Reference:Reference:The Tried, True and NewWebJunction WebinarMay 15, 2014

Vanessa Irvin Morris, M.S.L.S., Ed.D.Assistant Teaching ProfessorCollege of Computing & InformaticsDrexel University, Philadelphia, PA Email: vmorris@drexel.eduSocial media brand: vanirvinmorris

Reference: The Point

“Every experience is the answer to a reference question.” – Vanessa Irvin Morris.

Literacy Studies

Critical Theory

PractitionerInquiry

Reference = many experiences

Source: 21stcenturylibrary.com

Reference: “The Rub”

The Librarian The Patron

“The Rub”• what we understand about one another

• what we misunderstand about one another

• what we learn from one another

There’s an information literacy action going on here as we learn what we NEED to know about one another in order to learn what the answer is to the question, based on how life experience informs our understandings.

Conceptual Framework

• figured worlds via Bartlett & Holland, 2002

• literacy artefacts (“the rub”) via Brandt & Clinton, 2002

• literacy events (Heath, 1986)

“The Rub” = Information Literacy (kinda)

Source: Enders & Brandt, 2007.

Reference: The Goal

0What is the goal of reference that makes it a timeless professional virtue and practice?0 Helping patrons access, learn,

and use the information they need

0Easily0Quickly0Accurately

0 Regardless of technology

Reference: The PurposeThe Rochester Public Library, MN seeks a dynamic, creative and enthusiastic Reference/Web Librarian who has a passion for technology, teaching, and public services. The successful candidate will possess outstanding customer service skills, superior talent for teaching adults in a classroom setting, the ability to create engaging content for the library's online presence, and exceptional skills for locating and providing information for the public.

Responsibilities of the position include providing reference service to adults at the Reference Desk and online, creating, presenting and evaluating programs for adult learners, exploring and implementing web/mobile technologies, helping to maintain the library's website, provide engaging social media content, and other duties as assigned.

The Reference Division of Rochester Public Library cultivates a desire for knowledge, an interest in creative pursuits, a lifelong love of books and a sense of community. The Reference Division aims to be a destination in the community by providing outstanding library experiences through community engagement, creativity, interactive programs and activities, technology, well-rounded materials collections and excellent information services.

RPL, a division of the City of Rochester, MN, is a very busy downtown library and bookmobile (approximately 600,000 visits per year, over 1.6 million items checked out and the busiest bookmobile in the state of Minnesota). RPL serves the City of Rochester, Olmsted County, and visitors from all over the world.

For more information or to apply see http://www.rochestermn.gov/departments/hr/jobs/openings.asp

Contemporary Qualities0Passion:

0 Technology0 Teaching0 Public services

0Customer service skills0Superior talent for teaching adults in a classroom

setting0The ability to create engaging content for the

library's online presence0Exceptional skills for locating and providing

information for the public

Contemporary Qualities

0Tried and True:0 Customer service skills0 Exceptional skills for locating and providing

information for the public

0Tried and New:0 Superior talent for teaching adults in a classroom

setting0 The ability to create engaging content for the

library's online presence

Reference: Tried and True0 Old School, Traditional literacy practices

0 Texts in print0 Books (non-fiction and fiction)0 Pamphlets0 User guides0 Workbooks0 Children’s books

0 Audio materials0 Books on tape0 DVD audiobooks0 ESL materials

0 Visual materials0 Video0 Books made visual (read-alouds, storytelling, etc.)

Reference: Tried and True

0The Reference Desk0 Framed around “the reference interview”:

0Patron’s Question0 personal interests0 information need

0Librarian0 skilled interviewer0 socially accessible 0 culturally competent

0Reference Desk0 as a social interface

0Beyond the Desk0 Framed around “Roving reference”

0Requirements:0 Going to patrons0 Staying “on the floor”0 “Meeting patrons where they are”

