Report
An online learning journal can be described as a collection
of thoughts and feelings that map a person’s learning journey. The purpose of
this personal learning journal is to gain insights into self-awareness and
learning by completing online learning journal (OLJ) tasks. An online journal should
be reflective in nature. (Mansor, (2011), p. 1). The learning objectives for
the social networking for information professional’s class are;
·
demonstrate an understanding of social
networking technologies;
·
demonstrate an understanding of concepts, theory
and practice of Library 2.0 and participatory library service;
·
be able to critically examine the features and
functionality of various social networking tools to meet the information needs
of users;
·
be able to evaluate social networking
technologies to support informational and collaborative needs of workgroups,
communities and organisations; and
·
demonstrate an understanding of the social,
cultural, educational, ethical, and technical management issues that exist in a
socially networked world, and how information policy is developed and
implemented to support such issues. (Hay & Wallis, 2013, p. 1).
The three OLJ tasks that have helped me to meet the class
learning objectives are; the “Second Life” task, the “Arizona State University
and the 4C’s” task and the “Reasons why libraries should be on social media”
task. (Wilkes, 2014).
The first OLJ task is the Second Life task. In this task I
was required to write a critical evaluation on my use of second life, including
the effectiveness of the different features, my learning experiences and ways
that second life can be used by an information organisation. In completing this
OLJ task I have met the following learning objectives; understanding of social
technologies, critically examine features of social tools and evaluate social
technology. To meet these objectives I needed to use second life several times
over the duration of the class, including the two class tours. During my visits
to second life I reviewed and evaluated some of the most common functions. This
evaluation has been demonstrated in the OLJ entry about second life. I used the following resources to help
evaluate the second life functions and other social media tools; Chow et al, Courtney,
Kroski, Parks & Walton, and Savin-Baden. These resources have expanded my
understanding of second life and other social networking technology. Some of
the difficulties I encountered when completing this task were; familiarising
myself with the different mouse and keyboard controls, becoming used to the
camera tool, navigating the second life world and utilising the chat tool. By
overcoming these difficulties I have increased my learning and development as a
social networker. Some of the ways that libraries and information organisations
are using second life is also discussed in my blog post.
The second OLJ activity is the Arizona State University
(ASU) Library and the 4C’s. In completing this task I was required to evaluate
several social media tools that the ASU library uses. The 4C’s of social media
are; customers, content, context and channel. I researched the different 4C’s
and then used them to evaluate the ASU social media tools. When researching the many different 4C’s I
achieved the learning objectives by demonstrating my understanding of social
technology. While completing this task, and course I have learnt about the
different theories and practices of library 2.0 and social networking
technology. One of these theories is the 4C’s of social media. The other
learning objectives I have achieved from this task are; being able to critically
examine the features of social networking tools and evaluate social networking
technology to support communities and organisations. This was demonstrated by
completing the OLJ task about the ASU library. My understanding of social
networking has increased through reading the modules, the recommended readings listed
on interact website and the research I used to complete the task.
The third OLJ task that has helped me to meet the learning
objectives is the task that asks to create a comparative table of three different
libraries and then develop a list of reasons why other libraries should use
social media. In this task I was required to critically examine the social
technologies of three different libraries; by doing this I achieved the
learning objective about evaluating social technology. When examining social
media for this task I looked at the various social, cultural, educational,
ethical, and technical management issues that relate to social media, this was
required for the comparison table and allowed me to reach the learning
objective about understanding issues and policy. Completing this task has shown
me the uses of an information and social media policy; and why information
organisations need to use policies.
Reflection
My development as an information professional has changed
since beginning the course INF 206 Social Networking for Information
Professionals. At the beginning of the class I was required to write a blog
post about my understanding of what social networking means to me. Since that
first blog post my understanding of social networking has undergone many
changes. This has occurred because of the class modules, recommended readings,
class assignments and Online Learning Journal (OLJ) activities. In completing these
activities and course work I have met the class learning objectives.
Completing this class has had an impact on my development as
information professional. Becoming familiar with so many different social
networking and media tools has helped improve my skills. Learning how to use
tools like; blogs, wiki’s, RSS feeds, twitter, MySpace, Diigo and LinkedIn has
improved the chances of me being employed in a library or information
organisation.
Overcoming some of the difficulties I faced in this class
has allowed me to improve my learning and understanding of social networking
and its uses in the information profession. The book by Moon (2006, p. 90)
describes some of the difficulties or issues that people can encounter when
writing a learning journal. Some of these difficulties and other difficulties
faced in this class include; being unfamiliar with most of the social
technology used, never writing a social networking proposal before, never using
a blog, never writing a journal, difficulties with learning journal writing, only
having one previous experience in writing a reflection and the time needed to
write in a learning journal. By overcoming these issues I have grown as information
professional. As I overcame each of
these issues I learnt and developed.
