The Fortuitous Teacher: A Guide to Successful One-Shot Library Instruction

By Sarah Cisse

The Fortuitous Teacher: A Guide to Successful One-Shot Library Instruction discusses how librarians have become accidental teachers in the academic university setting. It covers how (if at all) librarians are prepared by MILS programs to teach, compares typical characteristics of teachers versus librarians, and presents tactics on how to learn effective teaching skills on the job. In addition, readers will learn about the history of library instruction, the different types of library instruction, and the dynamics of one-shot library instruction, classroom culture, faculty buy-in, and collaboration.

• Examines how MILS programs prepare librarians to teach
• Compares the typical characteristics of effective teachers and librarians
• Offers advice for new academic librarians who take on the role of classroom teacher
• Explores future trends in library instruction and how to apply this to one-shot instruction sessions

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Release date: Mar 3, 2016
• ISBN: 9780081002407

Sarah Cisse

Sarah Cisse is a Reference Librarian at the Alvin Sherman Library Research and Information Technology Center at Nova Southeastern University. She received her MILS at Pratt Institute in 2005. Sarah began her library career at the Metropolitan College of New York as an Information Specialist. Previous experience includes positions as Information Assistant in the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology-SUNY, and as Records Manager at the NYC Department of Consumer Affairs. Sarah also holds a B.A. in English Literature and an A.A.S. in Advertising and Marketing Communications.

Book preview

The Fortuitous Teacher

A Guide to Successful One-Shot Library Instruction

Sarah Cisse

Nova Southeastern University, USA

Table of Contents

Cover image

Title page

Series Page

Copyright

Dedication

About the Author

Preface

Chapter 1. The Academic Librarian as Teacher

1.1. Traditional and Changing Roles of the Academic Librarian

1.2. How Do Library Science Programs Prepare Academic Librarians to Teach?

1.3. Gaining Practical Teaching Experience

1.4. Characteristics of Teachers Versus Librarians

1.5. The Teaching Librarian

Chapter 2. Academic Library Instruction

2.1. The History of Library Instruction

2.2. Types of Library Instruction

2.3. Academic Library Instruction Today

2.4. One-Shot Library Instruction: How Is It Unique?

Chapter 3. Gaining Faculty Buy-in

3.1. The History of Faculty–Librarian Collaboration

3.2. The Importance of Faculty Collaboration

3.3. Winning Strategies for Gaining Faculty Buy-in

3.4. Planning Instructional Sessions With Faculty

Chapter 4. Assessing Classroom Dynamics

4.1. Preparing for One-Shot Instruction Sessions

4.2. Penetrating the Academic Classroom Culture

4.3. Showtime: Setting the Tone

4.4. Strategies for Engaging Student Interest

4.5. Partnering With Faculty During Instruction Sessions

4.6. Developing Classroom Management Skills

Chapter 5. Practical Tips for Successful One-Shot Instruction

5.1. Advice From Other Academic Librarians

5.2. Creating Successful One-Shot Instruction Sessions

5.3. Assessment: Building on Success

5.4. What’s Next? The Future of Effective Library Instruction

Conclusion

Index

Series Page

Chandos Information Professional Series

Series Editor: Ruth Rikowski

(email: [e-mail])

Chandos’ new series of books is aimed at the busy information professional. They have been specially commissioned to provide the reader with an authoritative view of current thinking. They are designed to provide easy-to-read and (most importantly) practical coverage of topics that are of interest to librarians and other information professionals. If you would like a full listing of current and forthcoming titles, please visit www.chandospublishing.com.

New authors: We are always pleased to receive ideas for new titles; if you would like to write a book for Chandos, please contact Dr Glyn Jones on [e-mail] or telephone [phone].

Copyright

Chandos Publishing is an imprint of Elsevier

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The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, OX5 1GB, UK

Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Details on how to seek permission, further information about the Publisher’s permissions policies and our arrangements with organizations such as the Copyright Clearance Center and the Copyright Licensing Agency, can be found at our website: www.elsevier.com/permissions.

This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright by the Publisher (other than as may be noted herein).

Notices

Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become necessary.

Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.

To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress

ISBN: 978-0-08-100193-6 (print)

ISBN: 978-0-08-100240-7 (online)

For information on all Chandos Publishing publications visit our website at https://www.elsevier.com/

Publisher: Glyn Jones

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Editorial Project Manager: Harriet Clayton

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Designer: Greg Harris

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Dedication

This book is dedicated to all of the students I have taught, for the many great lessons they have taught me.

