only what I need in front of me. 
2.      Everything else on the floor behind me.
3.      Carry myself as though I am an efficient, effective, high-performing personality.
4.      The cleaner and neater my work environment, the more positive, productive, and confident I feel.

*What one career accomplishment would have the greatest positive impact on my work life?

Develop a positive mental attitude.

1.      Optimists look for the good in every situation.
2.      Optimists always seek the valuable lesson in every setback or difficulty.
3.      Optimists always look for the solution to every problem.  Instead of blaming or complaining when things go wrong, they become action-oriented.
4.      Optimists think and talk continually about their goals.  Always look forward not backward.
*One of the best rules for dealing with technology is to just “leave it off.” 
**Leave your computer off until you have planned and organized your day!

Apply the Law of 3
*Three core tasks that I perform contain the most of the value that I contribute to the College at Brockport/Drake Memorial Library.  If I could do one thing on the list all day long, which 1 (2 then 3) would contribute the greatest value?

1.      Business/Career
2.      Family/Relationships
3.      Finances
4.      Health
5.      Personal/Spiritual
6.      Professional Development
7.      Social/Community
8.      Biggest Probs/Concerns

Vision for the Future: Open and Accessible ENY/ACRL Annual Conference

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