SLO #8: Collaboration

SLO#8: The student effectively collaborates for the achievement of individual, organizational, professional, and societal goals. 

Image of hands representing collaboration. Source

Collaboration

"Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results." – Andrew Carnegie 

Librarians should collaborate with each other and with the community to create effective collections and plan well-attended programs that meet the communities' needs. Throughout the MLIS program, in addition to class discussions and message boards, I worked with my peers on several projects and papers. With those projects, I was able to collaborate for my individual, organizational, professional, and societal goals.

Collaboration Within the MLIS Program

Library programs for children: My library 663 class gave me experience planning library programs for children and adolescents. We planned programs from ages newborn through high school. The following library event plans are from my library 663 class:

• Birth to age 2, ages 3-5    
• Grades k-3 program plan
  
• Grades 6-8 program plan 
• High School program plan

Racism in America (cross-posted as an artifact in "Communities"): In Library 618 Materials for Adolescents my group and I wrote a paper after our group discussion on racism in America after reading the books Between the World and Me, All American Boys, and The Hate U Give. We discussed how these books and what we learned from them can be used to help us further understand the challenges of the African-American community. An excerpt from the group discussion paper is here:

Though these books appear to be simply for young adults, that is not the case at all. The Hate U Give, All American Boys, and Between the World and Me would be great for cultural diversity workshops for staff at educational institutions, law enforcement organizations, and the general public to provide cultural awareness and sort through the issues presented. These books need to be presented in a positive light because the material can make readers uncomfortable; however, this discomfort is totally acceptable. These pieces should make readers uncomfortable because this is a part of the learning process. Everyone has a racial bias they need to confront, just as everyone should be aware of what’s happening in the world around them. These books can certainly help with that. That being said, not everyone is ready for the messages in these books. Some may not have the tools needed or ability to understand and may need someone to walk through the books with them. If people could just be even a touch more open-minded and give these books a chance, so much good could come from them and impact society as a whole. If you do not say anything, then you are adding to the problem.

 

Experience the PEWWK: For my collection management class, our group worked together to design a collection around specific topics of interest. We based our library on the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and created an imaginary benefactor, Yarwell Pewwk (Pewwk being a humorous acronym for the first letters of our last names). Our paper about the "collection" we created is here and the LibGuide itself that our group created is here. The following graphic is a poster that I created to advertise our "Pewwk collection:"

Case management "Penny" project: For my library administration class, I worked with a group to figure out how to help an imaginary employee who was having trouble at work. Here is an excerpt from our group's memorandum and advice for "Penny":

While this list seems large, we’re confident that if you implement some of these suggestions, you’ll have a more organized space and more time to learn new technologies and train staff at a welcoming pace. You might also want to speak with HR about the Employee Assistance Program; they might have some suggestions on how you can relax and make healthy choices. Remember, Penny, these are our suggestions. You have the power to change your environment to one you are happy with, and choose what works best for you. 

Reflection on the group project: I discussed the effectiveness of our group dynamics for the "Penny" project--our group was without conflict, and this was not an asset for us! The following is an excerpt from my reflection:

Overall, working with Team Taylor was a positive experience, and it seems silly to focus on a LACK of conflict as a negative aspect of the group work. I do not think of myself as a drama queen, and I certainly have no desire to be in a group of adults who thrive on gossip and drama. However, conflict can be a positive thing, after analyzing the experience of working to save Penny with Team Taylor, I will argue that conflict is a necessary part of a healthy, productive group.

  

Collaboration outside of the MLIS Program

I have a lot of experience collaborating with coworkers. Every single year of my fifteen years of teaching, I would teach group projects and plan lessons with the input from the other teachers on my junior high teaching team. When I worked as a camp counselor, I would work with other counselors to plan evening programs and schedules. When I worked as a library aide at Jamestown public library, I worked with the other librarians to plan summer reading and storytime programs. Currently at Barnes & Noble, I work with the managers on displays and endcaps. I really enjoy collaborating with my coworkers and seek out opportunities to do so.

In Conclusion

Collaboration "we're doin it rite" meme. Source

Throughout the MLIS program, I have collaborated with my peers to meet the SLO of collaboration. The library program planning that I completed with my group members helped me reach my individual goal of adapting my lesson planning skills to work for events in public libraries. These planning projects also help me plan and run events at Barnes & Noble, which helps the organization run more effectively. My professional goals are to become more aware and proactive about combatting racism in America, so the discussion with the group helped me with that goal. Working with the group on collection management will help me in the future when ordering materials for libraries. Finally, all of these projects will help society because they will allow me (and the organization for which I work) to reach and help more community members.

Return to Capstone, or click on other SLOs below:

1. Ethics
2. Research
3. Information Literacy
4. Communities
5. Professional Development
6. Technology
7. Marketing
8. Collaboration

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Jen Reads the Rainbow