Crossing the Bridge from In-Person to Online: Write on Site to Writing Together
Presented by
- Jolene Miller (University of Toledo)
- Margaret Hoogland (University of Toledo)
Description
Purpose: For librarians with scholarly activity requirements, regular work on these activities fosters success. A weekly writing group can provide support and accountability for these librarians. This poster describes a transition from an in-person to an online writing group. In 2019, the Mulford library at the University of Toledo began holding weekly 60-minute "Write on Site" sessions to provide structure and informal accountability. Participants could attend sessions as needed and could do whatever was needed to move a project forward. In March 2020, Write on Site was cancelled due to the pandemic, and in January 2021, it was reborn as 90-minute online Writing Together using Microsoft Teams. Results: For the in-person writing group, we had three unique participants. All reported benefits of getting together each week to work on their writing. For the online writing group, participation has been higher (eight unique participants) because people could connect from any location. Online meetings facilitated connecting with colleagues at other institutions. The challenges of an online writing group included connection issues and "Zoom fatigue." Conclusion: Because of the benefits, the online format will be maintained after it is safe to meet in person.
Poster
Intro Video
About
Jolene Miller is an Assistant Professor of Library Administration and the Director of the Mulford Health Science Library at the University of Toledo. She started the writing groups because she herself needed structure and accountability for her scholarly work. Her research interests are librarians’ use of reflective practice and emotion regulation in library administrators.
Margaret Hoogland is an Assistant Professor and the Clinical Medical Librarian in the Mulford Health Science Library at The University of Toledo. She started participating in Write on Site because it provided a dedicated time with minimal distractions for working on scholarly activity projects. Her research focuses on using educational technology to enhance the student and faculty learning experience.
