Evidence of Competency
Goal 2: Understand the essential nature of information and its relevance to our diverse society.
2a.
Metadata Ethics
Outcome 2a. Describe various definitions and concepts of information.
The 703 Organization of Knowledge course was probably the most interesting course that I took in terms of information concepts. Obviously I knew that information can be found in so many different ways: books, online, databases, etc. However, in the 703 course I learned all about metadata and how to organize that information in terms of the library catalog. I remember being surprised by the fact that essentially everything physical around us is metadata that we can organize. Metadata can come from a drivers license, from the writing on the back of a photograph, or from a poster.
For one assignment we were asked to read two articles that involved finding metadata, in this case photographs, and the ethics behind publishing them. It was an interesting lesson on how, while we want to preserve as much history as we can with this kind of metadata and information, is it always appropriate or ethical to publish it? I had never considered the ethics of information before. This directly applies to me as a librarian in making sure that the information that is accessible to my patrons, but still making sure that I am thinking through the ethics of having that material. If a resource is showing a racial stereotype, I would argue that that information should not be available to my community. I could replace that material with an accurate representation of that group or topic. As a librarian I will be working with information all the time.
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2b.
Censorship & Selections for Children
Outcome 2b. Explain the impact of information policies on intellectual freedom, access, literacy, information behavior, and other aspects of library and information science.
Policies can have a huge impact on access to materials in both a school library and a public library. Something that has stuck out to me throughout my time in the program is making sure that I myself am not self-censoring the materials that I am purchasing for the library I work in. I do not want to exclude a selection because I am afraid of the pushback that I may get from a patron or parent. I am an educated library professional and I know what my community needs, so I cannot let the possibility of push back scare me. Censorship is such a big issue right now and unfortunately there are policies out there that create a domino effect on censorship. In my 721 Library Materials for Children course we looked at censorship and selections for children. This exercise made me think through how censorship could present itself through children's materials. It's given me confidence to be able to advocate for my patrons.
On the school library side of things, I do worry about potentially working for a district that has policies in place that keep me from being able to do my job. I know that all my students have the right to intellectual freedom and I worry about not being able to give students access to materials that I know are needed in the school library. In my opinion, there are some school policies out there that would keep me from being able to do my job properly as a librarian. I know someone who left a school district because of the policies that were in place in the library. The policies made it almost impossible to order appropriate materials, deselect outdates materials, or make any much needed changes in the library. This directly affects the student's ability to access information that is up to date and reliable. There are positives and negatives that can come directly from policies. While I obviously need to and want to follow policies, it can make my job as a librarian challenging if it keeps me from being able to select materials needed for my patrons.
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2c.
Library Service Evaluation
Outcome 2c. Develop appropriate responses to assessed information needs within diverse communities/organizations.
In the 708 Evidence Based Planning, Management, and Decision Making course we were tasked to evaluate a program in our library. I appreciated that this course showed us the importance of evaluating, as well as the complexity of the evaluation process. For the project I chose to base mine around the summer reading program. This assignment gave me practical steps on creating analytical questions, figuring out who will be implementing collecting the data, tools being used for gathering data, and then how to analyze and interpret the data when the evaluation time period has completed. This project gave me insight, practical steps, and confidence to be able to evaluate services in both a public library or school library setting. Being able to evaluate the services being provided will allow me as a librarian to make necessary changes to programming for the betterment of my patrons.
(Image Source: Self)