Discovering Literacies, Pedagogy, and Philosophy

In this section, you will find articles and books that introduce and combine literacy, pedagogy, philosophy, and theory for the LIS profession.

Allan, Barbara. 2016. Emerging Strategies for Supporting Student Learning: A practical Guide for Librarians and Educators. London: Facet Publishing.
ISBN: 978-1783300709 Link to UNT Record.

Allan presents a variety of different theories, teaching approaches, and learning styles that are shaping the “current higher education landscape.” She examines how these facets can be used within the library to enhance information instruction. Her aim is to present this information in a way that assists librarians with “designing, developing, and evaluating” their courses and teaching methods to impact student learning. 

Anderson, Karen and Frances A. May. 2010. “Does the Method of Instruction Matter? An Experimental Examination of Information Literacy in the Online, Blended, and Face-to-Face Classrooms.” The Journal of Academic Librarianship 36, no.6: 495-500.
DOI: 10.1016/j.acalib.2010.08.005 Link to UNT Record. 

Anderson and May present their field research on the “effectiveness of delivery methods in information literacy instruction.” The authors explore face-to-face, online, and blended learning instructional formats to discover which method(s) impact “students’ retention of information literacy skills.” Their results aim to support an “inclusive model of information literacy.”

Brecher, Dani and Kevin Michael Klipfel. 2014. ”Education Training for Instruction Librarians: A Shared Perspective.” Communications in Information Literacy 8, no. 1: 43-49.
DOI: 10.15760/comminfolit.2014.8.1.164 Link to Item.

Brecher and Klipfel reflect on the lack on pedagogical training many librarians do not receive during their time in library school. They argue that teaching and “instructional pedagogy” are “essential” components to library education for incoming academic librarians. They present methods for library students and current professionals to begin developing a better “understanding of instructional pedagogy…to improve their practice as teaching librarians.” 

Cook, Douglas. 2008. “Why Should Librarians Care About Pedagogy?” Cook and Sittler. 1-19.
Link to Reference.

Cook extrapolates on two pedagogy that are discussed through this anthology. These theories are direct instruction and student-centered learning. In this opening essay, he provides librarians with an understanding of why pedagogical exploration and methodology are important to the library profession. He argues that choosing pedagogical methods affects how students learn. 

Cossette, André. (1979) 2009. Humanism and Libraries: An Essay on the Philosophy of Librarianship. Translated by Rory Litwin. Minnesota: Library Juice Press.
ISBN: 9781936117178 Link to UNT Record.

Cossette presents a simple, systematic philosophy of librarianship to highlight the intrinsic rationality of library work, illuminate the “contradictions” in our practice, and enlighten the “consequences” of how we approach or fail to approach our work. Cossette argues that “without a philosophical foundation, we lack a basis for making decisions regarding how to change our institutions in response to external forces, with the result that we do not play the role that we should in decision-making” (Litwin 2009). It assist with communicating our importance to our constituents and solidifies our work within the context of our institution who fail to recognize the ways on which we support academic discourses and how our professionals are intellectual partners. Cossette reasons that our profession is not best suited to scientific structures as these structures disrupt our devotion to our values, especially those of humanism and service, and “fragment[s]” our purpose, our solidarity, with each other between the types of work that we do within the library profession. A philosophy of librarianship is the only way that we can un-silo our profession.

Hensley, Merinda Kaye and Stephanie Davis-Kahl. 2017. Undergraduate Research & the Academic Librarian: Cases Students and Best Practices. Chicago: ACRL.
ISBN: 9780838989098 Link to UNT Record

Hensley discusses how undergraduate research is a high-impact academic practice of the undergraduate experience according to George Kuh and ACRL. Undergradaute level research connects student interests with academic core, increases learning, and furthers their writing and academic progress. However, the library and instruction from librarians are often missing in the research infrastructure. Hensley explains services and cross-departmental collaborations that librarians can use to intervene in the research process and increase the success of undergraduate researchers. Complier’s Note: Added in 2018 for second edition of annotated bibliography.

Hodge, Megan. 2015. “Pedagogy for Librarians.” In Skills to Make a Librarian: Transferable Skills Inside and Outside the Library, edited by Dawn Lowe-Wincentsen, 155-174. Cambridge, UK: Chandos.
DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-08-100063-2.00014-4 Link to UNT Record.

Hodge makes notes that if courses on pedagogy are offered in a library school program, then they are traditional presented as electives. Due to the infrequency of their availability and/ or lack of requirement, librarians who find themselves in teaching roles have to learn to the job. Instruction sessions then often just scratch the surface because librarians do not know how to make the most of their limited time with students. What activities and assessments manage to create for their short classes also fail to impart deep learning on student. Hodge explains some basic, digestible, and useful pedagogies that can be used to create “instructional repertoires.” 

Mackey, Thomas P. and Trudi E. Jacobson. 2014. Metaliteracy: Reinventing Information Literacy to Empower Learners. Illinois: American Library Association. 1-31.
ISBN: 9781555709891 Link to UNT Record.

Mackey and Jacobson discuss the ways in which librarians can seek to tie literacies together to form a cohesive praxis of approaching learning and literacy issues. They aim at identifying how new technologies can disrupt information literacy because they make grasping the larger context of literacy and learning more difficult. They examine theories that can be used to stich the literacies together within the fabric of praxis to develop an overarching idea of metaliteracy. 

Jankowska, Maria A., ed. 2012. Focus on Educating for Sustainability : Toolkit for Academic Libraries. Sacramento: Library Juice Press.
ISBN: 9781634000048 Link to UNT Record.

The contributors to this text share best practices, cases studies, and activities that aim to establish a library network focused on advancing learning for sustainability. Complier’s Note: Added in 2018 for second edition of annotated bibliography.

Spencer, Lynn Gullickson, Leanne VandeCreek, and H. Stephen Wright, eds. 2013. The Psychology of Librarianship. Sacramento: Litwin Books.
ISBN: 9781634000406 Link to UNT Record.

In addition to chapters on librarian stereotypes and self-image, the editors examines the psychology frameworks with librarianship. They explore the Myers-Briggs as an indicator of employee motivation, critical information literacy as a social psychological perspective; the use of prospect theory as a cognitive tool, and reconsidering reference for a generation without boundaries. Complier’s Note: Added in 2018 for second edition of annotated bibliography.