Apologies for not thinking in advance we’d probably not have any milk today.  I’ll bring some back at lunchtime – Tim S.

PS I understand MB is ok – thanks Fiona

Ngā Mihi o te wā me te Tau Hou | Seasons greetings and New Year good wishes to everyone.

As the end of the year is upon us, we wanted to take a moment to express our gratitude for all that you have done this year in terms of work here in the library and in contribution to the wider university. Omicron came to town, really made its presence felt in terms of impact on the University for both staff and students and of course our ways of working. All your efforts in helping us to plan, maintain services, keeping students and staff safe as far as possible are much appreciated.

This year marked the end of an era with Anne’s retirement, and now we look forward to Kat coming onboard in January. We are excited to see where we will head under her leadership and what her priorities for us might be, in a changing environment for learning, teaching and research institutions in an international covid era environment. We are excited to continue working together and achieving great things. Thank you for all that you do and we wish you all a happy, restful and as far as possible a covid-free holiday period.

Maybe something about taking time to recharge however works best for you… whether that’s spending time with whānau, eating lots of delicious kai, getting out and about, seeing or doing something new or revisiting something you love.

Helen, Aurelia and Tim

Update 16th December

• Cherilyn Clark – has tested positive this morning for Covid.  Cherilyn’s last day on campus was yesterday, 15th December.

Tim Stedman

Further to my post last week, this is an update provided by Purple Shirt regarding the observational research they are doing in the first couple of weeks in January speaking with different Library staff (depending on who is around).  Any queries you are welcome to contact me (Tim Stedman).

Background

UC’s Digital Services team are working alongside Libraries on a piece of research in which they are hoping to engage with a range of Library staff.

UC is currently reviewing the technologies that underpin the Library’s digital experience with the view that the out-dated library management system will be replaced with a more modern alternative. Purple Shirt (UC’s UX partner) have been asked to support UC to define the user requirements for the new system from the perspective of those who will be interacting with it. What does an intuitive, well-designed system look like to you as library staff? It’s less about the technical aspects, more about the human. This work is being led by Rhiannon Josland from Purple Shirt.

While defining the user experience of the library management system is our focus, we’re also hoping to uncover other opportunities that might exist for the future digital experience of the library.

As a side note, some of you have have already met Vinny Ahluwalia (Business Analyst, Digital Services) who is leading research to understand what the technical requirements of the system need to be.

How you can help
To get a better sense of the context our various library staff work in, and the digital systems being used, Rhiannon will be situated around both the Libraries, and the Library offices in January (9-12th, 16-19th).

During this time, she will be roaming the floors and introducing herself, so if you have time and are comfortable having a kōrero with her it would be very welcomed. Even 15-30 minutes would be great.
Alternatively you are welcome to reach out directly in January if you’d like to organise a time that best suits you (Teams or email – rhiannon.josland@canterbury.ac.nz).

I wanted to provide an update on some conversations recently with Digital Services who are working with a company called Purple Shirt (user experience consultants).  They are surveying groups of staff and students about their experience using the Library digital “ecosystem”.

This wasn’t on our radar (hence the lack of warning) however Digital Services had some spare project money and would like to use this to understand things like:

• User experience interacting with the library digital “ecosystem”
• Any pain points
• Gleanings that might inform functional requirements for the Modern Library Management system (Horizon replacement) project.

My understanding is they have some student groups lined up to interview next week and some library staff from different teams will also be meeting with Purple Shirt (thank you to all involved in that).

Early next year (like the first couple of weeks of January), Purple Shirt would like to do some observational research observing staff interacting with (for example) Horizon as part of their work which again will inform things like the MLM project.

I have pointed out to them there won’t be many people around however they are keen to box on and complete this work by end of January.  So I wanted to give you a heads up in case you are approached by Purple Shirt and asked if they could observe some of the tasks you do as well as some background as to what this is about.