Reference: Tried and True

0 Beyond Library Walls0 Framed around the idea of “outreach”

0Requirements:0 Leaving the library

0 Bookmobiles0 Schools0 Festivals, Cultural events0 Malls

0 Utilizing other technologies such as:0 Telephone0 Virtual reference0 Online chat0 Videoconferencing0 Email

Reference: Tried and True

Reference: Tried and True

0Considerations:0 The ALA/RUSA guidelines for reference service are

problematic in some areas:0Guidelines do not take diverse

cultural norms/nuances into account0 Eye contact0 Body language0 Meeting mainstream American

norms with various sub-cultural norms

Reference: True and New

0 Google – why we frontin’?0 Use it as a teaching tool0 Show patrons how to use

the language of Google0 Wikipedia – why we frontin’?

0 Use it as a teaching tool0 Show patrons how to use

the nuances of Wikipedia0 Also, use these platforms to introduce users to more of

what’s available for online search:0 Other search engines (such as Bing, Yahoo!, and Dogpile)

Reference: True and New

0 Blended reference (Phillips, 2014)0 Traditional: librarians at the desk0 Phone: librarians in a call center0 Roving: librarians greetings patrons,

checking in with patrons with technology in-hand0 Mobile: librarians answering questions via text and social

media0 What does it mean to combine all these approaches?0 We’ve become multi-tasking digital librarians …

Whether we like it or not, whether we want to be or not

Reference: True and New0What does it mean to be mobile as a librarian?0Reference via social media:

0 Facebook0What are we doing on there?

0 Twitter0How are we tweeting reference?

0 Pinterest0How does pinning play into reference?

0What about “tried and true” outreach?0 To connect with people face to face?0 Are we still doing this?0 What are some new, blended approaches to our traditional

mobile reference work?

Image credit: University of Bolton (UK)

Reference: True and New0The savvy reference librarian

0 Books 0Print0eBooks

0 Email0 Online chat0 Blogging0 Web design0 Digital libraries

0Databases0Open source0Web-based0Virtual reality platforms Photo credit: Martin Schwalbe

Photo credit: Lisa Billings/Freelance, c/o chronicle.com

Reference: Boiling Point0What is all boils down to:

0 Good, relevant, accurate information

service0Meeting the patron’s information needs0 Igniting the patron’s sense of wonder and

respect for their own curiosity, knowledge, and desire for lifelong learning

0 Promoting, teaching information literacy practices0 Accepting the multimodal framework for reference

services today, which includes:0 Information literacy models0Cultural competency approaches0Practitioner Inquiry practices

Reference: Always New0 Our purpose, as librarians,

is timeless via:0 ALA Code of Ethics0 Our library’s mission statements0 A visible conceptual framework0 Librarians maintaining traditional

practices in light of “new” technologies and trends …0… as lifelong readers0… as lifelong researchers0… as lifelong learners

0 Of literature0 Of research0 Of the human condition

References0 ALA/RUSA. (2014). Guidelines for behavioral performance of reference

and information service providers. Available: http://bit.ly/1ijQbGQ 0 Barton, D. & Hamilton, M. (2005). Literacy, reification and the dynamics

of social interaction. In Barton, D. & Tusting, K. (eds.) Beyond communities of practice: Language, power and social context. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.

0 Cochran-Smith, M. & Lytle, S. (2009). Inquiry as stance: Practitioner research in the next generation. Practitioners Inquiry. NY: Teachers College.

0 Doyle, B. (2012, December 14). The library’s timeless purpose. Public libraries online. Available: http://bit.ly/1gyB8bI

0 Kern, M. (2014). The reference landscape: Public and Academic, Live and Virtual, New and Old. ILA Reporter, 32(2), 16-17.

0 Leckie, G.J. & Given, L.M. & Buschman, J.E. (eds.). (2010). Critical theory for library and information science: Exploring the social from across the disciplines. Libraries and Information Science Text. Santa Barbara, CA: Libraries Unlimited.

0 Phillips, N. (2014). Reference renovation. ILA Reporter, 32(2), 12-15.

Note: All images in this presentation are credited via Google Images, unless otherwise noted.