Convocation Fall 2022: Research and Instruction

Academic libraries are confronting a myriad of challenges, including consequences stemming from the pandemic, the changing demographics of student bodies, and the financial obstacles that many students are struggling to overcome. What's needed is practical guidance on how to effectively serve students' needs amidst rapid change. The contributors in this collection share several approaches to bolstering their success, with guidance that can be tailored to your own institution. Inside, you'll learn about   methods for reimagining learning and interactive programming during times of disruption; using technology to provide personalized support for vulnerable students, from free wifi hotspots to inclusive programing; promoting data skills through a makerspace; facilitating information access and STEAM learning for first-generation students; ensuring accessibility for rural community college students; responding to challenges brought about by systemic racism and COVID-19; impactful mentoring; expanding an open textbook program; supplying laptops for students through an academic/public library partnership; and paid internships and work/study positions for low-income students.

From the moment the pandemic took hold in Spring 2020, libraries and library workers have demonstrated their fortitude and flexibility by adapting to physical closures, social distancing guidelines, and a host of other challenges. Despite the obstacles, they've been able to stay connected to their communities--and helped connect the people in their communities to each other, as well as to the information and services they need and enjoy. Ostman and ALA's Public Programs Office (PPO) here present a handpicked cross-section of successful programs, most of them virtual, from a range of different libraries. Featuring events designed to support learning, spark conversation, create connection, or simply entertain, the ideas here will inspire programming staff to try similar offerings at their own libraries. Showcasing innovation in action as well as lessons learned, programs include COVID-19 Misinformation Challenge, featuring an email quiz, to encourage participants to separate fact from fiction;  weekly virtual storytimes; community cooking demonstrations via Zoom; an online grocery store tour, complete with tips about shopping healthy on a budget; a virtual beer tasting that boasted 80 attendees; socially distanced "creativity crates" for summer reading; an online Minecraft club for kids ages 6 and up; a Zoom presentation about grieving and funerals during COVID, featuring the director of a local funeral home; Art Talk Tuesday, a one-hour, docent-led program;  a virtual lecture on the history of witchcraft, presented by a public library in partnership with a university rare book room, that drew thousands of viewers; "knitting for knewbies" kits for curbside pickup; Songs from the Stacks, an ongoing virtual concert series in the style of NPR's "Tiny Desk"; a pink supermoon viewing party that included people howling at the moon together from their homes on Facebook Live; and many others

Previously named by Library Journal "a terrific resource for instruction librarians at all experience levels," the updated third edition will foster students' critical thinking skills while empowering librarians to become better, more confident teachers. When done right, one-shot library instruction allows you to build solid relationships with faculty while also making positive first impressions with students. Good pedagogy, collaboration with faculty, assessment, and reflection are all imminently possible in the one-shot. So are incorporating the big ideas of the ACRL Framework. This new edition of a trusted resource will guide you in active, student-centered one-shots that connect to courses' learning outcomes. Demonstrated using vignettes that share teaching experiences drawn from librarians and instructors in the field, you'll get succinct, hands-on advice on such topics as why threshold concepts are well suited to one-shot instruction; online instruction-specific engagement strategies and talking points; a one-shot version of curriculum mapping to help you prioritize; quick and easy activities to work into sessions; how to mix and match the three types of instruction best suited to one-shots; losing the list, ditching the script, and other strategies for student-centered teaching; common classroom management mishaps and what to do about them; talking points for the instruction interview; how and when to say no; and 5 ways to use assessment to improve your instructional style.