During my time at the University of Texas School of Information, I was able to experience a wide variety of courses and completed a number of projects that were outside my area of focus. I believe that though these projects may not have all been centered around children’s libraries, they did allow me to experience and understand many facets of the information field and grow in my knowledge of information sciences.
Hiding in Plain Sight: Examining the Visibility of Conservation to the Public
In one of the first major assignments that I undertook at the iSchool, I reviewed sources that examined how visible conservation is in the public eye. I was inspired to write this paper by my experience as an outsider to the field of conservation, having begun learning about it in the Materials in Libraries, Archives and Museums lab.
Texas State Cemetery: A Journey Through the Past and Lessons for the Future
This paper examined the way that stories are told and history learned at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin, TX. I conducted this investigation over the course of numerous trips to the Texas State Cemetery and undertook their guided audio tour as well as accompanying a fourth grade class on a field trip.
Teen Library Use Study
In the spring of 2019 I conducted an individual study for the Midland County Centennial Public Library in Midland, TX. I examined their teens-only section and made suggestions for improvements to the Bat Cave based on surveys and interviews I conducted with area middle school students.
Sirgo_TeenLibraryUse_FinalEdit
Capstone Project: Synchronous Online Children’s Literature Course
This project, focused on assisting adjunct professor Marion Rocco in creating a synchronous, online version of her live Children’s Literature course (INF 322T). We conducted a syllabus review of different courses that are offered in this area around the country and also researched elements of successful online courses. With the goal of offering this course in the fall of 2019, we aimed to alter the format but not the overall content of the course. In adjusting the format, we added Instapoll questions throughout the lectures, replaced some of the assignments to incorporate more student choice in the course curriculum and tested conference technologies from which to conduct synchronous online lectures that incorporate student participation.
Audrey Sirgo 