Library Thinker Series: If You Had The Time
This post is a part of the Library Thinker Series where we examine some of the larger questions that we struggle with in librarianship and try to come to some insights together.
In the last LTS post there were a lot of enlightening comments. In one thread we got onto the topic of brainstorming and I wanted to carry that idea into this week’s post. In order to begin thinking about the work we do at our library, our director recently prompted us to brainstorm ideas with the question, “if time wasn’t a factor, what would you like to work on?”
Normally time is at a premium for librarians. We have to work reference shifts, teach, go to meetings, etc. But if all those things were taken out of the equation, what is it that you wish you could do?
When I thought about this question, the answer I gave was that I would spend more time learning from and about students. I wish I had time to do focus groups, or conduct usability testing, or sit and observe students’ behaviors. It would be great to ask students about how they use the library and what could be improved. I think we do a decent job paying attention to students and their needs, but I would love to be able to do it in a more thoughtful, structured way.
How about you? The sky is the limit for this question. What would you work on, create, or do if time wasn’t a factor?
I’d love to audit some of the classes in my liaison areas. I do a lot of work with the sociology and criminal justice departments here (I work with anywhere between 8-10 different classes), but don’t have any specific background in these areas. I think I could be so much more effective in my instruction (sometimes multiple class sessions) if I had a better grasp of the content area.
The other thing I’d love to do is teach a section of the Introduction to Research Writing or freshman seminar class. There’s been a push to have non-full time teach faculty (with master’s degrees) to work with the first year seminars. I think it would be fascinating and a great way to make that connection with what students (and faculty) really go through.
As for projects…I’d have to think about it, but one I’m hoping to accomplish with the help of SLIS interns is organizing recent Supreme Court cases by theme/topic/issue at stake. There was a website that used to do it, but it’s been abandoned. We’ve got a minimum of 6 sections of a class doing a speech using that info every semester. Apparently if you want it done right, you’ve got to do it yourself