Tuesday, October 25, 2011

New Librarians Symposium #5... Perth, WA

I went to my second New Librarians Symposium last month. There was a fair bit of nostalgia involved for me because #4 is still very present in my mind. 2008 was a good year. But 2011 has been good too, and hell, NLS5 is the first conference I've been sent to in another state, all expenses paid. Like the others it's taken a while to process. I've been trying to come up with some answers to Garry Conroy-Cooper's three questions for librarians...

Why are you here?
I feel connected to this international family of librarians with similar interests and goals: sharing information, playing with technology, supporting people who are learning and teaching. I also like being around objects that give me pleasure.

What motivates you?
1. Brownie Guide Badges. Not real ones, but metaphorically speaking. It was really important to me to be working towards my Masters, and I've handed in my last essay now, so it's over. It was one of the goals I promised I would achieve after Vanuatu. At the same time, I am really looking forward to having a break. But, because this is what motivates me, I think I will probably remain obsessed with PD.

2. My Dream House. This is also kind of a representative object. I think I was once obsessed with owning my own place, but when I moved in with my boyfriend I became more concerned with building a nice environment for us to be in. An emotional environment, as well as a physical space. I think I'm going to relax a bit more next year and get more of the fun stuff back into my life. But I need money for that. Thus, work.

What changes would you make?
Actually, I like my workplace. The changes I want to see are already happening. It feels very positive. But the changes I would make are to do with me. I think I would like to be more involved with helping people teach, rather than just buying them books. Maybe curriculum design. Or e-learning. Or, maybe I could get back into the teaching side myself and become a learning adviser or something.

Or maybe I'll just keep doing this for a while. :)

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