Study tour - continued

State Library of Queensland
I was very inspired by the emphasis put on client perspectives when planning for the future. It is one thing to think you are doing the community a service but it is another thing to actually address real needs. It was also very impressive at just how proactive this library is in keeping up with the latest technologies and providing services to empower the community to be confident users. One difference though between my future role as teacher librarian (TL) and SLQ is that it was mentioned if users are not into being taught how to access info., then they are happy to locate the info. (even if not the preferred type of help) but as a TL it is very important to maintain an emphasis on making sure the students are building up information literacy skills. It all boils down to the sort of clientele and what you are seeking to achieve.
This session contained a lot of interesting and valuable info. So much so that I couldn't copy it down as well as I would have liked. I would have loved to have handouts of the power points so I could then listen better and make side notes instead of copious ones. Thankyou for the handout at thee end but for all of them would have been great. I thought the venue was excellent, however we only got access to get inside at the start due to a library worker being allowed to escort us upstairs. A securty lady was mouthing to me through the doors that we couldn’t come in until this lady happened to help. Perhaps future groups could have someone meet us outside from the course as the security people didn't seem to know we were there for a course The venue though was very pleasant and introducing ourselves added a nice personal touch..
The tour of SLQ revealed to me how important the aesthetic appeal is to capture and maintain user interest, ease of use and a feel good sense of being in a library. I was equally inspired by the range of services and how these could be incorporated into a school library, even if on a different and smaller scale - indigenous, heritage, music etc…It was also beneficial to see how they view and deal with the ever increasing digital content so that it fits in with user's ability to access this co-ntent from outside the library's physical confines such that there is available a network of libraries within the enormous online world. The fact that nothing remains static hit me -change / defining new ways of looking at content seems unavoidable and made me realise that SLQ is practising what they are preaching to move library services forward.
The tour was absolutely fantastic and was well timed in the day, although it perhaps could be at the end as I was getting very tired listening to the last speaker even though he had lots of good points. Three sessions of listening at the end of the day was a lot. The tour guide was very well versed and easy to talk with and the tour was very smoothly run and informative. I would have personally liked to have had the opportunity to spend time with the resources but I understand time was limited. It did however inpsire me to visit a state library where I live to explore the sorts of things I was introduced to today Also, again, handouts with the last 3 speakers would have been great and I did wonder if a tea/coffee session at the end would encourage mingling and connections as at lunch and morning tea most went in several directions.

Brisbane Girls Grammar
The overiding message to me today was how critical and vital online digital services are and how we simply must get a hold of as much as we can in knowledge and experience of current and cutting edge technologies if we are to provide services that meet not only user needs but also match user abilities. I also realised the critical need to market what I can do as a TL for the client base such that libraries can be at the forefront of inspriring technology use within the school, particularly with teachers. I felt equally inspired to help instil a culture of searching for content in school users,that libraries don't need to be a completely silent place of learning - so long as an allocated silent area exists - and that TL's need to activley engage in faculty meetings to be trully relevant and maintain a high profile of being useful
A strength and weakness is the venue. While it was absolutely awe inspiring with wonderful displays and insights of what libraries can be, not many libraries have the funding for staffing and equipment to achieve what these ones are doing and perhaps gave an overinflated view of what less fortunate TL's can achieve.The speakers were very impressive though and it was wonderful to be in a place where their obvious enthusiasm is infectious. They are certainly people I would like to keep in touch with as you provided speakers who have certainly taken up the challenge to engage in best practice. It was also great to explore two quite different school libraries, catering for different needs and with obvious differences in funding, that were in very close proximity so that we weren't wasting time changing location,

National Archives of Queensland
What struck me here was that they are very process driven.They don't so much engage in helping user's search for their needs, rather supply them with what they want once they have found the reference for it. The process of providing identified content bypasses building up clients' ability in developing information literacy skills as I realised they are not there for that purpose. Very interesting to see this, that there are libraries that don't match the same focus as others.It also once again hit me just how infiltrating digital use is becoming, to the point that so much is now online that you don't really need to venture near an original document anymore.Online technologies are yet again the changing focus and the challenge appears to be enabling users to understand what is available online and help new visitors to navigate with ease.
It was wonderful to have the power point handouts so we could simply add notes instead of trying to write madly. The first speaker was very organised, easy to follow, interesting and approachable. The content was also very well thought out and the many examples of their resources was very very interesting and helped to understand just what they provide as we didn't have any hands on materials to view.The tour was ok but quite short, but maybe they didn't have much more to show us.I would personally have liked to be taken directly to one of the storage boxes on the shelves or map drawers and see what it looked like inside. Seeing they mentioned it was more about the process of providing conent it would have been great to engage in such a process.The second speaker was easy to follow and provided useful information for us to reflect upon.

