IST 511 - Day 5

The final day of class was a filled with a buzz of excitement as we all prepared to present the posters we had been working on all week. I can't think of a better exercise to prepare us for the future than researching, creating and presenting a poster. Because I plan to be an academic librarian, I know I will be doing this for conferences and the practice was invaluable. I have often seen poster presentations from the researchers and fellows where I work in Yale Med School, and to do one of my own really solidified the feeling that I was entering a profession.

The experience of presenting and reviewing other posters was phenomenal. I didn't know what to expect when the process started, and was a bit nervous when the first question that was asked of me. As I began talking, I gained more facility and realized that this was plain old FUN!! I gained some great feed back and insightful observations (from students, faculty, and big-wig secret judges!) which I could see myself incorporating in a revised poster or presentation. I also learned a lot from other posters and was very impressed by the students knowledge of their subject and ability to field questions.

I was really sad to leave for home on Saturday, and look forward to working with everyone in my future online classes...and maybe even in person next summer!