Abstract
Why is teaching-focused professional development important for librarians? How might participation in a teaching professional development program transform librarians’ understanding of information literacy and empower them in their teaching role? Although teaching information literacy is a primary responsibility for many librarians, evidence indicates that many feel unprepared for teaching and struggle to fully embrace a teacher identity (Baer, 2021; Becksford, 2022; Kirker, 2022). As a result, librarians may have difficulty effectively advocating for information literacy, claiming their expertise as instructional partners, or envisioning new models or methods for teaching information literacy.
In this interactive presentation, we will share preliminary themes and examples from an ongoing qualitative research study focused on evaluating the effectiveness and impact of participation in an open, no-cost, online Teaching Information Literacy Certificate program facilitated by librarians at a major university in the United States. To earn the certificate, librarians attend a series of workshops and submit an application, responding to four reflection prompts about their motivation for participating, what they learned, how they intend to apply their learning to their teaching, and how they will pursue ongoing professional development. Since 2024, more than 240 participants from seven different countries have earned the certificate.
Our study utilizes transformative learning theory to understand certificate recipients' experiences with the program and how they intend to apply their learning. As demonstrated by Nichols Hess (2018), transformative learning theory can be valuable for understanding the process by which librarians can transform their teaching identities. This theory, originally developed by Mezirow (2009), outlines the process by which adult learners undergo "a deep shift in perspective" so that their initial "frame of reference," or understanding of the world and their place in the world, is transformed. To conduct our study, we developed initial codes based on the stages of the transformative learning process, which include identifying experiences that challenge one’s worldview, self-examination of assumptions, and exploration of alternative roles and practices. Participants' application responses are reviewed by each researcher and passages are coded based on alignment with specific stages of the process. Codes are determined by consensus of both researchers. Dedoose is being used to analyze frequencies, code co-occurrence, sub-themes, and patterns related to specific demographic characteristics.
Exploring the transformative nature of teaching professional development provides a better understanding of how to support the continuous development of librarians as teachers, including their identities and their practices. Attendees will be encouraged to consider how the transformative learning process is reflected in their own experiences and what type of support was, or could have been helpful, as they moved through their own teaching transformation(s). We hope this reflection and discussion will help to address some of the current shortcomings in formal learning opportunities that result in "learn as you go" approaches to teaching development. As such, we hope our findings can support librarians in many different roles (including library educators, supervisors, mentors, and individual librarians) to consider how they can empower librarians at different career stages to continue to transform their teaching practices.
References
Baer, A. (2021). Academic Librarians' Development as Teachers: A Survey on Changes in Pedagogical Roles, Approaches, and Perspectives. Journal of Information Literacy, 15(1), 26-53.
Becksford, L. (2022). Teacher, Librarian, or Both? A Quantitative Investigation of Instruction Librarians' Teacher Identity. College & Research Libraries, 83(3), 372-392.
Hess, A. N. (2018). Transforming academic library instruction: Shifting teaching practices to reflect changed perspectives. Rowman & Littlefield.
Kirker, M. J. (2022). " Am I a Teacher Because I Teach?": A Qualitative Study of Librarians' Perceptions of Their Role as Teachers. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 22(2), 335-354.
Mezirow, J. (2009). An overview of transformative learning. In K. Illeris (Ed.), Contemporary theories of learning: Learning theorists…In their own words (pp. 90-105). Routledge.
