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Inspired by a class taken on art librarianship and in considering library design, I’ve been thinking about some of the functions of and metaphors for the academic library. There currently seems to be a tension between the library as provider of books and the library as learning centre or study space, as some libraries seek to reduce the space used for collections in order to increase that available to users, changing from a static information model to a dynamic learning model.
The Library Space
The library as…
- bookshelf
- quiet study space
- learning centre
- cathedral
- living room
- computer lab
- cafe
- gallery
- community gathering and/or social learning space
- fortress
- labyrinth
- digital repository
- virtual space
The Library’s Role
The library as…
- guardian of knowledge
- research guide
- information provider
- innovator and leader
- collaborator
- instructor
- preserver of intellectual freedom
- inspiration
- community builder
- publisher
Others to be added to the list? I wonder what this would look like if written by students, faculty, and other library users.
I’m more excited about teaching now. I had the chance to teach an impromptu class yesterday morning and felt really good about the opportunity. A group of students had come into the library with their professor to start research for an assignment in their political science class. Most had questions on how to get started. I was asked to do a class for them on the spot and it was pretty fun. I’m sure it could have been better with a little planning and time to prepare, but it was great to have another chance to teach in a group setting. I learn something new every time.
As the class started, I did my best to put the students at ease and encourage questions. I also left a bit of time at the end to go around and help them individually if needed. They all had different topics, looking at things like public administration, the 1995 Quebec referendum, or the Clarity Act. The assignment involved finding books, academic journal articles, and news or magazine articles for an essay, so we went over the research methods and resources in political science. As the assignment was in French and the students were bilingual, we covered techniques for finding French as well as English material throughout the class.
I find the bilingual aspect brings new challenges to teaching. Some students speak both languages well, but others have trouble with one or the other. For example, one student clearly spoke and understood French much better than English and seemed to have trouble navigating the library website, which is entirely in English.
One thing that struck me was that no one wanted to sit in the front row. When I walked into the room, all the students were in the middle and back rows, and it reminded me of my student days (very recently) when I did the same thing. It was funny to be on the other side of things, seeing how it looks from the front of the class.
I presented my first “real” library workshop yesterday. Only one student showed up, and she hadn’t actually been planning to come but was directed to the classroom from the reference desk. Because of this she wasn’t particularly interested in the workshop but mostly wanted to find journal articles for her assignment, which I soon realized as I began to go through some of the material I had prepared. I sat down with her and went over the basics of the research process, then we looked at her assignment topic and did some searching.
I had also prepared a wiki for the workshop, as a presentation tool. I received a lot of positive feedback on this from the librarians, who seemed interested in using it as a resource for students.
As a part-time librarian, I’m not (and really can’t be) involved in most of the decisions made at the library. I was told ahead of time that there would be a small audience for this workshop series, which included several other workshops done by different staff members, with similarly low attendance. I’m not entirely sure of the causes of this low turnout and have been considering possible factors.
Despite the low attendance, the process of preparing and presenting was a good experience that gave me ideas for future sessions. I think there’s great potential in teaching, but sometimes I wonder if librarians are working in a bit of a bubble when it comes to student attitudes about the library. Most students don’t seem to know what the library is about or what kind of work we do. Librarians have high ideals for information literacy and its importance, while students mainly want to finish their assignments quickly. Many students aren’t interested in learning what we have to offer and don’t enjoy research. In light of this, how do we plan services that are relevant and inspiring? Here are a few ideas I’ve had:
- designing instructional sessions that are focused to meet students’ learning needs in both content and format
- determining clear goals for workshops and other instructional services, so that these goals can be communicated to students
- evaluating the time, date, location, and format of services to see that they contribute to the established goals
- does the intended audience know about the services available?
As someone in the information field, I’m aware of the potential of the many resources available to students, of the joy of discovery through research and the essential skills to be gained through information literacy. However, if students are disinterested in these topics and aren’t aware of the library’s purpose in these areas, it seems that we’re working underground in a sense, in a separate, more futile space. Is there a mutual learning process that can take place so that students and librarians can work within similar paradigms?