Mater Macauley Library
What impacted me here was the degree of interconnections maintained between the staff of the "Health Hub" libraries as well as the degree of staff infiltration among the clients they cater to. It impressed me as they are so willing and giving of their energy into this in an unintrusive, purely helpful manner where they nearly intuitive know when to back off. This seems to be the way it is with all the libraries visited so far but this one has such a wide range of needs -grad/postgrad/proffesionals/interns/temp and assist. staff etc…-and the ability to be flexible in their approach toward them all is quite impressive.Once again digital and online services stood out as an important focus and for this library, marketing their services via online means (facebook/twitter etc..)showed to me their need to be continually known and relevant.
he venue was very nice indeed and being able to visit a medical library was a valuable option as it revealed factors of concern that aren't concerns elsewhere (e.g the unique range of clientele). I would have once again really appreciated a handout of the power points but the speakers were all very very down to earth and easy to follow. They were really a pleasure to mix with at morning tea and it was a shame we couldn't stay longer. The staff were very well prepared and had excellent information to share with us.I noticed they tried to answer a lot of the checklist points that was sent to us via the forum which was very inciteful of them and very much appreciated to reflect upon. It may have been nice to see them in action helping someone, even if videoed and shown on the large screen (eg their invovlement with the journal club).

Queensalnd University of Technology
This library showed me the importance and impact of gearing the services toward the clientele base and the extent to which client needs drive purpose. The huge emphasis they place on workforce planning impressed me in that they are obviously focussed on current purpose with a mind to acknowledge future needs.Change seems to not just be a current event to get over and done with but a lifestlye mindset to be valued. I saw this for example as they spoke of the refurbishing and changes to work spaces where they expect more and more various types of workspaces to develop as print collections decrease. Once again I value being presented with the knowledge that everything digital and online seems to be the predominant way of the future and also that they continaully evaluate its impact and not just blindly take or keep everything on board.
The venue was once again very impressive and I very much enjoyed the tour although my tour guide admitted he was unprepared and it did show as he lacked direction as we began. While he was knowledgable, I did wonder that if he was prepared, we may have been better informed. The meeting room and speakers were once again excellent and very well prepared but again, handouts would have been good. The last session, while very interesting, on the Day in the life of, I was feeling like I had information overload and afternoon tea while we listened to them mayhave broken it up a bit. The effort they put in for us was obvious and I again appreciated that they tried to address the Chekclist sheet we were sent on the forum.This was a most postive/ worthwhile visit and very inspiring as all the speakers were obviously enjoying their various roles.

Brisbane square library and customer centre
The venue was once again very impressive and I very much enjoyed the tour although my tour guide admitted he was unprepared and it did show as he lacked direction as we began. While he was knowledgable, I did wonder that if he was prepared, we may have been better informed. The meeting room and speakers were once again excellent and very well prepared but again, handouts would have been good. The last session, while very interesting, on the Day in the life of, I was feeling like I had information overload and afternoon tea while we listened to them mayhave broken it up a bit. The effort they put in for us was obvious and I again appreciated that they tried to address the Chekclist sheet we were sent on the forum.This was a most postive/ worthwhile visit and very inspiring as all the speakers were obviously enjoying their various roles.
really enjoyed this venue very much indeed. To see a library that is so aesthcetically pleasing and obviuosly so well designed was wonderful. This sort of work environment is very attractive to me,not only with the amazing building but with the huge range of services they provide, catering from very young to old and across several lifestyle needs (work/student/leisure/businessetc…) All the staff were very well prepared with relevant and interesting topics that were inspiring. My only criticsm is the first speaker spoke too fast and I didn't have enough time to read let alone write down points. Handouts once again would have been awesome. Finally, being allowed to view their very expensive book sorter was a real privilege and eye opener - thankyou as to see this sort of equipment in action is rare unless engaged in employment there.

Summary Reflection
This study tour opened my eyes and broadened my understandings in many ways. I was a little overwhelmed by my realisation that I, as an up and coming TL, need to accept continual change to the extent that it needs to be a mindset in order to basically keep ahead of the Jones' if I am going to provide a valid and relevant service to the community. Within this change is the fast paced technology movements made with digital and online services. This is just the way it is and I feel I have to jump aboard or stay afloat on a makeshift old fashioned raft. I also saw how purpose driven all the libraries were and how important it is to ensure library services are client oriented in a way that the services are intrinsically helpful. Developing more client focussed workspaces and friendly service is a must.Basically, ongoing evaluating and satisfying client needs was really driven home to me.