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LiBRARIAN AT LARGE
Librarians as Teachers

The old perception of librarians behind a desk checking out books has gone the way of the slip pasted on the back cover of books they used to stamp the date on. The librarian of today is a teacher.

Librarians Sarah Blakeslee and Kris Johnson’s primary assignment is library instruction. Almost all other librarians are involved in teaching in some way—and that is sessions for classes held in the Library Education Room and drop-in workshops and seminars. Last year we taught 325 class sessions with more than 6,500 students attending and 45 workshops and seminars for more than 500 students and faculty.

Ten years ago, tours of the library were typical; today the focus of instruction is the Library ReSEARCH Station and other Internet-related instruction. The most effective library instruction is directly related to course assignments. We encourage faculty members to send us copies of relevant assignments in order to present the best sources and examples in class. To schedule library instruction, visit www.csuchico.edu/lins/forms/classres.html or call Dorcas Erickson at x6361.

At this point of the semester, we have completed the drop-in workshops on the Library ReSEARCH Station and Finding Journal Articles, but workshops about Doing Research on the World Wide Web, Electronic Books, and Preparing for a Job Interview will be offered in October. A complete schedule can be found at www.csuchico.edu/lins/tours/workshops.html.

Another form of direct instruction occurs at the Reference Desk, where we try to teach people research skills in the process of answering their questions. Sometimes people feel shy about asking a “stupid” question, or express embarrassment that they don’t know how to do something. The only truly stupid questions are the ones you need answers to but never ask, so please don’t hesitate to seek assistance. There are “stupid answers,” though, which are typically a result of misunderstanding the question. If you get what seems like a stupid answer, please rephrase your question.

Indirect instruction consists of creating online and printed guides that people can use to teach themselves. These include an online library tour, Chico RIO (Research Instruction Online), and specific guides for a wide variety of classes in 10 different subject areas. They are posted at www.csuchico.edu/lins. Online Curriculum Support Librarian James Tyler works directly with teaching faculty to help develop library-and-information related tools and courseware for classes, particularly distance education. He also serves as a liaison between the library and the Technology and Learning Program. For Digital Media Resources and Services, see www.csuchico.edu/lcmt/dmb.

Steering the correct path through a research library or across the Internet can be tricky. We’re here to help you head in the best direction.

Jim Dwyer, Library Collection Management