Tim Stedman

Recently I’ve had conversations inside and outside of the Library about the discomfort Pākehā may feel speaking Te Reo Māori, the fear of making mistakes (eg with pronunciation, grammar or vocabulary) and potentially causing offence. This sentiment came up recently in our staff fora where we considered some of the comments Māori students had shared regarding their experience of interacting with Library services.

A few years ago, I remember listening to some of our SMT members speaking at a staff forum and beginning their kōrero using Te Reo Māori. In one particular case, I recall it being not good. I personally winced for them as they awkwardly bumbled their way through their introduction in Māori, butchering the pronunciation of Māori kupu along the way. (I don’t claim to be an expert in Te Reo pronunciation by any stretch but it sounded off).  However I still respected them for giving it a go.

A year or two down the track, I heard the same SMT member begin their kōrero in Te Reo Māori. It wasn’t perfect, but way better. There was more confidence, they’d clearly gone away, maybe received a bit of feedback, taken that on board, and done some homework. Good on them.

As I’ve personally reflected on what I can do to be a better Tangata Tiriti (Treaty partner), one thing (not the only thing) that speaks to me is valuing Te Reo Māori.

Understanding, valuing and learning Te Reo Māori will have a different look and feel for each of us.  One place to start might be practising pronunciation of kupu frequently used UC. Some examples could be Te Waka Pākākano, Matariki, Puaka James Hight, Te Pātaka, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha, Ngāi Tūāhuriri.  There are a number resources on the UC website such as this one about the stories behind the names of buildings on campus with video clips on how to pronounce the names.

In Access and Collections, a small group of us are together doing the Tōku Reo interactive exercises each week. Tōku Reo is a self-paced language course that has been created by Professor John Moorfield and includes kaumātua, rangatahi and native speakers in the context of a beginners learning programme.  We spend half an hour a week doing this in work time.

I conclude with a quote from Professor Moorfield that I’ve found really helpful and encouraging to keep giving Te Reo Māori a go.

Good language learners are people who overcome their inhibition to speak. They are not overly concerned with making mistakes, but they do learn from their errors. Good language learners not only practice new language, but also seek out opportunities to use Māori. Good language learners identify problems they might be having learning a new language, and seek solutions to those problems. Good Māori language learners analyse the language and make inferences about it. They guess by using clues. They are aware of language as a means of conveying and receiving messages. And as a means of behaving in a culturally appropriate manner.

Are you a good language learner?

Kia Kaha!

Tim Stedman

Further to my update on Covid cases yesterday, well, turns out that was premature.

Unfortunately Joanna and Fiona have joined our not-so-exclusive club in LAC now.

Best wishes to all for a speedy recovery and hopefully mild symptoms.

It looks like we are not alone in UC judging by this Intranet post.  Hope you all have a relaxing weekend.

Tim Stedman

Finance are having a farewell “do” in the PJH staffroom tomorrow Wednesday 10-10:30 and asked if we could use the staffroom facilities prior to, or after this timing if possible.

Apologies for any inconvenience,

Tim Stedman

Following Library Committee meeting today we are now in a position to confirm the subscriptions that will be cancelled in this year’s review.

In the first list Access and Collections proposed for review there were 87 titles.  Following consultation with subject librarians in the first phase we reduced this list to 71 titles.  Following two rounds of consultation with the LLOs, Information Resources Advisory Group (IRAG) and Library Committee, the final list contains 45 titles.

Some other notes

• We are retaining the two read and publish agreements that we reviewed (Oxford and the Royal Society)
• We continue to discuss with Economics and Finance regarding their database requirements with final decisions yet to be made
• Access and Collections will now finalise the renewals that will be going back to EBSCO
• New recommendations … there is still a chance to put these through before IRAG meets next Wednesday (so you need to be quick).  IRAG will then agree the priority for new subs.

I will send this information out to the LLOs as well confirming the outcome.

Tim Stedman