About the Author

Sarah Cisse is a Reference and Instructional Librarian II at the Alvin Sherman Library Research and Information Technology Center at Nova Southeastern University (NSU). She received her Master of Information and Library Science (MILS) degree at Pratt Institute in 2005. Sarah began her library career at the Metropolitan College of New York as an Information Specialist. Previous experience includes positions as Information Assistant in the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (MFIT) and as Records Manager at the New York City (NYC) Department of Consumer Affairs. Sarah also holds a B.A. degree in English Literature and an A.A.S. degree in Advertising and Marketing Communications. She has over 15  years of experience in the library science and museum field combined. This includes local and distance instruction, creating online resource tools, program planning, reference, collection maintenance, records management, and cataloging. She has served on several NSU Libraries committees and 3 years on the Southeast Florida Library Network (SEFLIN) conference planning committee.

Preface

This book is about the academic librarian as teacher, how Master of Library Science (MLS) programs prepare academic librarians to teach, and how they gain practical teaching experience on the job. Through collaboration with teaching faculty, the one-shot instruction session remains a fixture in academic library instruction. In light of this reality, academic librarians seek practical tips to create successful one-shot sessions.

Although academic library instruction has a long history, its roots can be traced only as far back as Germany in the seventeenth century. Evidence of library instruction was found at Harvard College as early as the 1820s. However, the history of modern library instruction began in 1876 when Melvil Dewey urged librarians to become educators. Academic librarians in the United States began teaching in classrooms and writing about it in the late nineteenth century. In the 1880s, some academic librarians were already lecturing in the classroom. In fact, between 1876 and 1910, 60 universities were offering library research instruction in various formats.

The term bibliographic instruction (BI) is a relatively modern construct, and its short history as a professional area of concern in the information field spans three decades. The 1970s viewed BI as library orientation; the 1980s saw the development of ideas and methods of bibliographic instruction and a growing trend toward defining BI as a way of teaching patrons how to research resources. During the 1980 and 1990s, librarians reflected on the meaning and complexity of Information Literacy (IL), its competencies, how people learn them, and how they are taught. The concept evolved over those two decades, and, during the 1990s, librarians struggled to understand and communicate the notion, scope, and boundaries of IL. By the new millennium, with the emergence of new information technologies, the development of academic library instruction was greatly impacted. Today, the consensus is growing that IL and its related competencies, such as media and digital literacy, critical thinking ability, ability to engage in lifelong learning, and problem-solving ability, are essential for individual and community empowerment, workforce readiness, and global competitiveness.

The work of the academic instruction librarian has changed drastically over time. Much has been written by librarians themselves about how their job responsibilities have changed since the nineteenth century. The academic librarian of the 1800s was usually a professor, partially responsible for the library. Gradually the image of the academic librarian changed from a service professional simply waiting for questions and giving back searches with minimal input, into one in which the academic librarian is a part of a team of information gatherers, selecting and evaluating information in advance. Despite these major transformations, many still express a need for the role of academic librarian to be regarded as visible, vital, and collaborative within their institutions and the communities they serve.

This book also addresses classroom dynamics and culture, how to gain faculty buy-in, engaging student interest, and practical tips for one-shot instruction sessions. These are all wise considerations for creating successful academic instruction sessions.

Although there are books about academic library instruction and tips for teaching, these volumes do not fully address how current MLS programs are preparing librarians to teach, and specific ways for librarians to gain practical teaching experience. Thus, the book intends to fill a gap in the literature.

The main intention was to produce a book that provides practical teaching advice for new librarians and MLS students, and to provide information about the history and future of library instruction. The book covers pedagogical theory as well as practical advice, with each chapter including a mix of current and future practices in academic library instruction. The target audience includes practitioners, library science students, and those interested in the library science field. The work is designed to have a practical appeal.

I hope that this book will provide useful advice for conducting one-shot instruction sessions, promote an understanding of academic library instruction, and facilitate the creation of successful academic library instruction.

