Alberta Library Conference

This session will present strategies to create a coding-based library program. Grant will discuss the use of coding tools like the Sphero and Code-a-Pillar, as well as online games that can be found on Code.org and codecademy.com. Learn easy processes to develop a coding program that is fun and interesting for your patrons! This session will also cover pitfalls and strategies to get around potential issues. There will also be hands-on time with some of the websites and gadgets discussed.
Learning Objectives:

• Identify resources available for a coding program.
• Learn how to plan and execute a coding program.
• Recognize how and why to engage children in coding.

Conference Presentation delivered at the 2019 Alberta Library Conference.

The library is one of the last free public spaces that is open to all. However, often those considered “undesirable” are kept away from the library in order to make others feel welcome and safe. While we do sometimes see problematic behaviours in the library, this does not mean that we cannot strive to ensure that we as library workers provide excellent customer service to all who enter the library.
 
 

This preconference session will help participants find a way to develop staff’s data literacy by leveraging Library Carpentry training (https://librarycarpentry.org/). Library Carpentry’s goal is to create a community of learners who embrace technologies & software to get work done more effectively. This session will begin with an explanation of Library Carpentry & how the presenters have applied it at the University of Alberta Libraries. Participants will then learn tangible & scalable ways they can use Library Carpentries at their libraries to break down barriers for library staff’s professional development around coding & data analysis. Following these discussions, participants will take part in a hands-on Intro to Data workshop demo (https://tinyurl.com/yasz3n2n), highlighting pedagogical techniques that help demystify key-tech concepts & support learners at all levels.

Let’s try it out – Robertson Library actively promotes the Library not only as a research and study environment, but also as a welcoming space for students to relax, engage, learn, and have fun! We offer various outreach events throughout the academic semesters – escape rooms; a stargazing evening; a PJ party; pop-up surprises and a stress free zone with games, crafts, and a photo-booth during the exam period; book, movie, and research talks in collaboration with various campus faculties and departments; Spooktacular tales; an Open Mic evening– to name a few. Discover which events were the most successful!
Learning Objectives:

• Gain new ideas for library outreach events
• Learn which outreach activities were successful and which were not
• Recognize the benefits of collaborative relationships with campus faculties and departments

How do you find a way to engage historians and genealogists with your collection? Give them what they are looking for… primary resources! We all have books in our collections with inscriptions, letters, bookplates and flattened objects inside. But what do we do with them? The Robertson Library, University of Prince Edward Island, has identified a number of in-house books with interesting ownership stories. Researching the connection between the book, as artifact, and its previous owner(s), the UPEI Library has created a VRE (Virtual Research Environment), www.BookLives.ca, for genealogists and historians. Learn about this new primary source (held within your own library stacks) and hear some of the stories of book lovers from the past.
Learning Objectives:

• Recognize the book as an evolving artifact of history.
• Understand why provenance (ownership history) is important.
• Identify how to find, research, and document provenance within your collection.

This PowerPoint is from a presentation at the 2019 ALC Conference in Jasper.
Rural library staff and their trustees too often doubt the impact that they can make with their limited resources.  They may not dream big enough, or they might play it safe because they are afraid of failing.  Conference sessions aimed at libraries of all sizes may not speak to rural library staff and trustees, because they often deliver library services with reduced access to resources (e.g. a lack of space, time, staff, money, volunteers and/or community members). Exploring the factors that have led to successes at some of Alberta’s littlest libraries, this session will share strategies that little libraries can use to build success in their own communities.  The presenters will be conducting a survey of small rural libraries, and will interview high-performing rural libraries to discover the secrets of their success.

Edmonton Public Library’s Collections Assessment and Trends Intern Librarians will tell you how they found a way to turn collections data into meaningful information. The presenters will share findings from their research of EPL's physical and digital collections (including user analyses, floating, and interlibrary loan), and discuss how emerging trends in relevant industries might impact public libraries.
Learning Objectives:

• Gain insight into shifting collection usage and trends.
• Learn ways to contextualize and analyze quantitative library data.
• Consider more than circulation statistics to ensure decisions are community-led.

Answering community demands for a makerspace when you have no money, no staff, and no space is a daunting task. Despite the challenges of staffing, budget, and space constraints, St. Albert Public Library successfully launched its Makerspace in 2018. Lisa will share lessons learned by SAPL including how to conduct interdepartmental staff training, selecting and training volunteers, how to operate without a permanently allocated space, and options for libraries on a limited budget. The SAPL makerspace brings together a broad demographic, including 30-49 year olds who normally do not participate in library programs. The makerspace is open two times per month overseen by one staff facilitator and 2 to 3 volunteers. Attendees explore different technologies, connect with others in the community, and move from being consumers to creators.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify a wide variety of adult programming ideas to try.
• Gather ideas, tips, tricks, and inspiration for adult programming.
• Creative inspiration

Craig Silverman is an award-winning author and journalist and one of the world's leading experts on online misinformation, fake news, and content verification. He is the media editor of BuzzFeed News where he leads a global beat covering platforms, online misinformation, and media manipulation.

Craig was named to the Politico 50 for his work exposing fake news and its effect on American politics and is the 2018 recipient of the Carey McWilliams Award from the American Political Science Association, which honors “a major journalistic contribution to our understanding of politics.” His journalism and books have been honored by the Mirror Awards, U.S. National Press Club, National Magazine Awards (Canada), Digital Publishing Awards, and Crime Writers of Canada.

Craig previously was the founding editor of BuzzFeed Canada, and was also the founder of Emergent.info, a rumor tracking project that was developed as part of a research fellowship with the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University. His research resulted in the publication of Lies, Damn Lies, and Viral Content: How News Websites Spread (and Debunk) Online Rumors, Unverified Claims and Misinformation. From 2004 to 2015 he wrote Regret the Error, a blog about media accuracy and corrections, which became part of the Poynter Institute for Media Studies and was the basis for an award-winning book of the same name. 

In 2010, Craig was part of the team that launched OpenFile, an online news startup the delivered community-driven reporting in six Canadian cities. He is the former managing editor of PBS MediaShift and has been a columnist for The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, and Columbia Journalism Review. Craig also edited The Verification Handbook and The Verification Handbook for Investigative Reporting for the European Journalism Centre, and is the author of the award-winning book Mafiaboy.