Say it loud and say it proud - ‘I’m a librarian’: the ...
Transcript of Say it loud and say it proud - ‘I’m a librarian’: the ...
Say it loud and say it proud -‘I’m a librarian’: the superhero approach to
engaging with your profession!
Leo Appleton, Director of Library Services, Goldsmiths, University of London
Image credit: thedaringlibrarian.com
Career highlights: Claire
Junior Library Assistant
Senior Library Assistant
Deputy Team Leader
Research Support Skills
Coordinator
Career highlights: Wendy
Assistant Librarian
Librarian
Interlibrary Loans Librarian
Senior Information Advisor
Career highlights: Leo
Senior Library Assistant
Liaison Librarian
Learning Resources Manager
Head of Business and Planning
Introductions – delegates – who are you?
• Name
• Job title
• Brief job overview
• Something you like about your job
Achievements
• What is your greatest achievement in your personal life?
• How did achieving this make you feel?
Why involve ourselves in scholarship?Share best practice
Contribute to the profession
Recognition
Professional development
Professional responsibility
Create reference points for your achievements and innovations
Opportunities to present
• Where, what topic and format?
• Internal, local, national, international
• Talk about what you know well
• Types of presentation:
Poster session
Lightning talk
Workshop
Plenary lecture
Keynote address
Panel discussion, Q&A
Opportunities to present
• Activity – Call for papersIdeas for possible themes:
• Information and digital literacy innovations
• Library space planning and design
• Student engagement / user experience
• Theme and Title
Conference abstract (300 words)
Author biography (100 - 200 words)
Publishing
• What kind of publications could you share your best practice in?• Peer reviewed journal
• Professional press
• Newsletter
• Blog
• Book chapter
• Monograph
• White paper
• Report
• Book review
What’s the difference?
• Research pieces – peer review
• Case studies, practical experience,– professional press
• General pieces / theoretical – professional press
• Projects, write-ups – newsletters
• Personal reflections, opinion pieces – blogs, editorials
• Essays – book chapter
• Book reviews – professional press, newsletters
• To inform policy, discuss trends - white papers, reports
Tips
• Authors
• Make time (write little and often)
• Choose the publication (know
your audience)
• Plan it and organise it
• Better to get it written than to get
it perfect (first time)
• Edit, proof, review
• Editors
• Check the guidelines
• Readability is crucial
• Consider your journal audience
• Respond to your reviews• Are the objectives of the paper stated?
• Are the methods of the study and the results
clearly described?
• Does the discussion link theory and practice?
• Does the paper provide something new?
• Are the ideas of interest and practical
relevance to academic libraries
Resources
• The Thing Explainer
https://librariangoddess.wordpress.com/2017/07/24/journal-articles-the-thing-
explainer-version/
• Academic Writing Librarians http://academicwritinglibrarian.blogspot.com/
Writing for the professional Press
http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/3557/1/WRAP_Brewerton_Brewerton_on_writing_ed_
version.pdf
The Thing I Did
• Here’s the thing I did and this is why it needed doing (Introduction)
• Here’s what other people said about this thing (and what they left out)
(Literature review)
• Here’s how I did it (Methods)
• Here’s what happened (Findings)
• This is what I think it means (Discussion)
• Abstract
• Background
• Scope / Limitations
• Ethics
• Conclusion
Activity
• Choose a type of publication
• Think about what you might write with regard to the topic that you have just
presented on
• Freely write about your topic for five minutes (without stopping)
Demonstrating impact
Share your work as widely as you can
• Departmental/personal websites
• Social media
BIBLIOMETRICS
Citations
Views Mentions
ALTMETRICS
Blogs Twitter
MediaPolicy
Reviews Mendeley
Measuring impact
What next?
• Where will you present?
• Where will you publish?
• How will you demonstrate the impact of what you do?
• Focus on the enjoyable and fulfilling aspects of your work…
• Make time to reflect and write
• What gives you pride?
• Get support (peers, managers)
• Organise writing workshops
• Enjoy this aspect of the job. You are experts - profess, evangelise and tell the
world....
“I'm a superhero librarian!
I'm really proud of my
work, so let me tell you
what I’ve been doing!