Statewide ELMeR Training a Huge Successby Eric Gustafson, Library Technology ConsultantIf you’re wondering if we managed to teach Elmer Fudd to shoot straight enough to finally hit Bugs, then I’m sorry to say that you’re reading the wrong article (though that might be a fun training to do in the future). What I’m talking about is the Enhanced Library Meeting Room (ELMeR) training provided by BCR and financed by the State Library.
For those of you who didn’t have the opportunity to travel to the training, here’s a brief summary of what we did each day. Shelly started the morning with brief introductions and an explanation of the day. After that, everyone broke up into small groups to get some hands-on work with the videoconferencing equipment and to work on ways to use it. These groups rotated through three stations, so everyone had a chance at each station. The first step at each station was to appoint a coach for that station. Also, at the first station of the day, a recorder was chosen for the entire day.
Moving on to the next station, policies and procedures, we proceeded to examine examples of various policies and procedures for videoconferencing that were already in use at libraries and other organizations. We used these to brainstorm on possible problems that might occur if we invited the public to use the videoconferencing equipment. When this was done, we could then use the results of our brainstorming to draft a general list of policies and procedures. At the final station of the day, programming and promotion, we developed ideas on what we should do with this videoconferencing equipment. Since programs are rarely successful without some type of promotion, we followed up our programming brainstorm by developing marketing strategies for these programs. The day wrapped up with a large group discussion where we all shared the best ideas that each group developed. We also talked about technology stumbling blocks and our best solutions to those. If you missed out on the training, don’t worry! You can join in the conversation at the ELMeR blog: http://blogs.bcr.org/elmer/. If you want to see everyone’s ideas from the training, just go to: http://blogs.bcr.org/elmer/training-worksheets/. Don’t forget about the ELMeR listserv as it’s another great place to share ideas: http://bcr-lists.org/mailman/listinfo/elmer. A big thank you goes out to Shelly for providing such excellent training. I think all participants learned something, and everyone left with new ideas. Also, I would like to thank everyone who attended the training. You all were a great group to work with and I look forward to working with you in the future. That’s all folks! |
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