The article by Katherine Chretien, Ellen Goldman, and
Charles Faselis, (2008, para. 6) shows how writing in a blog promotes
reflection and provides the writer with opportunities to improve professional
development. Reading this article has helped me realise the benefits of writing
a blog. One of the problems I found while undertaking this course was regularly
updating my blog, and reading this article helped me to understand how a blog
would benefit my development.
The article about using blogs as a reflective learning tool
by Katharina Wolf (2010, para. 6-7) aims to show how blogs improve students
learning, encourages reflections and shows the need for continuous professional
development. This article emphasises how important reflecting is to the learning
process. After reading this article I comprehended how writing a reflective
blog would help my professional development. Reading this article has helped me
keep on track when updating my blog posts and completing OLJ activities.
Reflecting can be challenging, even for people that have
natural reflective personalities. For those people without these traits
identifying which events to reflect on, how to reflect and trying to avoid
being overly self-critical can be very difficult (Barnard, 2011). It is for
these reasons that most people need guidance and training in how to reflect.
The article by Barnard demonstrates how the students that are reflective at the
end of the course are those that were already reflective at the beginning. The
article also touched on a point that I found particularly significant, that
students had trouble being critical of others work. Myself and other students
have discussed how being critical of others work is a difficult concept to
understand.
In completing this class I have gained a better comprehension
of library 2.0 tools and concepts. I have achieved this by reading and more
importantly understanding the class material, recommended readings and research
for assignments. I will continue to improve my understanding of library
theories and practice throughout the bachelor course. The skills I have of library 2.0 tools will be
put to use when I volunteer at my local library.
Throughout the class, Social Networking for Information
Professionals I have changed. This has been done by developing my skills and
understanding of the course work. The development of these skills and my
understanding has been demonstrated through the completion of assignments,
course work, OLJ activities, learning journal, interact modules, research and using
this knowledge in a library environment. Over the course of my professional
development and my bachelor course I will continue to learn more about social
networking and other library and information techniques. These techniques will
help me to grow and improve as a professional. This is only the beginning of my
professional development and my journey as a social networker. Because this is
only the beginning of my bachelor course I still have much to learn and improve
upon.
References
Barnard, J. (2011) Reflection on a personal journey: Learning
journals in use. Enhancing Learning in
the Social Sciences, 3(3), Doi: 10.11120/elss.2011.03030011
Chretien, K., & Goldman, E., & Faselis, C. (2008).
The reflective writing class blog: Using technology to promote reflection and
professional development. J Gen Intern
Med, 23(12): 2066–2070. Doi:
10.1007/s11606-008-0796-5
Chow, Anthony S., & Chase Baity, C., & Zamarripa,
Marilyn., & Chappell, Pam., & Rachlin, David., & Vinson, Curtis.
(2012). The information needs of virtual users: A study of second life
libraries. The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy, 82(4),
477-510. DOI: 10.1086/667436
Courtney, Nancy. (2007). Library and beyond: Innovative
technologies and tomorrow’s users. London: Libraries Unlimited.
Hay, L., & Wallis, J. (n.d.). Subject overview: Learning
objectives. [INF 206 subject outline]. Retrieved January 21, 2014, from the Charles
Sturt University website: http://interact.csu.edu.au/portal/site/INF206_201390_W_D/page/9a9fc73b-94cc-4a04-8002-d5eed6d9de5e
Kroski, Ellyssa. (2008). Web 2.0 for librarians and
information professionals. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc.
Mansor, A. Z. (2011). Reflective learning journal using blog.
Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences,
18, 507–516. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.05.074
Moon, Jennifer A. (2006).
Learning journals: A handbook for reflective practice and professional
development. Retrieved from ebook library.
Parks, Dave., & Walton, Geoff. (2010). Web 2.0 and
libraries: Impacts, technologies and trends. Oxford: Chandos Publishing.
Savin-Baden, M. (2010). Practical guide to using second life
in higher education. Retrieved from ebrary.
Wilkes, A. (2014). INF 206 online learning journal (OLJ) by
Aaron Wilkes. Retrieved from http://supersociallibrarian.blogspot.com.au/
Wolf, K. (2010). Bridging the distance: The use of blogs as
reflective learning tools for placement students. Higher Education Research & Development, 29(5). Doi:10.1080/07294360.2010.502292
