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Becoming Confident Teachers: A guide for academic librarians

Claire McGuinness, University College Dublin, Ireland

Chandos Information Professional Series

…a sound and satisfying work on teaching librarianship.
College and Research Libraries

McGuinness's work has many strengths.
College and Research Libraries

This book is a goldmine for practical 'how to' tips, but it is also a book that advocates why librarians should become teaching librarians.
IFLA SET Bulletin

 - specifically examines the causes of stress among teaching librarians, zeroing in on recognisable scenarios, which are known to ‘zap’ confidence and increase teacher anxiety among librarians
 - an up-to-date and easily digestible take on the role and responsibilities of the teaching librarian
 - identifies the major trends that are transforming the teaching function within professional academic librarianship
 - offers some reflections from academic librarians who are actively involved in teaching, to give a “real life” perspective
 - focuses on the qualitative ways in which academic librarians can foster their own “teacher identities”, and take ownership of a role for which they may not have been sufficiently prepared

Becoming Confident Teachers examines the teaching role of information professionals at a time of transition and change in higher education. While instruction is now generally accepted as a core library function in the 21st century, librarians often lack sufficient training in pedagogy and instructional design; consequently finding their teaching responsibilities to be stressful and challenging. By exploring the requirements and responsibilities of the role, this book guides teaching librarians to a position where they feel confident that they have acquired the basic body of knowledge and procedures to handle any kind of instructional requests that come their way, and to be proactive in developing and promoting teaching and learning initiatives. In addition, this book suggests strategies and methods for self-development and fostering a “teacher identity,” giving teaching librarians a greater sense of purpose and direction, and the ability to clearly communicate their role to non-library colleagues and within the public sphere.

Readership: Professional and para-professional academic librarians, as well as students of Library and Information Science (LIS), information service managers and researchers.

£47.50 / US$80.00 / €55.00

An e-book version of this title is available to purchase as part of a Collection or Pick n Mix. Visit Chandos Publishing Online

About the author

Claire McGuinness is a part-time lecturer in the School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Ireland. She has been teaching and researching information literacy for more than a decade, and was awarded a PhD. in 2005. Claire has published a number of articles and book chapters on information literacy and academic-librarian collaboration, and has presented her work at several international conferences. Currently teaching two information literacy-oriented modules at undergraduate and postgraduate level, Claire is also a member of the Working Group on Information Literacy of the Library Association of Ireland.

Titles which may also be of interest:
Student Feedback
Enhancing Learning and Teaching through Student Feedback in Engineering
Service Science and the Information Professional
Active Learning Techniques for Librarians
Emerging Technologies for Knowledge Resource Management

Contents

The evolving role of the teaching librarian
 - Teaching librarians and the information literacy revolution
 - Who is the ‘teaching librarian’?
 - Should librarians teach?
 - Teaching librarians – what do academics think?
 - Teaching librarians and professional education
 - Exercises and reflections
 - Notes

Teaching librarians: 10 concepts shaping the role
 - Developing a ‘teacher identity’
 - Reflective practice
 - Developing a personal teaching philosophy and pedagogical knowledge base
 - The virtual learning environment
 - Teaching a diverse student base
 - Information literacy for graduate students and researchers
 - Instructional training for librarians
 - Action research in practice
 - Reinvigorated strategies for collaboration
 - Advocacy – spreading the word
 - Exercises and reflections
 - Notes

Preparing teaching librarians for practice: focusing on the basics
 - What are the basics?
 - Conceptualising information literacy
 - Articulating the educational mission of the library
 - Learning theories
 - Broad learning frameworks
 - Instructional needs assessment
 - Writing goals, objectives and intended learning outcomes
 - Selecting teaching and learning activities
 - Creating effective learning materials
 - Aligning assessment with learning outcomes and activities
 - Promotion and outreach
 - Exercises and refl ections

Confidence-zappers and how to handle them
 - ‘Attendance at our elective information literacy workshops is poor – what can I do to encourage students to sign up?’
 - ‘How can I facilitate active learning with such a large group of students? Is it possible to do more than lecture?’
 - ‘I’m having trouble keeping the students interested in class – they seem bored and unmotivated. Is there anything I can do?’
 - ‘It seems like everyone on campus is using the VLE/CMS for their teaching, and I feel left behind – how can I get started with it?’
 - ‘I have to teach a group of adult learners and I fi nd it intimidating – how can I live up to their expectations?’
 - ‘A lecturer has asked me to give a one-hour session with her class, but no specifi c idea of what she wants me to cover – how can I develop an effective session?’
 - Exercises and reflections

Personal and professional development as a teaching librarian
 - Evaluation of teaching performance
 - Student evaluation of teaching
 - Peer evaluation of teaching
 - Applying for teaching grants and awards
 - Teaching portfolios
 - Refl ective journals and blogs
 - Mentoring
 - Professional learning communities
 - Creating and sustaining communities of practice
 - Publishing in journals and presenting at conferences
 - Exercises and refl ections
 - Note

What librarians think: teaching and learning in the real world
 - Librarians’ work roles, training and involvement in teaching
 - Involvement in teaching networks and communities
 - Teaching grants and awards
 - Librarians’ beliefs about how role is perceived by ‘outsiders’
 - Librarians’ pre-employment role conceptions compared with current role experience
 - Librarians’ confi dence in teaching
 - Librarians’ challenges in the teaching role
 - What do librarians enjoy about teaching?
 - Librarians’ conceptions of ‘good’ teaching
 - Librarians’ additional comments about the teaching role
 - Academic librarians’ experience of teaching: a short survey
 - Notes