Online training: what I learned through lockdown
In my school librarian background, professional development was neither valued nor recognized, so it may be surprising that my career is now based on providing training for the very type of professional I used to be. If your place of employment doesn’t recognize or value your professional development, and your opportunity for upward mobility is minimal, why would you ever bother?
Inspiring others to try new and different ideas is a way to support school librarians who are feeling undervalued. Even if a job promotion or change seems impossible, it’s important for their own wellbeing to encourage them to move forward. It’s important to help our school librarians feel engaged and empowered to do the best job they can no matter what the circumstances and to encourage them to understand that they never know when the next opportunity will arise.
Offering training for this group has been challenging, and it was made more difficult during the COVID pandemic. I launched into training webinars within a week of the first lockdown despite never giving any online training before. The format was simple: present for 45 minutes and offer a Q&A at the end. It worked well at the beginning, but I soon recognized that it was becoming stale. Hours of sitting in front of a screen did not qualify as good continuing professional development. I added interactive opportunities such as quizzes and breakout rooms, but I still felt something was missing.
During the first lockdown I offered one-hour weekly professional discussions free of charge. Participants agreed on a list of topics in the first session. I managed each session and made sure each participant who wanted to speak had an opportunity to do so while sessions didn’t end with griping or go on too long. We agreed to keep our discussions positive; many of the participants were already in low spirits. These sessions were popular and gave me an idea of how to adapt my training.
My new membership-based training program, which started in January 2022, is limited to online sessions. I included an element of professional discussion as well. Sessions began with 30 minutes of presentation followed by 30 minutes of professional discussion. I since learned that some attendees also enjoy small group discussions. This led to splitting the 30-minute professional discussion into a 15-minute breakout and a 15-minute feedback segment. It’s a fine balance and one that I am still developing.
I am aware of the need for follow-up but haven’t achieved any real connection yet. I have offered the opportunity for members to connect via an online forum and through a follow-up Q&A session. This relies on members having enough interest to come back for more and giving up their time; however there isn’t as much interaction as I would like. Unless attendees give feedback on how they are doing, it’s difficult to support them beyond the training sessions I offer.
My membership offer is in its infancy, but providing quality training for those who may have “lost their way” is very important to me. I have chosen a niche group, and I hope that the personal touch is what my clients are looking for. My training offerings will keep evolving to meet growing needs.
Blogger and article author Elizabeth Hutchinson is a Chartered librarian and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP). With nearly 20 years of experience in school libraries, she is now a trainer and adviser, an advocate for inquiry based learning, and a speaker at conferences internationally. She was awarded the Medal of the Order of the British Empire (BEM) in 2020 for services to libraries.