In considering my job options and the transition from school to work, I thought I would compile some useful blog posts, books, and articles on the topic. Many of the posts are from the Re:Generations blog. I’m sure there are many more good resources, but these are the ones I’ve found helpful.
General
Gordon, R. S. (2006). The nextgen librarian’s survival guide. Medford, N.J.: Information Today.
Skills for the 21st Century Librarian
Job Search Process
Resume Tips for New Academic Librarians
Interview Strategies for New Academic Librarians
Some Academic Library Job Interview Observations
Getting Answers to Questions During the Recruitment and Hiring Process
Working as a New Academic Librarian
Tips for New Academic Librarians
New Librarians and Management Roles
Getting Involved - It ain’t easy… Or is it?
If I’d Only Known Then What I Know Now
Landry, A. (2005). Ten must reads for new academic librarians. Reference Services Review, 33(2), 228-234.
Stoddart, R. A., et al. (2006). Going boldly beyond the reference desk: Practical advice and learning plans for new reference librarians performing liaison work. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 32(4), 419-427.
Finally, in keeping a sense of humor, see Annoyed Librarian Tips for New Professionals.
Well, I finished the last course for my MISt degree in August and will have my convocation ceremony in November. I’ve been taking a break from this blog and all other thought, reading, or research on libraries. In truth, my degree left me feeling tired and wanting to avoid any hard work or anything to do with the program I had just finished. There were some experiences and ideas I didn’t get around to writing about during the final semesters, but these topics will come out as I continue to write here. Now that I’ve had some time away, I’m starting to regain my enthusiasm for librarianship and my willingness to think and write.
The library job market here has also been discouraging. I soon realized that there are very few full-time, entry-level jobs available for academic librarians in the Toronto area and that many employers will choose candidates with more experience even for entry-level jobs. As I don’t have the option of relocating for a job, my choices are quite limited. However, I’m very lucky to be working as a part-time librarian in an academic library. I’m able to get more experience at the reference desk, help with collection development, and witness some of the inner workings of the library. I’m excited (and nervous) to be teaching a basic research workshop in a few weeks.
In general, I’ve decided to take advantage of this time away from full-time work and school to develop some of the interests I was forced to put aside during the last two years. I’m also learning to relax again.
As the end of term approaches, and the end of my degree soon after, I find myself more prone to distractions of all kinds. While I enjoy multitasking at times, things like email can also get in the way when I need to be thinking about an assignment. If I allow myself to check my email, chat online, make dinner, start on three assignments, and listen to music at the same time, I won’t have made much progress on the assignments by the end of an evening. But if I remove distractions, I’m more productive. On one hand, I enjoy the online world and like to participate in it. It can be exciting to do three things at the same time. On the other hand, it’s distracting and can cause information overload, preventing in-depth thought on any one topic.
In reading this article in Macleans about quiet time and hearing from colleagues, I think multitasking may also be an issue in the library workplace. A colleague at work explained that when in her office, her attention is often divided between current tasks, email, phone calls, and interruptions from other library staff. However, she can escape these distractions when working from home or on research leave, where she can more easily choose when to read her email or make phone calls. Another librarian, in a guest lecture, talked about having to hide in the stacks to get her research done, while another suggested he couldn’t get any research done in the office but had to work at home instead or arrive early before the day began. This seems to be pretty typical of work in academic libraries, and likely in the workplace in general.
I like the idea of quiet time presented in the Macleans article. It might not need to be a planned time each day, but I can see how removing distractions can help in getting things done that need prolonged thought or concentration, and how it could help us be more creative in the workplace.
A useful book for anyone interested in academic libraries: Musings, Meanderings, and Monsters, Too: Essays on Academic Librarianship. The book contains practical essays on various topics of interest to academic librarians today, from reference to information literacy and library instruction.