Sarah Cisse,     Fort Lauderdale, USA

August 2015

Chapter 1

The Academic Librarian as Teacher

Abstract

The role of the academic librarian has changed from traditionally static to one in which change is constant. Within these changes, instruction has become an essential aspect of this role. Teaching has become an important part of what librarians do. Library science programs today prepare librarians to teach at varying levels, from no preparation at all to the provision of practical experience along with pedagogical course work. In light of this current reality, academic librarians must find ways to gain teaching competence through on-the-job experience, as well as continuing education. They are forced to define their position in relation to faculty instructors within the academic institution and embrace the role of teaching librarian.

Keywords

Change; Faculty; Instruction; Library school; Roles

1.1. Traditional and Changing Roles of the Academic Librarian

If you ask any academic librarian today, they would most likely agree that the role of the librarian has changed drastically over the last century. Much has been written by librarians themselves about how their job responsibilities have changed over the last two centuries. As early as 1840, Ralph Waldo Emerson encouraged colleges to appoint a professor of books with the statement that a faculty position such as this was urgently needed. In the last three decades of the 19th century, librarians repeatedly referred to this statement as a rationale for library skills and reference instruction (Tucker, 1980).

The academic librarian of the 1800s was usually a professor, partially responsible for the library. This professor may have been chosen for the position because of his or her generalist interests or maybe a natural inclination to teach the use of library materials for academic purposes. However, many of these professor–librarians were being pushed from the teaching role by the responsibility of rapidly growing collections (Hopkins, 1982).

The traditional academic library setting, with book collections all around, has never been seen as comfortable for work or study (Bridges, 2001). The academic librarian is pictured as waiting for questions and giving back searches with minimal input. This image has slowly transformed into one in which the academic librarian is a part of a team of information gatherers, selecting and evaluating information in advance (Helfer, 1997). For a long time the library and information science (LIS) profession has been concerned with its image. In light of major changes in the field of information science, the restructuring of higher education, the increased competition between information providers, and the new conditions under which information organizations operate, the professional librarian’s image is always a concern. In today’s information-driven world, the question of how the library and librarians are perceived is even more significant (Vassilakaki & Moniarou-Papaconstantinou, 2014).

The image of the librarian is inextricably tied to the image of the library. Ellis and Phillips (2013) felt that the library as a physical space has been impacted by social constructivism, which has dictated its role and design as an informal teaching and collaborative learning space on campus. Increasingly, library spaces are being recognized as casual learning spaces which may need to be not only redesigned but also reconceptualized to best meet the needs of students. This has been a primary initiative in many recent library redevelopments, evident in many innovative projects. These projects usually focus on library teaching spaces designed for flexible group work, small-group collaboration, individual study, and formal teaching. Some of these redevelopments have included attempts to transform library service areas from the traditional separate circulation and reference desk to a single service point. Social constructivism has impacted the redesign of student spaces in libraries, but has had less impact on service point design and delivery.

Despite these major transformations, many have expressed a need for the role of academic librarian to be regarded as visible, vital, and collaborative within their institutions and the communities they serve. Academic librarians want to be considered as essential to the enterprise and activities of their organization; as well as valued for their contribution to quality education. Specifically, they recognize the need to create and carry out their role as instructor, which is an increasingly essential part of academic librarianship (Ellis & Phillips, 2013).

Some feel that academic librarians need to move beyond the limiting nature of bibliographic instruction (BI) to a more comprehensive concept of instruction, embracing a much broader and more integrated role compared to the passive nature of reference desk service in which professionals wait for the user to determine the question and then decide to ask it. Beyond the academic reference desk, library instruction has always meant more than simply giving tours of the library or fulfilling faculty requests for instruction of bibliographic sources to a class. Teaching in the academic library included an outreach mind-set, in which librarians determined the various information needs of the user community, designed custom instruction sessions, and presented them in a variety of formats and locations to meet those needs (Creth, 1995).

In 1978, Lynch wrote that the main objective of library instruction has always been to empower users to use libraries effectively throughout their lives. Academic librarians, through library skills programs and instruction, identify objectives and design programs to meet those objectives. Often this can be a frustrating endeavor if the institution itself has not recognized or articulated the goal or objective that the library program is designed to achieve.

These frustrations did not disappear when the variety of instructional formats grew exponentially with the advent of online education and electronic resources. Academic librarians were tasked with motivating and building confidence in students’ ability to effectively use these electronic resources. Academic librarians also had to improve their own skills with computers and electronic resources. In addition, and at the same time, they had to work to minimize technical problems during teaching with electronic resources to reduce negative effects on both student and faculty confidence (Lynch, 1978).

Academic librarians instructing during this time of transition