Evaluation Responses to Workshop

 

The following feedback was received for UKOLN's Web 2.0, Social Networking for Museums, Libraries & Archives workshop which took place on 12 May 2008. The feedback was completed on a paper form and then transferred to a wiki which was set up for the event. The content was then transferred to this managed environment.

Administration & Environment
How did you find the following?	Good	Satisfactory	Poor
Booking your place as a delegate	21	1
Information given prior to the event	20	1
The training environment	16	4	2
MLA Website	2
MLA e-bulletin	15
Separate flyer
Other (please specify)	16

Training Content

a. Were the training info/handouts relevant to the event?

It would be good if there were guides to different tools - for use as advocacy to sector and management. - with examples of who is doing what Excellent - useful to have hard copy of presentations and practical guides to using Web 2.0 technology. Yes, very helpful. Yes, particularly hands on tasks case study - very relevant and useful Yes, but would've liked some easy 'how to..' guides to setting up a Wiki/blog/Facebook account. Yes, very useful.

b. Was the training delivery satisfactory?

Very good. Excellent. Yes - very useful to have slides hand-out and worksheets to try after the workshop. Good - although acoustics and light levels did slightly affect the quality of the delivery. Yes, but acoustics not very good - couldn't hear some of the speakers. Microphones next time? Yes useful mixture of lecture and small group sessions. Yes, really good. Yes, apart from the poor sound quality in the room.

c. Did the training event meet your training needs?

Yes very successfully Yes - Web 2.0 is no longer a mystery! Up to a point - would have liked more 'hands on' time. Yes, very helpful & informative & gave me good ideas. Almost - will have to go away & research. I would have preferred a bit more technical training. Gave a background to Web 2.0 - now it's up to me to research and develop.

d. Were the practical sessions beneficial to your learning?

Yes, these are important and well worthwhile. Less beneficial than the talk. Discussions seemed a little slow to get going, perhaps because we were all coming from the same starting point/viewpoint. Very useful - especially notes. Yes, maybe needed more time with hands on. Yes very good to have on-to-one support. Yes - gave me an opportunity to explore and try the various sites. Gave short opportunity to look at different sites which will pick up back at work. Absolutely. Yes - the best part of the day.

Any other Comments?

Particuarly enjoyed practical example of Wolverhampton Art Gallery. It would have been good to engage in a bit more active learning - ie contributions to Wikis rather than just looking and thinking. More visuals would have been appreciated - ie to prompt discussions etc,. Good balance of theory and practical application. Speakers helpful and knowledgeable. Nice lunch! Microphones might be useful as I am slightly hard of hearing. Thanks very much for inviting me, it was really good to share our experiences and learn from others.

Training Event Learning Outcomes

a. What did you learn from the training event today?

Gained greater understanding of Web 2.0 applications. The wide range of Web 2.0 technologies. Different Web 2.0 applications and how/ why they are used. Examples of using Web 2 in practical sessions. Increased confidence in the subject area. Clarified a lot about new web technologies - learnt lots of new extremely useful resources on the web. What Web 2.0 is and how it can be used. And that it's not as technical as I thought it would be. How much more Web 2 stuff there is than I first thought. A very thorough intro to Web 2.0. Useful websites to look at & experiment with - more confidence to do so. New ideas, clarifications of different web 2 tools. What Web 2 is and how it can be applied & egs, of possibilities How to use social networking tools. Relevance, variety and ease of use of various Web 2 technologies. Different types of Web 2 applications which are not frightening Even though I had heard about ~RSS, Wikipedia previously I have a few ideas to take back to work. Difference between Blogs/Wikis/Social Networking sites. Wikis, wetpaint and other tips. Social Networks. How much we don't know but also a good idea of what to do about it.

b. How will you apply what you have learnt in the workplace?

Update Wikipedia entry and consider setting up a Facebook site for our Community program Investigate further use of these as ways to engage new audiences. Tell colleagues & put images on Flickr & Myspace site for creative consultants. This is always a difficult question to answer because it is often a slow trickle of information that informs development of practice - rather than an immediate change. Raise issues & discuss with colleagues. Create a Wiki/look into RSS feeds/check blogs and bookmaking. Definitely will try using Facebook and RSS sites. Not sure - maybe Wikipedia entry. Cascade to colleagues & look at the different technologies. Feedback to colleagues, making training materials available. Go through all trans exercises, look at Wikipedia, assess value of entries on Facebook/MySpace. Report back to management team, see if can move over to Wikis & blogs. Investigate del.icio.us for department. Actually using the Web 2 tools Policy training and development Explore using Wiki as a project planning tool, apply RSS feeds to my PC. I will definitely investigate a few tools, RSS, Wikis. Will be creating a Facebook Account for specific library events (eg National Year of Reading) & exploring Wikis for staff communication. Brief colleagues on the content of the course Set up a Wetpaint group. Cascade & discuss with colleagues. Brief colleagues on the content of the course and develop a plan of action.

c. Which issues raised in the training event do you feel will benefit you the most once you return to your workplace?

Hearnig about certain sites to use. Communications tools. Copyright issues - can look into licensing/targeting 'lazy social' audience effectively. Ideas around engaging specific audiences and also use of 'tagging' in cataloguing. Making more people aware (ie IT support staff) of the benefits. Planning ahead & fitting Web 2 into Corporate Strategy. Suggestions to start blog with other librarians, another place to make information& training materials available. How to use various tools, idea. Need to look at future planning & how can incorporate Web 2. Need for awareness & basic hands-on knowledge of Web 2. Planning, communicating RSS, Wikipedia, Googlemaps. Staff awareness & senior management support. The real need to engage with the younger generation. and our future audience.

d. If you feel you require any further training information or advice please state here:

Would like to keep up to date with all future training, interested in more web based training: RSS/podcasting. Follow on with more 'hands on' training - but this is something I can do myself just by trying the sites. Further training may be required on specific web technologies but this will depend on which ones we decide to use.

Any Other Comments:

• A very worthwhile event & worth repeating for our colleagues.
• Difficult to hear first question and answer session.
• Glad to see that everyone else has similar problems with corporate IT Although depressing at the same time. Likes the idea of setting them a challenge and getting them to set things that way. Would like to see the Wetpaint Wiki set up in advance of this event continue, as a way for people to keep in touch and share tips.
• Sound quality in the environment was very poor - it was very difficult to hear the Q & A session.
• The large room we did most of the day in had very poor sound quality. I don't have a hearing problem but I was seated at the back and really struggled to hear.