One Small Thing

I had an instruction session this week. Just one. It may not sound like that big of a deal, but it was one of the best sessions I've ever had.

I don't do nearly as much instruction as I did at Ye Olde University. Why? A bunch of reasons. But what I do little of is general instruction, and by that I mean a general intro to the library for a lower-level class. And after working with upper-level students who are in the thick of their majors, working with freshman and sophomores can be though.

I wasn't supposed to teach this class. It fell in my lap because the person who normally would've taken it was on sabbatical and his back-up was at a conference. It was easier for me to take it than to find someone else to.

So, I grumbled and mumbled and got ready. It was on a topic I didn't know much about, so it forced me to think outside my normal search mode. I began to develop a game plan. But just thinking about the basic, this-is-a-database, this-is-the-catalog crap just made me sad. I wasn't looking forward to it.

In the midst of all this, I had to meet with a consultant brought in to talk about this, that, and whatever. Also not something I was looking forward to. But you know what? It was awesome. She was a English professor who had worked closely with the librarians at her university and was very interested in the ERIAL (Ethnographic in Research Illinois Academic Libraries) Project. This lead to a broader discussion about the difference between information literacy and academic literacy and the role of the library in both. She talked about what she learned from the librarians she worked with. When she teaches students how to research, she starts in Google, because that is where her students start.

I'd heard this before, but had never really thought about it. And while I usually do instruction sessions totally off the cuff, doing something new without planning is weird, and it can be a complete disaster. But really, is starting an instruction session in Google really all that weird? No. But some professors would scoff at it, because, you know, it's Google.

When I walked into the instruction session I told the instructor I wanted to try something new--I wanted to start in Google and go from there. Her response: "I love it. It's organic."

In fifty minutes, I talked about developing a thesis statement and how we had people in the library to help them work through this stage. Then I started searching in Google. We evaluated sites. We went to the Wikipedia. We did an advanced search. I showed them the page I created for their class. I showed them the databases, the catalog, our consortia catalog, and how to use one book or article to find others on a similar topic. We ended in Google Scholar where I showed them how to find sources they find there in the library's databases and print collections. And along the way, everything lined up and one search led to something else that turned into something else.

One small change in my normal process changed the entire course. The students paid attention and they took notes. I felt like I had made a difference by giving them a teeny intro into research and how not only how to find things they needed but how to interpret what they need.

And it was awesome.