ILA/ACRL Unconference

3/20/15

Drake University

Des Moines, IA

Unconference

Solution or Sympathy Notes

Faculty ask you to teach their class but don’t visit with you beforehand about what they want you to teach.

• Can ask questions like: where do the students have the opportunity in your class to practice the library skill you are coming to the library to learn?
• Sometimes the struggle is getting the professor to the “so what” question about why they want their students to come into the library. We work so hard with students as they narrow their topics to get to the “so what” or the important idea, but sometimes the professors don’t have the same idea regarding their instruction plans.
• Finding common language to build instruction together; helps get prof. and librarian on the same page and helps get your voice in there when assignments or instruction are being planned
• Asking: what do your students need to accomplish with this assignment? What do your students think they need to do?

Getting faculty buy-in with library instruction

• It takes time (3-4 years or longer) and some “polite pestering” to build relationships
• If you know there are certain times of the semester when assignments come through you can head it off and approach faculty, asking if they think their students may need some assistance
• Faculty can be very protective of their class time; helping faculty see that library instruction and help can get students past big writing milestones, and that they’ll get better outcomes with additional support.
• Language to help students sit up and pay attention to IL instruction: “I’m about to tell you the 4 things you need to complete this paper.”
• Try to head off problems with research or contact a prof whose students have been coming in for extra help (to let them know that their students are coming in, maybe compliment them on their assignment design, and mention that you’d be happy to come and visit with the students sometime or have them come to the library lab to work on the project -- sneak in the IL vegetables that way)
• Build approachability factor with the library, doing outreach and getting to know faculty by visiting offices
• Let faculty and students know your door is always open to help them
• Build to research
• Help faculty understand that students do sometimes appreciate having a refresher if they’ve not been in a library session for a few semesters.
• Show model examples of lessons or classes you’ve worked with
• Help them see that library contact = improved student outcomes

Getting into business courses/business faculty buy-in

• visit with them about assignment expectations, but have had problems getting them to try library instruction
• Polite pestering approach
• Are they having students go beyond finding basic company information to actually understanding, interacting with, resources
• Faculty only says “outside” sources--they don’t necessarily articulate scholarly; students gravitate toward web
• Types of assignments tend to be project-based (business data), foundations, grants, nonprofits that don’t always allow for deeper digging
• Faculty sometimes just assume students already know, but where would they learn skills and critical thinking without having someone teach them?

Pre-instruction planning

• have students fill out a google form before class (instructor can distribute) to get a better idea of student topics
• Stemmed from an instructor having a librarian search student topics on the spot without prior time to presearch or vet the topics

Getting into department meetings as IL outreach? Other ways to make connections with your faculty?

• Wandering hallways and offices to say hi; maybe even being crafty and celebrating various holidays (i.e. Easter baskets, May Day, Halloween etc.)
• showing interest in attending colloquium or other presentations as a way to open dialog
• getting in the loop with schedules: make friends with the departmental assistants/secretaries
• asking to be on the departmental listservs to keep up with departmental issues, or asking assistants to post invites and outreach emails to your target audience via the listserv
• Go to faculty meetings or college meetings to increase visibility
• Reverse trick-or-treating: You go to various buildings on campus with treats (may take several days) to talk with faculty and students, just increase visibility, get ideas
• Chocolate always wins
• Look at faculty’s bio or CV and see if there are resources to share based on their interests
• Congratulate them when they have a new publication released
• Let them know you’re seeing their students in the library
• Use language that faculty understands rather than librarian jargon--helps them better connect what we do to their needs
• work with other constituents on campus to spread the love (i.e. thank the writing center when they send students over or keep in the loop with other student services around campus so they know what you do and when they can send students your way, and when you can send students their way). Reciprocate