Evolution of the health liaison librarian: from information literacy trainer to academic skills teacher

Introduction

In recent years the teaching element of the academic health librarian’s role has become increasingly formalized; no longer perceived as extra-curricular trainers but as valued members of the academic team, some librarians have sought professional accreditation for this aspect of their role, and nearly all have benefited from the wider recognition of the “seven pillars” of information literacy(1).

However, as new systems for information discovery and retrieval are emerging, it is an appropriate time to review the progress we have made and consider the next steps in the development of our teaching role.  Will the emphasis we have hitherto placed on information retrieval and management continue to be appropriate, or is it time to broaden our focus and promote IL as part of a suite of transferrable skills which students need to develop in order to succeed both at university and in their future careers?

Objectives

In recent years UK higher education has seen an increasing emphasis on the skills agenda, driven by several different factors.

Firstly, an era of increased participation in higher education initiated by the New Labour government (1997-2010) has led to an increasingly competitive graduate marketplace where a university degree is no longer enough to get a job; employers are looking for students to demonstrate “employability skills” in areas such as teamworking, problem solving and communication(2).  This is particularly true for health students as many professional codes now emphasise the need for similar competencies.

Secondly the introduction of student fees (and their subsequent trebling from September 2012) have led to a culture where students are demanding to see the value of the investment they have made in their education; making university educators increasingly explicit about the relevance of their courses to life-long learning and evidence-based practice.  

In an ever-expanding information universe, students’ (and future health professionals’) ability to think critically and evaluate sources is more crucial than ever; librarians can enhance their teaching of these principles of information literacy by linking them more closely with related areas such as effective notemaking technique (to avoid plagiarism), mind-mapping (to help plan and structure essays) and academic writing style.

Methods

Wingate argues that “learning how to study effectively cannot be separated from subject content and the process of learning”(4).  To teach IL effectively many librarians have established strong liaison links with their schools; however when students wanted to learn about essay writing they have usually been referred back to their lecturers (or to generic support staff). 

This division between information literacy and other academic skills is a somewhat artificial one, created by librarians as a way of ring-fencing territory and demarcating student support responsibilities rather than being designed from a student’s perspective.

At the University of Leeds, the convergence in 2008 of the Library and Skills Centre presented a unique opportunity to break down these boundaries and offer a more joined-up service.  The Skills Centre already offered a series of generic workshops and a drop-in enquiry service which students accessed either independently or via referral from their department.   While these services have always been favourably evaluated by those students who have accessed them, they could only scratch the surface of an alarmingly high proportion of students who admit finding the academic demands of University more difficult than they expected.

Merging the academic skills unit with the Library and involving the Faculty Teams, gave us the opportunity to deliver learner development which is holistic, integrating information literacy and other academic skills; contextual as it is situated within and informed by the curriculum; and universal: a chance for anyone who is motivated to get better marks in their assignments or increase their employability – rather than a remedial service for those who fail.

This radical evolution of the liaison librarian role would not have been possible without the development of LibTeach, an in-house staff development package designed to equip liaison librarians with the skills and confidence to support a broad range of academic skills.   Through a programme of blended learning comprising practical workshops and e-learning activities, LibTeach has nurtured a community of practice of library teachers who are ready to diversify their teaching to meet the broader learning development needs of the student community.  This presentation will discuss the experiences of participants in, and organisers of, the programme and its impact on our teaching practice. 

Results and discussion

Following the LibTeach programme, all liaison librarians are now offering a range of academic skills teaching.  Expanding the role of the subject librarian in this way at a time of cutbacks raised many questions about workload but through working smarter we have been able to achieve much more with only a modest increase in effort.

An online tutorial has replaced many face-to-face induction lectures; meanwhile librarians have been able to re-use generic materials developed by Skills Team while adding value by giving them context based on their knowledge of the curriculum in the departments where they teach.

Another objective of LibTeach was to help librarians develop confidence in their own teaching practice, and the programme was designed to prepare them for accreditation by the Higher Education Academy; most participants have now achieved Associate Membership and some are already working towards Fellowship.   This has given a boost to staff morale at a challenging time in the sector, and helps to demonstrate to our academic colleagues our commitment to learning and teaching.