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Embedded Librarianship: Librarian and Faculty

Perspectives

SLA 2015 Annual Conference, Boston

Marcela Y. Isuster, Tara K. Fitzpatrick, Catherine Fahey, Nancy C. Dennis, Robert E. Brown, Tiffany G. Chenault, Linda J. Coleman

Unique perspectives from faculty and librarian

personal experiences

Evolution of embedded librarianship in a variety of

disciplines

Intersection with current best practices

Overview

Embedded librarianship…

…involves focus on the needs of one or more

specific groups, building relationships with

these groups, developing a deep

understanding of their work, and providing

information services that are highly

customized and targeted to their greatest

needs.

Shumaker & Tally 2009

“Embedding requires more direct and purposeful interaction than acting in parallel with another person, group, or activity.”

Dewey 2004

Business

One of the benefits of

doing a continuous

collaboration is the ability

to assess, change, and

evolve.

Overall, this has evolved into a

true co-teaching, collaborative

effort and program, which is a

thread throughout the course

and class.

Sociology

Unique opportunities for

experimentation and teachable

moments are a result of ample class

time and the in-depth knowledge

of student needs and course

content I am able to acquire only

through embedded librarianship.

Our collaboration continues to

help students understand the

link of “inequalities” and the

importance of assessing

information to understand

sociology and the global world

that they live in.

Communications

Embedded librarianship is an evolving

relationship. It is not something that you

can jump into, there has to be a gradual

buildup, and you cannot go into a one-

shot session expecting that it will

develop into a co-teaching embedded

experience. At the same time, you have

to be open to the possibility.

Were I University Czar, I would form

a commission to rewrite librarian

contracts to capitalize on the

barely realized opportunities for

teaching and learning across the

university campus.

Benefits

Going beyond the discipline

Writing for social media & media literacy

Informational inequalities

Cultural intelligence & sensitivity

Faculty-librarian relationship

A robust faculty-librarian partnership can enhance

instruction. Cassidy and Hendrickson 2013

Unique insight into what each other does and how it

helps students.

New opportunities

Assessment

Instruction techniques

Wikipedia Education Program

Beneficial for students

“Co-teaching is an iterative process,

and each class affirms the instructional

goals to explain and highlight the

interplay of conducting research and

producing research.”

Garson and McGowan 2010

Best Practices

The key to a successful embedded course

experience lies in the strength of the faculty-

librarian partnership.

For embedded librarianship in a course to be

effective, there must be collaboration,

communication, and trust between faculty

and librarian.

Librarians must assert themselves and

take an active role in the course. While

faculty are usually the ones who initiate

the process, it is only by establishing an

equal and reciprocal collaboration that

these experiences thrive.

Meulemans and Carr 2012

Embedded librarians should strive to

become immersed in the culture and

spaces of users and offer convenient

and user-friendly services outside library

settings.

Kvenild and Calkins 2011

Embedded librarianship is a unique form of

collaboration available to faculty and librarians—the

fact that it is constantly evolving means it is adaptable

for anyone who wants to try it to make it their own.

Final thoughts

References Cassidy, Erin Dorris, and Kenneth E. Hendrickson. 2013. Faculty–librarian micro-level

collaboration in an online graduate history course. The Journal of Academic Librarianship 39 (6): 458-463.

Dewey, Barbara I. 2004. The embedded librarian: Strategic campus collaborations.

Resource Sharing & Information Networks 17 (1):5-17.

Garson, Deborah S. and Eileen McGowan. 2010. Collaboration as a model: Co-teaching a graduate course. Information Outlook 14 (1):17-21.

Kvenild, Cassandra and Kaijsa Calkins. 2011. Embedded Librarians: Moving

beyond one-shot instruction. Chicago: ACRL.

Meulemans, Yvonne Nalani and Allison Carr. 2012. Not at your service: Building

genuine faculty-librarian partnerships. Reference Services Review 41 (1):80-90.

Shumaker, David and Mary Talley. Models of embedded librarianship: Final report. Special Libraries Association Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, June 30, 2009.