Practicum Information Forum

LIS 590 Practicum
An Opportunity for Personal Leadership and
Professional Socialization Growth
Fall Term: September 01 – December 07, 2015
Brown Bag, April 2015
Alvin M Schrader, PhD
Practicum Instructor
[email protected]
Practicum Course Objectives
– develop personal leadership & self-leadership skills through selfawareness and professional socialization
– experience the work culture, vision, mission & values of the organization
– learn how to acquire tacit knowledge of workplace
– get to know local professionals
– apply classroom theory & textbook knowledge to professional practice
– explore differences between classroom and workplace
– gain practical experience
– observe the analysis of & solutions to challenges arising in professional
work settings
– learn by participating in professional activities & interacting with
colleagues
Guidelines for Practicum Credit
• must be a new learning experience for the student
• simultaneous Practicum & paid or volunteer work in the same work
unit/department/functional area are not possible for pedagogical
reasons – no remuneration for Practicum
• can be taken only once during the MLIS program
• satisfactory performance at the practicum site
• satisfactory completion of forms & assignments
• credit/no credit course – no grade assigned
• pre-requisites LIS 501, LIS 502, LIS 503, LIS 505, either LIS 508 or
LIS 504, & 2 other LIS (three credit) electives
Previous Placements
• Alberta Government Library
• Edmonton Public Library
– Castle Downs Branch
– Lois Hole Branch
– Stanley Milner (Main) Branch
(adult; children’s)
– Strathcona Branch
– Whitemud Crossing Branch
• Centre for Public Legal
Education Alberta
• Learning Centre Literacy Assn
• University of Alberta
– Museums & Collections
– Institute of Health Economics
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Provincial Archives of Alberta
City of Edmonton Archives
MacEwan University Library
Concordia University Library
University of Alberta Libraries
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Bruce Peel Special Collections
Coutts Education
Humanities & Social Sciences
J.W. Scott Health Sciences
Science & Technology
Winspear Business Reference
• Other
– School libraries
– Corporate libraries
Assignments
• Satisfactory completion of 100 hours of workplace experience
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exploratory meeting by end of August – student & prospective site supervisor
practicum placement agreement form – drafted by student in consultation with
site supervisor
organizational planning meeting & monthly discussion seminars with Practicum
Instructor – Sept 1; Sept. 29; Oct. 27; Nov. 24 [tbc]
journal submission – due every 20 hrs covering each work experience
site visit – arranged by student for Practicum Instructor with student & site
supervisor – at half to two-thirds point through
exit interview between student & site supervisor; practicum completion form;
consent to publish name form
reflective paper – due Dec. 7
Application Process
By May 1, 2015, e-mail following 2 documents to Sophia Sherman,
Practicum Administrator, at [email protected]
•
“Practicum Application Form” (available online on the course
webpage on the SLIS website)
•
Student Resume
Practicum Application Form
• Type of work setting requested: (e.g., gov't library, academic
library, archives, etc., or no preference)
• Placement requested: 1. ___ 2. ___ 3. ___
• Workplace focus: (e.g., mostly reference, mostly web
development, mostly cataloguing, etc., or no preference)
• Placement learning goals:
• MLIS courses completed: pre-requisites; electives
• Proposed courses: fall, winter
• Resume [attach]
Pre-Course Readings
“Best Practices for LIS 590 Practicum: A Holistic Approach,” by Alvin
Schrader
“Hitchhiking Across Cultures from the Classroom to the Workplace,”
by Alvin Schrader (Feliciter 54.2, 2008),
http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Vol_54_No_2&Template=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm
&ContentID=5255
Start thinking about your Practicum
Adventure!
Application deadline May 1, 2015
For details, please visit LIS 590: Practicum Course
webpage on SLIS Website
GOOD LUCK!!!